Traveling to the Polish Polar Station in Southern Svalbard with Scripps Institute of Oceanography.
At the end of my senior year of college, I was invited on a research trip to the arctic circle to help with climate change research using active and passive acoustic monitoring of glaciers, icebergs, and water columns.
The expedition was led by Dr. Grant Deane, an oceanographer from SIO and the advisor of Yonder Deep, the organization I directed at the time.
Research Goal
This expedition was a part of a multi-year research campaign to listen to the underwater noises of glaciers and glacier ice in order to uncover data useful in understanding the rate of glacier melting. This can be achieved with hydrophones (robust underwater microphones) that can take recordings at depth when deployed in front of a glacier terminus. Additionally, there was other research being conducted on this trip by Dr. Elizabeth Reed-Weidnerand PhD student at the time, Hayden Johnson, looking into the effects of noise scattering in water columns in Fjords, and boundary layer ice-water interaction on icebergs respectively.
Throughout my 3 week deployment, I helped with logistics and set-up of research equipment like CTDs and hydrophone arrays - and went on many all-day hikes to the nearby Hornsund Glacier, sometimes with a very expensive, 45-LB laser scanner strapped to my back. I journaled and took many many photos while I was there, but below are some of the highlights I think best show the experience.
Disclaimer: All of the guns we carried, me included, were for polar bear protection - to be used as an absolute last resort. We were required to be certified and trained, as well as carry a flare gun and radio at all times when out on an expedition.
The last few days of the deployment were spent on a research vessel, The Ulla Rinman. Sleeping on the boat, we traveled to nearby glaciers in the local Fjord Structure.
I could not have not gone on this trip not only without the support of all of the researchers at SIO, but also everyone of my friends and colleagues at Yonder Deep that I had the opportunity to work with, lead, and learn from.
Continue the journey here: