Fieldwork preparations

By Lou, Marie, Shunan and Ate 
 

Over the last months, we have been busy preparing for this year’s fieldwork, and with that our activities shifted from science to more practical things. Practical things that might be less fun, but certainly not less important than the science we need to do in the field! 

The chance of us meeting a polar bear is very slim, but to prepare for the unlikely the event of one visiting our camp, we needed to complete a rifle training. We had a first theory course during which we learned about analyzing a polar bear's attitude and the subsequent behavior we should have towards the bear. In most cases, polar bears can be scared away and they do not need to be shot. However, it can happen that they are really hungry or protecting their cubs so they adopt an aggressive behavior, and this is why we got a second practical training. We arrived on the shooting range where six printed polar bears were staring back at us. We all learned how to securely manipulate the rifle (always directing at the targets or up in the air), how to load and unload the rifle (Greenlandic half-loading specifically) and how to shoot in different positions from 25 and 50 meters. We all had a really different experience with this shooting training, but we all had in mind that we were about to use highly dangerous tools that hopefully we would not need to use in real life. The shooting range was itself quite impressive, as it is an isolated place with constant shooting noises, and so were the guns as they make noise, they are heavy, and recoil upon firing. The instructor then put us in a stress-situation, where we had to run to the car parking and back and shoot as quickly as possible. Some guns had been sabotaged by the instructor who wanted to test our ability to stay calm, and we all managed to hit the target in time. In the end of the day we left 6 incapacitated polar bear posters behind, and brought home some nervously and emotionally exhausted PhD students. 

We then had first aid training, focusing on the Arctic as it is an isolated place with specificities, e.g. it is impossible to call 112 in case of someone feeling bad there. It was more relaxed than the previous training and nice to try to give CPR to the “little Anne” doll. It was surprising how deep you actually have to press for it to work! And it was a reassuring and empowering experience for all of us that we all know how to perform first aid. 

 

Many hours of work involved getting all of our stuff – which was a surprisingly a huge amount – from the UK and Germany to Denmark and onwards to Greenland. Most of us made daily trips to the basement where more and more packages arrived every day. Steadily our offices became a warehouse filled with cardboard boxes and bubble wrap which were then replaced by plastic boxes as we repacked all of it to fit onto the pallets to then go in a container. 

Eventually the actual warehouse was mostly occupied with Deep Purple materials… Pallet after pallet of consumables, tents, sleeping bags, camping gear, food. Speaking of food, a combined effort made sure that we got some of the most important items included in our inventory. Without (real) coffee, parmigiano, chocolate, etc., certain colleagues just wouldn’t function on the ice. 

More practical jobs followed, like modifying tents, weighing all boxes, packing all boxes on pallets, moving pallets, re-packing them again. Most of us became very proficient with moving pallets around, and the warehouse looked more like a game of tetris. In fact, some of us started dreaming about pallet positions… Two of us also went on a road trip to Aalborg with a van full of chemicals (made it just in time for the boat!). Last but not least, lab tents arrived that had to be set up as a test. After weekends and evenings spent, a full shipping container was finally ready in time to go to Greenland.

In parallel to the packaging tasks is the drone experiment conducted by Ate and Shunan with the help of Lasse. The drone is a DJI M600 Pro and has a payload of 6 kg and will carry the hyperspectral camera on it. The test consisted of several steps. First we practiced our skills in drone simulator. After crashing enough simulated drones, we finally came to the stage of flying the real one. We tested the both the manual and autopilot flight mode. We designed one flight mission to draw a “DP” on the map. Having got the flying part ready, we mounted the gimbal stabilizer on the drone. It will help stabilize the onboard instrument while flying. Eventually the drone is equipped with a hyperspectral camera and a LiDAR onboard. 

We could almost forget that there are still experiments to do, so after the container left for shipping, it was back to polishing protocols, last-minute ordering and waiting anxiously for the last things to arrive. Departure is now fast approaching. Some think there’s too little time, while at the same time it cannot happen soon enough. The massive operation that needed so much preparation is now becoming real! Which still feels a bit unreal. And we’re all looking forward to meet each other on the ice after many online meetings across borders. In the end it was very hyggelig to work long hours in the warehouse together, and we will definitely keep up this work spirit on the ice!

