The weather this morning was a bit more like Antarctica, although - not bad! There was a brief snow squall, but the clouds and the wind lingered for a bit. The lack of sun, and a little bit of wind, make a striking difference to our comfort levels! It was a bit brisk this morning. To illustrate how drastically things can change, and how different conditions are from location to location, I want to tell a brief story about a storm that hit a few days ago in the Fosdick Mountains. The Fosdicks are on the other side of the Ross Ice Shelf from us. Apparently, as we were enjoying bright sunshine and 23 degree weather, the folks in the Fosdicks were being slammed by a nasty storm. A mountaineer told our camp manager that his group's tents were all being blown away. They all ended up in one tent. Even their snowmobiles, which weigh over 800 pounds, were being shifted around by the wind. I can't even imagine what that would have been like.
At any rate, our first dive this morning was for me to go and retrieve two data loggers that had been left out overnight beside Hal. One was a Li-core, which is a light meter, the other was a PAM, which measures fluorescence. The more fluorescence there is, the more photosynthesis has taken place. I also had to use a lift bag to bring Hal back to the surface and suspend him just under the ice. Ian then dove and readjusted the lengths of Hal's legs, and redeployed him to the bottom. All went well! Ian made a second dive in the afternoon to reposition the "carriage" on Hal. The carriage is the part that holds the probes. Once we get all the "minor adjustments" sorted out on Hal, he will be launched for a true data run!
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Peter attempts to reconnect the communications cables. The proper tip has broken off, and we must create a "makeshift" fit until the proper replacements arrive from town. He was successful at re-establishing coms! |
Icy fins make my feet feel cold just looking at them! |
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This regulator is actually not from today's dive, but it shows nicely what happens in cold water! |
Measurements from Hal. The blue line is oxygen levels and the green line is pH levels. Can you see a correlation between oxygen and pH?
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Data print out from the light sensor.This is showing the intensity of light that was reaching the sensor, and therefore Hal and the microbial mat just beneath Hal. It clearly shows peaks and a valley in the data run. What do you suppose caused the changes?
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Kay is using the view finder controls from Peter's underwater camera to "spy" on Hal. Peter's camera is underwater beside Hal. Kay can control the camera's actions with the controls in his hand. It's a nice way to keep track of things without actually having to be there!
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The proper replacement parts have arrived from town, along with some warmer weather and sunshine! Ian - I like to call him McGyver - is repairing the equipment.
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This is Hall underwater with the "real" probes about to do a test run. The probes will penetrate down into the mat, then pull out and slide down the bars, re-penetrate the mat, and so on. Using this method allows Peter, Ian, and Kay to get multiple samples without having to send a diver - and it can all be controlled from the surface!
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Here is a closer view of the oxygen and pH probes. You can also clearly see some of the pinnacles in the mat.
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I had to end with an ice tube photo. The ice in the dive tube is mesmerizing!
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•Ms. Ellwood - rellwood@sau50.k12.nh.us
Questions may be posted with the answers on the page below.
• Questions and answers about the trip.
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Antarctica 2006 
Antarctica 2006 homepage.