Polar Bear Response to Sea Ice Loss Journals

Location: Lat: 71 16.503 N Long:  144 18.779 W Sunrise: 10:19 am Sunset: 4:25 pm Over the past week, several members of the science crew on board have been invited to have dinner with the captain. It is quite a honor to be invited to join the captain for dinner. Last week the media crew and helicopter crew were also asked to join the captain for dinner.   The captain has a private cabin with his own conference table that can be used a dinner table. All of the food was the same as we would have eaten in the regular mess, however it was presented neatly on a plate and served to us. It was like having dinner at a nice restaurant. The best part of the whole meal was the atmosphere. Rather than eating in a cafeteria with 50 other people, it was a pleasant change to have a more...

Location: Lat: 72 21.940 N Long: 146 32.908 W Sunrise: 10:14 am Sunset: 5:01 pm Taking advantage of a break in the weather, both the polar bear team and the ice team were able to head out to do work. The polar bear team went out in search of another one of their bears. At the same time, the ice team went out to complete another series of dives and coring operations. The ideal site for diving for the ice team is a ridge. A ridge is where two pieces of ice have crashed into each other making the underside of the ice not just a flat surface, but rather there are parts that stick deeper into the water. They are interested in comparing what types of organisms are living under these ridges to the types that live in other parts of the ice sheet. In order to do this, we obviously need a ridge...

Location: Lat: 72 20.033 N Long: 145 59.64 W Sunrise: 10:08 am Sunset: 5:00 pm Today we officially have one week left on board the Polar Sea - we disembark on Sunday, November 1st and then I make the trek back home to the San Francisco Bay Area. I am both excited to return home to my students, my husband and my cat, but also sad to be leaving this rich experience that I have been able to be part of. Unfortunately, the weather has not changed enough in order to fly safely - so we were grounded yet another day. However, we remain hopeful for better weather conditions tomorrow. We have been surrounded by thick multi-year ice floes that require much more force to break through than before. Today we had to use the turbine engine for the first time this trip to break through a ridge of ice...

Location: Lat: 71 32.675 Long: 145 39.254 Sunrise: 9:45 am Sunset: 5:06 pm This morning we attempted the second Live from IPY event - where the researchers and I call in from the Polar Sea and have a live conference about the research and the trip. I was very excited to hear from my students to see how they are doing, however the satellite connection for the phone was just not working. I apologize to anyone who tried to listen in to the event, but communications are hard to predict when you are this far north. In order to actually have any communication off the ship, we use iridium satellite signals to transmit data. The message goes from the phone on board the ship to a satellite antennae just behind the bridge of the boat. The signal gets transmitted to one of 66 satellites that orbit...

Location: Lat: 71 32.675 Long: 143 34.607 Sunrise: 8:56 am Sunset: 5:30 pm As I stated in an earlier journal, we were lucky enough to pick up another passenger while stopped off the coast of Deadhorse. George Neakok joined the crew as the Native Alaskan observer necessary as we traveled into Canadian waters. George has had a long and fascinating life growing up in Barrow, Alaska and I was lucky enough to spend some time interviewing him. At first he is quiet and reserved, but as you get to know him, he opens up with a wealth of information about Barrow, the plants and animals native to the North Slope region and his native culture. George has lived in Barrow his whole life, just as his parents, grandparents and ancestors have. He is proud father to 7 children - 6 girls and 1 boy, the...

Location: Lat: 71 21.718 N Long: 134 34.039 W Sunrise: 9:19 am Sunset: 5:57 pm Late into the night, there are people working aboard the Polar Sea. Thanks to a few individuals each night, the Polar Sea keeps steaming forward. To get a better understanding of what has to happen each night, I stayed up late and talked to each of the groups that stands watch even through the night hours. The first place I visited was the engine room; 24 hours a day/7 days a week they have four people on duty. There is an engineer of the watch and assistant engineer of the watch as well as 2 additional crew for auxiliary monitor reading. The team monitors the engines that generate electricity on board, water supplies, sewage, heat, and engine for propulsion of the boat. They have to monitor all of the...

Location: Lat: 72 06.961 N Long: 148 59.155 W Sunrise: 9:34 am Sunset: 6:19 pm One of the main things I have been anticipating since I was selected for this program is viewing the northern lights (besides working with polar bears of course!). During the first week of the trip, the lights had been amazing and dancing across the sky. However, they usually are the most visible in the middle of the night, while I am asleep. So I missed the shows as I slept comfortably in my bunk. I have asked the Coasties on the late night watches to come wake me if the lights are visible. So far, they have come to get me twice. The first time, I woke up my roommates and others to go see the lights with me. However, when we made it outside, the lights only looked like some faintly green fog. The second time...

