Return-Path: palmer@atsvax.rsmas.miami.edu Return-Path: Received: from atsvax.rsmas.miami.edu (atsvax-dn.rsmas.miami.edu) by crseo.ucsb.edu (4.1/SMI-4.4-Crseo Special) id AA23108; Wed, 3 Nov 93 19:57:28 PST Date: Thu, 4 Nov 93 03:53:29 GMT From: palmer@atsvax.rsmas.miami.edu Message-Id: <931104035329.22c07b04@atsvax.rsmas.miami.edu> Subject: SCIENCE SITREP MONTH OF OCTOBER 1993 To: palmer_science@atsvax.rsmas.miami.edu X-St-Vmsmail-To: MSG%"PALMER_SCIENCE" Status: O SEND PLM157.NOV MSG%"PALMER_SCIENCE" SCIENCE SITREP MONTH OF OCTOBER 1993 R 040300Z NOV 93 FROM: Osmund Holm-Hansen, Science Leader P A L M E R S T A T I O N A N T A R C T I C A TELEMAIL::PALMER.STA PHONE/FAX: 011-874-150-3157 SPAN::PALMER@ATSVAX.SPAN TELEX: 5841503157 PNHG INTERNET::PALMER@ATSVAX.RSMAS.MIAMI.EDU !TO SPOLE NSFREP !TO ASAMCM,GRANTEES,ASASEC CC E-MAIL::spole,duke,natpalmer,vlf@star.standford.edu, NSFMCM@mcmurdo.gov,karentzd@alm.admin.usfca.edu,CHAPPELL@UCRACC.SPAN DALLUGE@ATMOS.OGI.EDU,dpp-messages@nsf.gov,nsfchch@asa.iac.org.nz asachch@asa.iac.org.nz,wwweather@ucdavis.edu,p.penhale@nsf.gov robin@crseo.ucsb.edu,langdon@crseo.ucsb.edu,ray@crseo.ucsb.edu dunton@utmsi.zo.utexas.edu,bsidell@maine.maine.edu prospero@rcf.rsmas.miami.edu,savoie@rcf.rsmas.miami.edu frazer@lifesci.ucsb.edu,M.Kennicutt,W.Stockton,T.Delaca, R.Hanson,E.Hofmann,R.Bidigare,R.Booth,W.Trivelpiece, O.Holm.Hansen,GMCC.BOULDER (pass to Bernard Mendonca), G.Mitchell,M.Vernet,N.Swanberg,M.Huntley,f.AZAM,R.RADTKE,D.Karl, S.WEILER,W.Fraser,SEA.SPACE,B.Sidell,W.Detrich,whbob@arcane.ucsd.edu EVANS.ASA@ASA.ORG, WOOD.ASA@ASA.ORG, SHEPHERD.ASA@ASA.ORG Responding: Please insert in message, all CAPS, with the ! in column 1: !TO PAL SCIENCE, LABMANAGER, ADMIN, ALL S-106 Stanford VLF. U. Inan, Stanford University. No personnel were on station. The system has been operated by the station science technician.Data were collected daily and prepared for retrograde. There were occasional instances of sporadic loss of digital data; noise on the A/D triggering input to the data collection computer is suspected. Trial and error have produced a state in which it is hoped that no more data will be lost, although sampling errors still occur. S-275 UM/DOE Atmospheric Monitoring Program at Palmer Station. T. Snowdon, University of Miami; C. Sanderson/N. Chui, EML/DOE N.Y. 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. Local time as tracked by the Zenith computer was advanced one hour on 20 Oct for daylight savings. Starting with the filter exposed from 15 Oct through 22 Oct, all filters will be exposed without a top covering scrim. A tripped breaker resulted in an interruption of the system pump for approximately 20 hours on 21-22 Oct. T-312 Terascan satellite imaging system. R. Whritner, Scripps Institute. No personnel were on station. The system has been operated by the station science technician. Prior to 29 Oct, DMSP and NOAA telemetry were collected, processed, and archived. Ice images and ozone maps were produced in support of Science and Marine Operations. On 29 Oct, the system suffered a failure in its archiving capabilities. Investigation into the failure is ongoing. T-313 UV Monitoring Experiment. C. Booth, Biospherical Instruments. No personnel were on station. The system has been operated by the station science technician. Irradiance data were collected daily and transmitted to ATSVAX for BSI. Absolute calibrations were performed on October 10 with the seasoned lamp and on October 23 with the site standard. High voltages were dropped on data and response scans due to brightening conditions. Preliminary irradiance data and inferred ozone abundances were produced in support of Science. S-091 Seismic Observatory. United States Geological Survey. No personnel were on station. The system has been monitored by the station science technician. The EW component of the seismic station failed on 29 Sep, recovered without intervention on 2 Oct, and failed again on 5 Oct. It is believed that the failure is in the feedback box. The NS and Z components have been subject to spurious impulsive signals that vary dramatically in both frequency and intensity. No explanation for these "events" has been found. S-013 Long Term Ecological Research on the Antarctic Marine Ecosystem: An Ice Dominated Environment. William R Fraser and Wayne Z. Trivelpiece, Seabird component, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana. Field team on station: Brent Houston, Tracey Mader and Eric Holm We arrived on station October 7 and moved into the lab on October 8. Events during the first week included unpacking and setting up the lab, preparing field gear and field notebooks and familiarizing the field team with the various study sites and field techniques. Boating class (part I) was completed on October 11th, and part II was completed on the 14th. Due to persistent ice conditions around Palmer Station throughout the month, we were only able to access Torgersen and Humble Islands (Adelie penguin study sites) once, on October 15th. This important visit, however, provided us with preliminary data with which to compare previous years of Adelie arrival dates and winter