The Voyage South – Storm in the Southern Ocean

5 Feb 2008 – The RV Tangaroa was 65 degrees south, the barometer steadily dropping and the seas were eight metres.

The Southern Ocean is the least hospitable ocean in the world and and is in effect a great southern storm factory. Antarctica is the windiest, coldest, driest and highest continent in the world.

These paintings are from my IPY voyage on board the NIWA research vessel RV Tangaroa in February and March 2008. NIWA’s research vessel the Tangaroa went on an 8-week voyage to the Ross Sea to survey the marine environment and explore biodiversity in the region. The journey took place during the International Polar Year (IPY) – a global scientific programme designed to better understand the land and sea environments of the Arctic and Antarctic and the effects climate change has on them.
~ Alfred Memelink, Watercolour Artist and Marine Engineer

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All Images Copyright © Alfred Memelink, All Rights Reserved.

The Voyage South

This is a map I painted after the voyage showing the route the RV Tangaroa took to and from the Ross Sea.

The zig zag route near the top of the Ross Sea, shows the route taken by the ship to wind its way through the thickest pack ice in 30 years. During winter, the sea around Antarctica freezes over and Antarctic doubles in size. During summer, the sea ice in the Ross sea breaks up and the circular Ross Sea current packs the broken ice islands together, fierce storms pack the ice even tighter together.

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Iceberg to Starboard - my first iceberg

3 Feb – The second engineer hollered out Iceberg to Starboard! I grabbed my camera and raced up on deck. It looked huge, about the size of a house, but apparently this one was only a baby. As my first iceberg I decided that it deserved a name and called it SQ Island.

Icebergs may live for many years continually being transformed by wave and sea action.

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"What is it?"

Little penguins looked on completely bewildered as the RV Tangaroa slowly sailed past them. Around lunchtime we passed a lazy leopard seal on a blood soaked piece of pack ice – looking like he was having an after lunch nap - penguin may have been on the menu.

The main predators of Adélie penguins are leopard seals and Orcas. Skua gulls scavenge unguarded chicks and eggs on land.

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"Dive, dive!"

7 Feb – Miles from land, Adelie penguins in their white shirts and little tuxedos looked up at us like little bewildered butlers, as if they have never seen a ship before. Others decided that it was not safe to hang around.

Adelie penguins are sleek swimmers and may travel 180 nautical miles in a round-trip to find food.

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Breaking the ice

8 Feb - The RV Tangaroa made slow progress through the pack ice, finding our way through leads and progressing in a zigzag pattern. We enjoyed peering over the bow as she worked hard breaking through the ice and shoving bigger and thicker ice islands out of her path.

The Tangaroa is not an icebreaker but her specially constructed, ice strengthened hull allows her to go through ice flows up to 0.4 m thick.

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