This picture is for my boss, who wanted me to bring home some Arctic ice! 🙂 This is a piece of ice from yesterday when we went off the ship and onto the frozen Arctic Ocean, to do observations of the ice. (I still can’t believe we all got to do that.) Look at the layers! Talking with our resident ice researcher Alice Orlich, the clear layer would actually be the lower layer (I’m holding it upside down), and it is clear because it’s more dense with few air bubbles. The white layer is called snow-ice, and it is made of snow that has melted or been flooded, and then drained of water and refrozen. It is less dense than the clear layer, and all of those interlocking air pockets in the ice structure make it opaque. It was so beautiful, I had to take about 1000 pictures of it from every angle. It’ll come back to Miami with me, but probably in a different form…
I am constantly astounded at what these scientists/students are doing in their work. It’s not just about what they do or what their field of research is (which is impressive enough), but also that they are so passionate about what they do, and are still so interested in working together and learning more from each other. My background in science (physics and astronomy) is completely different from anyone else’s here, so I am also learning every day too as part of the onboard NABOS Summer School. Here’s more “greatest hits” from our ongoing student presentations.
Marika (from Finland) talked about the Fram Strait, the only deep connection between the Arctic and the rest of the oceans. Located between Greenland and Svalbard, it is an important place for the exchanges of water between the Arctic and Atlantic. Water masses transport heat and salt as part of global circulation. In the Fram Strait, warm water heads north (and recirculates back), and cold water heads south. She referred to understanding Arctic Ocean circulation as one of the most important challenges in the field.
Standing on the deck of the ship appreciating the Arctic view
Antoine (from Belgium) works on models to understand and predict conditions in the oceans and sea ice. He uses NEMO – the Nucleus for European Modeling of the Ocean – as a “globally-forced, coupled ocean and sea ice model.” Here’s what that means. “Global” means it’s a simulation of the whole world ocean… “Forced” means he inputs atmospheric conditions like temperature and wind into the model. “Coupled” means there are interactions between the ocean and sea ice… and “Model” means that these things are numerically computed step by step. Now everyone else wants him to teach them how he does it.
Photo from Antoine Barthelemy
Svetlana K. (who is from Russia) started her presentation with beautiful satellite images of Earth, then explained the methods and applications of how remote sensing of the ocean works. Satellites use radiometry (which means they measure the radiation from the Earth’s surface), but as detailed and colorful as those satellite images can be, there are limits to the resolution. And resolution doesn’t just mean how sharp the image is. It can also refer to how well the satellite can differentiate slight color differences or light intensities, and even if the satellite is able to take multiple images of the same place at different times.
Look closely, Miami! It’s temperature variations in the Gulf Stream (in May)
It’s an unofficial maritime tradition. The idea is that when you’re on a long expedition, you start with lots of excitement, anticipation and momentum. Then you get into the routine of being busy with your work, and being “on the go” all the time. So, an “Equator Party” (even when you are nowhere near the actual equator of the Earth), symbolically celebrates the mark of being half-way through, and is meant to reinvigorate momentum for the second “hemisphere.” We actually celebrated our “equator” a day off of the actual middle point, in order to also celebrate the 100th anniversary of the discovery by Russian explorer Vilkitskiy of Severnaya Zemiya (a set of islands north of Asia at about 100°E longitude). So we’re now headed back west! We all gathered in the canteen (aka, the dining hall) for a special meal, and a short acknowledgement by our Chief Scientist Vladimir Ivanov. He reminded us that we are following in the footsteps of great explorers, and “standing on the shoulders of giants” to learn even more about the Earth. And with the next generation of scientists onboard, we should expect even more in the future.
Chief Scientist Vladimir Ivanov and (almost) all of the science and student party, at the Equator Party!
An impromptu reunion of current and past students of the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, including Summer School Director Vladimir Alexeev and scientist Irina Repina and Arseniy Artamonov – I’m told that this photo would have a very different gender ratio 20 years ago!
