Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 04/24/2008 - 14:27
Forums
Bering Sea Benthic Studies

Ms. Davenport,

    I read your journal and can see that your having a great time or it seems it :). i have a quick question that i was thinking about when i read your last journal entry. Is the ice/glacies much smaller than they were the last time you went according to your coring data? and If so by how much? Do you think it had something to do with global climate change?

Hope your having a great time down there! have a great last two weeks! :)

 

Mike E.

From, Hartford High School 

Fri, 04/25/2008 - 08:32

Emily S. Davenport

Hi Mike!
I am having a great time on board- although I am looking forward to getting off the ship and back home! To answer your question- an interesting thing about the Bering Sea is that there are no glaciers, because the ice is seasonal, so it only lasts for a few months every year- not long enough for glaciers to form. The ice itself changes all the time- forming and breaking down and then reforming depending on the air temperature and the winds, which push the ice all over the Bering Sea. This year people have said the ice covered more of the Bering Sea (the ice edge is further south) than it has in many years. The crab fishing season was even delayed by about a month because of the ice conditions- thick ice makes it hard for the vessels to travel safely to the Pribilof Islands where they offload their catch. However, I have also heard that even though the ice cover is extensive, it is not as thick as is has been in the past. This may have something to do with climate change, but it is hard to know for sure.
Thanks for your question!