Information

Vessel:
Amaltal Explorer
Report (sitrep) ID:
19191
Universal time (UTC):
03:00
Australian time (AEST):
14:00
Position:
64° 27′ S, 166° 51′ E
Heading:
257 degrees
Speed:
3.9 kn
Distance in last 24 hours:
124 NM
Weather conditions:
Wind North westerly at 15 knots, swell westerly at 3-5 m, Heavy Overcast, occasional light snow/sleet.
Air temperature:
−1.2 °C
Sea conditions:
light to moderate
Sea temperature:
−1.1 °C

Comments

Hi All,

As often is the case, last night we had dinner whales again. These were a group of about six blue whales which were lunge feeding on krill close in to the ship. All were Photographed for ID, however when we gut the biopsy kit out, they ran away! It was quite amusing to listen to the crowd (of serious scientists) going "Ooooh" and "Aaaahh" as the whales performed around us - it was like watching fireworks on new year's eve!

Today has been a little frustrating - in slightly improving conditions (they have gone from pretty awful to just awful) we have been chasing several whales throughout the day, but without much success. We are now returning to acoustic searching to see if we can get back on to another group.

Happy birthday to Brian our lead acoustician!

Until Tomorrow,

Regards Chris, Margaret, and the VWhales Team

Map

180° 170°W 160°W 150°W 140°W 130°W 120°W 110°W 100°W 90°W 80°W 70°W 60°W 50°W 40°W 30°W 20°W 10°W 30°E 40°E 50°E 60°E 70°E 80°E 90°E 100°E 110°E 120°E 130°E 140°E 150°E 160°E 170°E 80°S 70°S 60°S 50°S 40°S 30°S 20°S 10°S 0°N 10°N 20°N 30°N 40°N 50°N 60°N 70°N 80°N Casey Davis Mawson Macquarie Island Heard Island Fremantle Hobart

A map showing Australia and Antarctica. The map shows the journey of one voyage that has occured in the season, with each route highlighted in a distinct colour.

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