PALMER STATION SCIENCE SITREP April 1997 Bruce D. Sidell, SSL NEWS FROM THE LAB Marc Pomeroy, Winter Assistant Supervisor, Laboratory Operations The malfunctioning Beckman Ultracentrifuge will be returned again to Beckman USA for repairs. An ASA representative will visit Beckman to supervise this repair and ensure the system is fully operational before returning this well-traveled instrument to Palmer Station this November. Brad Gore, Instrument Technician, completed his eight-month deployment and departed on PD97-04. Both Brad and Alice will return to Denver ASAHQ in May. This has been a busy month for science cargo operations. With the delay of the R/V LAURENCE M. GOULD until November, 1997, the R/V NATHANIEL B. PALMER will be opening Palmer Station with two shuttles in September. The R/V NATHANIEL B. PALMER is too large to dock at the Palmer Station pier, and the transfer of cargo will be via zodiacs. Large or heavy boxes of grantee winter-over supplies normally stored in the Punta Arenas warehouse and needed early in the season are being stored on station this winter. This has made for some creative shuffling of stored goods to accommodate the additional boxes. Putting these all in a milvan was described as "one gigantic tetris game." End of the season is rapidly approaching and the lab is getting ready for station close. The last remaining science groups, S-036 (Sidell), S-037 (Detrich), and S-030 (Davison) will depart on PD97-05. With their departure, the labs will be empty of grantees for the first time since September, 1995! This winter will be dedicated to providing the facilities, instruments, equipment, stores and inventories with much-needed attention. S-013 CHANGES IN ADELIE PENGUIN POPULATIONS AT PALMER STATION: EFFECTS OF LONG TERM HUMAN DISTURBANCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE. William R. Fraser, Montana State University. PERSONNEL ON STATION: William R. Fraser (shared with S-035) and Donna L. Patterson. This last month has been devoted to scaling earlier-obtained aerial photos of the 66 Adelie Penguin colonies that encompass Palmer's 5 island rookeries. This work was completed on 15 April. As in the past, baseline breeding and population data on other area seabirds were obtained opportunitically to maintain the continuity of databases that in some cases span more than two decades. The status of this work is as follows: Southern Giant Fulmars. Growth studies were continued through mid- April on Humble Island. Chick banding commenced on 5 March and was finished on 15 April; 369 chicks were banded, suggesting this population continues to be stable in the area. South Polar Skuas. Experienced a complete reproductive failure; laboratory time devoted to processing diet samples with the help of S-034. Blue-eyed Shags. Diet sample collections and censuses completed. Some samples processed to provide S-034 with a reference collection of otoliths and squid beaks. Marine Mammals. Censuses continued through 15 April. S-030 THERMAL ADAPTION IN POLAR MACROALGAE Ian Davison (University of Maine, Orono), Ken Dunton (University of Texas at Austin) and Val Gerard (University of New York, Stony Brook) PERSONNEL ON STATION: Jonas Collen, Ian Davison, Ken Dunton, John Heine, Beki Korb. The personnel was divided into two groups ID, KD, JH arrived 10 March and were replaced by JC and BK on 4 April. The goal of the project is to understand the adaptions to low temperature in polar macroalgae. Last years field season showed that carbon metabolism alone could not explain the growth rates seen at different temperatures in the brown macroalga Himanthothallus. This years studies have been done on other species of macroalgae to see if the uncoupling of carbon fixation and growth is a general phenomenon in Antarctic seaweeds. The emphasis during this season has been on nitrogen metabolism and allocation and the acclimation to different temperatures. Experiments have mainly been performed on three species of Antarctic seaweeds Himantothallus grandifolius, Desmarestia antarctica (Phaeophyta) and Palmaria decipiens (Rhodophyta). Cultures of the seaweeds have been kept at different temperatures and different parameters have been studied during and after acclimation (or failure to ditto, due to demise) including photosynthesis, nitrate uptake, nitrate reductase, internal nitrate and amino acid levels, growth rates, fluorescence studies, pigments and heat-shock proteins. The seaweeds for the experiments and also for later transport to the US have been collected by scuba diving mainly around and on the "Bahia wreck," near Christine Island and close to Palmer Station. S-034 PALEO-HISTORY OF THE PALMER LTER (WESTERN