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Geologic Climate Research in Siberia

Hi Tim, Happy Easter :) Great listening to you and Julie on the Live Event! 8th grade students have been reading your journal posts and have some questions for you and your team!

M.W.: If Lake E was formed by a meteor impact, have they found any type of pulverized rocks or shatercones in the cores? what is vivienite?

T.S: The GDS looks like a compressed tank rolling on barrels. Can you tell us more about it? How it was built, how fast can it go? Is it safe to ride on top if it?

Kyle: Is the sediment you're drilling permafrost?

Jacob: Are snow arches always formed by the wind?

Time, loved the journal entry where you and Betsy "saw" each other!! and I see you found the "marker" this year's group of teachers designated as a "must find"- Gary will be happy!!! :)

And you finally saw the auroras! YAY! Cheers, Lollie

Sun, 04/12/2009 - 20:36

Tim Martin

Lollie,
So good to hear from you!
M.W. Great question...impact rocks are one of the things we are looking for! I have found some of the impact melt rocks (Tectites) on the crater rim. These have been studied already... see today´s journal entry with the geology video. In the next day or two we will dirll into the impact rocks at the bottom of the lake... Actually I hope we hit these rocks tomorrow at 10 am...(that is my bet in our camp lottery!) We expecte that there will be a lot of shattered rock at the bottom of the crater.
The vivienite is a "biogenic" mineral. It forms with the decomposition of organic material in the bottom of the lake. So the presence of vivienite tells us about the organic content of the sediment.
T.S. The vestikhot means a "go anywhere vehicle" It is not a tank but looks like one. It is a tracked all terrain vehicle that can go about 25 or 30 mph on smooth terrain. It is good for getting around in a place with no roads. As far as riding on top, I am told that many of the locals use this for hunting and often ride on the top where they have a good view. One thing for sure, it is much warmer to sit on top that is where the engine is located!
Kyle,
We are not doing permafrost drilling right now. The permafrost drilling beside the lake was conducted in October and November last year. The temperature of the sediment at the bottom of the lake varries from 4 - 8 degrees C much warmer than freezing permafrost.
Jacob: The snow arches that I have seen are wind formed... I know they can be formed by other process in other locations but the ones I have seen here are about 30-50 cm tall.
Stay warm... although that should not be hard for you all down in Texas!
T-Mart

Thu, 04/16/2009 - 06:12

Aditya

Hi Mr. Martin,
I have heard that you saw an aurora lately.
How long did the aurora last? What time did it start and end? Did you take a picture?
Come Soon,
Aditya Badve

Thu, 04/16/2009 - 11:13

Tim Martin

Aditya,
The aurora we saw was the night before the Live from IPY web cast. I watched it for over an hour and it was still going when I went to bed. A few pictures are on the journal and photogallery, I will show you more when I get back to school
T-Mart