Day 31; February 22, 2009; Southern Ocean, Antarctic Circle Average Daily Temperature: 33.88˚ F Average Daily Wind Speed: 10.82 mph Feels Like: 17.65˚ F One doesn’t forget the first glimpse of an albatross. With wingspans up to ten feet, they are stunning in flight—ever graceful in the thick ocean wind. Albatross are known for their gliding, and hardly need flap their wings. By using the updraft of the wind off the ocean’s surface and the shape of their long elegant wings they can glide endlessly. I was quite fortunate to see five species today: the majestic wandering albatross, the sooty albatross, the light-mantled sooty albatross, the black-browed albatross and the…read more »
Day 30; February 21, 2009; Penguin Bukta, Fimbul Ice Shelf, Southern Ocean, Antarctica Average Daily Temperature: 24.53˚ F Average Daily Wind Speed: 14.77 mph Feels Like: 2.38˚ F This morning I awoke to find that the sea had literally begun to freeze. All around the ship, and as far as I could see, the surface of the ocean was covered in small discs of solid ice. Though the equinox is still a month away, which definitively marks the change of seasons, one can already see the signs of the quickly approaching winter. Watching the Southern Ocean freeze before my eyes was an awesome sight—completely profound, if not seemingly impossible. The…read more »
Day 29; February 20, 2009; Penguin Bukta, Fimbul Ice Shelf, Southern Ocean, Antarctica Average Daily Temperature: 19.14˚ F Average Daily Wind Speed: 18.91 mph Feels Like: -9.23˚ F The first day on the SA Agulhas was spent acquainting myself with my new territory. This would be my first time on a sea voyage and there was much to comprehend, not the least of which was being atop a thing which never ceases to move about below you. The seawater around the ice shelf was relatively calm, but a certain finesse was still required in getting about the ship. My cabin, which I would eventually share with three other women, was…read more »
Day 28; February 19, 2009; Penguin Bukta, Fimbul Ice Shelf, Southern Ocean, Antarctica Average Daily Temperature: 20.93˚ F Average Daily Wind Speed: 35.1 mph Feels Like: -31.72˚ F Dawn both elated my soul and dimmed my heart, as this sunrise marked my last day on the continent of Antarctica for this journey. I had been up all night, again, attempting to observe and capture the ever-changing nature around me. The base was completely silent, deep in the arms of Morpheus. I, bundled in all of my gear, took the video camera outside to record the light from our massive star, which was proclaiming the day on the southern horizon. Facing…read more »
Day 16; February 7, 2009; Vesleskaervet, Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica Average Daily Temperature: 17.78˚ F Average Daily Wind Speed: 13.42 mph Feels Like: -2.35˚ F A colour is never merely a colour, but the colour of a certain object… -Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Phenomenology of Perception Here in Antarctica there is snow and ice virtually everywhere, a fact that may at first seem elementary but upon deeper reflection is infinitely complex. The impressive quantity of these natural crystalline elements extends as much vertically as they do horizontally, permeating the air and cloaking the land. The depth of the ice beneath my feet approaches 30 feet, with the thickest ice on the continent…read more »
Day 10; February 1, 2009; Vesleskaervet, Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica Average Daily Temperature: 15.26˚ F Average Daily Wind Speed: 23.04 mph Feels Like: -19.30˚ F Today there were snow and wind storms all day, requiring that we stay inside. I spent most of the day writing, studying up on some of the features of my equipment, and watching the blizzard intermittently hide the mountains to the south. I have been staying up late each night in order to watch the sun do its now nightly dip below the horizon. Tonight’s sunset was quite a treat, and I experienced my first sun pillar. A sun pillar is a beautiful atmospheric phenomena…read more »
Day 6; January 28, 2009; Flight to SANAE Station, Vesleskaervet, Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica Average Daily Temperature: 19.4˚ F Average Daily Wind Speed: 26.17 mph Feels Like: -19.85˚ F Today, I do not have words. I must show you……read more »
