Arctic Resources

 Since getting home to Cortes, I have read madly. Books have been a way to build off of the trip, as well as pretend I'm still there.  The learning continues... 

As I write this, I am waiting to board the Vancouver ferry. For the next few days, I will be immersed in Arctic research. The annual ArcticNet Conference is in Vancouver, and I've abandoned school in order to attend. As ArcticNet supports much of the Canadian research in the arctic, as well as the Amundsen and the Schools on Board program, many of the scientists from the ship will be there. I can't wait to see them all!

I will write a post after the conference, but, in the meantime, I'll leave you with this list of resources. This is by no means a definitive list - simply what I have found interesting.

Climate Change and Science

Books:

The Changing Arctic Environment: The Arctic Messenger 

By David P. Stone

The Right To Be Cold

By Sheila Watt-Cloutier

An excellent book on climate change as a human rights issue.

The Arctic Climate System

By Mark C. Serreze and Roger G. Barry

Complex but definitive overview of the climate system.

Silent Snow: The Slow Poisoning of the Arctic

By Marla Cone

Web:

Ted Talk: "Arctic Amplification" of Global Warming by Prof. Philip Wookey

http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/Arctic-Amplification-of-Global

The base of the arctic food chain and primary production timing: http://www.whoi.edu/cms/files/jietal_gcb12074_138980.pdf

Bivals as bioarchives:  http://borea.mnhn.fr/sites/default/files/Projet_BBPolar.pdf

***Very good videos, some filmed from the Amundsen are made by Parafilms (Search “Parafilms” on Vimeo): https://vimeo.com/parafilms

Especially:

Discover the Arctic Ocean - https://vimeo.com/123017093

Plankton - https://vimeo.com/12589245

Climate Change - https://vimeo.com/122800376

Stratification - https://vimeo.com/125523274

Arctic Bloom - https://vimeo.com/141660727

Children’s Picture Books

Mama, do you love me? 

By Barbara M. Joosse

North Pole, South Pole

By Nancy Smiler Levinson ; illustrated by Diane Dawson Hearn

Ookpik : the travels of a snowy owl 

By Bruce Hiscock

Whale snow 

By Debby Dahl Edwardson ; illustrated by Annie Patterson

Kumak's fish : a tall tale from the far north 

By Michael Bania

Berry Magic 

By Teri Sloat and Betty Huffmon ; illustrated by Teri Sloat

Children’s/YA Novels

Julie of the Wolves

By Jean Craighead George

The Call of the Wild

by Jack London

The Golden Compass (sometimes called The Northern Lights)

By Philip Pullman

Big, Beautiful Coffee-Table Books

Arctic Eden: a journey through the changing high Arctic 

By Jerry Kobalenko

Through the Eyes of the Vikings: An Aerial Vision of Arctic Lands

By Robert B. Hass

http://umanitoba.ca/faculties/environment/departments/ceos/outreach/twowaysofknowing.html

The Center for Earth Observation Science, University of Manitoba, has published several books. They are all very beautiful, and the CCGS Amundsen and some of the scientists onboard during Schools on Board were involved. They are difficult to get hold of.

Miscellaneous

Boundless: Tracing Land and Dream in a New Northwest Passage

By Kathleen Winter

A beautiful book by a brilliant Canadian writer.

Unraveling the Franklin Mystery: Inuit Testimony

By David C. Woodman

Camille Seaman

http://www.camilleseaman.com/

Camille Seaman takes beautiful photos of icebergs. She has also given a TED talk, which shows the flipping of an iceberg.

Films

“Before Tomorrow”

(Available at the Co-op)

11:00 am

October  18, 2015

Cortes Island, B.C. 

During my time in the Arctic, I learnt so, so much. I have brought back a better understanding of the arctic ecosystem, climate change, and science as a whole.

I so enjoyed learning about all the tiny, specific aspects of the ecosystem – the phytoplankton, the zooplankton and sediment from the sea floor – and it gave me a sense of the incredible biodiversity that the arctic holds.

            Perhaps most importantly, I am bringing back a LOVE of the arctic, and of science. The beauty of the ocean, ice and mountains was staggering, and made me realize what we could loose. Being able to observe the scientific process onboard the ship gave me another way of looking at the world.

