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To the relief of everyone on the vessel, at station and undoubtedly at the Australian Antarctic Division's (AAD) headquarters in Kingston, the Aurora Australis today continued to make good progress in the discharge of priority cargo to Mawson. The vessel had again enjoyed a relatively calm evening out in the clearer waters beyond Kista strait, but by this morning the South Easterly winds blowing from high on the ice plateau, across station and out through the Aurora's location were quite strong, gusting towards 40 knots.
These katabatic winds are typical at this time of year around Mawson, and increases in their strength and regularity are observed as the region experiences progressively longer 'night times'. The vessel waited until around 1000 Mawson local time (1600 Hobart time / AEST) before moving into position around a quarter of a nautical mile from the tip of West Arm. The barge and two IRBs (inflatable boats) were discharged in quick succession from the Aurora's forward deck and the helideck, and the first expeditioner of the day (David Smith – an experienced plant operator being supplied to Mawson during resupply to assist in the handling and transfer of cargo) was sent ashore.
The first cargo loads were then sent to Mawson aboard the jet barge, which found navigation through the harbour now much easier as the higher winds had cleared the remaining ice floes and 'brash ice' from the area. The wind conditions continued to improve, dropping as low as 3 knots by late morning. The Station and voyage management then agreed to proceed with the pack-up and retrieval of the 2 remaining personnel on nearby Bechervaise Island, dispatching both of the IRBs with extra crew aboard to assist in carrying equipment from the huts to the shore, and packing away a large solar panel.
As ever, the wind conditions in the Antarctic can be fickle, and less than 10 minutes after the IRBs had departed the ship, the wind spiked rapidly from the 3 knot average towards 28 knots. The IRBs were well within the lee of the islands by this time, and were happy assisting the Bechervaise island team to load their equipment into the boats until the wind subsided. Periodic gusts continued to be experienced around more moderate conditions into the afternoon, but by 1245 the project team and their equipment were safely back to station. They'll spend the next couple of days collating their samples and equipment, preparing them for return to Australia.
As dinner approached (the vessel's evening meal time accommodates the change of crew shifts – between 1730 and 1830), the erratic winds finally eased, making the job of loading cargo at the vessel and unloading it ashore just that mush easier.
At 2000, with the final cargo loads for the day successfully discharged, the Aurora's front hatches (providing access to the cargo decks below) were closed and the crew prepared the deck for the barge to be lifted and secured. Each evening, the crew aboard the Aurora will spend between 45 minutes to an hour using the forward and aft cranes to lift and secure the watercraft, as well as the cranes themselves and all associated equipment. The watercraft teams join the crew on the deck – often working far beyond the formal shut down of operations on station.
A significant amount of cargo has now been supplied to Mawson, including the essential fresh, frozen and dry food supplies, mechanical parts, spares, generator engines, medical equipment and new plant and machinery amongst other items. A big thanks to the Aurora's crew and the watercraft teams for the efforts today.
Tomorrow, the forecast has the Aurora placed further off the coast as we wait out much stronger wind conditions which will arrive early morning and remain over the station throughout the day, precluding any further cargo operations.
The vessel is presently headed towards the edge of the broken sea ice pack, with darkening skies and a few large bergs still visible on the horizon.
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.