Journal

Hey everybody - guess what happened to my Styrofoam cup??!!

Styrofoam cup before
Styrofoam cup before

Styrofoam cup after
Styrofoam cup after

Details
Author
Sarah Slack
Date
Location
Onboard the R/V Nathaniel B. Palmer icebraker in the Bellingshausen Sea off the west coast of Antarctica.
Expedition
Thwaites Offshore Research
Weather Summary
Gray and cloudy
Temperature
-4.3 C
Wind Speed
8.0 knots out of the northwest
Wind Chill
-11.4 C

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Comments

Fri, 03/20/2020 - 18:47

Carlos brunet

We used to do the same in the Gulf of Mexico. Fun times! Write some stuff on the styrofoam cup and send it down in a mesh bag attached to the sampling equipment.

Tue, 03/24/2020 - 07:29

Anna Arends

Wow! I have no idea what happened to that cup! It looks so cool!

Thu, 03/26/2020 - 04:11

Sarah S.

We sent them down to the bottom of the ocean- over 6000 feet deep! The pressure from the water causes the cup to "compress" or shrink- just like these toys we used to get called Shrinky Dinks. But those shrank in the oven and made the whole house smell funny. Styrofoam cups like this work well because there are so many air spaces in the Styrofoam. The pressure of the water squeezes all the air out.

Wed, 03/25/2020 - 07:09

Julie Moore

A bit like a shrinky-dink, eh? But probably doesn't have that same smell...