We have had to adjust our route a bit due to ice conditions, but we made it to about 80°N and 155°E, and are headed back west. Find us on the map! (You can see a bigger map on the “Expedition Route” page of the website)
I’m a student of the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (State University). I am really interested in doing some research that could be useful for the study of ice and climate change. Here on the ship I’m working on the project in the meteorological group. We do cloud observations every hour during the day and every two hours at night. Also, we compare the data from two instruments, the MTP-5 and radiosondes. The MTP-5 (meteorological temperature profiler) measures the temperature profile of the atmosphere every 5 minutes by tilting back and forth between 0° (horizontal) – 90° (vertical). Radiosondes are weather balloons that also measure temperature. The goal is to measure the temperature inversion in the atmosphere, which is when heat from the Sun is not enough to warm the surface, which makes it cooler near the surface and warmer above.
It is really interesting. I’ve learned a lot of new and useful information about clouds. Unfortunately the most common type of them here is stratus, and there is a lot foggy weather. But also there was a sunny day, so we could observe many different types of clouds, all of them very beautiful.
Today I walked on the Arctic sea ice for the first time. Alice showed us how to bore holes in the ice and measure the thickness of it and the snow. It was exciting. Every second I was scared that I would break her drill, but everything was alright.
So, I’m having a really good time here. There is a lot of interaction with experienced and respectful scientists, also with really interesting and smart students, which is very important and useful for me. All the people here are very friendly and kind. I really like this place! To go on a journey like this was my school dream. I can’t believe that my dream came true.
– Svetlana Lisova
Here I am enjoying a sunny day; Photo from Svetlana Lisova and Ioana Colfescu
This post is going out especially to all the students, especially in Miami, who have followed along on the blog day by day, and posted lots of questions for me. I love that you are traveling along with me, and I will come visit your schools in person when I’m back in Miami! And even though I am replying to each of you individually, several of you have asked me questions about all the ways that physics and math are related to the expedition (which makes me happy since my background is physics). So I wanted to write to all of you and say that the short answer is that it’s EVERYWHERE – from the environment around us, to the experiments and tools we use to understand it, to the ship itself, to how I am communicating with you from the ship. But I wanted to prove it to you, so here is a challenge for all of you – and it’s for everyone, not just students. Below are several pictures taken throughout our expedition, and physics and math are involved in all of them. I posed a question for each, and gave a hint as to the answers. I will post answers in a couple days (I know it’s the end of the week), but also you can comment if you want to share an answer before that!
Why does this weather balloon rise, and why does it pop when it gets high enough? (Think about density and pressure.)The yellow object is made of foam – for scale, you can see me in the picture. Why would this help one of our scientific buoys float, and why is it so big? (Think about density and buoyancy.)What do you see in the photo that would help you lift heavy objects? (Think about the path of the rope and the forces on it.)Why does the screw shape on the drill make a hole in the ice more easily than a spike? (Think about the motion of the two tools entering the ice.)Why does the ship fire its sideways thrusters in conditions of wind and strong currents, to stay in one location? (Think about balancing forces acting on the ship.)What makes one layer of ice more transparent than the other? (Think about trapped air pockets.)This is as high as the Sun gets in the sky at this time of year. Why is that? (Think about our location.)Why and how do scientists turn data into pictures? (Think about all the data we collect from the ocean.)
During our morning announcements today, we got the word that all of us were waiting and hoping for. We were going to get a chance to go on the ice – literally walk on the frozen Arctic Ocean. This was a privilege and an opportunity provided by the NABOS Chief Scientist, Summer School Director, Captain, and other lead scientists, and I think we were all just hoping that nothing would happen (weather, technical issues, polar bears) that would take the opportunity away. But regardless, the first thing was a mandatory safety briefing – we were reminded that we just saw polar bears the day before, that weather and ice conditions are unpredictable, and that we were to follow the lead scientist and stay on the paths already created. Then we were told how we would be getting to the ice from the ship – by crane, standing on a pallet, surrounded by a net. I never expected to “be the cargo” that a crane was moving.