            Although I asked masses of questions, the scientists don’t have all the answers yet. The Arctic is full of unchartered waters! Future discovery in the North is both exciting and essential.

            Whether I end up studying Arctic science in the future or not, I will carry this experience with me for my whole life. I hope to share it with you, too! Once I’ve caught up with school, I will be doing presentations on Cortes and in Campbell River. Keep your eyes out!        

            Thank you to all the supporters of this trip. I appreciate all the time, advice, and financial contributions. Part of the intention behind crowdfunding was to invest me fully in the trip. I strived to get the most out of the opportunity and collect things to bring back and share. I am incredibly lucky to have the backing of such an amazing community!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Tara Warkentin

Tara.w.721@gmail.com

October 10, 2015

Our time onboard the Amundsen is coming to a close, but the last day was truly amazing.

We met in the morning to go over our presentation, prepared as a thank you to the scientists and crew. It took ages, and by the end we were exhausted. However, there were many last-minute things to be done. Zoe and I set up camp in the officers’ lounge and painted a million postcards. Watercolour sunrises and diagrams of small benthic organisms covered our table. It was a great way of celebrating individual moments: my first iceberg (we named him Lyle); the light, early in the morning; a petri dish of zooplankton.  I hope that when the postcards arrive, they capture the Arctic as I experienced it!

After lunch, Zoë, Gabriel and I went to help section box cores. Michelle Kamula, the scientist we were assisting, studies the history caught in sediment. I think it is fascinating that we can see the past by looking at the bottom of the sea floor!

We left to take group pictures on the Heli Deck. The boat was surrounded by ice, both low to the water and towering in bergs. It was difficult to tear my eyes away, but smiling at the camera was easy. I was so, so happy in that moment, surrounded by such a fantastic group!

To celebrate the end of our time on board, we had “Happy Hour” with the scientists and crew. We walked in to blaring accordion music and grinning Denis, the sweetest Coast Guard on the planet, who was holding glasses of orange juice.

Zoë and I decided to survey the scientists, in an attempt to absorb last advice. Our question: “What inspires you about the arctic/what you study, and what message should we bring home?”

Their replies helped provide a bigger picture to all they had taught us. Philippe, the chief scientist, explained that the whole planet is connected to the Arctic. The east coast is the only place on the planet experiencing colder temperatures. Why do you think this is? When Arctic ice melts, currents bring the cold water down the coast, and that water cools the air. Think of this, he said: You have just boarded a plane. You’ve been planning this trip for months, and you are very excited. Before takeoff, there is an announcement. About twenty screws have been found on the runway, and no one knows where they are from. Would you get off the plane?

This scenario shows our attitude around climate change. We don’t know all the details or the consequences, but we have evidence that something is wrong. Will we continue to push our luck?

Marie told us to follow our dreams and not get sucked into expectations. Becky and Cindy said that the benthic layer is important. Large mammals get lots of funding and attention, but the base of the food chain is vital. Laura emphasized the beauty and importance of the Arctic.

We ate our last dinner with Philippe and Captain Alain. They are both so kind and intelligent, and our conversation ranged from silly jokes to careers.

Scientists and crew packed into the officers’ lounge for our presentation. The theme was connections – between all of us, within science, and throughout an ecosystem. I talked about our floating, self-sufficient Amundsen community, and the Arctic ecosystem at large, as well as the connections between the present (holding a living sea star from the ocean floor), the past (climate history trapped in sediment and living matter), and the future of Arctic science (us!).

After a last game of “Werewolf” with some scientists and crew, I crawled into bed, exhausted. Alex, however, ate five bowls of cereal at 1:30 am with a gang of French scientists.

I have learnt so much in the past few weeks. Lectures, fieldwork, and discussions have brought science to life.  I feel so lucky to be able to approach a researcher at the source of information, and ask questions the moment they arise. Being involved in real research has given us a sense of responsibility. If we miscount zooplankton species, it will affect a data set that will be built on for years. Through Schools on Board, both my confidence and my passion for science has grown.