ANTARCTIC PENINSULA) REGION Steven D. Emslie, Western State College, Department of Sciences, Gunnison, CO 81231. PERSONNEL ON STATION: Steven D. Emslie and Janice Jones. The first two weeks of April was spent completing excavations at modern and abandoned penguin rookeries. Two trips to Biscoe Point added five abandoned rookeries to the sample; two of these were excavated to recover sediments for analysis. At least ten abandoned rookeries were located on Biscoe Point and may represent a chronology of penguin occupations. Excavations were completed at a total of six abandoned penguin rookeries in the Palmer Station region during March and April 1997. Sediments collected from test pits in these sites, after washing, drying, and sorting under the microscope, have produced abundant remains of fish bones, otoliths, and squid beaks. To test the hypothesis that the fish and squid remains found in the abandoned rookeries are due to penguin diet, and not to use of the same areas by seals or other wildlife, control excavations were completed on two seal terraces and in three modern penguin rookeries. The terrace samples provide data on natural accumulation of bone, fish remains and squid beaks associated with areas heavily used by fur and elephant seals. Preliminary analyses of the sediments indicate that these areas have significantly lower concentrations of squid and fish remains compared to the abandoned rookeries. In addition, the modern penguin rookeries also produced high numbers of fish bones and squid beaks. These data support the hypothesis that these remains are accumulating in rookery sediments as a result of penguin diet. Squid is not known in the diet of Adelie penguins today. Data recovered here, however, suggest that Adelie penguins currently feed on squid, perhaps early in the breeding season before stomach lavages are initiated, but when the birds are beginning to reoccupy their nest sites. In addition, the data from the abandoned rookeries indicate that squid has been a component of penguin diet for perhaps hundreds of years (pending results of radiocarbon analyses). It is apparent that squid may be an overlooked resource in the diet of Adelie and perhaps Chinstrap penguins, but additional study is needed. To determine whether or not squid beaks currently are accumulating in Adelie rookeries due to penguin diet and, if so, at what frequency, four 1x1 m fine-mesh screens were placed under a layer of clean pebbles at three sites in modern Adelie colonies. One screen also was placed in one abandoned rookery on Litchfield to serve as a control against material recovered in the modern sites. These screens will act as catchment traps for guano and will be recovered and washed at the end of the 1997/98 breeding season to determine the accumulation rate of bones, otoliths, and squid beaks on active penguin colonies. Analyses of data gathered in this project will continue during summer 1997 and will include identification of bones, otoliths, and squid beaks, radiocarbon dating of selected samples from each site, and isotopic analysis of otoliths and/or squid beaks for paleoclimatic data. The feasibility for recovering ancient DNA from penguin remains in the abandoned rookeries also will be investigated. S-035 LONG TERM ECOLOGICAL RESEARCH ON THE ANTARCTIC MARINE ECOSYSTEM: AN ICE-DOMINATED ENVIRONMENT (Seabird Component). William R. Fraser, Montana State University PERSONNEL ON STATION: William R. Fraser (shared with S-013). All program objectives were completed in early March. The rest of the month was devoted to assisting S-034 as time and weather permitted. S-036 EVOLUTION OF AN OXYGEN-BINDING HEMOPROTEIN IN AN UNIQUE ENVIRONMENT: MYOGLOBIN IN THE HEMOGLOBINLESS ANTARCTIC ICEFISHES. Bruce D. Sidell, University of Maine. PERSONNEL ON STATION: Zoe A. Eppley, Theresa Grove, Peter Fields, Kristin O'Brien and Bruce Sidell Field team members Fields and Sidell arrived at Palmer Station on 02 April aboard Polar Duke cruise 97-03 which had been delayed in departure from Punta Arenas because of required mechanical repairs to Polar Duke. On the southbound leg enroute to Palmer, trawling operations for capture of fishes were conducted off the S. shores of Livingston and Brabant Islands (Dallmann Bay) in conjunction with project S-037 (see report for this project below for a summary of animals captured). On 04 April, field team member Eppley departed Palmer Station for Punta Arenas on the northbound leg of cruise 97-3. Likewise, T. Grove departed Palmer Station on the northbound leg of cruise 97-4 on 17 April. Fields, O'Brien and Sidell remained on-ice for the entire period. During the month of April, Palmer laboratory-based