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Underway to Davis station, the Aurora Australis is continuing on its path skimming around the edge of the pack ice, maximizing cruising speed of over 13 knots and avoiding crossing banks of pack ice which would slow progress down. Grey seas sparsely punctuated with older icebergs eroded into entertaining shapes provided multiple photographic opportunities.
There were also regular numbers of whale sightings throughout the day, Humpbacks and Minke whales, often spotted thanks to their distant blows and sometimes displaying a flipper or a full tail disappearing in a deep dive. Their high concentration is another evidence that this corner of the world is an extraordinarily productive environment: as the sea ice retreats every summer, algal blooms take place which in turn feed krill, the key ingredient in the cetaceans's diet and the reason why they migrate to the colder Antarctic waters every Austral summer to replenish their body reserves.
Dainn McGee and Bruno Cuhna , researchers from the international ARM (Atmospheric Radiation Measurement) project gave interested people a tour of the Monkey Deck (Bridge roof) which is otherwise closed. A forest of highly sensitive instruments such as radars and radiometers scrutinize the sky and collect measurements on cloud, precipitation, aerosol and radiation. As this region of the globe is rarely visited (as opposed to the Arctic), the data collected continuously since the start of this season are very valuable for climate models.
Briefings and preparations for the Davis water resupply operation continued throughout the day, which was concluded with a special dinner for Australia Day and a small ceremony for the handling of Neptune certificates by Captain Gerry O'Doherty. These officialise the crossing of the 60th parallel South to expeditioners who reach Antarctica by ship for the first time. Welcome to our 21 new 'Antarcticans'!
The vessel is expected to reach its anchorage at Davis Station early Saturday morning.
Cheers
Mark & Fred
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.