Journal entry:

October 5, 2015

 

We’re up in the Bridge. Its very peaceful up here, with the soft tick of instruments; the charts laid out and scattered with pencil marks, compasses, rulers and a single coffee stain. (I imagined the voice of the officer when his mug sloshed… connected to the stain like a ghost). Emmanuel, the wheel man, sits at the window. When asked a question, his face crinkles around his eyebrows and mouth, and his soft eyes blink, as if to say… “I don’t know if I can answer that…” but he smiles, and he replies.

Zooplankton - From Lecture to Lab!

1:45 pm

October 7, 2015

Somewhere between Greenland and Ellesmere Island.

 

The days have begun to slide together. I am settling into a routine of sampling, lectures, meals and sleep, as well as long periods of transit time, where activity on the ship slows. Once we reach a sampling station, however, everyone whirs into action. Sleep is abandoned, and then snatched up again in periods of a few hours.

 

The other night, at 11:00 pm, pajama clad and sleepy eyed, I went to get a glass of water. On my way through the halls, I bumped into some scientists carrying coolers samples from the midzone, collected with nets. They opened the cooler so I could see what they had collected:

• Some small fish with rounded heads and transparent bodies.
• Small jellyfish with red middle (type of zooplankton).
• Lots of tiny shrimp.
• Silvery fish.

 

They would be up very late, the cooler carriers told me, sorting, counting, and freezing the samples, which will be brought back to a university for analysis.

 

The next morning, Tibo, a graduate student working on Zooplankton, gave us a lecture. Zooplankton are animals that drift, rather than swim in the ocean. They are important ecological players as both secondary producers and a biological pump (bringing CO2 to the bottom). Tibo collects samples using sediment traps stationed for a year, with different bottles open at different times. The traps are like a time machine, preserving the plankton (using formaldehyde) as well as recording the physical conditions in which they were collected: sea ice concentration, water temperature, and salinity. Will a decrease in sea ice result in greater concentration in phytoplankton, therefore resulting in more zooplankton?

 

Later… (8:50pm)

 

In a few minutes, Gabriel (student – Quebec City) and I will join Tibo in his lab to process the Zooplankton samples brought up by the Monster and Hydrobios nets.

 

A fantastic element of the Schools on Board program is this: listening to a lecture from a passionate scientist, working in the field, and then, a few hours later, seeing the data itself. Even counting and sorting the tinniest organisms is showing me a larger picture of science.

Picture update: Unfortunately, I am unable to upload pictures on the ships bandwidth. I will share a digital album when I get home.

2:47 pm local time

Sunday, October 4, 2015

CCGS Amundsen, Lancaster Sound

 

 

 

Last night, we all went up to the Bridge. Little yellow helmets dotted the foredeck bellow, crowded around the sampling equipment. We watched from above as they deployed the Rosette, the Box Corer, the Tucker Net and other equipment to bring up different samples; each piece collects different aspects of the ecosystem. The last bit of light fled the sky by 10:00 pm, but large lights hit the deck and the surrounding water. I thought I saw a bird swoop towards the water, but it may have just been the edge of a wave.

 

 

 Philippe Archambault, the Chief Scientist onboard, was also in the Bridge. We began to ask him questions, and, once we started, our desire to understand gained momentum until there was no lapse in conversation. The languages switched, even within each sentence. He explained the equipment:

 

 

Tucker Net:

- Samples organisms fr. Oceans (various levels) in a water column (vertical).

- Mostly zooplankton and juvenile fish species.

 

Box Corer:

- Collects undisrupted sample of sea floor + organisms using box + “spoon” to seal.

 

Rosette:

- Collects water samples at a predetermined depth.

 

 

 

He also told us that the organisms at the bottom of the ocean aren’t getting the same nutrients that they have in the past. Traditional organisms aren’t getting all they need, and invasive species are thriving. Lancaster Sound, where we are conducting much of the sampling, is the “Serengeti of the Arctic” due to the huge diversity of life.

 

 

This morning, Philippe gave us a lecture on an overview of the Arctic. He talked about what a complex system it is, and the importance of the loss of biodiversity.

 

Is the Arctic low in biodiversity? No! It is comparable to both the west and east coasts of Canada even though there is much less data.

 

In studying the north, the effect on the whole biosphere is clear. “We realize that everything is really connected.” Said Philippe.


Tonight we head out for our first sampling operation which could last until midnight. The excitement levels are running high onboard the Amundsen!


