Sunrise: depends on where I was...
Sunset: depends on where I was...The last two days have been bitter sweet - while I am very excited to be on my way home, I am also very sad that my adventure is coming to end.
The final morning on board the Polar Sea was spent packing the final pieces of gear and weighing it all for the helicopter trip to shore. The science crew all gathered in the hanger to take turns as the helicopters shuttled people back and forth to shore. The flight was only about 5 minutes, but seemed to take us so far away from the boat where we had spent the last 5 weeks. It was so nice to be on solid ground again!
Saying goodbye to my roommates from the past 5 weeks - Brenna McConnell and Dawn Sechler.
Thanks to the help of individuals from BASC (Barrow Arctic Science...
Location: Lat: 73 40.564 N Long: 161 02.401 W
Sunrise: 12:08 pm Sunset: 4:42 pm
Today was the final day of the trip on the Polar Sea before we disembark tomorrow. We spent the last day and night traveling over 200 miles to reach the final location where there were three bears clustered together. We had traveled so far west that we were nearly back to where we had been several weeks ago. The hope was to recapture at least one of the bears from the group to add to their sample size. The team suited up one last time for the trip out on the helicopters.
Hank, Merav and John getting ready for their final flight out in search of polar bears
They searched the area near the boat and found all three of the bears right away. However, the problem was that all three bears were on ice that...
Location: Lat: 71 16.503 N Long: 144 18.779 W
Sunrise: 10:19 am Sunset: 4:25 pm
****Over the past week, several members of the science crew on board have been invited to have dinner with the captain. It is quite a honor to be invited to join the captain for dinner. Last week the media crew and helicopter crew were also asked to join the captain for dinner.
The media crew having dinner with Captain Vaughn in his cabin.
The captain has a private cabin with his own conference table that can be used a dinner table. All of the food was the same as we would have eaten in the regular mess, however it was presented neatly on a plate and served to us. It was like having dinner at a nice restaurant. The best part of the whole meal was the atmosphere. Rather than eating in a cafeteria...
Location: Lat: 71 55.927 N Long: 143 40.160 W
Sunrise: 10:18 am Sunset: 4:40 pm
****I spent the afternoon working with the ice team to help with the coring process. As usual we got all of gear on, including our survival suits. The suits are one complete water tight suit that goes on top of your clothing. It has booties for your feet and seals around your wrists and neck to prevent water from seeping in. While these are great for keeping us dry, they are also very challenging to put on and warm. Usually, I get really hot just trying to put the suit on before heading out. Once we were all dressed, we headed outside to wait (since it was too hot indoors with all of our gear on). The process started as normal - loading the crane platform with supplies and people to be lowered over...
Location: Lat: 72 20.033 N Long: 145 59.64 W
Sunrise: 10:08 am Sunset: 5:00 pm
Today we officially have one week left on board the Polar Sea - we disembark on Sunday, November 1st and then I make the trek back home to the San Francisco Bay Area. I am both excited to return home to my students, my husband and my cat, but also sad to be leaving this rich experience that I have been able to be part of.
Unfortunately, the weather has not changed enough in order to fly safely - so we were grounded yet another day. However, we remain hopeful for better weather conditions tomorrow.
We have been surrounded by thick multi-year ice floes that require much more force to break through than before. Today we had to use the turbine engine for the first time this trip to break through a ridge of ice...
Location: Lat: 72 04.433 N Long: 146 45.330 W
Sunrise: 9:52 am Sunset: 5:01 pm
****The winds were relentless again today. Not quite as bad as yesterday, but still much too strong to fly. The forecast for tomorrow is that the winds will die down. However, I used the time today to finally capture one of the sounds of the arctic that I have been trying to capture for the past couple of weeks.
Listen to the following sound clip and take a guess as to what you think it might be. If you think you know, feel free to post your guess in the "Ask the Team" section of the site. Check back in tomorrow to find out the answer! Good luck!
Location: Lat: 72 02.549 N Long: 147 09.039 W
Sunrise: 9:45 am Sunset: 5:06 pm
****Just like yesterday, today we were grounded from flying thanks to the 40 mph winds we have been experiencing. The boat and the ice were drifting at a speed of about 1 knot as a result of the winds as well. Most of the weather decks and fos'cle (front part of the boat) were closed due to ice and wind. I had prepared myself for a day of little to do and being trapped inside for most of the day. However, there were several exciting moments of the day.
