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Monday, 24 December 2007 00:43
Means of navigation have changed dramatically
Written by US-Norway Traverse
Written 23 Dec 2007
3668 meters above sea level
Maximum & Minimum temperatures: - 31 to - 38 °C
An antenna on the roof of each of our vehicles continuously receives signals from several of the twenty-odd satellites of the Global Positioning System (GPS). The time-coded radio signals from the satellites allow for very accurate distance measurements relative to the known positions of the satellites, and thus the position of the vehicles can be calculated instantly with an accuracy of a few meters. A screen shows the driver the bearing and exact distance to the point of destination. Aided by this tool, we can head for a chosen point ahead, perhaps a previous observation site marked by a single aluminum pole, and hit it spot on even after hundreds of kilometers' ...
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Written Sunday 23rd December, 2007
By Margot Foster
Conditions are ideal for the work we are doing. There’s very little wind, a bit of high cloud and the patches of sunshine make it almost balmy at around minus 2 degrees.
The scientific program is in full flight. Overnight the last three moorings were sent to the deep. Very early this morning we were heading through the loose pack-ice to CEAMARC 27 – the first station of the project, (the Collaborative East Antarcticta Marine Census). There are 67 points marked on the map covering the sea between Dumont d’Urville and the Mertz glacier. It’s an ambitious plan to fully sample each of those positions in the coming weeks.
The first equipment out was the epibenthic sled. It sc...
Written 22 Dec 2007
3670 meters above sea level
Maximum & Minimum temperatures: - 28 to - 36 °C
With general coordinates of the abandoned station determined by satellite images of the long-buried packed snow runway, today we stopped at Plateau Station. This was the site of a US science camp from 1966-69, but had not been occupied or visited by any US field team since then.
No one could tell us what evidence of the abandoned station may still exist above the drifting snow. Immediately visible upon our arrival was the tall meteorological tower, still standing solidly above five smaller towers and the top of a flag mast. To our delight, on closer inspection, also immediately visible at snow level was the clear dome of the aurora tower and the top ...
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Sunday, 23 December 2007 06:37
Polarstern: A day with water samples
Written by Polarstern Expedition
Written Saturday, 22 December
A quick cup of coffee, then I am off to work, one flight of stairs down and along a long hallway. The night shift is looking forward to a well deserved time off, I myself sit down in front of the control screens and keep an eye on the sensors in the deep. Every single data point has to be surveyed and protocoled in detail to be suitable for later analysis.
The sondes and water samples come back on deck after their journey through 1,000 m of water. Many steps must be taken now quickly and accurately. The details of the processing depend on the fate of the water from the deep dow...
Written Saturday 22nd December
By Margot Foster
Finally, notes on the ice have made it into the Sitrep. “ICE CONDITIONS: 4/10 loose pack, few icebergs.”
In my cabin the lowered blind has been lit at the edges all night by the sun. I woke disoriented at 0400 by the clunking sound as the metal ship moved through bits of ice and was on the bridge early to watch us glide into the pack at around 0700.
It’s down to minus 2 and I can feel the chill through the floor. Big socks and ugg boots now with gloves and hat in the pockets of the snow jacket.
We saw another ship on the horizon – the ‘Orion’ leaving Commonwealth Bay. At 6nm distant it may have been an iceberg but the whale and bird watchers confirmed the ...
Written 21 December 2007
3619 meters above sea level
Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -27 to -36 °C
One morning everybody woke up at Plateau Station due to a dramatic sound that appeared to be traveling through the camp. This was a very scary episode for the personnel that did not know what had happened. After the noise had died down, they realized that it had been a firn quake. In very cold conditions large snow crystals grow and they are very loosely bonded. Thus, this weak layer in the snow can suddenly collapse. The personnel at Plateau Station figured that the surface lowered about 1 cm duri...
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Saturday, 22 December 2007 06:35
Polarstern: A Triceratops in the ice
Written by Polarstern Expedition
Written Friday, 21 December
What is a Triceratops doing in the ice? It is the logo on one of the containers aboard Polarstern, coming along with seven scientists from the Senckenberg Institute on an expedition!
The equipment which the Senckenbergians brought with them on board the Polarstern did indeed fill a whole container: lab equipment, chemicals and sample jars were purchased by Annika Henche and packed into aluminum boxes together with microscopes. The large equipment of the DZMB – epibenthic sledge and multicorer – were tested and made ready for action. The container was shipped from Wilhelmshave...
Saturday, 22 December 2007 01:50
Japanese Swedish Antarctic Expedition: Report #10
Written by Sweden/Japan Traverse
Report no 10, 16-20 December
The weather is now stable and clear. We are heading eastwards along the ice divide. On the 17th we reached Kohnen station, which is maintained by Germany for the European deep ice core project EPICA. The station is unmanned at the moment, but a crew will get there later in the season.
From Kohnen we have travelled more or less along the 75th latitude and are now at 9 degrees east at an altitude of approximately 3300 m. The air pressure is about 650 mb, which means that all physical work is hard. The air temperature varies daily between -20 and -30C, which is cold of course, but does not hinder any outdoor activities.
Along the route we are measuring data on standard meteorological parameters, ice surface elevation, i...
Saturday, 22 December 2007 01:34
Norway-US Antarctic Traverse: Two reasons for celebrating
Written by US-Norway Traverse
Written 20 December 2007
3619 meters above sea level
Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -29 to -36 °C
Today, at the traditional Christmas lunch at the Norwegian Polar Institute, Einar received the price “The Employer of the Year.” Congratulations Einar! It is very well deserved. The nomination committee especially emphasized Einar’s efforts on numerous expeditions in the Arctic and in Antarctica.
Einar is going to celebrate his seventh Christmas in eight years in Antarctica in a few days. Also, his high standards for field safety and work for the union were highlighted by the committee....
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