over survivability. Within the immediate vicinity of Palmer Station, we have also been able to gather early data on south polar skua, kelp gull and giant petrel arrival dates, and monitor their progress in establishing territories and forming pair bonds. S-016 Long Term Ecological Research on the Antarctic Marine Ecosystem. Primary Production. Barbara Prezelin. University of California Santa Barbara. Personnel present, Keith Seydeland Sandi Roll, arrived at Palmer Station on October 7. All former personnel, including Tony Diem, Mark Moline, TJ Evens and Bill Golden departed with S010 on the Polar Duke to participate in the Icecolor's 93 cruise. Due to ice conditions, the Palmer grid line was inaccessable. Consequently, water samples were taken from surface water off the shore behind the pump house. This occurred once weekly, and water was filtered for nutrient, ammonia, CHN, and pigment analysis (HPLC). PI curves and deck incubations were also performed. A sampling strategy and schedule for the season was organized, and spreadsheets for data workup and written protocols for analyses were prepared. Ammonia samples from the LTER August cruise were analyzed. S-028 Prey Component (krill, fish, zooplankton): Palmer Long-Term Ecological Research. Principal Investigators: Robin Ross, Langdon QuetinField Team: L. Quetin, C. Wyatt, H. Coe, C. Johnson Fast ice in Arthur Harbor prevented sampling the Palmer grid stations of the LTER during October. One day (Oct 15) of open water immediately in front of the station enabled all personnel to get checked out in the zodiacs, otherwise boating has been impossible. Two dives through the fast ice near Palmer Station October 4 and 14 yielded few krill. Larger krill, 30-35 mm range of total length, were difficult to collect. Smaller krill observed near the ice hole proved to be Thysanoessa macrura. In collaboration with S-032 we initiated experiments to investigate the effect of UVA, UVB and PAR on the physiology of Euphausia superba larvae. Krill larvae maintained in an outside water bath and experiencing higher dosages of PAR only, PAR+UVA and PAR+UVA+UVB than they would experience in the water column showed differences in behavior and mortality between the treatments. We are now initiating experiments at lower light levels characteristic of the water column to test whether the previous differences between treatments persists. Samples from the August LTER cruise are being sorted for fish and krill larvae. Most of the packing has been completed for the January 1994 LTER cruise. Ice conditions are improving and we expect to be sampling the LTER stations of the Palmer grid within the next week. S-032 Long Term Ecological Research on the Antarctic Marine Ecosystem. Marine Optics and Modelling personnel on station: Mike Hearne Activities this month were minimal, due to ice cover. S-032 received daily ozone data from the station science technician, and ozone maps from Santa Barbara. Copies of the ozone data were sent to the Polar Duke. Extra water from S-016 sampling was filtered and extracted for chlorophyll concentrations. S-044. Effects of ozone related increased UV-B fluences on photosysnthesis, photoadaptation, and viability of phytoplankton in Antarctic waters. P.I: Osmund Holm-Hansen, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego. Field team: Osmund Holm-Hansen, E. Walter Helbling, Virginia Villafane, and Livio Sala. Since our moving into quarters at Palmer Station on Oct. 9 we have been occupied with (i) preparing our temperature controlled incubators on the outside deck, installation of our solar irradiance sensors (spectral UV and PAR) next to the incubators, and setting up our computers, etc., for data analysis, and (ii) processing daily experiments to assess the impact of solar UVR on phytoplankton photosynthesis and pigmentation. Due to ice in Arthur Harbor there has been no zodiak work possible, and hence we have obtained water samples each morning through a hole in the ice some meters off Gamage Point. Daily experiments involve natural water samples, the nanoplankton fraction, as well as various phytoplankton species which have been isolated from natural samples and are being maintained in culture. The floristic composition of all samples is being determined by standard microscope techniques. Our studies thus far have emphasized (i) the magnitude of inhibition of photosynthesis resulting from solar UV-A and UV-B radiation, (ii) the effect on carbon dioxide fixation by enhanced UV-B radiation resulting from decreases in column ozone concentrations, (iii) the relationship between the cellular concentration of UV-absorbing compounds (310 to 350 nm) and the sensitivity of the photosynthetic response to solar UVR, (iv) the relative sensitivity to UVR of different phytoplankton species, and the degree to which the cells recover normal photosynthetic rates after exposure to solar UVR, and (v) determination of the relationship between the absorbed dose of UVR (obtained from incident spectral irradiance and absorption spectrum of photosynthetic pigments) and the decrease in the rate of photosynthesis. 03180523.138 PLM157.NOV