Just as I had settled down to watch a movie in the afternoon, an announcement came over the pipe - "Polar bear - 100 meters off the port side - and closing!" I quickly glanced at the others watching the movie and we all jumped up, ran to grab cameras...
Location: Lat: 71 32.675 Long: 145 39.254
Sunrise: 9:45 am Sunset: 5:06 pm
****This morning we attempted the second Live from IPY event - where the researchers and I call in from the Polar Sea and have a live conference about the research and the trip. I was very excited to hear from my students to see how they are doing, however the satellite connection for the phone was just not working.
I apologize to anyone who tried to listen in to the event, but communications are hard to predict when you are this far north. In order to actually have any communication off the ship, we use iridium satellite signals to transmit data. The message goes from the phone on board the ship to a satellite antennae just behind the bridge of the boat. The signal gets transmitted to one of 66 satellites that...
Location: Lat: 71 32.675 Long: 143 34.607
Sunrise: 8:56 am Sunset: 5:30 pm
As I stated in an earlier journal, we were lucky enough to pick up another passenger while stopped off the coast of Deadhorse. George Neakok joined the crew as the Native Alaskan observer necessary as we traveled into Canadian waters. George has had a long and fascinating life growing up in Barrow, Alaska and I was lucky enough to spend some time interviewing him. At first he is quiet and reserved, but as you get to know him, he opens up with a wealth of information about Barrow, the plants and animals native to the North Slope region and his native culture.
George Neakok checking out the conditions from the warmth of the bridge.
George has lived in Barrow his whole life, just as his parents, grandparents and...
Location: Lat: 72 04.41 Long: 132 41.854
Sunrise: 8:35 Sunset: 4:34
I enjoyed the interesting guesses that have been posted and emailed about the mystery picture. A few were close! The mystery picture was a close-up photo of bird feces found on the fos'cle! A bit gross, but also pretty cool considering that it we are surrounded by nothing but a giant ocean. The feces was found when we were closer to shore after we had just left Prudhoe Bay. The scientist on board agree that they believe the feces belongs to a species of bird called a ptarmigan.
Ptarmigans are birds similar to a grouse or a wild chicken. They generally live in large flocks in open habitats. They are a land based species - meaning this one had probably flown off track. They live in arctic and alpine regions and are...
Location: Lat: 72 04.41 Long: 132 41.854
Sunrise: 8:03 am Sunset: 4:38 pm
Today while some of the scientist were working, we found a mystery item of the Arctic. This is very much like "Sounds of the Arctic." Take a close look at the picture below and then post your best guess on the "Ask the Team" section of the website - be specific! Check back in a day or two for the answer.
Mystery Image!
Location: Lat: 71 21.718 N Long: 134 34.039 W
Sunrise: 9:19 am Sunset: 5:57 pm
****Late into the night, there are people working aboard the Polar Sea. Thanks to a few individuals each night, the Polar Sea keeps steaming forward. To get a better understanding of what has to happen each night, I stayed up late and talked to each of the groups that stands watch even through the night hours.
The first place I visited was the engine room; 24 hours a day/7 days a week they have four people on duty. There is an engineer of the watch and assistant engineer of the watch as well as 2 additional crew for auxiliary monitor reading. The team monitors the engines that generate electricity on board, water supplies, sewage, heat, and engine for propulsion of the boat. They have to monitor all of the...
Location:** Lat**: 70 38.064 N** Long**: 148 25.211 W
Sunrise: 9:15 am Sunset: 6:02 pm
****Yesterday and today we have been anchored about 20 miles off the coast of Prudhoe Bay. We had some supplies to pick up (tomatoes, milk, fresh veggies and more cereal) as well as a Native American observer.
Snow covered fos'cle while at anchor off the coast of Prudhoe Bay
We have just lifted anchor to set off towards Banks Island, Canada to capture one bear who wondered over there. In order to capture this bear, the research team had to file for a permit with the Canadian Government. One of the requirements when given the permit is to have a Native American observer on board to help out with the operation.
The main job of this person is to help the research team in their search for the bear and...
