Sailing from Barrow Alaska to the Ross Sea Antarctica - Bye!

It's an oceanographic cruise with 2 legs.

The first leg is a latitudinal transect from Alaska to New Zealand. It's a ship-of-opportunity expedition. The large US research icebreaker that normally stays in the Antarctic is in the Arctic this summer. We got permission from the National Science Foundation to board in Barrrow and conduct daily experiments all the way to New Zealand. Hopefully, we will have a data at stations every 2 degrees of latitiude.

The second leg is a 40 day cruise to the Ross Sea Polynya (a polynya is an area of reduced ice concentration in a normally ice covered area of the polar ocean). This is a large expedition that will study the effects of the Ozone Hole on just about every critter in the water column (we won't study penguins, seals or whales though). We leave from and return to New Zealand.

Our group will investigate the effects of ultraviolet radiation on marine bacteria. Why bacteria? The short answer is that they play a dominant role in the biology and chemistry of the ocean. What happens to them affects just about everything else. There is virtually no information regarding how bacteria respond to UV on global spatial scales. The two cruises will give us an unprecedented global snap-shot of these processes.

We have port calls in Dutch Harbor AK, Honolulu, Pago Pago and Christchurch NZ.

We also cross the Arctic and Antarctic Circles, the Equator and the International Date Line. King Neptune's Court will be busy...:evilgrin:

I'll be gone until after New Year's. We have email but no internet access aboard ship (and therefore no DU). Leaving Monday AM and I have a million things to do.

Slap some freepers around for me...later!

PS hopefully I can learn to type while I'm away..ack!

Sounds thrilling. Stay safe. :)

enjoy the Healy, I assume.

Saw the Healy in Penscola right after my last trip Down South. From all reports its a good vessel for Arctic work...

the Healy was going south this year (I work on Antarctic issues) Palmer's a nice vessel though. It'll be a kick ass experience.

Have a great trip, good luck, and can I stow in your luggage? :-)

I have to pack for both polar and tropical conditions - and I'm limited on weight by the helo crews. Hope the ship's laundry doesn't break down, I can't bing a whole lot of either.

I think I have everything I need though - including my King Neptune costume - and hard tack and anchovies for the unfortunate pollywogs...heh heh hehhh...

"Leave the guns. Take the cannoli."

Here's to smooth sailing, a wondrous voyage, and a safe return. :cheers:

Thanks for the advice :)

Hope you have a wonderful Maine Fall and a White Christmas (but nothing like last winter though...)

I hope you will come back to a country that you can recognize, but don't worry. We, left at home will do our best to keep America free.

Bon voyage.

:hi: