to see a daily log of the SHADRIL cruise.
April 2006
| Su | Mo | Tu | We | Th | Fr | Sa |
| -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 |
| 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
| 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| 30 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
March 2006
| Su | Mo | Tu | We | Th | Fr | Sa |
| -- | -- | -- | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | -- |
February 2006
| Su | Mo | Tu | We | Th | Fr | Sa |
| -- | -- | -- | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 26 | 27 | 28 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
April 2005
| Su | Mo | Tu | We | Th | Fr | Sa |
| -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 | 2 |
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
March 2005
| Su | Mo | Tu | We | Th | Fr | Sa |
| -- | -- | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
| 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | -- | -- |
Location: 58° 24.562 W, 62° 19.995 S
Temperature: -2C
D-day
Early this morning the Palmer reached the first drill site in Maxwell Bay on the southwest side of King George Island in the South Shetlands. We will remain here at the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula for the next four days.
It was a long night for the scientists aboard. Multibeam ocean floor survey data were recorded and analyzed and matched to the available seismic data to pinpoint the "perfect" drill site.
Since early this morning, the mechanical arm has been picking up drill pipe one by one, assembling them together, and sending them down toward the ocean floor with amazing precision and ease. While the might of the cranes and mechanical arms is certainly impressive, our admiration went to the drillers on the deck who ran the machines and handled the pipes in the harsh cold of the Antarctic April. It will take 480 m of pipe to reach the ocean floor and an additional 100 m below that to sample the entire section.
Until the first drill-core sample comes aboard the scientists are busy processing the first kasten core. For those who are just learning about geology, these are samples from the surface layer of the ocean floor, obtained by gravity using a weighted cylinder. Once aboard, samples are described, photographed, and their water content and electrical resistivity determined. Samples will be labeled and packaged for further studies at the Antarctic Research Facility at Florida State University.
It is wonderful seeing the enthusiasm of geologists "playing in the mud," and finding a worm, bi-valve shell, or a brittle star. This may not look like serious science to an uninitiated observer, but searching for fossils of creatures like diatoms or radiolarians will help determine the age of the samples, climatic changes that occurred since the last glacial period, and ultimately help us understand the global climate change occurring today.
Alex Injac
 Palmers course from Punta Arenas
|
||
|
|
