Bird Island Diary — December 2013
1 December, 2013 BAS Bloggers
December was a busy month for the team with the base’s new additions, Adam, Jess, Cian and Rob, getting happily settled into the Bird island way of life. Early December …
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Bird Island Diary — November 2013
30 November, 2013 Adam Bradley
It is now November, and spring is in the air on Bird Island. Seal puppies are appearing at an ever-increasing rate, the penguins and albatrosses are jealously guarding their eggs …
Halley Diary — November 2013
30 November, 2013 BAS Bloggers
Having spent a winter in isolation on the Brunt ice shelf we were all very excited as the first plane landed on the runway bringing people and freshies. More than …
King Edward Point Diary – November 2013
25 November, 2013 James McKenna
On a chilly November morning, a group of excited folk crowded around the bronze statue of a Siberian Husky outside BAS headquarters in Cambridge, preparing to set off on a …
Bird Island Diary — October 2013
31 October, 2013 BAS Bloggers
I have been challenged to write something different for this month’s web diary, and rather than being completely biased and simply writing a long-winded essay on how great seals are …
Halley Diary — October 2013
31 October, 2013 BAS Bloggers
It’s October now and the length of daylight is increasing rapidly at this time of year. It only seems a few weeks since we were in total darkness yet we …
Bird Island Diary — September 2013
30 September, 2013 Stephanie Winnard
The month of September has seen big changes to the amount of wildlife on the island especially the avian species. It is now most definitely spring. From the 1st September …
Halley Diary — September 2013
30 September, 2013 BAS Bloggers
With the ever-increasing light and (occasionally) improving weather, September felt like we were truly beginning to leave winter behind. Although the true start of the summer season is not until …
King Edward Point Diary – September 2013
30 September, 2013 Susan Gregory
For the residents of KEP, September is the calm before the storm… the last month with just the wintering team on base before the start of the new season. October …
Bird Island Diary — August 2013
31 August, 2013 Jerry Gillham
One season ends, a new one begins August on Bird Island makes the transition from one season to the next. With the few exceptions talked about below the place is …
Halley Diary — August 2013
31 August, 2013 Agnieszka Fryckowska
Winter has been with us for a while but during the beginning of August we get the first glimpses of the sun raising itself. Skies are spectacular during the day …
JCR Arctic Final Update
15 August, 2013 BAS Bloggers
This is the final update from the James Clark Ross from the JR288 Arctic cruise. The science is now almost complete and the ship is on passage to Dundee, from …
Bird Island Diary — July 2013
31 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
With the island looking very sparse in terms of animals the month began in the usual way with all of us out conducting the Wandering Albatross chick census. There were …
Halley Diary — July 2013
31 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
With the build- up and celebration of mid-winter over, July started with the winter teams six-monthly dental checks. Having had our teeth checked and treated before leaving for the Antarctic …
JCR Arctic Update 29th July 2013
30 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
Monday proved to be an interesting day for us all on the JCR. Just after mid-day a BAS Twin Otter aircraft did a fly past, having taken off from Longyearbyen …
JCR Arctic Update 28th July 2013
30 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
Another busy day of sampling on board the James Clark Ross. Noon Position Report for Sunday 28th July 2013 Latitude: 78° 53.1 N Longitude: 007° 07.5 W Bearing: 278 °T, …
JCR Arctic Update 27th July 2013
28 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
The highlight of the day for Friday was the sighting of a mother polar bear with two cubs on an ice-floe. Alas weather conditions were poor for good photography but …
JCR Arctic Update 26th July 2013
27 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
Most of Friday was spent amongst pack ice, which at times made deployment of equipment interesting. The weather continues to be good, with light winds and clear skies. As the …
JCR Arctic Update 25th July 2013
26 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
The JCR spent much of the day in sight of Greenland, with a heat haze seen across the pack ice. Not a great deal of wildlife in the past twenty …
JCR Arctic Update 23rd July 2013
25 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