Location: Lat: 72 06.961 N Long: 148 59.155 W
Sunrise: 9:34 am Sunset: 6:19 pm
****One of the main things I have been anticipating since I was selected for this program is viewing the northern lights (besides working with polar bears of course!). During the first week of the trip, the lights had been amazing and dancing across the sky. However, they usually are the most visible in the middle of the night, while I am asleep. So I missed the shows as I slept comfortably in my bunk.
I have asked the Coasties on the late night watches to come wake me if the lights are visible. So far, they have come to get me twice. The first time, I woke up my roommates and others to go see the lights with me. However, when we made it outside, the lights only looked like some faintly green fog. The second...
Location: Lat: 72 27.414 Long: 152 50.003
Sunrise: 9:36 am Sunset: 6:32 pm
****Today the team could not go out in search of the next target bear due to fog. It just wasn't safe to fly in such thick fog. It was also freakishly warm for the arctic - today the temperature got up to 35 Fahrenheit! It is concerning to all of us here that the temperatures are so warm.
Yesterday's sound of the arctic was taken during a tour of a space on the ship that I had yet to explore - the engine room. I was taken on an extensive behind-the-scenes tour of the engine room and other related spaces.
The control panels that control the engines and turbines.
While exploring Arctic waters and breaking ice, the Polar Sea uses quit a bit of fuel. As this chart shows, the amount depends on how many shafts and/...
Location: Lat: 72 54.247 Long: 153 58.630
Sunrise: 9:36 am
Sunset: 6:39 pm
Jump to Sounds of the Arctic #5
Feeling a bit antsy after a few days of transit without much to do, I decided to join the Ice team from University of Alaska at Fairbanks again. They were working on a flow of ice on the port side of the boat.
The first thing after getting on the ice that had to happen was cutting a hole into the ice. Shawn scoped out the area and then decided where the best place to dive would be. He then used a large ice saw to cut the triangle shaped hole in the ice.
Shawn prepping the dive site by cutting the triangle shaped hole.
The divers then proceeded to safely complete their four dives in the icy cold water. While under the water, the divers are document their exploration with video...
Location:
Lat: 73 11.930 N
Long: 153 48.84 W
Here are the answers to the quiz that I put out on October 9th. Hopefully you were able to figure out some of them. It's been fun trying to get the correct terms down.
Crow's Nest: Tower on top of the bridge, used as a lookout
Irish Pennet: A loose string on your clothing/uniform
Turn to: To start
Head: Bathroom
Deck: Floor
Bulkhead: Walls
Overhead: Ceilings
Ladderwell: Stairs
Galley: Kitchen
Line: Rope
Aft: Behind/Back
Passageway: Hallway
Starboard: Right side
Port: Left side
Covers: Hats
Mess deck: Dining area
Boondockers: Boots
Reveille: Wake-up call
Taps: Lights out!
Pipe: Announcement over intercom system
Hatches: doors
Berthing Area: Room
Here's two more terms for you to figure out:
Scullery
Scuttlebutt
I also have two more cute polar...
Location:
Lat: 75 57.617 N
Long: 158 01. 756 W
Sunrise: 10:31 am** Sunset**: 6:42 pm
****Today's journal is a guest post from Petty Officer 3rd Class, Loren Pearlman, a boatswain's mate (BM3) assigned to the USCGC Polar Sea. Loren's job on board the Polar Sea is to navigate the ship using paper and electronic resources. He figures out the route that the boat will travel and draws it out for the crew to follow. He also knows how all the navigation systems works and trouble shoots in case any of them are not working properly. He conducts training for others on the ship as well.
BM3 Loren Pearlman planning our route to the next bear.
Loren has been in the Coast Guard since 2005. He joined the Coast Guard because he was not ready to go to college just yet, but wanted something positive...
Location:
Lat: 77 05.753 N
Long: 166 40.457W
Today was a day of transit. The next target bear is back near Barrow - across about 300 miles of open ocean. However, the weather is bad so rather than travel across open ocean, which would be very rocky and lead to lots of sea sickness, we have decided to take a longer route there. We are traveling around the ice edge in a big loop to get to our destination. Whenever the seas get too rough, the boat can go further into the ice. The ice helps to prevent the seas from getting rough. The wind blows over the top of the ice and isn't able to create as big of waves.
