We began our work off Cape Adare, a location notorious for high winds. Indeed, seas and swell have already disrupted CTD operations on Nathaniel B. Palmer four times, with 84 hours lost to date (the equivalent of 18 stations). The Palmer rides the storms well. The captain and mates choose a heading and slow speed that will provide a reasonably good ride, and try to judge when to head back to the next station just in time for the seas to have improved post-storm to the point where we can go back to work. During the biggest storm, during a long spell of sustained winds over 50 knots, a storage van on the fantail was partly caved in by a wave.

At one point while we were waiting out a storm near an intended station location, we entered a field of rotten first-year sea ice leftover from the summer melt. We quickly prepared the rosette, knowing that in the ice the large seas would be damped down, and, indeed, we got a station done despite the weather. Meanwhile we passed by some crabeater (See left) and leopard seals hauled out onto the ice, making a nice photo op.

It's not all been storms, of course. The team is working diligently and every measurement program is going well. Water sample data are being delivered to the onboard data system by all the groups, and the data processors update the data files regularly. We already have some exciting science results: significant changes since 1992 in seawater temperature and salinity along our transect of stations NE from Cape Adare. The cold, salty Ross Sea Bottom Water dense outflow so prominent in 1992 on the west end of the S04P section is now gone, and the Circumpolar Deep Water offshore is warmer and saltier than it was 19 years ago. We've included a figure and Alex's scientific caption to whet the appetites of the PIs ashore.

The food is great (some of us already fear we may be getting great ourselves). All hands - ECO, RPSC, and science guests alike - enjoy the friendly and productive atmosphere on board. The ECO engineers and RPSC staff have been very helpful in quickly solving any problems that arise. We may get a tiny bit frustrated during the storms - we came here to work, after all - but we are a happy bunch.

All is well.
Jim and Alex