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 »