The science work being carried out on board the RRS James Clark Ross is very varied, with underway air sampling, CTD (Conductivity, Temperature and Depth), which includes collecting samples from …
JCR Arctic Update 22nd July 2013
24 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
Another day of thick fog in the morning and then clearing during the afternoon. The ship was only a few miles off the coast of Greenland and it was lovely …
James Clark Ross Arctic Cruise 2013 – JR288
22 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
The James Clark Ross is currently engaged on a month long science cruise, designated JR288, to the Arctic. Initially the ship is working to the east of Greenland, slowly heading …
Rothera Diary – July 2013
1 July, 2013 BAS Bloggers
Midwinter Roundup The days got shorter and shorter, the sun stopped appearing over the mountainous horizon and the snow continued to fall; winter was well and truly here at Rothera …
Halley Diary — June 2013
30 June, 2013 BAS Bloggers
Doctor’s Report Summary: Sun above the horizon – 0 days, 0 hours, 0 minutes, 0 seconds Max Wind Speed – 81 knots Min Temp – −48°C (-62°C Midwinter’s Week Fun …
Bird Island Diary — May 2013
31 May, 2013 Stephanie Winnard
May has been an exciting month on Bird Island. One morning we received an emergency call alerting us to a potential tsunami heading for South Georgia due to hit in …
Halley Diary — May 2013
31 May, 2013 Agnieszka Fryckowska
So it’s May, the flag has gone down, days are dark, it’s cold and yes winter is well and truly here at Halley. What on earth do we do on …
King Edward Point Diary – May 2013
31 May, 2013 BAS Bloggers
May is the greatest month of the year. ‘Quite a grand statement’ you might say,’ what about December?’. Forget December, its rubbish. May is the best for two reasons 1)It …
Bird Island Diary — April 2013
30 April, 2013 Jerry Gillham
April has been a month of very noticeable changes. For the majority of species it has marked the end of the breeding season and their departure from the Bird Island. …
Halley Diary — April 2013
30 April, 2013 BAS Bloggers
The month of April really brings home the prospect of the upcoming 100 days in which we will not see the sun at all. The nights draw in ever more …
King Edward Point Diary – April 2013
30 April, 2013 BAS Bloggers
April Web Diary (better late than never!) It’s difficult to know what to write in a base diary – do people want to hear about what I’ve been up to …
Halley Diary — March 2013
31 March, 2013 BAS Bloggers
It’s now March, the days are starting to draw in and winter is coming to Antarctica. It’s that time of year when anyone not staying for the approaching winter (or …
King Edward Point Diary – March 2013
31 March, 2013 BAS Bloggers
As I’m sitting here in the middle of May staring blankly at a word count of two in this document, I am wondering where the weeks and months are slipping …
Bird Island Diary — February 2013
28 February, 2013 BAS Bloggers
Much like every month on Bird Island, February has hurtled by in a bit of a blur, and we now find ourselves with little over a week until the final …
Halley Diary — February 2013
28 February, 2013 BAS Bloggers
February, the shortest month of the year and probably the most jam-packed one, here at Halley VI. 28 busy days with almost every day filled with an event, the station …
King Edward Point Diary – February 2013
28 February, 2013 BAS Bloggers
After such a web diary as that written by Sue last month how do I keep up the momentum she has started? February, for all that it is a rather …
Rothera Diary — February 2013
1 February, 2013 BAS Bloggers
So, we’ve been back at Rothera for a couple of weeks now after spending the previous two and a half months “deep field” working on a scientific project in the …
Bird Island Diary — January 2013
31 January, 2013 Stephanie Winnard
We saw in the New Year Bird Island style with an excellent meal followed by a fancy dress evening in Doctor Strange’s laboratory. Since then the team has been busy …
Halley Diary — January 2013
31 January, 2013 BAS Bloggers
January… the busiest month of the year. As our regular supply ship, the Ernest Shackleton had now dropped off the last of the long-term arrivals there were a number of …
King Edward Point Diary – January 2013
31 January, 2013 Susan Gregory
After a brief hiatus in KEP web diaries, I apologise in advance for this being fairly epic entry, it’s been a busy month or so! Firstly, a hello from the …
Rothera Diary — January 2013
28 January, 2013 BAS Bloggers
After a long, but good journey, from The Netherlands our group arrived January 10th safe and sound at Rothera. The first sight was of stranded icebergs in North Cove blindingly …
