China yesterday launched a nationwide campaign to select 10 college students for an Arctic visit next year. The trip aims to draw greater public attention to China's Arctic research.

The "Embrace the First Ray of Sunshine in the Arctic" trip will provide an opportunity for the students to visit a number of landmarks, including the Svalbard Islands in northern Norway, the Chinese Arctic Yellow River Station and the Norwegian Polar Institute.

"This activity, the first of its kind in China, aims to drive home the message that the public, especially college students, should be more concerned with the relationship between the Arctic, global climate change and human beings," said Yang Huigen, deputy director of the Polar Research Institute of China.

The exploration, co-sponsored by the International Polar Year (IPY) Chinese Committee and the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is part of the international cooperation and exchange activities of the China Program for IPY 2007-2008. It was officially launched in March. It is also the fourth IPY and the first time China has taken part.

The 10 students will be selected after a national online knowledge contest about the polar region and a series of tests for English proficiency and physical and psychological condition.

IPY is an international event during which scientists carry out large-scale, joint scientific activities.

During the IPY, thousands of scientists from more than 60 countries and regions and a wide range of research disciplines, will carry out 220 science and outreach projects.

(Xinhua News Agency, December 11, 2007)