CR
Cryospheric Sciences

Cryo Adventures

Vernagtferner: My First Encounter with an Alpine Glacier

October 15, 2021
Vernagtferner: My First Encounter with an Alpine Glacier
A: The start of our first climb to the Vernagtferner Glacier; B: The Vernagtferner Valley in the Ötztal Alps; C: Late afternoon in the Austrian Alps; D: The ice flows carrying, among other things, rock debris and scratching the surface of other rocks with increasing erosive power. Figure credit: Eduardo Q Alves.

In July 2021, together with a group of MSc students from the University of Bremen, I set off from the flat plains of Northwest Germany and embarked on a journey to the mountainous regions of Austria, with the Vernagtferner Glacier as our final destination. My aim was to learn as much as I could in the glaciology field course offered by the university. During my student days in Brazil, glaciers fil ...[Read More]

Cryo-Adventures – Hunting snow algae in the Alps

October 8, 2021
Cryo-Adventures – Hunting snow algae in the Alps
Figure 1. Researchers and students measuring snow optical properties during a snow algae bloom in the beautiful landscape of the Brenta Dolomites (Rhaetian Alps). [Credit: Cristian Ferrari]

We are used to think of algae as marine or lacustrine organisms, but they are actually able to thrive also on the cryosphere. In a previous post, we learnt how snow algae live and reproduce on snow. Now we will explore how and why scientists study snow algae, and how social media can be used for identifying new study areas. Snow algae in the Alps Snow algae in the Alps have been overlooked or conf ...[Read More]

Cryo-adventures – Undertaking Cryo-Fieldwork in a Global Pandemic!

September 3, 2021
Cryo-adventures – Undertaking Cryo-Fieldwork in a Global Pandemic!
Looking out over Fjallsjökull from the top of the nearby moraine ridge. Photo credit: Nathaniel Baurley

Have you ever wondered what undertaking cryo-fieldwork in a glacial environment typically involves? Well, what about undertaking cryo-fieldwork in a glacial environment during a global pandemic?! Read on to find out all about the challenges I faced on my recent trip to Iceland in July 2021… Fieldwork Preparation As this previous blog post highlights, undertaking cryo-fieldwork requires a significa ...[Read More]

©LEt’sGO to Antarctica !

May 15, 2020
©LEt’sGO to Antarctica !
The camp site deployed to collect radar data with (a) the polar vehicle (in orange in the centre) or (b) snowmobiles (on the right). Other types of measurements are often carried out simultaneously: atmospheric gas composition, snow/ice core drilling, surface photogrammetry, etc. Can you spot them all ? Photo credit: Brice Van Liefferinge

With the current situation, polar fieldwork might be/have been cancelled and we have a suggestion to remedy your field-blues… Why not use ©LEGO to pretend you’re back in the field with the added bonus that you get to be in the warmth and comfort of your home! Here, we’ve re-enacted radar fieldwork that took place a year and a half ago in Antarctica… But first, let’s start with some backgroun ...[Read More]

Cryo Adventures – What’s currently going on in Antarctic science?

December 6, 2019
Cryo Adventures – What’s currently going on in Antarctic science?
Map of the various locations mentioned in the text. Green markers are bases, red markers measurement campaign locations [Credit: Andy Smedley].

As Christmas gets closer, days are getting shorter in the northern hemisphere. A good excuse to get cosy inside on the sofa, drinking tea and eating Christmas biscuits. Meanwhile, a few thousand of scientists are heading “South”, to Antarctica, where the lengthening days provide the perfect conditions to conduct a whole variety of scientific field expeditions… Science in Antarctica Just last ...[Read More]

Cryo-adventures – Behind the scenes of cryo-fieldwork

October 25, 2019
Cryo-adventures – Behind the scenes of cryo-fieldwork
Figure 1: On top of Svínafellsjökull glacier, Iceland 2018 [Credit: Saule Akhmetkaliyeva].

As the Arctic is warming faster than the global average, Arctic glaciers are rapidly melting. My research is about the fate of glacial organic carbon when the ice containing it melts. To investigate these processes, I travelled to several glaciers, an activity full of challenges… and rewards! My research Glacier ice covers about 11% of Earth’s land surface, and contains within it a globally ...[Read More]