Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 09/28/2007 - 06:22
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SIMBA Antarctic Sea Ice

Dyslexia Reading classes in the Boerne secondary schools are following your journal and we are fascinated.  We were wondering, what do you eat.  Do they have some different foods for you or are there foods you cannot get that you miss?  We also want you to share what your hopes are for the mission.  Do you think the information you collect will persuade people to be more responsible in preventing global warming?  One of us wants to know if you have seen any polar bears or an animal that fills that "niche"?  We figured out all the ship words except rack and draft.  Could you tell us what they mean?

We feel like we are a part of your trip by reading your journal.  You are in our prayers.

 

Wed, 10/17/2007 - 09:06

Sarah Anderson

Hi Greyhounds! Hope you are having a great year. I'll be back soon to catch up on everything I've missed. What do we eat? There are 4 people on board who prepare all our meals. They always have lots of good things to eat, and there are always great desserts! It'll be a shock to return home and have to shop for groceries, cook, and clean for myself!
Foods that I miss...not too many because they serve such a variety of things. We've had Mexican food and barbecue several times, so that's a lot like home. I think the only thing I really miss is iced tea, which probably sounds a little strange. I've been drinking a lot of hot tea as a replacement.
Hopes for the mission...we are doing new work in an area that hasn't been studied much, especially in the winter season. I hope that we can better characterize the nature of the ice and understand how the ice formation/melting cycle affects global climate. I'm learning a lot about how important this ecosystem is to the Earth. We have already collected data that refutes what satellite imagery shows about this area, so our work will help improve the reliability of these tools.
Will this help persuade people to be more responsible in preventing global warming? I think that will take more than this cruise to do, but what we are doing is important work to help scientists understand the role Antarctica plays in global climate change. Again, not much work has been done in this area, so we are doing foundational research.
Polar bears or an animal that fills that niche...polar bears have never lived in Antarctica, you'll only find them in the Arctic, but you're right, there must be something equivalent to them here...that would no doubt be the leopard seal. These seals are huge (700 to 800 pounds) and eat fish, krill, penguins, and even small or young seals. We have a pair of crabeater seals we're watching on the ice floe on the port side of the ship. Brent can see scars on their skin from leopard seal attacks when they were young.
Ship terms - rack means your bunk or bed on the ship, and draft refers to the distance the ship extends into the water. Good job figuring out the others. I'm hearing new terms like these almost every day.
I'm glad you are following the expedition...I look forward to seeing everyone at home in a few weeks. Go Hounds!! Mrs. Anderson