AMT Blog

This has been a great week! Our first task was to open up the base at Signy Island. Since it impossible to berth the ship at the small jetty on the island, so the adventure began with trips to shore in the small boats:

Tim and Gareth heading for Signy

Once ashore we all got to work with various tasks; starting up the generators, fixing broken fences, taking down shutters etc. I was kept occupied helping to shovel snow to expose the path so that cargo could later be carried to the stores. All this frenzied activity was presided over by somewhat disinterested Elephant Seals – I must confess I was pleased at their apathy towards us — I should not have liked to pick a fight with one of those giants!

Sailing was delayed on 13 December due to ship maintenance and a local storm, which kicked water over the back deck and rocked the boat, even though we were tied up in port. We sailed out of Port Stanley on 14 December and anchored in Port Elizabeth to conduct a full muster to get those who had recently joined the ship familiar with emergency procedures of manning the life boats.

Apologies for the absent diary entry last week – it’s been far too busy! The Atlantic science cruise has come to an end now that we have reached our first port of call Stanley, in the Falkland Islands. Sadly this means that we have had to say goodbye to many of the scientists who have by now become part of the furniture. After the farewell dinner and dancing, we said our goodbyes from the deck, as the Falkland Islands came into view:

AMT 18 participants

Views from Port Elizabeth

We arrived in Port Stanley at 10:00 a.m. on Monday 10 Nov. All of us tired and weary with the prospect of still having to pack our boxes of equipment into the containers. We eventually unloaded everything in the early evening which then gave us sometime to explore the town. It is spring in the Falklands and equivalent to May in the UK. My first impressions were it is windy, cold and barren place with low lying hills next to sweeping bays; something akin to the western isles of Scotland but colder. Stanley is a scattering of multi-coloured roofs sputtered against the shores of Port Elizabeth. There are just under 3000 people on the Falklands, 1800 of which live in Stanley. In the interior-countryside, people make a living from sheep farming. In Stanley there are 5 pubs, 1 restaurant, a couple of cafes, a couple of supermarkets, gift shops selling loads of tourist penguin memorabilia, a church, government building and swimming pool. My second impression is that most people in Stanley work in the service industry; the tourist trade must bring in a lot of revenue. Stanley is a small compact place. The people are very friendly and very patriotic; there are Union Jacks everywhere as a constant reminder of the Islands heritage and recent history.

The measurements we make on the ship are not the only data that we use to improve our understanding of Atlantic Ocean Dynamics. The Royal Research Ship James Clark Ross receives satellite images each day from the National Earth Observation Data Archive and Analysis Service (NEODAAS) at Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML).

This week, I shall provide you with a glimpse of the social side of life on-board. Whilst the scientists and crew have to work hard and for long hours, they usually manage to balance the work with less arduous activities from time to time. For example, on our journey through the tropics, some have made the most of the fine weather by doing circuit training out on the deck. It is amusing to watch people struggle with sit-ups and press-ups; as the rolling of the ship mocks the unwary exerciser it becomes near impossible for them to complete the task, then suddenly you see them shoot up easily against gravity, as the ship rolls to the other side.

Circuit training on the deck

An alternative to working up a sweat in the evenings, was to chill-out in the paddling/swimming pool which was thoughtfully provided by the engineers. We’re hoping that the weather will settle soon, allowing us to indulge in an evening dip again.

But it is once the sun has gone down, that the excitement really begins: This week, it started with a game of Twister. As the doctor, I have a vested interest in ensuring that nobody gets hurt (so that my evening is not interrupted by having to run off an treat patients); whilst it is difficult enough to avoid injury when playing this game on terra firma, you can imagine the challenge when the floor itself is moving. Apart from a few minor bruises here and there, we did well!

Playing Twister

To tempt fate further, the evening then progressed to people’s attempting various physical feats. These included a game in which the winner is he/she who is able to collect (using their teeth) a piece of cardboard from the floor, without bending their legs nor touching the floor with any body-part other than the soles of their feet. Unsatisfied with the ease of this challenge, some upped the stakes by standing on a raised platform.

Martine

The traditional bar-stool race, in which the contestant snakes in and out of the stools without touching the ground, was another example of a means to prove a high pain threshold and the true extent of one’s foolishness! I would like to point out, once more, that my involvement in such antics is purely from the perspective of journalistic curiosity, and of course, I would normally refrain, preserving my modest professional dignity!

Johnny demonstrating how to be a snake

And another game, the rules of which, nobody seemed quite to understand! Played by Jim and Tom

Given that the people around me are thus far managing to evade major injury, I have taken up a bit of hair-dressing in my spare time. It provides me and the victim’s colleagues with a great deal of amusement, and those foolish enough to offer themselves up for my experimentation with their hair don’t yet appear to be too psychologically scarred by the experience. My first two volunteers were Paul and Ben:

Paul's new look

Ben's new hair do

The face paints come as an optional extra In fact, they set off a trend, and on 31st October, many could be spotted sporting a similar look.

Halloween

It was on Halloween, in fact that Ash (chief cook), managed to catch me out: From time to time, I have offered my assistance in the galley (trying hard but probably not succeeding to avoid getting in the way) and on this particular day, Ash was teaching me how to make pickled onions. Demonstration over, I was sent to ask the Purser if he could give me the “long stand for the lamb burgers”. Oblivious to the set up, I duly headed off to the bridge in search of the purser. Fortunately he was not there and by the time dinner was served I had twigged and so did not have to stand for a long time waiting for my burger.

My other culinary embarrassment this week, for which I have been teased mercilessly was with the production of high quality Welsh-cakes: Pleased with the delicious little cakes, I thought all on-board would appreciate a warm, fresh Welsh-cake. I therefore took a tray around, knocking on peoples’ doors and offering them to all. It was only later that day that the etiquette with regards to doors was explained to me. Apparently those who are happy to be disturbed leave a curtain across their doorway, whilst those who are indisposed, showering, sleeping etc. keep the door closed. It is understood by all (including me now!) that a closed door means “do not disturb”. I had wondered why so many people had opened the door in various states of undress and of consciousness. Oops. But the Welsh-cakes went down well!

We have finally altered our course from due south, so that we are now heading direct to the Falkland islands. Along with the change in direction has come a change in the weather – it is now significantly cooler and more choppy. I am delighted to report that my sea-legs are holding up thus far, and unlike my first few days at sea, I am actually rather enjoying the movement of the ship – it certainly makes walking/showering etc. a lot more fun. With the change in weather, we have also met and are currently being chaperoned by many birds, including the Grey-Headed Albatross.

Grey-Headed Albatross

Hopefully as we progress closer toward our destination we should see more and more wildlife. I’ll keep my eye out for any good photos to show you next week.

Thanks to Mario, Ben, Jo and Mike for the photos in this week’s web diary.

(Diary and images courtesy of the British Antarctic Survey)

There are many instruments on board that we use to probe the mysteries of the ocean. From when we left Immingham to when we dock in the Falkland Islands, every minute of the day, 24 hrs a day, data is being collected along the ships track to assess the biological, physical and chemical properties of the ocean.