January 3rd was an intense day. From 11:00 until around 1:00 pm we visited Pleneau Island, which was our most southern landing at 65 degrees 07 South. While the attraction was some Weddell and Leopard seals, I focused more on the view and the melting ice all around me…
Throughout the expedition I found these formations which I plan to build into a large grid piece:
After lunch we headed back through the channel toward the Wauwerman Islands at 64 degrees 55 South.
They are a group of small, low, snow-covered islands - small ice caps forming the northernmost group in the Wilhelm Archipelago, first discovered by a German expedition in 1873-74.
We headed to one of the only laudable ones: "Koerner" ice cap. Students on Ice first went there a few years earlier at the suggestion of the glaciologist Fritz Koerner. SOI hopes to get that particular island to be formally named in his honor.
This 70 m tall ice mass has been a Students On Ice research site since 2009. When we all got to the top one of the goals for the students was to retrieve a temperature sensor and data logger drilled int the ice two years ago. The "hobo" box which was found and replaced with a new one. The stake was measured to determine whether the ice cap shrunk or grew since the last visit in 2012. New ablation poles wee placed and ice cores were taken . There was also time for snow angels, snow balls and ice hut building....
