Journal Entry

Research Update

With our dive holes drilled, we spent the day collecting more sediment samples from the seafloor. We collected samples at the same location as yesterday, at Cape Armitage in McMurdo Sound. We do not expect this sampling site to yield many pollutants. In a sense, it is like our Arrival Heights site--it is close to areas where there have been human impacts, but does not have a history of contamination. Our divers collected samples from seafloor depths of 120 feet, 80 feet, and 40 feet. We collect samples from different depths along the seafloor because we want to account for the possibility of different ecosystems at each depth. Also, if ice scours (digs out) the seafloor, it is important to have deeper sampling sites that have not been disturbed by ice.

Carl Green and Andrew Klein heading to the tomatoCarl Green and Andrew Klein head toward the dive site for a day of sediment sampling.

Meet the Divers!

We spend lots of time with divers who work for the United States Antarctic Program (USAP). They assist many science teams here with their research.

Steve Rupp and Brenda KonarSteve Rupp, left, and Brenda Konar, right, smile for the camera at the end of a fruitful diving session.

Brenda Konar

Brenda Konar has been diving in Antarctica since 1991. She loves the feeling of going through the dive hole and then seeing the world open up under the ice. A few years ago the ice was around 25 feet thick and she would get to dive through very long dive holes! Brenda has done about 250 dives in Antarctica. She is a researcher and professor at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks, focusing on work with algae and kelp forests. When she is not in Antarctica, she lives in Alaska with her husband and daughter.

Steve Rupp

Steve Rupp has been diving in Antarctica since 1988 and has been a diver for 34 years. He has completed over 900 dives specifically in Antarctica and around 2,500 dives in total. Steve really enjoys how great the visibility under the Antarctic ice. Until recently, he could view around 1000 feet, although lately the visibility has been slightly worse.

Terry Palmer, Brenda Konar and Steve Rupp in the dive holeClockwise from left, Terry Palmer, Brenda Konar and Steve Rupp sit in the dive hole before collecting samples for our research team.

Brenda and Steve have lots of great stories about diving under the sea ice in Antarctica. They have helped deploy instruments, collected sea life and sediments, and even looked for fish eggs on the side of icebergs in Cape Evans (an area near McMurdo Station). They also have helped film crews shoot under the ice, including the group that filmed Frozen Planet.

Terry Palmer

Terry Palmer outside dive hutTerry Palmer stands near a dive hut on the sea ice after collecting samples from the seafloor.

Terry Palmer is the benthic ecologist on our research team, studying the environment along the seafloor. He also dives with the USAP divers and collects sediment samples and organisms. Terry started diving in 1998, and has been diving in Antarctica since 2011. He has completed 65 dives in Antarctica and almost 500 dives overall. He likes seeing all the interesting creatures under the sea ice, such as bright yellow gastropods, called lamellarian gastropods.

Fruits of the Sea

The divers collected lots of sediment samples today. We will send the sediment samples back to Texas A&M and Steve Sweet will analyze them for pollutants.

Steve and Terry taking sediment samplesTerry Palmer and Steve Sweet separate sediment samples into containers to be analyzed for contaminants.

The divers also collected a number of interesting critters in the sampling area. I helped take them out of the net and put them into jars. Some were squirmy, others were jumpy, and some were prickly, but all of them were interesting! Steve will take these organisms back to Texas A&M and look for pollutants in their tissues.

Michelle Brown and the sea anemoneMichelle Brown holds a large sea anemone before placing into a container to be analyzed back in Texas. Sea UrchinA sea urchin is placed into a jar to be sampled for contaminants.

Can you guess which one was squirmy and which one was prickly?

Ice Picture of the Day

Today's Ice POD is about sea anemones which were found in our samples today. An interesting fact about sea anemones in Antarctica is that they prey on their cousin, the jellyfish! Click here to download the PowerPoint slide: 13_icepod.pptx

Ice Picture of the Day, day 13The Ice Picture of the Day shows a sea anemone eating a jellyfish (picture courtesy of Rob Robbins).

Brought to you by...

Today's journal is brought to you by Mrs. Paden's science class from California.

Brought to you by Mrs. Paden's class.Today's journal was brought to you by Ms. Paden's class in California.

