[From the logs of Tara, a research vessel sailing into Arctic pack ice during 2006-2008.]

We have had two days drifting slowly to the north with a gentle breeze and clear sky. The colder temperatures have led to the growth of a thick layer of frost on the rigging, keeping us busy with de-icing activities on Sunday afternoon. Today we installed two ultrasonic anemometers on Tara, which measure the direction and speed of the wind in three dimensions. These instruments allow us to observe the turbulence in the lower layers of the atmosphere. On Saturday night and Sunday morning we had the pleasure of a visit by a female polar bear with two cubs. Once again it was Zargrey who gave us early warning of their approach. After passing an inquisitive eye they were quick to move on after realizing there was nothing to eat from us.

[From the logs of Tara, a research vessel sailing into Arctic pack ice during 2006-2008.]

Every day for us is punctuated by an event that makes the moment memorable. Today was particularly special, we had our first encounter with a polar bear, the lord of the Arctic. This afternoon a young bear approached within meters of Tara. With a curious eye and nose held high he seemed intrigued by this strange foreign object in the ice. Zagreb was soon onto the scent, proving his worth as our polar bear early warning system. However Tiksi, the pup, still has a lot to learn and was more interested in playing with the paparazzi on the deck. After a month with very little sign of other life in this polar desert we are all happy to finally meet one of the locals. However, we are now evermore aware of one of the potential hazards of venturing onto the sea ice.

This image is the design for the Interpolar Transnational Art Science Constellation (I-TASC) mobile research station, which we are planning to deploy in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica and Igloolik, Nunavut during IPY:



The I-TASC station is an autonomous, zero-environmental impact, communications, research and living unit capable of sustaining up to 8 crew members for long periods of work in isolation/insulation conditions (60-180 days). Onboard renewable-energy systems, bioreactor/biological sewage processing, water recycling systems, satellite and HF communication systems and radar infrastructure will provide the I-TASC crews of artists, scientists, engineers and tactical media workers with the tools/resources needed to conduct joint or independent work in concentrated polar field-research environments during the IPY and beyond.

A biographer's challenge is to rekindle the spirit of a person, and this has recently been accomplished by Stephen Haddelsey in his book Born Adventurer: The Life of Frank Bickerton, Antarctic Pioneer.

Continue reading Frank Bickerton and the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911-14).

The European Polar Board and Swedish Research Council recently week hosted a workshop in Tarfala, northern Sweden, focussed on developing outreach and communication efforts in Europe. It was an amazing venue, set at a research station surrounded by glaciers. The group consisted of artists, writers, press and media, photographers, publicity professionals, museum curators, scientists and IPY national representatives.

On a hike up to a glacier, I asked one new colleague, Luigi Folco from the Museo Nazionale dell 'Antartide in Sienna, to write a piece for the IPY webpage. This is what follows. Lucia Simion took the accompanying photos.



Like gigantic bulldozers, glaciers move stones and boulders down the valley. Piles of rubble (moraines) detached from the glaciers lie in the Tarfaladalen valley bottom, indicating that the bulldozers have backed up. Gunhild (Ninis) Rosqvist, glaciologist and Director of the Tarfala station, tells us that glaciers have melted away and retreated some 500m over the last century in this Arctic region. The roar of melt-water streams actually inundates the Tarfaladalen valley. Nature is giving us the tangible and dramatic evidence of the global warming which is affecting our planet. I stop for a moment and try to imagine what this valley will look like in the near future, and how the local flora and fauna will migrate to find their own habitat…

Continue reading Tarfala Workshop.