Journal profile · ECOLOGY-GEOSCIENCES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY
Polar Science
ISSN 1873-9652 · eISSN 1876-4428 · Elsevier · NETHERLANDS
Polar Science: CAS Zone 4 · Earth Sciences (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.57; hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,570; review about 219 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); 70 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Polar Science is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 4 of Earth Sciences in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Cryospheric studies and observations, Arctic and Antarctic ice dynamics and Climate change and permafrost, together about 34.4% of its articles. Its main subfields are Atmospheric Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Published on behalf of the National Institute of Polar ResearchPolar Science is an international, peer-reviewed quarterly journal. It is dedicated to publishing original research articles for sciences relating to the polar regions of the Earth and other planets. Polar Science aims to cover 15 disciplines which are listed below; they cover most aspects of physical sciences, geosciences and life sciences, together with engineering and social sciences. Articles should attract the interest of broad polar science communities, and not be limited to the interests of those who work under specific research subjects. - Space and upper atmosphere physics - Atmospheric science/climatology - Glaciology - Oceanography/sea ice studies - Geology/petrology - Solid earth geophysics/seismology - Marine Earth science - Geomorphology/Cenozoic-Quaternary geology - Meteoritics - Terrestrial biology - Marine biology - Animal ecology - Environment - Polar Engineering - Humanities and social sciencesThis journal welcomes contributions that support and advance the UN's sustainable development goals, in particular SDG 13, (Climate Action) SDG 14 (Life below water) and SDG 15 (Life on land)
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): ECOLOGY-GEOSCIENCES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY
Editor-in-chief Hiroyuki EnomotoPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 3 in mainland China (about 5%); most named Japan 34, Australia 8, United Kingdom 6, Mainland China 3, United States 3 (61 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Cryospheric studies and observationsEarth and Planetary Sciences12.5%
- Arctic and Antarctic ice dynamicsEarth and Planetary Sciences11%
- Climate change and permafrostEarth and Planetary Sciences10.9%
- Polar Research and EcologyEnvironmental Science7.6%
- Geology and Paleoclimatology ResearchEarth and Planetary Sciences6.9%
- Arctic and Russian Policy StudiesSocial Sciences4.2%
- Marine and coastal ecosystemsEarth and Planetary Sciences3.5%
- Climate variability and modelsEnvironmental Science3.4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Earth Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Earth Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Ecology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geosciences, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Earth Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Earth Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Ecology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geosciences, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Earth Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Earth Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Ecology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geosciences, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 1.57LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 1.7Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 3.5LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 3.5Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.45LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.71LetPub ·
- h-index
- 20LetPub ·
- h-index
- 52OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 448OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.02OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5.9%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 25.41%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 69LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,011 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 44 | 16 | 7 |
| 2025 | 70 | 39 | 109 |
| 2024 | 76 | 59 | 268 |
| 2023 | 63 | 59 | 379 |
| 2022 | 51 | 50 | 337 |
| 2021 | 110 | 108 | 1,108 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Publisher-reported review time from the journal's website
219 dayssubmission to acceptance
The publisher's own definition applies; dates from this journal's articles in the last 24 months are not available yet, so the publisher's figure is used.
Figures by source
- Submission to acceptance
- 219 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 2 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 2,570 / EUR 2,400 / GBP 2,060 / JPY 318,760 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 2,780 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Keywords
- ≥ 3
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Highlights
- Optional
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
Article types accepted4
- full length articleAuthors may specify the category of the paper as either a full length article or a research note, where full length articles are of high originality and researc…Length not stated
- research noteAuthors may specify the category of the paper as either a full length article or a research note, where full length articles are of high originality and researc…Length not stated
- reviewManuscripts will be reviewed by a minimum of two referees and will be considered for publication on the basis of originality of the contribution and the recomme…Length not stated
- review paperThere is also a review paper category, however authorship is by invitation only.Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI in scientific writing
Generative AI use must be declared Model summary
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Author contributions
For transparency, we require corresponding authors to provide co-author contributions to the manuscript using the relevant CRediT roles. The CRediT taxonomy includes 14 different roles describing each contributor's specific contribution to the scholarly output. The roles are: Conceptualization; Data curation; Formal analysis; Funding acquisition; Investigation; Methodology; Project administration;…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interest
Competing interest disclosure required Model summary
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence (bias) their work. Examples of potential conflicts of interest include employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications/registrations, and grants or other funding. Authors should complete the declaration of compe…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' (see more information on this). An e-mail will be sent to the corresponding author confirming receipt of the manuscript together with a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' form or a link to the online version of this agreement.Subscribers may reproduce tables of contents or prepare lists of articles includ…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
Please visit our Open Access page for more information about open access publishing in this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Review Process
Single anonymized review process Model summary
Manuscripts will be reviewed by a minimum of two referees and will be considered for publication on the basis of originality of the contribution and the recommendations of referees and editors. Referees and/or the corresponding editor may request modification/revision of the papers. The acceptance of the paper and its final category is determined by the Editorial Board of Polar Science.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprints can be shared anywhere at any time Model summary
Please note that preprints can be shared anywhere at any time, in line with Elsevier's sharing policy. Sharing your preprints e.g. on a preprint server will not count as prior publication (see 'Multiple, redundant or concurrent publication' for more information).
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- NETHERLANDS
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 1873-9652
- Electronic ISSN
- 1876-4428
- Society / sponsor
- National Institute of Polar Research
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Polar Science
What CAS zone is Polar Science in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Polar Science is in Zone 4 of Earth Sciences, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Ecology / Geosciences, Multidisciplinary. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Earth Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Polar Science?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.57; CiteScore 3.5, h-index 52.
How long does peer review take at Polar Science?
The publisher reports about 219 days (submission to acceptance). Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Polar Science?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Keywords: ≥ 3; Reference style: Author–date; Highlights: Optional; Graphical abstract: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Polar Science based?
Of the 61 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 3 (about 5%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Japan (34), Australia (8) and United Kingdom (6). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Polar Science?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Polar Science is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Polar Science open access, and what is the APC?
Polar Science is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,570.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .