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Thursday, 13 December 2007 00:22
Norway-US Antarctic Survey: The summer is approaching
Written by US-Norway Traverse
3591 meters above sea level
Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -24 °C to -38 °C
We were prepared for temperatures down to -50 degrees C before we left out on the expedition. The minimum temperature that we have recorded so far reached down to -46 degrees C. The lowest wind chill temperature was -64 degrees C. The three first weeks, nighttime temperatures dropped steadily below -40 degrees C. The last week, however, both daytime and nighttime temperatures have increased by about 5 degrees. We think we see the first signs of the summer… This change in temperature is making the conditions much easier for personn...
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Noora Partamies describes experiences from a substorm school in Iceland, part of IPY project 63; ICESTAR/IHY.
Once again the space physics group of the University of Bergen put together a substorm school for Master and PhD students in space physics. This time the course was organised together with Finnish Meteorological Institute. Six students and two lecturers from Norway met three students and two lecturers from Finland for ten days in late November to learn, observe and discuss substorm related processes in the near Earth space.
The course location was a small Fosshótel Nesbúð in Nesjavellir about 80 km east of Reykjavik, a few kilometres off the shore of the Icela...
Thursday, 13 December 2007 00:14
Japanese-Swedish Antarctic Expedition: Setting up Science Site 1
Written by Sweden/Japan Traverse
Written 11 December, 2007
We are at our Science Site 1, at approximately 2400 m elevation along Latitude 75. Just when we reached it, a strong snow blizzard came in from west resulting in both wind-blown precipitation and snowdrift. Due to the weather almost all outdoor activities have been postponed, giving us an opportunity to rest, compile data and do maintenance on vehicles and equipment.
The one-day storm has formed 2-metre high snowpiles on the leeside of vehicles and living modules, so instead of being totally flat, the camp is now difficult to cross. Tomorrow we will take off towards the Kohnen station. It is a 300 km drive, and will take some days. The scientific work which we cannot do now will be postponed to the return trip in mid January. This is...
Wednesday, 12 December 2007 06:09
Polarstern: Travelling through the pack ice
Written by Polarstern Expedition
Written Tuesday, 11 December
Already for the second day now, we travel through the seemingly endless pack-ice landscape of the Southern Ocean. We passed the ice edge in the night from 9th to 10th December. Passing the ice edge is a magic moment for many of us on board. This expedition is already my 5th trip to Antarctica. Assuming a certain habituation to emotional ice moments, I was still overwhelmed by the impression that awaited me the moment I stepped on the bridge and saw the ice for the first time this year.
That was right before midnight, yet a dim light still revealed the frozen landscape far into t...
Tuesday, 11 December 2007 09:06
Norwegian-US Antarctic Traverse: Environmental aspects and waste management
Written by US-Norway Traverse
3591 meters above sea level
Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -22 °C to -30 °C
Environmental regulations and standards in Antarctica follow the Protocol of Environmental Protection under the Antarctic Treaty. All activities are evaluated in accordance to these standards. Our project has reported the wide variety of activities that we carry out in an initial environmental evaluation. The evaluation was approved by the Norwegian Ministry of Environment prior to departure.
The most severe impact from our project is burning of fuel due to the long distances we travel. In total, we will consume about 5...
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Tuesday, 11 December 2007 06:07
Polarstern: About the Continuous Plankton Recorder
Written by Polarstern Expedition
Written Monday, 10 December
As part of the Southern Ocean - Continuous Plankton Recorder (SO-CPR) program, zooplankton samples have been annually collected on a dedicated Polarstern voyage to the Antarctic continent and back over the last 4 seasons or so, including this one, and I am the responsible scientist. Zooplankton are sensitive to environmental parameters such as temperature, movement of currents and water quality. Due to their sensitivity, short life spans and fast growth rates plankton populations respond rapidly to environmental change, and consequently make excellent biological indicators for climate change and pollution.
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Wow, what an incredible place this is – it goes way beyond my greatest expectations! I have been here a full week now, which has just flown by! We (26 of us) arrived by plane, having flown first to Cape Town, then down to Novolazarevskaya (a Russian base) where we camped overnight. We were met with such warm hospitality by the Russians and I was thrilled to see lots of IPY logos on the tents, the calendar, the planes – the list goes on and on!! What a great introduction to the Antarctic!
Arriving at Halley Research Station was so exciting – we had a wonderful welcoming committee waiting for us and once we had unloaded all of our kit we were quickly shepherded off to our respective sleeping quarters to have a couple of hours of rest and relaxation and a cup of tea!...
Monday, 10 December 2007 06:53
Japanese-Swedish Antarctic Expedition: Driving on Kibergdalen
Written by Sweden/Japan Traverse
On a day as today, when winds are blowing the snow around, large snow drifts may form over night. If we parked our vehicles randomly, we may get large drifts that need to be removed in the morning. Or perhaps snow drifts would made us become stuck when starting out for driving the next morning.
Also, the order of how the vehicles are parked has been carefully considered. In the front, our main generator delivering power to the whole camp is placed. Both the living/kitchen module and the sleeping module, which are next to each other for practical reasons, receive power from the main generator. We keep the upwind area clean and this area is designated for science.
...
Monday, 10 December 2007 06:44
Norwegian-US Antarctic Traverse: Camp setup
Written by US-Norway Traverse
On a day as today, when winds are blowing the snow around, large snow drifts may form over night. If we parked our vehicles randomly, we may get large drifts that need to be removed in the morning. Or perhaps snow drifts would made us become stuck when starting out for driving the next morning.
Also, the order of how the vehicles are parked has been carefully considered. In the front, our main generator delivering power to the whole camp is placed. Both the living/kitchen module and the sleeping module, which are next to each other for practical reasons, receive power from the main generator. We keep the upwind area clean and this area is designated for science.
...
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