One of the teams of students being lifted like cargo by the ship’s craneThe crane and one of the buoys being deployed, for scale
Before going on the ice, you need to know the equipment you’ll be using, and plan for who will be responsible for what – because you have limited time, and things can be dangerous if you’re not careful (think about getting a scarf caught in a drill). When we went out on the ice, we were going to be doing real measurements of the ice with scientist and summer school instructor Alice Orlich. I was reminded yet again how I find it amazing that high-level research can be done using seemingly simple tools. We used a ruler to measure snow thickness on the ice, a drill with a few foot auger attached, a measuring tape with a hook on the end (to drop through the hole in the ice and measure ice thickness), a screwdriver to poke through holes on any frozen equipment, and a flashlight to look more closely at ice layers. And we had a line stretched 50 meters between the buoys, marked every 5 meters. On the ice, each person had a job. One had the ruler, one had the drill, one had the data sheet, one person dragged the sled with the equipment, and everyone was a second pair of eyes on everything else. Plus everyone wanted to take a minute to look around and really appreciate where we were. Drilling a hole in Arctic ice is definitely something I’ll check off my bucket list though!
I am drilling a hole in the ice for my team to take measurements! Photo from Anna Gnevasheva
Being on the ice was surreal. We had a job to do, and we were on a timeframe. But we have been looking at the ice since we’ve been on the ship, and now was a chance to look back at our ship on the ice. Turning 360°, there was white, white, white, ship, white. I will count today as having been one of the singular great experiences of my life, and not just for the insanely cool and incredibly rare opportunity to walk on (frozen) water at the top of the planet. It’s because we are not just here because it’s super cool. All these scientists and technicians onboard are here because they are working to better understand the Earth – ocean, atmosphere, ice, land, living things, and how they’re all connected. And I love that I’m here to work on a related goal – to help bring all of you along on the journey and maybe even inspire you to learn more too. This is a day to tell the grandkids about someday.
“Willy” the Box Turtle, who made the trip with me from Miami to learn about where “Chilly” the Polar Bear lives, actually made it out onto the ice with me to do measurements of Arctic ice! As much as we want to see Chilly while we’re on the ship, we all had eyes out to make sure that we didn’t see him while we were off the ship.
We have stopped at dozens of stations over the course of the expedition, each time deploying instruments to sample and monitor the ocean. But our main purpose at this station (80°N latitude and 155°E longitude) is to deploy FOUR buoys. On the ice. All of them involve drilling a small hole in the ice and stabilizing a surface component, and some have scientific instruments going way down into the water underneath. But they all have different purposes, and tell us different things about the Arctic climate (think of each of them as a piece of the Arctic puzzle). Plus it was a fantastically impressive sight, seeing tiny scientists and technicians in the middle of endless white.
O-Buoy
The O-buoy has a component above the surface that takes measurements like temperature, humidity, and wind speed and direction. It also has a tube that goes down through the ice with instruments that circulate air through them to measure atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, bromine oxide, and ozone, all of which have effects on the climate system. Then it has the yellow “flotation collar” which keeps it afloat, should the ice melt. Want to track it yourself? Go to www.o-buoy.org and look for O-buoy #9!
The ITP – at least the part above the ice!
The ice-tethered profiler (ITP) goes much deeper. Using instruments that continually go up and down a cable that reaches 750meters deep, it can measure temperature, salinity (salt content), and pressure for different water depths. Scientists can use this data to better understand not only conditions in the Arctic, but also, for example, how some water currents that may have originated elsewhere in the world may affect the Arctic. And this also has a yellow flotation piece in case of ice melt, so you can still find it! Want to track it? Go to: http://www.whoi.edu/itp and look for #59!
Ice-Mass Balance Buoy, Photo from Drew Slater
The Ice Mass Balance Buoy measures ice thickness, and the “balance” of the amount of ice that grows versus the amount of ice that melts every season. Under the ice is a tube 3meters long, and at the bottom is an upward-looking sonar device, which measures the thickness of the ice. Throughout the tube there are also sensors that measure the temperature throughout the ice, all the way up to the top (so air temperature is also measured). At the very top is a weather station, and also an acoustic snow depth sensor to measure how much snow accumulates on the ice. Track it here for yourself! http://imb.crrel.usace.army.mil
The Met Buoy (“met” is short for meteorological), measures weather parameters, as you may have guessed, like temperature and air pressure. From the surface it looks like a small white ball (so it’s hard to see in photos on the ice), but it also connects to a cable that goes down 60meters, with temperature sensors all along it. These can be deployed on the open ocean, or the ice. It transmits live weather data, so while it tracks the weather, it can be tracked too! (The University of Washington monitors all met buoys in the Arctic.)