Lots of love,
Tara xx

 

2:20 local time

Saturday, October 3, 2015

CCGS Amundsen, Lancaster Sound

 

 

 

We are onboard the ship!

 

The past few days have given me an appreciation for how far the Arctic is from everywhere, and how, up here, you are at the whim of the planet.

 

Travel depends on the weather, and the elements here are extreme.

 

On Thursday, we left Quebec city for the airport at 4:00 am, bleary eyed but excited. Along with a crew of about 80 reseachers, Coast Guards, and students, we boarded a chartered plane and flew up up up to Iqaluit, Nunavut, where we touched down to refuel. At that point, however, the wind had picked up, and travel to Resolute was impossible. We all crowded into a 10’ by 30’ room, where we waited for the next 6 hours. Once the thrill of the surrounding landscape wore off, (for there is only so much you can see from one spot), we played cards, read, raced around the building, talked to the scientists and Coast Guards, and eventually, simply waited.

Eventually, the call was made not to fly until the next day. We were shuttled into the town where we checked into a hotel, then went out to explore. The buildings were a mix of old and wooden, brightly painted, and futuristic, geometric shapes that had been shipped in in pieces. The town was a juxtaposition of bright and rough: two children’s bikes, left to rust in a litter-filled creek; the landscape, hard and cold, and the smiles of kids rushing out of school; the hands of crafters offering us their creations, calloused and worn, and the beads, the fur, the stone.

 

The next morning we rushed back to the airport, and, a few hours later, we landed in Resolute. There we waited again, this time with no pretense of entertainment, for close to seven hours. All this time “doing nothing” had forced our group to bond, and at this point, all shyness had dissolved. Its difficult, but also exciting to thrown together with kids who have had such different lives to me!

 

Finally, four people at a time, we got a helicopter to the boat, anchored in the bay. We wore GIANT yellow body suits (see picture). I was so excited at that point that, as we swooped over pieces of ice I squealed and gasped and giggled with the person sitting next to me (a very sweet graduate student from France.)

 

The ship itself brought more excitement. Seeing all the equipment today during the safety briefing was so cool – the design is ingenious, and the Coast Guards are so friendly and willing to answer questions.

 

We haven’t seen any wildlife yet, but when I woke at 8:00 am and looked out of the porthole into the semi dark, we were surrounded in pieces of ice. It was a first-thing reminder that I really am in the Arctic.

 

Tonight, the scientists will start gathering data through sampling operations. I think, for the first one, we will watch from the bridge, but we have talked to them about joining in at the next station.

 

Right now, all of the Schools on Board students are in the Crew’s Lounge. Cara, from Pond Inlet, is drawing. Zoe (Ottawa) is sending an email to her school, and Alex (Montréal) is reading. The others are discussing the dangers of go carts.

 

In a few minutes, we will go upstairs to the Science Meeting. Everyone involved in the science program also met this morning and talked about the changes in schedule as a result of our delay. It was amazing to see their flexibility, considering many of them are gathering data for their PhD/Master’s thesis’s, and this might be their only opportunity to gather data.

 

It is really cool to see them work, and think about the future. After another 8 years of education, it could be us! Imagining that is both scary and exciting....

Tara xxx

 

 
Note on Pictures: Keep checking, because I will add them to posts once I figure out how to upload them with the ships limited bandwidth. In the meantime, have a look at Cami`s blog (in French and English!): https://arcticadventurer.wordpress.com/

 

 

6:20 am (B.C. time) / 8:20 am (Winnipeg time)

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Onboard Air Canada flight from Winnipeg to Toronto

I’ve lost track of time. It doesn’t mean anything now. We’ll be in Toronto soon, then Quebec, and it will change again.

The airhostess just came past and gave me a TINY Styrofoam cup of tea. I sat it on the armrest while I wrestled with the little table. It trembled, back and forth, and I watched it for a few minutes to see if it would topple over. It didn’t, but I decided that just watching wasn’t a good guarantee of security, so I held it in one hand. It wibbled and wobbled, but I nearly had the table out. Suddenly, it steadied. The man next to me, in the very nice suit (the kind of man I only ever see on airplanes), was gently holding the cup. I finally pulled the table out of the armrest. It was a bit sticky, but, at that point, I couldn’t backtrack.

