Intrepid Science Blog

The promise of fine weather ended with my last post! I knew I was tempting fate as soon I put fingers to keyboard and waxed lyrically about the excellent conditions. Since then the Southern Ocean has come back with a vengeance, swinging from one extreme to the other. Wind, rain, hail and sleet have been our regular companions, and then just to play with our minds, the clouds suddenly clear and the Sun bursts forth – albeit briefly. Tonight as I sit in my cabin writing this blog I can hear the wind blowing a gale outside and the second anchor has just been dropped to steady the vessel; a first apparently. It’s hard to second guess what will happen with the weather. I watch the barometer for signs of change but the simplest relationship seems to be high pressure equals wind but it’s only a rule of thumb. The weather almost seems to do what it wants; as if it’s made a conscious decision to give no clues as to its intentions. Late last night the barometer was rising with heavy rain and w...

Well, we made it. After two years of dreaming and a lot of hard work, the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 2013-2014 has finally set sail! Departing from Bluff in southern New Zealand yesterday, our ship the MV Akademik Shokalskiy headed off, packed to the gunnels with all manner of scientific gear and 41 team members, all squirrelled away on board. Chris Fogwill and I had a mad final 24 hours in the lead up to this special moment. Team members were delayed by flights, key forms granting permission for our research programme were finalised on the afternoon of sailing and one major piece of kit turned up 30 minutes before we departed – amazingly the latter had been sent to the wrong address and was about to board a flight out of the country! We ran round like headless chickens in the end, chasing the last things we needed and packing them away – all of which had to be stowed in anticipation for the wild Southern Ocean winds and waves. There were some highlights though: the Mayor of ...

I am sitting in Dubai, waiting to catch my flight back home. Looking out of the airport window, the sandy landscape blurs with the skyline, dissipated by the high temperatures outside. It’s the antithesis of where I’ll be in one week’s time. Instead of blistering heat, the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 2013-2014 will be departing from the Invercargill port of Bluff in southern New Zealand for the start of a six week voyage which we hope will culminate in reaching a frozen time capsule: Sir Douglas Mawson’s original expedition base at Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica . Two years of planning are finally coming to fruition. Two years of planning for a major science expedition; two years of putting together the best possible team and all the interviews, training, meetings, form filling, and equipment purchases and hire that go with it. Choices we made months ago are now committed. Only time will tell if we made the correct ones. To be honest, the last few months have been a bit of a...

A year ago we started a conversation with Google and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia about the possibility of offering two berths on the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 2013-2014 as a prize for Google 4 Doodle. For those not familiar with this competition, Doodle 4 Google is a school contest offered across different countries every two years or so. The challenge for children is to redraw the Google logo inspired by a question or statement. Prizes vary around the world; the top doodles in Australia and New Zealand usually win some fantastic technology for the classroom. This year, Google and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia wanted to do something a bit different: they wanted to bring Antarctica to the school children of Australia and New Zealand as never done before. Besides the technology, the prize would include a berth for the teachers of the winning schools on the expedition and our discoveries would be beamed home using Google+, Hangouts on Air and YouTube. It was dizzy...

Bringing the Antarctic a little closer to home is a major reason for the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 2013-2014 . You can get involved in all manner of ways. For those keen to have a hand in the science programme and join us in the south, berths are for sale . Working with Commonwealth Bank as sponsors of this year’s Doodle 4 Google expedition prize, we are also taking a winning teacher from both Australia and New Zealand as part of the team. And for those who prefer warmer climes but still want to explore this special part of the world, you can take part in the free Google+ Hangouts on Air , where we will be streaming live footage of the journey and answering questions about our findings.  An elephant seal in the sub-Antarctic But now we have even more fabulous news. One lucky CommBank customer and a friend have the chance to win a place on the first leg of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 2013-2014 , and follow in the footsteps of the great scientist and exp...

As a general rule, I loathe counting down to a big occasion. Following the passing hands of a clock is not something you would naturally associate with keeping people calm. So when Monday arrived it was with some little trepidation. 30 days before the departure of the expedition would the anxiety levels perceptibly rise? Might the general buzz become subdued? Or would someone freak out and start to panic? I needn’t have concerned myself. There was barely a ripple. No one seemed perturbed by the countdown one little bit. Instead, everyone was strangely exhilarated by the start of the week. True, there was the normal chaos planning and ordering last minute items but the realisation we’re now on the home straight had an energising effect. A Polynesian fishhook dating back to the 14th century from the subantarctic Auckland Islands. See the real thing at the  Southland Museum & Art Gallery, Invercargill, New Zealand . To mark the fast approaching departure of the Austra...

Against a backdrop of smoke-filled air and concern for family and friends in the Sydney bush, we spent last week packing our shipping container with scientific gear for Antarctica. The last month has been a scramble, with Chris and I ordering and receiving ever more equipment, talking to the media, negotiating with various officials – or trying to – and drawing up lists of supplies still to be bought. It’s incredible how quickly time has gone. We leave in just five weeks!  In that time we have to get the equipment to the Invercargill port of Bluff, clear customs and be ready to load our vessel, the MV Shokalskiy, when we take ownership at one minute past midnight on the 27 November. Somehow we appear to be on schedule. The arrival of our shipping container Not a lot has changed over the last century. Preparation for expeditions has and always will be a manic affair. When getting ready for the original Australasian Antarctic Expedition, Mawson’s diary for November 1911 i...