Location: Lat: 72 27.414 Long: 152 50.003 Sunrise: 9:36 am Sunset: 6:32 pm Today the team could not go out in search of the next target bear due to fog. It just wasn't safe to fly in such thick fog. It was also freakishly warm for the arctic - today the temperature got up to 35 Fahrenheit! It is concerning to all of us here that the temperatures are so warm. Yesterday's sound of the arctic was taken during a tour of a space on the ship that I had yet to explore - the engine room. I was taken on an extensive behind-the-scenes tour of the engine room and other related spaces.   The Polar Sea can actually hold 1.36 million gallons of fuel! Here is the source of the sound from yesterday! The room was so loud that we had to wear ear protection for our hearing!

Location:Lat: 75 57.617 NLong: 158 01. 756 W Sunrise: 10:31 am Sunset: 6:42 pm Today's journal is a guest post from Petty Officer 3rd Class, Loren Pearlman, a boatswain's mate (BM3) assigned to the USCGC Polar Sea. Loren's job on board the Polar Sea is to navigate the ship using paper and electronic resources. He figures out the route that the boat will travel and draws it out for the crew to follow. He also knows how all the navigation systems works and trouble shoots in case any of them are not working properly. He conducts training for others on the ship as well. Loren has been in the Coast Guard since 2005. He joined the Coast Guard because he was not ready to go to college just yet, but wanted something positive and productive to do with his life. He has been able to travel around...

Location:Lat: 76 09.850 NLong: 171 43.704 W Sunrise: 10:36 am Sunset: 7:36 pm Although I love the Polar Sea, it is nice to spend some time outside in the fresh air. So, I decided to tag along with the sea ice team from University of Fairbanks, Alaska. The team is made of Katrin Iken (chief scientist), Mette Kaufman, Heloise Chenelot, Brenna McConnell, Shawn Harper, and Richard Morris (film maker).   They are interested in the types of organisms that are living in and below the sea ice. Their man objective is to take samples of the ice from different depths to analyze. They are also looking for samples of the bottom of the ice. In order to get to the bottom of the ice, they have to go underneath of the ice. They have a team of 4 divers who are trained specifically in diving in cold...

Location:Lat: 77  16.696 NLong:  167  15.889 W Sunrise: 10:09 am Sunset: 7:23 pm Jump to Audio Today we could not fly to look for any bears because of the bad weather. I decided to take advantage of this time to work on preparations for the Live event this Thursday at 8:30 PST. However, there is always something interesting happening aboard the Polar Sea. For example, during dinner tonight we had a bit of excitement. As I finishing up my delicious dinner of beef stew and biscuits, I heard an alarm signal and "Fire, Fire, Fire!" coming over the pipe (the intercom system). In less than 5 seconds, the mess hall was cleared - all the Coasties were off and responding to the alarm. The scientist and I were all still sitting there deciding what to do and finally decided that we...

Location: Lat: 77 37.369 N Long: 164 40.738 W Sunrise: 9:57amSunset: 7:25 pm Today is another day of transit, we are heading back towards the southwest. I thought I would take this opportunity to give an overview of some of the other things going on aboard the Polar Sea. The team from Southern Illinois University is here to look at samples of sea water and how they might be affected by changes in the sea ice. Their project involves collecting water using a CTD device. (See journal from 10 02 09 for a picture). CTD stands for conductivity, temperature and depth. It has 24 tubes that can each hold 10 liters of water. They can be opened and closed at different depths. The team is using it to collect water from three different depths - 2 meters, 50 meters, and 100 meters. It takes...

Location:Lat:76 41.648 NLong: 170 27.27.949 W Today's journal is a random collection of questions that my studentssubmitted to the Ask the Team section. They were such great questionsthat I decided to group them and turn them into a journal entry.If you have other questions, please check out the "Ask the Team" section. If you don't see your question already posted, feel free to post a newquestion! Thank,Cristina Galvan   Life on a ship:How do they get the helicopters in the hangar? The helicopters land on a landing pad on the back deck of the boat. Thenthey get wheeled in and out of the hanger. They have to make sure to lineup the propellers so that they can both fit in at the same time. Why is there a basketball hoop in the hangar? Who plays? Remember that the Coast...