research continued on several fronts. Tissues from both channichthyid icefish species (Chaenocephalus aceratus, Chionodraco rastrospinosus, Pseudochaenichthys georgianus, Champsocephalus gunnari) and red- blooded notothenioid fishes (Gobionothen gibberifrons, Notothenia coriiceps) were harvested and stored frozen or fixed for transport to our CONUS laboratory for subsequent biochemical and ultrastructural analyses. Measurements of tissue activity of key enzymes of intermediary metabolism that are labile to freezing (phosphofructokinase) and those that require assay with intact organelles (carnitine palmitoyltransferase) were conducted in the Palmer laboratories. Partial purification of lactate dehydrogenases from tissues of several species was accomplished and initial estimates of kinetic constants and thermal stabilities of these enzymes were determined. A preparation protocol for subcellular fractions enriched with plasma membrane of heart cells from icefish species was established and several preparations of plasma membranes were made and drop-frozen in liquid nitrogen; these preparations will be examined in our CONUS laboratory for activities and pump densities of major Ca++-handling pumps of the plasma membrane in the tissues. An attempt was made to establish conditions for measuring the oxygenation state of myoglobin in intact hearts of icefishes that express the protein by using a fiber-optic spectrophotometer equipped with a reflecatance probe. Although several variations in protocol were attempted, this line of experimentation had to be abandoned because of unacceptably high levels of light scattering and diffraction by the tissue which homogenized the reflected light, making detection of the diagnostic spectral return of myoglobin impossible. During 12-14 April, a brief fishing effort was conducted aboard Polar Duke at locations off the S. shore of Low Island and again in Dallmann Bay in conjunction with field team members of Project S-037 (see below for details). Again during 29 April -1 May, an additional fishing effort was conducted at the Dallmann Bay fishing grounds. A total of trawls were conducted during this effort. Specimens captured included Gobionotothen gibberifrons (447), Chaenocephalus aceratus(18), Chionodraco rastrospinosus (3), Champsocephalus gunnari (6), Pseudochaenichthys georgianus (1), Disstosichus mawsoni (6), Notothenia coriiceps (6), Bathyraja spp. (3) and myctophidae (11) of uncertain species. During this period, ASA support personnel at Palmer Station and aboard the Polar Duke have provided very good support of our activities. Special mention should also be made of the crew and captain of Polar Duke, now at Palmer Station on her last cruise in service to the USAP. Despite this being the last cruise of Polar Duke, crew and officers of the ship continue to provide the first-rate professional and friendly support that we all have grown to depend upon and respect. The watchword continues to be "no problem" delivered with a smile. They are greatfully acknowledged and will be sorely missed. S-037 STRUCTURE, FUNCTION, AND EXPRESSION OF COLD-ADAPTED TUBULINS AND MICROTUBULE-DEPENDENT MOTORS FROM ANTARCTIC FISHES. H. William Detrich, Northeastern University, Boston, MA. Personnel on station: H.W. Detrich (P.I.), D. Lau, R. Melki, S.K. Parker, S. Pucciarelli, M. Rutberg, and A. Saeed The goals of our research program are to understand, at the molecular level, the adaptations that enhance the function and expression of tubulins, microtubule motors, and globins from Antarctic fishes. Arriving at Palmer Station on 02 April via Polar Duke cruise 97-3 were project members H.W. Detrich (NU), R. Melki (CNRS, Paris, France), S. Pucciarelli (Univ. Of Camerino, Italy), and A. Saeed (NU). Our arrival was delayed by 8 days due to mechanical problems on the R/V Polar Duke that necessitated an extended post-97-2 port call in Punta Arenas. En route to Palmer, trawling operations were conducted briefly at Livingston Island (3 tows) and more extensively at Dallmann Bay (14 tows) during the night of 01-02 April. Fish specimens collected included the icefishes Chaenocephalus aceratus (18), Champsocephalus gunnari (6), and Chionodraco rastrospinosus (7), the Antarctic rockcods Gobionotothen gibberifrons (ca. 250), Notothenia coriiceps (2), Dissostichus mawsoni (2), and miscellaneous notothenioid fishes (Parachaenichthys charcoti, Notothenia nudifrons, etc.). During the month of April, we continued the Palmer-based research program that we initiated in March. Significant accomplishments include: 1) demonstration that chimeric kinesin-like protein/green fluorescent protein constructs can be expressed and