Penguins have the right of way at land and sea! The first thing I noticed when we landed at Peterman Island (off the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula) was long sled tracks down the hillside.
As I walked to take a closer look, I had to wait for a fearless gentoo penguin to cross the path in front of me, since penguins have the right of way!
Winter childhood memories of sledding with my brothers in Ohio, USA flooded my heart when I then saw several penguins tobogganing, sliding down the hills, on their stomachs. Penguins often choose this behavior to move across land, appearing to use their flippers and feet to swim through snow and ice – much more efficient than walking with short legs.
Hiking up to higher ground offered a beautiful view of the entrance of the Lamaire Channel, where biologist Fabrice Genevois (Quark Expeditions staff) gave me a quick history lesson of the area. The island was named upon its discovery in 1873 for geographer August Peterman. We could see where French explorer Charcot wrote ‘PP’ on a rock in 1909. This stands for his vessel, 'Porquoi Pas' ('why not'), which explorers overwintered with to collect data about the environment including high tides.
Would the data and stories I collect for GLOBE and the H2yOu Project (h2youproject.com) be discussed over 100 years later? Of course I don’t know this, but I know it’s important to learn about the world around us and share what we find for now, and for generations to come.
We collected water using the bucket method from the shore of Peterman Island to test for nitrates, ph, temperature, and conductivity. When I approached the shore, penguins were gleefully diving in before me, so we had to wait for them to clear the area before tossing the bucket in, remembering that penguins have the right of way!
11-year-old Isabel Gray helped me collect data using an anemometer to measure wind speed on this windiest continent on earth. It was calm skies until just then, when the winds suddenly kicked up from nearly zero to 6.8 m/s.
The quick change in wind lowered the wind chill, making it more challenging to manipulate the water testing materials.
At that moment, I gazed at the refuge hut built in 1955 by Argentina. If I didn’t have the Ocean Endeavor to return to for warmth soon, I’d be seeking shelter and emergency supplies in that hut from the harsh Antarctic climate!
Written by: Laura Schetter, GLOBE teacher at Wildwood Environmental Academy (Maumee, OH, USA), Founder of H2yOu Project (h2youproject.com) see more global education teaching stories at lauraschetter.com contact her: laura.schetter@leonagroup.com
