Helicopter Ride
After two days of weather delays we finally made it out to the field today. When I woke up this morning and saw the clear skies I started to get excited. As people arrived at the lab this morning it became obvious that I wasn't the only one excited for a day in the field. Most field projects in Antarctica, including ours, require helicopter transport. We reported to Helo Ops 45 minutes before our scheduled flight this morning for a safety briefing and to weigh in. This was my first time on a helicopter and I loved it.
Josh Heward aboard a Bell-212 helicopter on the way to Miers Valley from McMurdo Station.
We flew out to Miers Valley on a Bell-212 and returned on an AStar-B2. I was surprised at how smooth the flight was, I had been told by others that helicopter rides can be nausea inducing but my two rides today were nice and smooth. I particularly enjoyed the ride on the AStar because I got the front seat and the view was amazing. Keith our pilot said the AStar provides the best view in all of Antarctica.
Looking across the Ross Ice Shelf at the Dry Valleys. Meltwater pools dot the surface of the ice shelf.
Elevational Transect Experiment
The experiment we were collecting samples from today is an elevational transect. One of the big things the soil team is trying to answer is how soil communities respond to environmental change. It is possible that when the environment changes the impacts will not be uniform across different elevations. The elevational transect experiment is set up to test for any of those differences. The experiment involves taking samples each year at low, medium, and high elevations. One of the important aspects of good experimental design is to have replication. This experiment includes three different sampling plots at each elevation and the entire experiment is duplicated in three different valleys. While we were sampling Miers Valley the other half of our team was sampling in Garwood Valley. We will sample the plots in Taylor Valley next week. The experimental plots are defined by polygons that form naturally as sand fills cracks in the ground that occur as the ground expands and contracts with rising and falling temperatures.
Patterned ground in Miers Valley. The polygons form when sand fills cracks in the ground that result form cycles of expansion and contraction with changing temperatures.
Wormherders collecting soil and performing maintenance
In each of the plots three samples of soil are collected. The soil is scooped up and poured into a plastic bag which is sealed and labeled.
Wormherders Andy Thompson, Byron Adams and Diana Wall collect soil samples in Miers Valley, Antarctica.
Andy Thompson scoops up a soil sample in Miers Valley.
While we were in Miers Valley we replaced the battery for a remote met station that logs data about soil temperature and moisture. We also collected the contents of wind-blown sediment traps.
Byron Adams replaces the battery in a met station that will log data on soil conditions for the next year.
As wind blows sediment particles through the air they enter the small openings on this sediment trap. Air passes through the trap but the sediment is left behind. The fins at the back of the trap keep the opening pointed toward the wind.
Sediment that accumulated in one year inside one of the wind-blown sediment traps.
It was a successful day; all of the samples for Miers and Garwood Valleys were collected. It was amazing to spend the day in such a beautiful location. The open landscape was invigorating and I can't wait to get back out in the field next week. Before our next collecting trip we will spend the next two days in the lab processing the samples we collected today.
Josh Heward, Andy Thompson, Byron Adams and Diana Wall wait for a helicopter after collecting samples in Miers Valley.
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