Project Title

Palmer, Antarctica Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER): land-shelf-ocean connectivity, and ecosystem resilience and transformation, in a sea-ice influenced pelagic ecosystem

Summary

Event Number:
C-021-N

Program Director:
Dr. Francisco (Paco) Moore

ASC POC/Implementer:
Samina Ouda / Bruce Felix

Principal Investigator(s)

Mr. Carlos F Moffat
cmoffat@udel.edu
University of Delaware
Newark, Delaware

Location

Supporting Stations: RV/IB Nathaniel B. Palmer
Research Locations: Palmer Station and Western Antarctic Peninsula

Description

Palmer Long-Term Ecological Research (PAL-LTER) started in 1990 to address the hypothesis that the annual sea-ice cycle may be the major determinant of spatial/temporal changes in the structure and function of Antarctic marine communities. Research now includes bacteria, viruses, phytoplankton, krill, macrozooplankton, penguins, seabirds, and marine mammals. The PAL-LTER model traces the effects of changing climate and the extent, duration, and seasonality of sea ice on ecosystem composition and dynamics in the Western Antarctic Peninsula, where satellite observations over the past 35 years indicate the average duration of sea ice cover is now about 90 days shorter. Six collaborative projects on the ARSV Laurence M. Gould (LMG) cruise and at Palmer Station will use moorings, numerical modeling, oceanographic cruises, and environmental sampling to address core hypotheses.

Field Season Overview

During the annual LTER cruise aboard the RV/IB Nathaniel B. Palmer, vessel marine technicians will assist one participant from C-021 to deploy two new new moorings, one at the southern edge of Gerlache Strait (GS-1 moorings) and another off Anvers Island (AI-1). They will also recover and re-deploy the 300.100 mooring deployed in the 2019/20 season. The team will also program instruments, prepare the mooring deployments, recover data from recovered instruments, and conduct conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) profiling and water sampling.

Deploying Team Members