JR Update 14th January 2013
14 January, 2013 BAS Bloggers
Today did not start well and I was not sure that I would have much to write about this evening. I did consider taking pictures of banoffee pie as the …
JCR274
14 January, 2013 BAS Bloggers
The RRS James Clark Ross is currently on science cruise JR274, Ocean Acidification, and will be spending the next few weeks sampling rather a lot of water. The above image …
Bird Island Diary — December 2012
31 December, 2012 Jerry Gillham
The unseasonably warm and dry December has allowed plenty of long, enjoyable days outside for the new field assistants to try and learn all they can from the 2012 wintering …
Signy Island Diary — December 2012
31 December, 2012 Stacey Adlard
After a scenic journey south from the Falklands, via Bird Island and King Edward Point, the JCR arrived at Signy on 24th November. Of those onboard, eight were bound for …
Bird Island Diary — November 2012
30 November, 2012 BAS Bloggers
The inhabitants of Bird Island have been having quite an eventful time since Jon wrote our last diary entry. One of the most significant events has been the arrival of …
Halley Diary — November 2012
30 November, 2012 BAS Bloggers
1st November: As the Winter draws to a close and the last field trip returns the base begins preparation for the arrival of new people. The super warm clothing, specialised …
Bird Island Diary — October 2012
31 October, 2012 BAS Bloggers
When I last spoke to you, back in June, the theme of my entry was of animals leaving the island for the winter, so it seems apt that I now …
Halley Diary — October 2012
31 October, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Life at Windy Bay caboose during the last month of winter A Caboose is a small living container, sitting on sledge at Windy Bay. It was home for me during …
Bird Island Diary — September 2012
30 September, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Well spring seems to have officially sprung here on Bird Island. We celebrated the spring equinox on September 22nd by making cider with the remnants of our apples (I use …
King Edward Point Diary – September 2012
30 September, 2012 William Whatley
September has been my first month on base and it has been incredible. I am here visiting Jo Cox (Government Officer) and I have been making the most of this …
Bird Island Diary — August 2012
31 August, 2012 Ruth Mugford
The first weekend of August was a busy one on Bird Island, as it was the date of this year’s Antarctic 48-hour Film Festival. The Film Festival has been running …
Halley Diary — August 2012
31 August, 2012 BAS Bloggers
The weekend of the 4th and 5th of August was spent making a short film for the Antarctic Film Festival. Despite being titled ‘What a Drag’, it was really fun …
King Edward Point Diary – August 2012
31 August, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Well where do I try to begin to share one of the most pleasurable months I’ve had on this Island with you, in this, the August Diary… I think I …
Rothera Diary — August 2012
20 August, 2012 Dale Sewell
…Sledge echo sledge echo, this is Rothera do you copy… August kicked off with a week of night watch duties, well welcomed after a hectic month on the jazz drumming …
Bird Island Diary — July 2012
31 July, 2012 BAS Bloggers
With the island looking very sparse in terms of animals the month began in the same usual way with the all island wandering albatross chick census, and I am pleased …
Halley Diary — July 2012
31 July, 2012 BAS Bloggers
July was one of the harder months of the Winter. The excitement of mid-Winter had passed and sun-up in August seemed like a long way off. It was also the …
King Edward Point Diary – July 2012
31 July, 2012 BAS Bloggers
July started with quite a lot of snow on the ground, the track often being closed due to avalanche risk. Winter training was undertaken by all base members, this included …
Rothera Diary — July 2012
20 July, 2012 BAS Bloggers
July at Rothera. The excitement of the midwinter’s week festivities is slowly dying down and the base is returning to its usual routines. All the midwinter presents, that many people …
Bird Island Diary – June 2012
30 June, 2012 BAS Bloggers
June is the time when island and its inhabitants get fully settled into the winter; the majority of the summer breeding animals have now left, and our little island is …
Halley Diary — June 2012
30 June, 2012 BAS Bloggers
The darkest month of the year and important mid-winter celebration for all the people in Antarctica is what June is all about here in the South. The sun is below …
King Edward Point Diary – June 2012
30 June, 2012 BAS Bloggers
The first thing that always springs to mind when it comes to writing the June diary is of course – Mid Winters day and all the celebrations that accompanies the …
