Antarctic Sea Ice and Ecosystems Explored around Casey Station
19.09.2007 - Logistics, Other
A team led by the Sea Ice Physics and Ecosystem eXperiment (SIPEX) left Hobart, Tasmania's capital, early September to study the connection between Antarctic sea ice and the survival of local ecosystems in the far southern waters.
Organised jointly by the Antarctic Climate & Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre (ACE CRC) and the Australian Antarctic Division, the study will analyse surface processes, as well as those occurring within and under the sea ice just east of Australia's Casey Station. The six-week voyage will then examine interactions between sea ice structure, sea ice biology and the ocean food web.
Acting as a resting platform for marine mammals and birds, sea ice provides a habitat for various groups of organisms such as bacteria and algae, a substantial food source for Antarctic krill during winter and early spring.
The sea ice structure and thickness will also be measured by means of two new airborne systems: "This will be the first time that helicopter laser altimetry and snow radar have been used over Antarctic sea ice", says Dr. Worby, voyage leader. The data collected will then be used to validate information received by new satellite sensors, in the hope that the satellite data is accurate enough to provide sea ice thickness measurements in the future.
An extensive sea ice coring and drilling program will complement these samplings and provide more data on both the physical and biological properties of the ice.
The ACE CRC is currently creating a special website for the voyage that will include profiles of the scientists and their research, daily updates from the ship, education resources and a chance for readers to ask questions to the researchers.