Today, for the first time, we did ice observations on the ice itself! We were organized in teams of 4-5 people, and were transported from the ship to the ice with a crane, in a net (like sardines). It was an extremely funny and pleasant process, especially with the scientists in the net making different predictions about the resistance of the net to our weight, wind and other weather parameters. Once down on the ice, our instructor explained to us the process of drilling small holes through the ice, and then under her guidance each of us had the opportunity to dig a hole, take measurements, ask questions, and get samples of ice, which some of us even tasted. We had to watch for polar bears at all times and other people watched from the ship. Although we are always looking forward to seeing them, fortunately today we felt relieved at seeing none.
For me this was the first time to be on the ice in the Arctic Ocean, and it was one of the best experiences of the summer school, and maybe my life. I never imagined that the many years of learning about mathematical representations of the ocean and atmosphere, and of breaking my head over coding those things, would take me one day to study and step on this cold and unforgiving place! As a human being, with the sense of adventure and unbound curiosity that we have, when I stepped on the piece of ice on the Arctic Ocean, I felt lucky and privileged to be there. Meanwhile, as a climate scientist, I couldn’t help but to think about what I know and study – that the climate is changing, that this change forces a retreat of the summer ice pack, which puts in peril this amazing region’s climate and wildlife, and that this place that I see now might never be the same again.
I looked around me one last time and said good-bye to this vast immensity of ice before going back to the net that took us to the ship. As we were going up in the net, happy and packed together like sardines, I felt that the half hour we spent there made all of us realize how precarious the balance is between all the processes in this place. From now on, I’ll see my work being accompanied by a deep desire to understand and preserve this place as it is, so that others can see it and feel what we felt!
– Ioana Colfescu
Photo from Ioana ColfescuPhoto from Ioana Colfescu
We were just yesterday at 80°N latitude and 155°E longitude, with ocean temperature at -1°C (30°F) and air temperature at -2°C (and this is summer). That’s not accounting for wind either, which makes it feel lots colder. People might use describe the Arctic with words like ocean, cold, ice, polar bears, north, “above the Arctic Circle,” or “at the top.” But it is generally defined as a place with average annual temperatures below 0°C (32°F). To give an example in both the east and west hemisphere, that means that Hudson Bay, Canada and Oymyakon, Siberia are both “arctic.” That also means “arctic” refers to places most likely to have something called permafrost. Drew Slater, a scientist onboard from the National Snow and Ice Data Center, and instructor for the Summer School, gave a presentation about permafrost, so let me pass on a few really “cool” things. First of all, permafrost does not have to contain ice (although it usually does). It can be anything (soil, rock, ice) that stays at a temperature below 0°C for at least 2 years straight. In Alaska, permafrost goes to about 600meters deep in some places, and in regions of Siberia, can reach 1.5km (almost a mile) deep. From permafrost “cores,” scientists have observed that temperatures 20meters deep have increased by 1°C or more, depending on the location, in the last 40 years. That one little degree is really a big deal. It means that the Earth is storing more heat, and we can already see the results of permafrost areas warming in some areas – buildings and roads with structural damage, changes in the vegetation, and “disappearing” lakes.
An “ice wake!”
But there is also something called the “High Arctic,” and that is more specifically where our ship is right now. As you may imagine, this has a somewhat different (and colder) definition. The High Arctic is anywhere with July temperatures below 10°C (translation: really cold, even in summer). So, Miami friends, think about the wake you see in when a boat is going through the water. This was the wake here recently (see the picture above). It looks like water, but it’s actually wafer thin ice being pulverized by the ship, while water underneath is spilling over it, creating a kind of “finger-wake.” (We may have just coined a term?) You can also see a light greenish billowing effect near the ship’s edge. Any guesses as to what that is?