Bird Island Diary – May 2012
31 May, 2012 BAS Bloggers
I cannot believe it’s been over a month since the four of us were stood at the end of the jetty waving goodbye as the JCR sailed away for the …
Halley Diary — May 2012
31 May, 2012 BAS Bloggers
The month of May started with the lowering of the very weather damaged British flag. This will be the only flag to have been flown above Halley 5 and Halley …
King Edward Point Diary – May 2012
31 May, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Compared to recent months, May was a relatively quiet month and saw us eventually whittled down to our wintering team. The month kicked off with an oil spill response exercise, …
Rothera Diary — May 2012
30 May, 2012 Adam Bradley
With the Ernest Shackleton long departed and the daylight disappearing rapidly, the 18-strong team remaining at Rothera really started to experience the proper Antarctic winter. On the 18th of May …
Northbound
21 May, 2012 BAS Bloggers
THe RRS Ernest Shackleton departed Stanley on the 29th April heading north for the UK, after a very busy and successful Antarctic season. The trip north was pretty uneventful and …
Bird Island Diary – April 2012
30 April, 2012 Ruth Mugford
The beginning of April on Bird Island saw the successful completion of the building projects which were started last month. In particular, the rusty and decrepit old jetty was gradually …
Halley Diary — April 2012
30 April, 2012 BAS Bloggers
What makes life in Antarctica different to life somewhere else? What drives someone down to the end of the world? What makes it worthwhile or interesting? What about April 2012? …
King Edward Point Diary – April 2012
30 April, 2012 James Wake
April at KEP is usually the point that summer starts to wind down and winter begins; numbers on station drop and the makeup of shipping changes from Tourism to Fishing. …
Rothera Diary — April 2012
20 April, 2012 BAS Bloggers
In one hour it will be time to switch on the high frequency radio and report back to base, let them know we’re safe & well, our location, our intentions …
Mooring – 3rd April 2012
11 April, 2012 BAS Bloggers
The JCR left the Falkland Islands at the end of March for the final Antarctic science cruise of the season, this time with oceanographers and geologists.
Week 5: wrapping up and travelling home – March 21st, 2012
11 April, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Jen Jackson, BAS This week we bios have all been busy wrapping up our science work for this cruise: Adam (link: meet a scientist) is finally completing his bivalve experiments …
Read more on Week 5: wrapping up and travelling home – March 21st, 2012
Bird Island Diary – March 2012
31 March, 2012 BAS Bloggers
With the arrival of the Technical Team on the FPV Pharos early this month, work started in earnest on the all the various building projects: the repair of the gantry …
King Edward Point Diary – March 2012
31 March, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Most significantly this month, we have been joined by two new team members. Paula O’Sullivan and Jo Cox are both familiar faces to BAS; Paula having worked as a boating …
Rothera Diary — March 2012
28 March, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Early March saw the departure of the last BAS planes for the season. This left 42 people on station to carry on the science, various works and to commence winterising …
Ocean Chemistry on the JCR – March 21st 2012
23 March, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Douglas Hamilton, University of East Anglia Water chemistry is employed during cruises to look for various things of interest to Oceanographers like temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen and chlorophyll. Temperature and …
James Clark Ross diary – March 15th 2012
19 March, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Melanie Mackenzie – Museum Victoria Now that we’ve finished collecting specimens, the EVOLHIST biology team on board the James Clark Ross is busily working away in the ship’s labs. Dr …
Week 4: Monday 27th February to Sunday 4th March: Completing our biological sampling in the eastern Weddell sea
6 March, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Rachel Downey (British Antarctic Survey) We have been working in some amazingly calm waters for the last two weeks, and are now breaking through the sea ice again as we …
Bird Island Diary – February 2012
28 February, 2012 BAS Bloggers
After a busy start last month, the intensity of science activities has increased significantly as the fur seal pups, mollymawk, gentoo and macaroni penguin chicks have matured and there have …
Halley Diary — February 2012
