Field Work

Imaggeo on Mondays: Patterns in the peatland

Mélina Guêné-Nanchen March 4, 2019

Northern carbon sink. Credit: Mélina Guêné-Nanchen (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu)

This magnificent pattern is the result of hundreds and hundreds of years of evolution. In this structured minerotrophic peatland in Northern Quebec (Canada), which can also be called a string fen or aapa mire, the green peat ridges (or strings) alternate with water-filled hollows (or flarks). Often flarks are replaced by ponds, which vary in number and size. This pattern of strings and flarks (or ...[Read More]

Imaggeo on Mondays: Air samples from afar

Emma Elvidge February 25, 2019

Air samples from afar. Credit: Emma Elvidge (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu)

I’ve taken many photos on fieldwork, everywhere from Malaysia to Antarctica but this particular photo was taken in my ‘home’ lab at the University of East Anglia (UEA) in Norwich, UK. Atmospheric scientists collect air samples canisters such as these from around the world: from high altitude research aircraft (such as the Geophysica), long-term measurement time series (such as Ca ...[Read More]

Iceland’s rootless volcanoes

Keri McNamara February 7, 2019

Rootless cones in Lake Mývatn, NE Iceland. These cones were formed when the Younger Laxá Lava inundated the lake approx. 2000 years ago. In total, there are over 1400 rootless cones around Mývatn, ranging in size from <2 m crater. Credit: Frances Boreham

Picture a volcano, like the one you learned about in primary school. Can you see it? Is it a big rocky mountain, perhaps with a bubbling pool of lava at the top? Is it perched above a chasm of subterranean molten rock? I bet you didn’t picture this: You’d be forgiven for mistaking these small volcanoes for a scene from the Lord of the Rings, or maybe a grassy version of the surface of Mars (in fac ...[Read More]

Imaggeo on Mondays: An iceberg-sized issue

Natalie Robinson February 4, 2019

Dwarfed by a grounded iceberg. Credit: Natalie Robinson (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu)

This was taken during a study, undertaken by me and my colleagues, on the sea ice of McMurdo Sound, Antarctica. We designed the project to document how supercooled water carrying suspended ice crystals flows along its pathway towards the open ocean. Ultimately, this work aims to assess the Ross Ice Shelf’s contribution of local melt to the long-term trend of increased sea ice cover around Antarcti ...[Read More]