I am very excited, and a bit scared, and moments like that have calmed me. I’m also listening to a playlist that Arianna and I made together, and its full of sweet, folksy songs that make me chill (dude).

Right now, I am fairly sure we are flying over the Great Lakes. The blue bellow us is vast and completely smooth. The ocean is always moving, always going somewhere. This lake is still, although I can’t see the whole parameter. The shore that I can see is deep green broken by tiny rivers. I tried to take a picture for Mr. Demerse’s Geography class, but I couldn’t get my camera out quickly enough. I think the man next to me is getting tired of me rummaging through my many bags. He’s trying to sleep. I probably should too – my under eyes are the size of orange segments. I must tell you about the trip so far though!

            I’ll start at the beginning then, Ok?

On Monday morning, I threw my Schools on Board bag into the truck, waved to my mum, sleeping Kellen and our house, windows glowing in the dawn dark. Dad and I got the first ferry to Campbell River. The sky was clear, and Dad said he wished he was going Chum fishing. I sneezed.

            At school, I rushed through a few last classes, a photo sesh with Mike from the Campbell River Mirror, and an interview. My friends and teachers were so ridiculously kind and encouraging. Thanks, everyone!

            After picking up a few last things (more blank postcards, another memory card), Dad and I went for a walk on the River. When we got home, I repacked for the fourth time and went to sleep.

           

            I woke up to a yellow moon, low in the sky. My toes wriggled and moaned, protesting “getting moving” (- my dad). Despite my OCD preparations, I was still packing while my dad and grandparents waited in the car. I piled in, and waved goodbye again, this time to the little blue house on Alpine St. and to the Pacific Ocean.

            They dropped me at the Comox airport, and continued on a family road trip.

 I sat outside and drank my ginger tea and blew my nose.

            After flying across a few mountains and lots of prairie, I arrived in Winnipeg. Candy and Jeffery waited at the bottom of the moving staircase, smiling and waiving. After a lovely dinner, they showed me The Forks and I got an unabridged history of all the buildings. Although I was exhausted when we got to their house, I don’t think I got much sleep. I was still wired to coastal time.

            This morning, Candy and Jeffery armed me with pastries from an iconic Winnipeg bakery and drove me to the airport. Candy, clothed in running gear, gave me a hug and jogged away into 6:00 am (4:00 am B.C. time!) dark.

            I was meet at the airport by someone from U of M and Cheryl Bailey, one of the teacher-participants. The rest of the group flying from Winnipeg had already gone through, but I promise (mum!) I wasn’t late! Cheryl and I were sent off with a hearty hug from the U of M person. We went through security and found Michelle #1 (the program coordinator), Michelle #2 (researcher), Cami (student – Winnipeg) and Grace (student – Hay River). Everyone was so, so friendly, and enthusiastic. I can’t wait to hear more about their communities, and their lives, which are in some ways, so different from mine.

Is this obnoxious or hard to follow? The thing is, if I know I have to follow proper essay format, or organize my thoughts, or edit, I’m not going to write on here. Sorry Mr. Riddell, for the horrible grammar and made up words. You said I wouldn’t get credit for this anyways. Plus, its stream of consciousness. Literary reference. Boom.

PLUS Plus, if you’re my mum, maybe you are missing me, and this is a good substitute for my constant chatter.

Later…

We’re on the plane to Quebec City now! We’ve been quizzing Michelle on research onboard the ship. We will be bringing up organisms from the sea floor - I can’t contain my excitement! We also had a great conversation about Tofino, and the disappearance of starfish. I think it will be fascinating to see the similarities and differences of the Arctic and our Pacific coast.

I’ll post this when we arrive at the hotel in Quebec, along with some picture from the trip so far.

Over and out,

Tara

PS No pictures for now... Hopefully some soon!

Tara's Journey to the North from Tara Warkentin on Vimeo.

How Does Climate Impact Arctic Life?

The Narwhal, with its mysterious spiral tooth, is a muse for myth and science. 