The scientist on board the ship used the time today to get caught up on data entry and analysis. I helped to enter some of the blood data into an excel spreadsheet. The ice diving team...
Location:
Lat: 76 09.850 N
Long: 171 43.704 W
Sunrise: 10:36 am** Sunset**: 7:36 pm
****Although I love the Polar Sea, it is nice to spend some time outside in the fresh air. So, I decided to tag along with the sea ice team from University of Fairbanks, Alaska. The team is made of Katrin Iken (chief scientist), Mette Kaufman, Heloise Chenelot, Brenna McConnell, Shawn Harper, and Richard Morris (film maker).
Me and my floating home away from home. While the Polar Sea is lovely, it was nice to be off and on the ice for the afternoon.
They are interested in the types of organisms that are living in and below the sea ice. Their man objective is to take samples of the ice from different depths to analyze. They are also looking for samples of the bottom of the ice. In order to get to the...
Location:
Lat: 76 33.815
Long: 169 55.191
Sunrise: 10:23 am Sunset: 7: 21 pm
****Sorry for the short entry tonight, but I need to get to bed early to get up early for our Polar Week live event tomorrow morning at 7:30 Alaska time!
Live from IPY! events are easy to join, free to all who wish to participate, but require quick registration at http://www.polartrec.com/live-from-ipy/registration . More information and detailed instructions are available at http://www.polartrec.com/live-from-ipy/overview and will be emailed to you after registering for the event(s).
I loved all the guesses about yesterdays sound of the arctic. Some of the guesses were: tracking the bear sonar mechanisms aliens :) sound effects guy
However, no one actually got the right answer! The sound clip was given...
Location:
Lat: 77 16.696 N
Long: 167 15.889 W
Sunrise: 10:09 am Sunset: 7:23 pm
****Jump to Audio
Today we could not fly to look for any bears because of the bad weather. I decided to take advantage of this time to work on preparations for the Live event this Thursday at 8:30 PST.
However, there is always something interesting happening aboard the Polar Sea. For example, during dinner tonight we had a bit of excitement. As I finishing up my delicious dinner of beef stew and biscuits, I heard an alarm signal and "Fire, Fire, Fire!" coming over the pipe (the intercom system). In less than 5 seconds, the mess hall was cleared - all the Coasties were off and responding to the alarm. The scientist and I were all still sitting there deciding what to do and finally decided...
Location: **
Lat**: 77 22.101 N
Long: 167 05.09 W
Sunrise: 9:57 am Sunset: 7:25 pm
****Today was a good day. We began as normal - a flight brief on the bridge. We traveled yesterday afternoon back to the location we were at a couple of days ago - where the ice was thicker and we had success finding bears. The team decided that we would spend a few days in the same area looking for "bears of opportunity" or BOOs. These bears would be new bears found by following their tracks in the snow. For these bears, we would collect blood, muscle, hair, fat, and other tissue samples. We would also take basic data such as weight, length, skull size, neck diameter, etc.
Both helicopters went out today. The first was with Howard Reed as the pilot and George Durner and Eric Regher...
Location:
Lat: 77 37.369 N
Long: 164 40.738 W
Sunrise: 9:57am
Sunset: 7:25 pm
Today is another day of transit, we are heading back towards the southwest. I thought I would take this opportunity to give an overview of some of the other things going on aboard the Polar Sea.
The team from Southern Illinois University is here to look at samples of sea water and how they might be affected by changes in the sea ice. Their project involves collecting water using a CTD device. (See journal from 10 02 09 for a picture). CTD stands for conductivity, temperature and depth. It has 24 tubes that can each hold 10 liters of water. They can be opened and closed at different depths. The team is using it to collect water from three different depths - 2 meters, 50 meters, and 100 meters. It...
Location:
Lat: 77 25.1016 N
Long: 166 55.59 W
Currently, I am awaiting for the team of researchers to return to the boat. We travelled another 65 miles north last night to get close to the next bear. We just got word back that they were able to successfully find the bear and her cub and they were able to find a safe place to work. They will be gone at least 3 hours while working in the field. When they return, then it will be time to analyze the blood and breath samples and prepare for another day of data collection for tomorrow.
I have received lots of questions about the project overview, so I thought I would try to explain it again now that I have a better understanding of everything that has already taken place.
In the spring time, members of the team travelled to Alaska to...
