I ate breakfast this morning with Lee Harris, a member of the National Marine Mammal Lab, NOAA’s ice seal team. Lee is also an Inupiat Eskimo. I enjoy listening and learning about what he says. It is…
On board the Healy, there is one helicopter that is being used by the folks from the National Marine Mammal Laboratory to do population studies. Today they went out for two runs. In the first run,…
Well, we’re about 1/3 of the way through our cruise.  We’ve traveled into some pretty thick ice lately- some of it up to 4 feet thick!!  When we reach ice this thick, the ship has to do some "backing…
Today started off like any ordinary day. I did have one major goal, to wash my clothes. Of course, I am sure you have wondered how I could have possibly packed enough clothes and gear to last 35 days…
I realized that I was doing you all a great disservice by not featuring the most important creatures of all, the producers. Producers are organisms that take the radiant energy from the sun and…
So what's on board a scientific research vessel and Coast Guard Icebreaker. Come take a tour with Kolehe, my naughty monkey friend. Walk the gang plank Gang Plank That's how you get on the ship.…
Coming at you live and on the satellite phone, Maggie and Robyn from the USCGC Healy. Just imagining the logistics is awe-inspiring.  We are out in the middle of the Arctic and still able to connect…
Yesterday, April 15, was our first close encounter with a spotted seal. Spotted seals are the most common ice seals in this area. They are known for their spicy personality. Spotted Seal Scientific…
For the second time, I got geared up along with David Shull, Emily Davenport, and Bonnie Chang to get some good mud cores. The mud cores need to be at least 24 cm in length to provide enough mud to…
One of the groups on board the ship is studying zooplankton, which are always fun to look at under the microscope. They take a BIG net that is very fine (no large holes) and can do one of two things…
Yes! I am an official ice observer, a real member of the scientific team. My job is to tag team with Robyn Staup, my fellow PolarTREC teacher, to record the conditions of the ice every two hours.…
On Monday, April 9, we loaded the ship with many bags and boxes of gear. Everyone moved into their rooms, unpacked and then headed for the science lab. In order to do science experiments, the…