GGE Graduate Student Travis Wert's Excellent Adventure in the Canadian Arctic
by Travis Wert

At the centre of the CASES study, is the newly refitted Canadian Coast Guard Ship Amundsen. A rebirth of the old CCGS Franklin, the vessel was refurbished as a dedicated Arctic research vessel thanks to over 27 million dollars in research moneys from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), and the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada.

As part of the UNB commitment to the project, Travis Wert, a GGE Master's student, boarded the vessel for a 44 day leg while she was frozen into the sea ice of Franklin Bay in the Beaufort Sea. A member of both the GRL and OMG, Wert's research is centred around extracting micro-tidal signatures of the region using a new form of stand-alone Wide Area Differential GPS. The equipment for this research was provided by C&C Technologies, a hydrographic survey company based in Lafeyette, Louisiana.

While onboard, Wert's activities were concentrated on ensuring that the GPS data was being downloaded correctly, and that the designed processing algorithms were operational and providing the desired results. In addition, the hydrographic sonar equipment was inspected and prepared for operations once the ship breaks out of the ice and resumes surveying. In the absence of data flow problems, the opportunity arose for Wert to assist other members of the expedition in their field work.

The following pictures illustrate some of the research that took place during Wert's leg of the project. Keep in mind that daytime highs were routinely around -45º C, with windchill factors normally below -55º C.

Much of the focus of the CASES study lies in the measurement and analysis of contaminants in both the water and sea ice. The figure at left shows a Swiss member of the expedition extracting an ice core for analysis. The photo on the left below shows a scientist labelling the cores before moving them to the labs onboard the ship. The bottom right picture displays one of the perimeter ice camps. There were two of these structures, called parcolls, one at 2 km, and the other at 13 km from the ship. In bad weather, many of the scientists would spend considerable time in these tents as the diesel heater allowed people to warm up and dry off wet gear.

Similar to the device operated by the GRL on the roof of Gillin Hall at UNB in Fredericton, a group from the University of Manitoba installed a water vapour radiometer (WVR) to measure the amount of water vapour in the lower atmosphere. At UNB, a similar device is used to gather water vapour predictions and to compare results with those obtained using GPS receivers. In this photo, Wert is using the experience gained at UNB last summer working with the WVR to assist the Manitoba team in proper set up.

Due to the possible danger of polar bears, operations off the ship required the company of a rifle carrier, a job that Wert frequently took on when his schedule allowed.

All work and no play makes for a boring adventure, so frequent breaks were scheduled. Some non-scientific activities included:

Taking part in what is in all likelihood the highest latitude Ultimate Frisbee League.

Viewing the seals, who would relax in the vessel's moon pool, an opening in the hull of the ship to allow for scientific sampling of the sea waters below. This official purpose was lost on the seals who though of it more likely as a warm tub with zero chance of bear interruptions.

Taking pictures of interesting sites such as:

The broken sea ice field south of the Amundsen. Although the ice was commonly quite flat and smooth, pressure in the region occasionally forced large crack ridges, or choppy fields like the one at right, to develop.

Sea ice pressure also resulted in occasional cracks and openings alongside the ship, which the seals would use as breathing holes, or perhaps observation posts.

In addition to the seals and foxes present during the Feb-Apr leg of the expedition, members on previous trips were able to see many bears during the transit legs of the expedition. In the heart of winter, bear activity is concentrated near areas of open water known as polynyas, where there is more likelihood of catching seals. The photos below were all taken by CASES members from the vessel during the fall 2003 legs, Sep-Nov.