All,

You may be interested in the following link which shows the current sea ice conditions around the Antarctic continent. Unfortunately there has been a recent satellite failure which is preventing us getting the normally available high resolution pictures – so this is the best at the moment.

http://www.polarview.aq/images/25_SSMIS/latest/antarctic.gif

For those that are interested, it’s worth having a look at the image every few days to see how the spring break-up of the winter ice is progressing. There is a clockwise current in the Weddell Sea so the ice generally moves in that direction before being spat out into the South Atlantic along the east coast of the Antarctic Peninsular. Expect the ice to ease around the Greenwich Meridian and a band of open water (polynya) to form along the east coast of the Weddell Sea and up around our area of interest. Quite a lot of ice there at the moment but plenty of time for change.

It’s also interesting to look at the McMurdo side of the continent – hopefully by this time next year it will be VERY interesting!

Best wishes,

Brian Newham, Traverse Manager