visualized in skin cells from N. coriiceps grown at 1 deg C (Rutberg, Parker, Detrich); 2) purification and initial characterization of a protein complex, CCT, that participates in the folding of cytoplasmic proteins, including tubulin and actin; tissue sources were N. coriiceps testis and G. gibberifrons brain (Melki, Saeed, Detrich); 3) analysis of the tissue-specific transcription of an alpha-tubulin gene complex from N. coriiceps (Parker); 4) characterization of microtubule assembly systems from Antarctic and temperate species of the protistan genus Euplotes (Pucciarelli); 5) continuation of developmental analysis of globin-gene switching in red-blooded notothenioid fishes (N. coriiceps, Trematomus newnesi) (Detrich); 6) preparation of erythrocyte tubulin and brain kinesin from G. gibberifrons (Parker, Pucciarelli); and 7) sampling and freezing of additional tissues from Antarctic fishes to support research activities in our CONUS laboratory (Parker, Saeed, Detrich, Lau). In mid-April (12-14 April), a short fishing trip to Low Island and Dallmann Bay was conducted in conjunction with Project S-036 (Sidell). Specimens captured included approximately 200 G. gibberfrons, 11 N. coriiceps, 6 P. charcoti, 2 D. mawsoni, 2 T. newnesi, 50 C. aceratus, 7 C. rastrospinosus, 6 C. gunnari, 1 Pseudochaenichthys georgianus, and 1 possible Chionodraco wilsoni. On 04 April project members D. Lau and M. Rutberg departed Palmer Station on the R/V Polar Duke for redeployment to CONUS. H.W. Detrich, R. Melki, S. Parker, S. Pucciarelli, and A. Saeed remain on station to continue our work until 06 May, when the R/V Polar Duke departs Palmer Station for the last northbound transit (cruise 97-5) of its charter. Given the accomplishments of March and April, we anticipate a productive and successful conclusion to our 1997 field studies. Throughout our field season we have been greatly assisted by the ASA personnel of Palmer Station and by the captain, crew, and ASA personnel of R/V Polar Duke. We gratefully thank them for their efforts. S-085 ESTABLISHMENT OF GPS CONTINUOUSLY OPERATING REFERENCE STATION (CORS) AT PALMER STATION. Jerry Mullins (P.I.), U.S. Geological Survey PERSONNEL ON-STATION: Chris Baumann Since arrival at Palmer Station on April 10, S-085 has been successful in establishing the first Real-Time DGPS system in Antarctica. A 6 foot mast was erected on a bedrock promontory between T-5 and the Hero Inlet for the GPS receiver antenna. A 7/8" low loss cable of 320 ft. was run from here to T-5 where the base station equipment is housed. On April 20 test tracking began at station "PALM" (1003). On April 22 the radio transmitter antenna was mounted on T-5 and RTCM correctors were broadcast and received by the roving GPS receiver. Since this time CPD correctors have also been broadcast and received. There have been no reports of these broadcasts interfering with any projects on station. The GPS computer has been connected to the Palmer LAN and on April 25 a full day of RINEX GPS data was transmitted by FTP to USGS in Reston, VA. These transmissions will be made daily. Local GPS surveys have also been made to tie four reference marks which were established (5/8" threaded rods in bedrock) and 6 existing survey marks to the new mark. At the request of Hans W. Schenke, we tracked for 24 hours on the mark his team established last year with our roving GPS unit. Kevin Bliss, the incoming Science Technician, is getting full training in base station operations. Work still to do includes weatherproofing outside cable connectors, flagging the cable line, and continuing GPS ties to survey marks in the vicinity including nearby islands. Great help has come from the people here at Palmer as well as people at USGS in Reston and ASA in Denver to make these things possible. S-091 GLOBAL SEISMOGRAPH STATION AT PALMER STATION. R. Butler, Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS) No personnel were on station. The system has been monitored by the station science technician. In the process of science technician turnover, a brief visit was made to the seismic vault on 28 April. Battery voltages and bell jar vacuums were checked and were found to be satisfactory, and mass positions were adjusted. S-106 STUDIES OF LIGHTNING-INDUCED ELECTRON PRECIPITATION OF THE IONOSPHERE. U. Inan, Stanford University. No personnel were on station. The system has been monitored by the station science technician. On 30 March the dimensions of the newly adjusted antenna loops were determined and emailed to Stanford. On 03 April, a transit was used to determine the antenna loop alignment; results were again sent to Stanford. S-204 MEASUREMENTS OF ATMOSPHERIC O2 