Fogbow
Above: The pressure ridge in which we are currently stuck
Pressure Ridges and Fogbows
Thursday, August 21, 2008
As I write, we are firmly stuck in a sizable pressure ridge, impeding our mapping progress. The usual process is to back the cutter several ship’s lengths and ram forward, sometimes needing to repeat this multiple times until we break through the ice. This afternoon we are in relatively thick multi-year ice, but for much of last night’s eight-hour watch we may as well have been in Tahiti, as someone joked, there was so much open water. We are mapping around 83° N latitude; take a glance at one of the maps in the links to the right to see just how far north this is. Those who were on last year’s cruise say the ice is slushier and less compacted this year at the same latitude, with fewer thick stretches. Three of our science crewmembers are from the US National Ice Center, and I am eagerly awaiting their presentation at one of our nightly science talks.
Coming off of watch this morning at 0800 we were greeted by a fog-bow (like a rainbow, but pure white because it is reflecting the snow and ice in the seascape over which it hovers). Light filled and mesmerizing.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
As I write, we are firmly stuck in a sizable pressure ridge, impeding our mapping progress. The usual process is to back the cutter several ship’s lengths and ram forward, sometimes needing to repeat this multiple times until we break through the ice. This afternoon we are in relatively thick multi-year ice, but for much of last night’s eight-hour watch we may as well have been in Tahiti, as someone joked, there was so much open water. We are mapping around 83° N latitude; take a glance at one of the maps in the links to the right to see just how far north this is. Those who were on last year’s cruise say the ice is slushier and less compacted this year at the same latitude, with fewer thick stretches. Three of our science crewmembers are from the US National Ice Center, and I am eagerly awaiting their presentation at one of our nightly science talks.
Coming off of watch this morning at 0800 we were greeted by a fog-bow (like a rainbow, but pure white because it is reflecting the snow and ice in the seascape over which it hovers). Light filled and mesmerizing.