Comments

Wed, 11/18/2015 - 01:41

Martha

What inspired you to start this project?

Wed, 11/18/2015 - 08:07

Steve

Hi Michelle, looks like you are learning a lot. Can you explain more about how the divers sampled sediments at 120, 80 and 40 feet? Is the seafloor sloping so they swam progressively deeper to collect samples or is there a shallow area and then a shelf that goes really deep. Also, Steve Rupp said he could see 1000 feet in visibility...is that looking sideways or down? How deep is the seabed where you are working? Thanks again and greetings from sunny Austin!

Wed, 11/18/2015 - 12:07

Ibrahim

Hi how are you Michelle, I would like to know what gear is most necessary when venturing 120 feet below the surface into cold, icy, Antarctic water? What was the experience like for you?

Wed, 11/18/2015 - 12:10

Ibrahim

Hello team how are you! I would like to know what gear is most necessary when venturing 120 feet below the surface into cold, icy, Antarctic water? What was the experience like for each of you?

Wed, 11/18/2015 - 20:25

Michelle Brown

status: 1Hi Martha,
What a thoughtful question! This project was inspired by the 1989 grounding
of the Bahai Paraiso--a supply ship that capsized off the coast of
Antarctica. 250,000 gallons of diesel fuel spilled about 2 miles off the
coast of an Antarctic research station (Palmer Station). Steve Sweet (the
Geochemist on our team) went to Palmer along with Chuck Kennicutt, a
retired oceanographer. Both Steve and Chuck were part of the Geochemical
and Environmental Research Group (GERG), which was included in the clean-up
project. Andrew Klein and Terry Palmer followed suit and the team has been
monitoring the environment in Antarctica ever since!

Thu, 11/19/2015 - 00:25

Michelle Brown

status: 1Hi Steve!
It is so nice to hear from you and sunny Austin feels (and is) thousands of
miles away right now! We are on the coast of an island, so the seafloor
slopes away, from pictures I've seen, it looks like a fairly steep slope.
We drill two holes in the ice in each sampling area. One near the 120 foot
deep hole, and one between the 80 and 40 foot holes, in a transect of
sorts. The diver goes down deep at the 120 foot site to collect the
samples. At the hole between 80 and 40 feet depths, the diver takes one
trip and heads away from Ross Island (to 80 feet) and then takes a second
dive heading closer to the island (to 40 feet). They have equipment that
helps them know when they are at each depth. I believe Steve Rupp meant he
could see 1000 feet sideways, but I will double check! Today I looked down
the dive hole at the 60 foot hole and could see pretty far down (there were
lights on though). The depth to the seabed is from the shore to 120 feet
where we work--we don't go deeper than that. There are few to no sea
grasses on the seafloor!

Thu, 11/19/2015 - 00:25

Michelle Brown

status: 1Hello Ibrahim,
Thank you for writing! To venture into the cold, icy Antarctic ocean at 120
feet you need some special gear! The divers wear long underwear, then a
really warm, insulated layer that fits under their dive suit. They then put
on a water-proof dive suit to keep them dry. They wear gloves, often with
an insulated layer over them, and dive gloves. Some divers like to put hand
warmer packs inside their gloves. To dive at 120 feet, you need lights (it
gets dark under there!) and lots of air in your tank. The divers can only
be at 120 feet for a few minutes, so it is important to have a dive watch
to ensure they aren't down for too long. When we dive in polluted sites,
divers wear other protective gear--you can read about it on the 11/19/2015
journal!

Thu, 11/19/2015 - 17:00

steve

That makes perfect sense. Thanks Michelle! Stay warm and enjoy being thousands of miles away from the craziness of this world right now!

Fri, 11/20/2015 - 05:07

Eddie Springs …

Is it hard to find different species?

Sat, 11/21/2015 - 03:32

Michelle Brown

status: 1Hi Eddie--thank you for writing! There seems to be a fair amount of
different species on the seafloor. Whenever the bag of sea floor critters
is brought up, it often contains various species. On land there are far
fewer species though!

Tue, 11/24/2015 - 04:40

Eddie Springs …

Thank You for replying

Tue, 11/24/2015 - 04:41

Eddie Springs …

Thank you for replying

Tue, 11/24/2015 - 04:41

Eddie Springs …

Thank you for replying