Petermann Island
All hands were on deck after a quick breakfast this morning for our transit of the famous Lemaire Channel. This spectacular passage, between Booth Island and the mainland of the Peninsula, became particularly exciting when our way seemed to be blocked by a dense knot of icebergs and pack ice. Fortunately Captain Kruess spotted an Endeavour-sized gap, and we slipped through into the calm waters of the Penola Strait.
A few minutes later the rocky, snow-mounded shores of Petermann Island were dotted with bright red parkas as we went ashore to visit the Oceanites research camp and the penguins they study. With support from Lindblad Expeditions and our guests these scientists are tracking changes in the populations of gentoos and adelies here on the island and numerous other sites around the Antarctic Peninsula. The study on Petermann is of particular value and interest because the great French polar explorer, Jean Baptiste Charcot, brought his second expedition to this island in 1908. Charcot and his fellow explorers made counts of the numbers of penguins present on the island then, providing a rare and valuable baseline for modern studies.
Meanwhile, many of us took advantage of the perfect conditions for another round of kayaking and the glassy waters of the strait soon played host to numerous small yellow boats. Some were busy exploring the ins and outs of the coastline while others, paddles at rest, were simply gliding over the reflections, drinking in the day. This drinking took on a delicious flavor when the hot chocolate Zodiac appeared, dispensing treats to all comers.
One more bright yellow craft was seen a bit farther off shore: the ROV (Remote Operated Vehicle) control Zodiac. This season, divers and ROV pilots from the National Geographic Endeavour are assisting Oceanites to extend their study beneath the sea as part of a pilot program for a new monitoring project, the Antarctic Marine Monitoring Program (AMMP). Linking monitoring in the sea to studies on land may help to provide an important piece of the puzzle, particularly in the case of penguins, which are essentially marine creatures themselves.
Today, during the first ROV operation of this new survey, we were able to observe the bottom at depths between 85 and 120 meters (285 to 400 feet), and record many species of marine life, including corals, sea stars and a rare cucumber. Ninety-nine years ago, Jean Baptiste Charcot also studied the marine life of this area and we are eager to compare our results with his records.
Sitting at the controls of the ROV on a bright, beautiful day in Penola Strait and watching on the monitor the amazing community living four hundered feet below, I couldn’t help but wonder what Charcot himself would have thought of this modern expedition technology at work in the region he pioneered. I think he would have been thrilled, just as I am. C’est magnifique!
All hands were on deck after a quick breakfast this morning for our transit of the famous Lemaire Channel. This spectacular passage, between Booth Island and the mainland of the Peninsula, became particularly exciting when our way seemed to be blocked by a dense knot of icebergs and pack ice. Fortunately Captain Kruess spotted an Endeavour-sized gap, and we slipped through into the calm waters of the Penola Strait.
A few minutes later the rocky, snow-mounded shores of Petermann Island were dotted with bright red parkas as we went ashore to visit the Oceanites research camp and the penguins they study. With support from Lindblad Expeditions and our guests these scientists are tracking changes in the populations of gentoos and adelies here on the island and numerous other sites around the Antarctic Peninsula. The study on Petermann is of particular value and interest because the great French polar explorer, Jean Baptiste Charcot, brought his second expedition to this island in 1908. Charcot and his fellow explorers made counts of the numbers of penguins present on the island then, providing a rare and valuable baseline for modern studies.
Meanwhile, many of us took advantage of the perfect conditions for another round of kayaking and the glassy waters of the strait soon played host to numerous small yellow boats. Some were busy exploring the ins and outs of the coastline while others, paddles at rest, were simply gliding over the reflections, drinking in the day. This drinking took on a delicious flavor when the hot chocolate Zodiac appeared, dispensing treats to all comers.
One more bright yellow craft was seen a bit farther off shore: the ROV (Remote Operated Vehicle) control Zodiac. This season, divers and ROV pilots from the National Geographic Endeavour are assisting Oceanites to extend their study beneath the sea as part of a pilot program for a new monitoring project, the Antarctic Marine Monitoring Program (AMMP). Linking monitoring in the sea to studies on land may help to provide an important piece of the puzzle, particularly in the case of penguins, which are essentially marine creatures themselves.
Today, during the first ROV operation of this new survey, we were able to observe the bottom at depths between 85 and 120 meters (285 to 400 feet), and record many species of marine life, including corals, sea stars and a rare cucumber. Ninety-nine years ago, Jean Baptiste Charcot also studied the marine life of this area and we are eager to compare our results with his records.
Sitting at the controls of the ROV on a bright, beautiful day in Penola Strait and watching on the monitor the amazing community living four hundered feet below, I couldn’t help but wonder what Charcot himself would have thought of this modern expedition technology at work in the region he pioneered. I think he would have been thrilled, just as I am. C’est magnifique!