IN RELATION TO THE GLOBAL CARBON CYCLE. Ralph Keeling, Scripps Institution of Oceanography No personnel were on station. Air samples are collected on a semi-weekly basis by the station physician. The samples are return shipped to Scripps for analysis of O2 and CO2 content. The goal of the program is to resolve seasonal and interannual variations in atmospheric O2 (detected through changes in O2/N2 ratio) which can aid in the determination of rates of marine biological productivity and ocean mixing and aid in the separation of the global sink for anthropogenic CO2 into terrestrial and oceanic components. The program involves air sampling at a network of sites in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Palmer Station is especially well situated to resolve signals due to carbon cycling in the Southern Ocean. S-254 CHLORINE-AND BROMINE-CONTAINING TRACE GASES IN ANTARCTICA. R.A. Rasmussen, Oregon Graduate Institute for Science and Technology No personnel were on station. Air samples are taken on a weekly basis by the station physician. The samples are returned to the Institute for analysis of a number of trace components, especially chlorine- and bromine-containing gases. These elements have been implicated in the chemical processes that contribute to the austral-spring depletion of the ozone layer over Antarctica. This work will contribute to a better understanding of the buildup of trace constituents, particularly those of high-latitude marine origin. S-257C COLLECTION OF ATMOSPHERIC AIR FOR THE NOAA\CMDL WORLDWIDE FLASK SAMPLING NETWORK. James T. Peterson, Environmental Research Laboratories, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration No personnel were on station. Air samples are taken on a weekly basis by the station physician. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory team continue long-term measurements of trace atmospheric constituents that influence climate. The Palmer Station air samples are returned to the NOAA laboratory for analysis of trace constituents, including carbon dioxide. These measurements are part of NOAA's effort to determine and assess the long-term buildup of global pollutants in the atmosphere. These data will be used to determine how the rate of change of these parameters affects climate, particularly by including them in climate model studies. S-275 EML/DOE REMOTE ATMOSPHERIC MEASUREMENTS PROGRAM. C. Sanderson, Department of Energy, Environmental Measurements Laboratory No personnel were on station. The system has been operated by the station science technician. One sample filter was exposed for the duration of each week, and a weekly schedule of calibration, background, and sample counts was maintained. The air intake was examined for moisture on 11 April; none was found. On 25 April, excess filter debris was cleaned from the gasket of one of the filter cartridges. T-312 TERASCAN SATELLITE IMAGING SYSTEM. R. Whritner, Scripps Institution of Oceanography No personnel were on station. The system has been operated by the station science technician. Throughout the month of April, the TeraScan system collected, archived, and processed DMSP and NOAA telemetry, maintaining a schedule of 15-17 passes per day. NOAA and DMSP telemetry were archived for S-032 when the LTER grid was clear. AWS transmissions were monitored from Bonaparte Point, Hugo Island, and RACER Rock. A DMSP thermal infrared image of Lallemand Fjord was produced and transferred to ASA Marine Operations in Englewood. NOAA thermal infrared composite images of the storms that impeded the R/V POLAR DUKE on two recent southbound crossings of the Drake Passage were produced and distributed in hardcopy and digital format to interested parties. T-513 UV MONITORING NETWORK. C. Booth, Biospherical Instruments, Inc. Personnel on station: Kevin Bliss The system has been operated by the station science technician. Throughout the month, raw irradiance data were collected daily and transmitted to BSI. Preliminary irradiance data and inferred ozone abundances were produced in support of Science. Version D of the SUV-100 operating software was installed on the system computer on 10 April. On 10 April, Kevin Bliss arrived on station to perform the annual site visit. Data collection was halted on 12 April to allow for inspection, maintenance, and calibration of the instrument. The system was returned to normal operation on 19 April and began running on a new scan schedule of two data scans hourly during daylight hours. Additionally, during the month of April, the WWW bird deterrent was reinstalled on the roof of the UV Addition, and extra absolute calibrations and Hg scans were performed as requested by BSI.