This journal is brought to you by…
- Stephanie Penning and her 3rd grade class at South School
- Mrs. World’s 1st grade class at Riverwood Elementary School
- Peggy Jones and her 2nd grade class at Riverwood Elementary School
Teamwork is the key!
Working as part of a team is very important in many aspects of life and it’s no different here ‘on the Ice.’ It takes a team of scientists (all working together) to gather the samples, data and information needed from our seals. Each person has specific and important jobs.
Check out these awesome scientists who I will be spending my time with at McMurdo Station. Let me tell you, I am traveling with one amazing team.
Roxanne Beltran – Graduate student
Roxanne is no stranger to the Antarctic ice. She’s been to McMurdo Station five times, and sure looks like a pro when you see her at work. As a graduate student, Roxanne is interested in finding out about the diving behavior of the seals - specifically when and how deep they dive. How does she get this information, you might be asking? She clips a small Time Depth Recorder tag (TDR, for short) to the seal’s hind flipper and takes a reading every 6 seconds. As an avid diver herself, she hopes someday to peek beneath the ice at McMurdo Station. Wouldn’t it be amazing to be in the water with a Weddell seal?
Team Tidbit from Roxanne:
If I could meet any famous scientist, it would definitely be Charles Darwin. He completely transformed the way we think about the natural world, and he was incredibly passionate about each and every task he undertook. Plus, he had an awesome beard for a while.
Amy Kirkham – Graduate student
Amy’s a world traveler. She and I participated in the 2014 Antarctic expedition and several school groups had the pleasure of meeting her last May when she visited Memphis. When Amy isn’t on the Antarctic ice, she’s busy making some pretty amazing memories back in Alaska. In May 2015, she met King Harald V of Norway (And yes, ‘Harald’ is the correct spelling)! Amy studied in Norway last year, but had the opportunity to meet King Harald when he visited the University of Alaska, Anchorage. Royalty, wow!
Her main job on this trip is to measure hormone levels in the seal’s blood. By looking at hormones, she’s hoping to find out if the seals we are studying are going to have a pup (baby). She also analyzes the seal’s skin samples to see if the seal’s fur is actively growing a new coat of fur.
Amy also enjoys rowing, hiking, and reading a good book.
Team Tidbit from Amy:
I wish for a super sense of smell. There is so much information out there that weak human noses can’t pick up, and it would be so cool to walk into a room and know the story of who and what had been there with one sniff. It’d also be very useful for finding all the candy bars that seem to disappear in the many pockets of my extreme cold weather gear!
Dr. Michelle Shero - Graduate student and Doctor
Congratulations are in order!!! Michelle recently earned her PhD (Doctor of Philosophy degree, the highest you can earn), so she is no longer a ‘student.’ We can now call her Dr. Michelle. Way to go! Her area of expertise is in reproductive biology, which means she is interested to learn if and when the seals we are studying become pregnant. She uses some pretty fancy ultrasound equipment to detect pregnancy. Be on the lookout for an upcoming journal, as she is working on some amazing stuff.
Michelle has always been interested in animals and she has a unique talent as a skilled horsewoman in show-jumping. She won’t be able to display those talents down here; horses are not allowed in Antarctica.
Team Tidbit from Michelle:
If I could be any animal I would be a wolf. They’re intelligent, elegant and fierce at the same time, and the pack structures they have are amazing.
Ms. Alex Eilers – Educator
This is my 3rd (and final!) year down here on the ice. As an educator, it’s my job to document our journey and to help you guys stay in touch with all the amazing things that happen while we research Weddell seals. I work to create journals for this website and I love presenting other educational programs to kids when I get back home. I’ve wanted to be a teacher my whole life, but I never dreamed it would lead me to an Antarctic expedition! Learning how to drive a snowmobile and meeting Falcon Scott, the grandson of Robert Falcon Scott, at Scott’s Hut are two of my favorite Antarctic memories. I still get goosebumps just thinking about how amazing it is to be here! I’m so glad I’ve been able to cross Antarctica off my bucket list of places to visit. I wonder where teaching will take me next!
Team Tidbit:
I have a not-so-secret addiction to Snickers bars while I’m in Antarctica. I’ve got to keep my food intake up, right? I also love these seals and wish I could take one home – although I don’t think they’d like the much warmer Memphis weather!
Comments