Lat: 75 50.84 NLong: 171 49.40 W Sunrise: 9:47 amSunset: 8:32 pm Today the research team did another search for polar bears based on their GPS locations. What I find interesting is that we are only able to get data on their locations once per day, I imagined that we would have real time data - sort of like a map on my cell phone. I learned that that sort of data takes a lot of battery power and it would be impossible to have the collar last for that long. The technology they are using with the polar bears is some of the top of the line collaring devices. The team was able to locate the bear, but she was on ice that was not thick enough or big enough to land a helicopter on. Generally speaking, the ice needs to dry and hard and should be 6 inches thick and about 200 yards long....

Location:Lat: 73.1575 NLong: -154.279 W In the morning, we were finally close to the GPS location of the first bear. When I went to bridge, we could finally see a bit more ice. As the boat hits some of the bigger pieces, the boat shakes. Coming from California, my first instinct was earthquake for the first few time we hit a piece of ice - and then I remembered that I am on a boat in the middle of the Arctic Ocean! After breakfast, the team of researchers got together all their gear in preparation for heading out in the helicopter to find and collect data on the first bear. In order to fly several safety steps have to happen. First, a flight briefing happens on the bridge with all the involved parties going over the details and doing a risk assessment. Then the team has to put on...

Sunrise:  8:43 amSunset: 7:49 pm Location: Lat: 72  degrees 15.24 minutes Long: 155 degrees  02.513 minutes  This morning I woke bright and early, got ready and arrived at a nearly empty mess hall (dining room). I then realized, it's Sunday! On Sunday, there is brunch so people can sleep in a bit later. Since I was already up, I decided to take that time to explore the ship. I figured the best way to learn the layout of the boat was to get lost over and over until I could find my way around. Lucky for me, there are always plenty of helpful Coasties around to help me find my way! My tour started in the galley (kitchen) and the mess deck(dining area). The food here so far has been great - a full brunch for breakfast of eggs made to order, bacon, sausage, pancakes, and fruit, lunch...

The final two days of preparation to be traveling for 6 weeks continued to be chaotic - finishing sub plans, visiting with family and friends one last time and of course packing! At my school site, my students enjoyed playing dress up with some of the gear that I will be wearing. However, it was nearly 90 degrees Fahrenheit, so trying on gear became extremely hot! I tried to pack light, but also wanted to make sure that I had plenty of clothes to keep me warm. I have never travelled to a place so cold before, so I had to rely on advice from other PolarTREC teachers, the research team and the PolarTREC support office. Hopefully, I have everything I need. I'm sure I forgot something, but I'll have to make do with out it because there isn't a post office at the North Pole. (Don't...

It's been a busy summer for me. My summer was full of planning - wedding, new subject to teach, and a Polar expedition. However, I did get to take a small break from all the planning to travel to Hawaii for my luna de miel (honeymoon). Since I knew I'd be spending a lot of time in the cold in a few months, we decided to head to a tropical destination - Hawaii! We spent a few days lounging on the beach and enjoying the great snorkeling. A highlight was having a pod of spinner dolphins approach our kayak in Kealakekua Bay. This species of dolphin is well known for their acrobatic jumps and spins. They were very friendly and curious about the kayakers in the bay. We wanted to explore the other parts of the island and realized why it's called the Big Island. One day we traveled to the...

It's been a little over two months since I left Alaska and it already seems like a lifetime ago. I have been working to keep the networks strong that I began to build while in Fairbanks and have been living vicariously through the adventures of the other PolarTrec teachers who have already completed their trips. My students have benefited from this experience in numerous ways already. As part of our unit on Waves and Sound, we completed a Rock Band project - inspired by the work that Casey O'Hara shared in Fairbanks. Also, based on the ideas from the other PolarTrec teachers, my students now participate in a weekly "Virtual Expedition" called Polar Fridays. On Polar Fridays, students work in teams to document the journey of one PolarTrec teachers of their choice. They have...

On the final day of training in Fairbanks, I took an intensive short course to learn some basic survival skills for working in the field.  While on my expedition there is a possiblity of dangerous situations and it is good to know some basic techniques to stay safe.  I learned some first aid, basic shelter techniques and how to improvise clothing.  Keeping warm and dry in very important when working in extreme cold conditions such as those in the Polar Regions.  I do have to say that my biggest concern is not the polar bears, or the helicopter rides, but rather just normal day to day accidents that would be more problematic when on a boat or on ice, such as slipping on a ladder or the ice.     I am sad to be leaving Fairbanks, but I am excited to return home to my...