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We're now two days into our journey south and RSV Nuyina is churning through the Southern Ocean at about 13 knots. The skies are grey but there's the odd stream of sunlight through the clouds and you can see giant petrels, cape petrels and, now and again, a light mantled sooty albatross sweeping over the waves.
Overnight the swell increased noticeably and everyone's doing that funny walk as they try to counteract the movement of the ship from side to side. We're scheduled to arrive at Macquarie Island around 9am tomorrow morning and everyone's excited to see the first glimpse of the island (we're operating on UTC + 11 time, to make the most of the daylight).
In preparation, expeditioners watched a station induction video today and had a briefing from incoming station leader Bec Jeffcoat on how resupply will run, followed by a refueling briefing.
Everyone's raving about the talk on auroras that was held last night – one watercraft veteran said it was the "best [she'd] ever been to" - and tonight we're looking forward to e a presentation on the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty and the radiation monitoring that's done at Macquarie Island.
Once we arrive tomorrow the LARCs will be lowered into Buckles Bay and helicopters will start ferrying expeditioners to their new home – some for just a few days, others for the winter and beyond.
Many thanks to the crew, who've made the journey so enjoyable!
REGARDS: Brendan, Jenn, and Nick
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.