PALMER STATION SCIENCE SITREP MAY 1996 NOTE REGARDING A CHANGE TO THE MONTHLY SCIENCE REPORT: For years, NSF has requested each science project represented on station by their own field team or the ASA Science Technician submit a monthly report to the Station Science Leader or their representative. The report is then sent to past, present and future laboratory users and associates. At the same time, grantees noted that there was no way to receive information regarding station and laboratory changes and improvements that might affect their ability to conduct science. It was suggested that ASA Science Support write their own section for the monthly science report. You will find this section added to the end of this and all future monthly reports. Comments and suggestions regarding the new section should be directed to Marian Moyher (moyherma.asa@asa.org). The following science projects were active at Palmer Station during the month: S-013 SEABIRD INVESTIGATIONS AT PALMER STATION AS PART OF THE NMFS/AMLR ECOSYSTEM MONITORING PROGRAM. William R. Fraser, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT. No personnel were on station. Station personnel continued weighing and measuring Giant Petrel (Macronectes giganteus) chicks on Humble Island on a weekly or, weather permitting, twice weekly basis. The last visit to Humble occurred May 29. No Giant Petrel chicks were on the island at that time. S-016 LONG TERM ECOLOGICAL RESEARCH (LTER) ON THE ANTARCTIC MARINE ECOSYSTEM: AN ICE DOMINATED ENVIRONMENT. PHYTOPLANKTON COMPONENT. Maria Vernet, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Marine Research Division, La Jolla, CA. No personnel were on station. Station personnel collected and filtered weekly water samples for later analysis of chlorophyll content. S-028 LONG TERM ECOLOGICAL RESEARCH (LTER) ON THE ANTARCTIC MARINE ECOSYSTEM: AN ICE DOMINATED SYSTEM. SECONDARY PRODUCTION COMPONENT. Drs. Robin M. Ross & Langdon B. Quetin, Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA. No personnel were on station. Station personnel checked, both visually and using epifluorescent microscopy, the condition of the Phaeocystis, Thalassiosira and Corethron phytoplankton collected by S-016 last season. The cultures are being cultivated throughout the winter for krill grazing experiments. S-091 PALMER IRIS SEISMOLOGY. R. Butler, U.S. Geological Survey, Albuquerque, NM. No personnel were on station. The system has been monitored by the station science technician. All USGS seismic operations were normal for the month of May. S-106 VERY LOW FREQUENCY (VLF) REMOTE SENSING OF THUNDERSTORM AND RADIATION BELT COUPLING TO THE IONOSPHERE. U. Inan, Stanford University. No personnel were on station. The system has been monitored by the station science technician. On 01 May, at the request of Steve Reising, the frequency of the channel 2 amplitude receiver was changed from 23.4 to 21.4 KHz. As a test, the summary charts for 01 May were scanned and sent to Stanford as two uuencoded JPEG files. This was in response to an ongoing problem with the sending of faxes to Stanford. The test was successful, and it was decided that the weekly fax would be replaced with the scanned JPEG files. S-254 CHLORINE-AND BROMINE-CONTAINING TRACE GASES IN ANTARCTICA. R.A. Rasmussen, Oregon Graduate Institute for Science and Technology, Portland, OR 97291 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. J.T. Peterson, Environmental Research Laboratories, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Boulder, CO 80303-3328. 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 UM/DOE-EML REMOTE ATMOSPHERIC MEASUREMENTS PROGRAM. J. Prospero/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. T-312 TERASCAN SATELLITE IMAGING SYSTEM. R. Whritner, Scripps Institute of Oceanography, La Jolla, CA. No personnel were on station. The system has been operated by the station science technician. Throughout the month of May, the TeraScan system collected, archived, and processed DMSP and NOAA telemetry, maintaining a schedule of 15-17 passes per day. NOAA telemetry was archived for S-032, and AWS data was collected from the Hugo Island and Bonaparte Point automatic weather stations in support of the LTER project. Additionally, 85 GHz SSMI data was collected and provided to Bob Whritner in support of the R/V POLAR DUKE's operations in the Weddell Sea. Also, several DMSP infrared images of the Weddell Sea and Bransfield Strait were collected and provided to the R/V POLAR DUKE. T-513 UV MONITORING EXPERIMENT. C. Booth, Biospherical Instruments, Inc. No personnel were on station. The system has been operated by the science technician. All UV Monitor operations were normal. Preliminary irradiances, integrals, and deduced ozone abundances were calculated on a daily basis in support of science. During the month, an absolute calibration scan was performed using the seasoned lamp. Additionally, PMT high voltage levels were increased twice during the month of May. ASA - SCIENCE SUPPORT NEWS, PALMER STATION ASA Palmer Science Support staff has two vacant full-time positions: the Senior Assistant Supervisor, Laboratory Operations (ASLO) and Instrument Technician, Laboratory Operations (ITLO). The search continues for the best possible candidates, and ASA encourages anyone interested in these positions to contact Marian Moyher during the first two weeks of June. The on-site Science Support staffing level for this winter is the same as last year's with the Science Technician (John Booth turning over with Kevin Bliss) and the Winter ASLO (Teri McLain). The Supervisor, Laboratory Operations (SLO) is busy in Denver with SIP reviews, Denver planning meetings and interviews of candidates for the two vacant positions. Current users will soon be receiving information regarding LES-9 use requests for next year. The LES-9 satellite system was operational at Palmer on 06 May 96 and allows real-time internet connection to a downlink site at Malabar, Florida for two sessions of three hours each at a rate of 38kbps. This is a great improvement over the 1.2kbps ATS-3 connection, and will allow for greater email communications and improved data transmissions. However, the 56kb leased line is shared with other USAP stations and research vessels. World Wide Web browsing is still not an option, so do your shopping and information gathering off station, and watch your mail for forms regarding grantee LES-9 requests. Power management is an extremely important topic for our winter and early spring grantees. Station power has been restricted to 600 amps due to limitations of the switch gear. ASA presented a proposal to NSF at the USAP Post Season Conference to upgrade the switchgear to allow full use of the generators - 850 amps. It is hoped the upgrade will be completed in time for the next winter's science. The first annual Palmer Area Users' Committee met this month at NSF in Arlington, VA. The members will serve two to four year terms. Current members are Terry Bucher (S-019), Tad Day (S-003), Ed Delong (S-024), H. William Detrich (S-037 and Chairperson), Bill Fraser (S-013 and S-035), Deneb Karentz (S-007), Nancy Marcus (Florida State University), Langdon Quetin (S-028), Ray Smith (S- 032), Ken Tenore (Chesapeake Biological Laboratory), and Maria Vernet (S-016). The committee is advisory to ASA and will meet yearly in the U.S., with Ad Hoc meetings held on station during the season. The committee's first agenda issues included power, computer/communications, field safety and use, global positioning system support, R/V POLAR DUKE changeover, capital equipment requests, short and long term development plans, and shop use policy. As the committee represents all Palmer Area users, all grantees will receive requests for input from the members. Please feel free to contact the committee members with your questions and concerns. Their email addresses can be obtained by deciphering the header of this email message or by contacting Marian. On the equipment front, two new instruments have been received at Palmer Station: 1) a GEM Biomedical Optocomp I luminometer; and 2) a Bio-Rad Gene Pulser II with Pulse Controller II and Capacitance Extender Plus. These instruments permit the transfection of bacterial and eukaryotic cells with DNA constructs and the analysis of the gene-promoter activity via luciferase reporter assay.