After having sampled the land, lakes and rivers near Toolik in the northern foothills of the Brooks Range, today we drove north to the coastal plain of the Arctic Ocean.
We sampled the lakes there to try and find out how they might be affecting the carbon cycle on the tundra, and what role they play in converting organic matter to heat-trapping gases like CO2 and methane.
The coastal plain is almost perfectly flat, with tundra stretching out in all directions. I waded into the lakes to check the light attenuation of the water column, to get a better understanding of the nature of the organic matter present in the lakes.
Jason and Katie tested the temperature, pH, and conductivity of the lakes, and also took samples of water and dissolved gases.
On the ride back we saw the biggest caribou herd yet.
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