I had potatoes with ketchup for breakfast again - I’ve had them every day. After breakfast, I went out on deck to see Neptune’s Bellows while the sun was rising. There were lots of beautiful islands, and the water was really calm.
In the morning, we landed at Telofon Bay, on a volcanic island. Lots of the rocks were black and not covered in snow, and there was a large caldera. Marcus Eriksen, who founded 5 Gyres Institute, which studies plastic pollution, was sampling the beach for micro-plastics. After the expedition, he will analyze the samples in his lab to see if any plastic made its way across oceans to Antarctica. I, along with other expedition members, helped him collect samples. The sampling process was very simple, and could be done by people of any age! The first step is to mark a plot that is 1m x 1m using string and pegs along the tide-line of the beach (there is usually a line of seaweed). Then, you rinse the seaweed inside of the plot in a bucket of salt water - any plastic residue on the seaweed will be in the salt water. Next, you scoop out any rocks or other visible non-plastic matter with a spoon. Finally, you pour the salt water onto a sieve and put the remaining matter into a vial. The 5 Gyres Institute uses a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to determine how much micro-plastic is in the sample.
In the morning, we landed at Telofon Bay, on a volcanic island. Lots of the rocks were black and not covered in snow, and there was a large caldera. Marcus Eriksen, who founded 5 Gyres Institute, which studies plastic pollution, was sampling the beach for micro-plastics. After the expedition, he will analyze the samples in his lab to see if any plastic made its way across oceans to Antarctica. I, along with other expedition members, helped him collect samples. The sampling process was very simple, and could be done by people of any age! The first step is to mark a plot that is 1m x 1m using string and pegs along the tide-line of the beach (there is usually a line of seaweed). Then, you rinse the seaweed inside of the plot in a bucket of salt water - any plastic residue on the seaweed will be in the salt water. Next, you scoop out any rocks or other visible non-plastic matter with a spoon. Finally, you pour the salt water onto a sieve and put the remaining matter into a vial. The 5 Gyres Institute uses a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to determine how much micro-plastic is in the sample.
In the afternoon, we made our last landing in Antarctica, at Whalers Bay. I’m really sad that we’re going to leave Antarctica after this! There were lots of remains from the old whaling industry, as well as from the British research base, Base B. Base B was shut down after two volcanic eruptions. The whalers used to store whale oil in large cylindrical buildings. It’s estimated that over a million whales were killed.
The natural landscape of the island was spectacular. On one side of the island was Neptune’s Window, a dip in the mountainside from which you can see the ocean. The rocks that weren’t covered in snow were black or brown, and many of the fur seals were well-camouflaged. We were told not to get to close to the fur seals because they are aggressive towards humans - they used to be hunted for their fur, and adapted to dislike humans. It was very entertaining to watch two of the male seals sparring.
The natural landscape of the island was spectacular. On one side of the island was Neptune’s Window, a dip in the mountainside from which you can see the ocean. The rocks that weren’t covered in snow were black or brown, and many of the fur seals were well-camouflaged. We were told not to get to close to the fur seals because they are aggressive towards humans - they used to be hunted for their fur, and adapted to dislike humans. It was very entertaining to watch two of the male seals sparring.
In the evening, we had the Three Bells Ceremony. Everyone went to Deck 2, and Zach Faja (one of the expedition members) rang a bell three times after one of the Team Leaders said, “Ring three bells for ___.” Then, the captain stepped out onto the deck, and we saluted him.
After the bell ceremony, I saw the world premier of the documentary “Polar Realm.” The film is silent (with a very calming soundtrack) and provides a virtual experience of Antarctica, and I would strongly recommend seeing it when it comes to theaters.
After the bell ceremony, I saw the world premier of the documentary “Polar Realm.” The film is silent (with a very calming soundtrack) and provides a virtual experience of Antarctica, and I would strongly recommend seeing it when it comes to theaters.