28 February, 2012 BAS Bloggers
February at Halley this year, despite being the shortest month, seemed much longer. Everything was about timing. Do we have enough time to make the station ready for wintering? Do …
King Edward Point Diary – February 2012
28 February, 2012 BAS Bloggers
February has been a busy month on base, lots of people coming and going. The weather has been very changeable too, a scattering of beautiful sunny days, but also cold …
Meet a team member
27 February, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Adam has joined us from Southampton University where he studies the reproduction and morphology of bivalve molluscs in the Southern Ocean. Like their clam and mussel relatives, Adam’s tiny Antarctic …
Week 3: Biological surveys in the eastern Weddell Sea
27 February, 2012 BAS Bloggers
Jen Jackson (British Antarctic Survey) Hello from the eastern Weddell Sea! On Sunday 19th February we reached the most southerly point of our expedition. At 77.36 degrees south we had …
Read more on Week 3: Biological surveys in the eastern Weddell Sea
JR 275 Diary Log
17 February, 2012 BAS Bloggers
BAS cruise JR 275 departed the Falkland Islands on the James Clark Ross in early February and will sample the South Scotia Ridge, southern South Sandwich Islands and Weddell Sea …
Bird Island Diary — January 2012
31 January, 2012 BAS Bloggers
After a truly memorable New Year, it was back to work for all of us on Bird Island. Gradually, the landscape around base began to change as the territorial male …
Halley Diary — January 2012
31 January, 2012 BAS Bloggers
January often starts with a hangover and usually marks the end of the busy festive season. At Halley, folk were half-way through relief, back-loading waste onto the Ernest Shackleton and …
King Edward Point Diary – January 2012
31 January, 2012 BAS Bloggers
With 2011 on South Georgia being cast into the history books, 2012 started in earnest and once again the King Edward Point gang enjoyed a busy, varied and challenging start …
Signy Island Diary — January 2012
31 January, 2012 Stacey Adlard
The phrase “Science never sleeps” seems to have been very appropriate on Signy this year. We have 3 scientists on base and this season has seen them up at all …
Antarctica 2011-12
2 January, 2012 BAS Bloggers
We are back down south again in the Weddell Sea once again involved in the annual Halley relief operation. We departed Immingham in the UK in early November and had …
Bird Island Diary — December 2011
31 December, 2011 BAS Bloggers
As always with Bird Island, nature changes constantly between the various species, and, the weather tends to stay the same! It can go from snow to sun through hail and …
Halley Diary — December 2011
31 December, 2011 BAS Bloggers
I arrived at Halley on the 2nd of Dec after spending the previous week travelling through Cape Town and Novo with ALCI. The journey was particularly smooth and even got …
King Edward Point Diary – December 2011
31 December, 2011 James Wake
December is a busy time of year down here on South Georgia, being the height of summer. One of the tasks this month was a project to improve the mapping …
Rothera Diary — December 2011
31 December, 2011 BAS Bloggers
Cargo and Christmas were the main features of December at Rothera. The arrival of the BAS ship RRS James Clark Ross turned the base into an even busier place than …
Bird Island Diary — November 2011
30 November, 2011 BAS Bloggers
Over the last couple of months, it has been a period of transition at Bird Island as we have transitioned from the Overwintering team to the full Summer team. In …
Halley Diary — November 2011
30 November, 2011 BAS Bloggers
It was to be another very busy start to what would be another very season. The first of many flights and transits were due out on the 23rd Oct 2011, …
King Edward Point Diary – November 2011
30 November, 2011 BAS Bloggers
‘Remember, remember the fifth of November’ It was indeed one of the more memorable Guy Fawkes’ nights of my life: I had only arrived a few days previous with fellow …
Signy Island Diary — November 2011
30 November, 2011 Kathryn Norwood
The 2011–12 Signy Island research season began in the early hours of the 16th November, as the Royal Research ship James Clark Ross, having left the Falklands several weeks earlier, …
Open Oceans Group
2 November, 2011 Sarah Matthews
The Open Oceans group at BAS mainly researches processes in the open ocean, as opposed to ice shelf and continental shelf processes, which are the focus of the shelf seas …
Halley Diary — October 2011
31 October, 2011 BAS Bloggers
Well it’s finally my turn to write a month. My name is Paul Barwick and I am the wintering Electrical Service Technician here at Halley and if all goes to …