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The wind is still trying to send us back to where we came from but the swell has abated. The forecast suggests some further improvement over the next 24 hours.
Last night we had the long anticipated visit from King Neptune and his decidedly suspect entourage; during which a surprisingly large number of willing volunteers “met the fish”. As for the rest of the ceremonial rites? Let’s just say that it was a bad night to be a washing machine. Mysteriously, as his Royal Fishiness departed the vessel, the echo-sounders revealed a spectacular 3300m sea mount passing underneath us. The peak of the mount was still 1100m below the surface but now we know where the King resides in the off season. Some of the scientists on board noticed a significant rise in chlorophyll as we passed over the sea mount which ties in nicely with the scientific objectives of the voyage.
Encounters with minor oceanic royalty aside; there is a further air of excitement this morning as we conducted the first Argo float deployment. This device will periodically sink down to the bottom of the ocean and then rise to the surface to phone home with the latest oceanographic data. Our deployment will add to the flotilla of Argo floats which is already monitoring the world’s oceans and help fill a vital gap in these remote Antarctic waters.
We passed the 60th parallel overnight and this, along with the presence of a few ice bergs and subzero air temperatures all adds to the sense that we are finally reaching the “end of the beginning”.
The first formal daily science planning meeting is being held today. From these meetings, we will develop a 24 hour rolling plan for marine science activities to keep us gainfully employed over the coming weeks.
Clocks went back by hour last night taking us to UTC+7.
Lloyd and Brett
Map
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.