The International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) announced in late February that the IASC Medal for 2011 will be awarded to Professor Martin Jakobsson.

Martin Jakobsson represents a new generation of Arctic scientists for whom multinational and cross-disciplinary science comes naturally. His view that data should be open and accessible for all research is part of his success as illustrated by the wide use of the International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean (IBCAO). This chart is fundamental to understanding of the Arctic, and has been cited in several thousand publications in areas such as oceanography, tectonics and palaeo-climate.