Their numbers are limited: about 80,000 worldwide (WWF), one-fifth the human population of the arctic region. Between 1987 and 2004, the narwhal population has dropped about 6 percent per year. If we extrapolate that decline to now, the decline has reached over 80% since the mid-1980’s. (Heide-Jørgensen's study). As our climate drives down the road of exponential change, the affect on all life will exceed our imaginations. However, studies show that Narwhals are among the most vulnerable. Will these beasts become just a legend? 

The arctic of the past sat in balance. Inuit hunters coexisted with the living and non-living aspects of the environment. The world existed in dynamic homeostasis.  

Zoom out on the axis of time. Since the start of life on Earth, there have been 8 major drops in life, beginning with the oxygen die off, over 2 billion years ago, and continuing on until the dinosaur, or Cretaceous extinction, 65 million years ago. 

The history of extinctions shows us that there is a direct correlation between temperature and diversity of life. Both temperature and diversity change constantly, but the current rate of change is our cause for concern. 

Continuous positive feedback – whereby the affect of a process amplifies that process – gives rise to cascading change. Higher temperatures, for example, can change the heat reflection quality, or albedo, of the Earth. In the Arctic, rising atmospheric temperature melts ice, leaving behind bare rock and water that absorb greater quantities of heat from the sun.

Changing ice conditions have an impact on all arctic inhabitants. Warmer water benefits plankton, and less sea ice results in a soaring killer whale population, which needs open ocean. The killer whales are quickly overtaking polar bears as the north’s top predator. 

Narwhals live much of their lives underneath a thick layer of ice. However, as mammals, they must surface to breath. Recently, there have been reports of whales becoming trapped under the ice when fractures freeze over due to sudden shifts in the weather. Desperate, hundreds of whales will squeeze into closing chasms. Many suffocate or become easy prey for polar bears circled around the gap. 

The Inuit peoples call this phenomenon “sassat.” They have observed it for hundreds of years, but recent reports have shocking implications. The entrapments occurred at an unusual time of year, in an unusual location: the whale’s summer feeding grounds, as opposed to their winter territory. “The Narwhales were in the wrong place at the wrong time,” according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [US]. Is this an affect of the changing sea ice conditions? 

Schools On Board 

In October, my head full of questions, I embark on a trip to our planet’s far north. Along with eight other high school students and two teachers from Canada, I will be immersed in experiential learning. Through Schools on Board a program run by the University of Manitoba and ArcticNet, we will travel to Resolute, Nunavut, where we will board the Coast Guard vessel The CCGS Amundsen. Along with leading Arctic scientists, we will head east, through Lancaster Sound, conducting oceanographic sampling operations, then north, between Ellesmere Island and Greenland. The trip will conclude with a community visit in Pond Inlet, Nunavut. 

While experiencing the Arctic in all of its elements, we will learn through lectures, workshops and laboratory experiments. There will be an emphasis on social and environmental issues so that the understanding we gain will be both a microscopic and a broad view of the ecosystem. 

Schools on Board is an opportunity for learning as a whole. If an ecosystem is a collection of relationships, being in the midst of those interactions and experiencing them with all of our senses is crucial. I hope to come away with a deep connection to Arctic life, and an understanding of human impact upon it.

When each participant flies back to his or her home community, they will continue to spread their experience of the North. I plan on bringing back what I have learnt to both of my communities. In Campbell River, I will share photos, videos, and stories through the Carihi Earth Club and the science department. I am in the process of arranging visits to museums, elementary schools, and community centers in Campbell River and on Cortes Island. I will also keep this blog while I am away.

As part of my efforts to fund the trip, I am launching an Indiegogo campaign. Armed with watercolours and pens, I will send contributors postcards with a small piece of something I have learnt or observed during the trip. I hope that this is another way of spreading inspiration as far as the post can reach. 

Although the “unicorns of the sea” are diminishing, our understanding of them is growing. Recent research shows that the male Narwhal’s tusk holds up to 10 million nerve endings. As a receptor to the outside world, these sensitive teeth detect shifts in temperature, salinity, and pressure. Could this ocean antenna allow the narwhals to adapt to their changing environment?

The Narwhal’s tusk demonstrates the knowledge that is imbedded in our north. It is the responsibility of my generation to seek understanding of our planet and use it for the wellbeing of all life on Earth. Schools on Board provides the medium to learn.