Introduction to the 'Weathering Crust' team

The weathering crust (or "WC") team, led by Prof Martyn Tranter, are based at Aarhus University and are responsible for measuring, monitoring and modelling ice surface change. This includes all processes that affect the albedo (brightness) of the surface and control how rapidly the ice melts. Of particular importance are the changing architecture of the surface “weathering crust” – a thin porous layer that forms seasonally across the Greenland Ice Sheet’s melting zone, the accumulation of light-absorbing glacier algae, and the drainage of melt water towards the sea. These processes are interlinked in complex ways and determine the contribution of the ice sheet to global sea levels. The team is currently made up of four researchers:

 Dr Joseph Cook (Senior Researcher)

Joseph is responsible for the overall work package strategy and has particular expertise in albedo measurement and modelling. He has developed the BioSNICAR models for calculating the albedo-reducing effects of glacier algae and published extensively on the interactions between biological and  physical processes on ice surfaces. His field work experience includes >15 on-ice camps in Greenland in all seasons and he has explored deep beneath the ice sheet surface in a series of ice caving expeditions.

Shunan Feng (PhD student)

Shunan is interested in understanding the process and climate response of earth surface, particularly time series analysis by combining in-situ measurements, remote sensing and other geospatial data. This had led him to focus on remote sensing during his bachelor study and specialize in glaciology during master study in Uppsala University. He also worked as remote sensing associate in the International Committee of the Red Cross. His role in Deep Purple will be trying to monitor the variability of the albedo and biogeoprocessing of rotting ice surfaces in the Dark Zone of the Greenland Ice Sheet at different scales. The understanding of the albedo evolution of the GrIS will require unprecedented spatial, spectral and temporal resolution datasets from the ground and the air, new techniques for bridging across spatial scales and advanced analytical techniques for spatiotemporal changes. Novel algorithms of albedo calculation, methods of spectral analysis in detecting, classifying the glacier algae and estimating the pigment concentration etc. will be experimented to link the variation of albedo with glacier algae growth. We will try to bridge the gap between field measurement, UAV, and various satellite platform and upscale the optimized methods to large area.

Lou Chevrollier (PhD student)

Lou studied energy and environmental engineering in France before finding her way into natural sciences. She is interested in micro scale processes and before joining the DP project, she has been working with plankton and metal pollution combining modelling and field-oriented methods. She is also fascinated by light interactions, from the diffraction patterns on butterfly wings to the atmospheric particle scattering coloring the sky in blue and the high reflectivity of cryospheric surfaces, blinding us when hiking in mountains. In the WC group, she will be looking into the small scale processes driving albedo variability, trying to disentangle the role of the different light absorption particles (LAPs) and weathered crust dynamics in the darkening, combining field measurements and modelling experiments. In particular, she will work on refining numerical models to better reproduce and understand the role of glacier algae among the other light absorbing particles and within the changing ice structure.

Dr Ian Stevens (Postdoc)

Ian completed his PhD exploring the eco-hydrology of glacial surfaces at Aberystwyth University, studying the physical parameters of the near-surface weathering crust and the microbial abundance of surface meltwaters at field sites across the Northern Hemisphere from the high Arctic to the European Alps. His research interest focuses on elucidating hydrological processes within the weathering crust, exploring water, particulate and microbial fluxes through this aquifer to the channelised supraglacial hydrological system. To achieve this goals, Ian has a passion for method development, including designing and building custom sensors to measure previously unrecorded parameters. Ian’s role in DEEP PURPLE will be to continue to obtain empirical measurements of the weathering crust, informing modelling and upscaling approaches, and enabling assessment the provision of water to ice-surface algae.

Tutorial for an exciting Zoom call: first full team meeting!

by Lou Chevrollier, Marie Bolander and Ate Jaarsma

 

Just like our purple algae on the ice, we were supposed to colonise the GFZ Potzdam on the 12th of November for the first full team gathering. The covid-19 virus interrupted our plans -and similarly another may prevent the algae from spreading on the ice… that's for Laura P. to discover!-, so we have practiced our Zoom skills instead. Here are some observations from a few of the newest recruits to the team who joined the meeting with the entire group for the first time. We'll take you to our 6 steps tutorial on how to turn a 5hours zoom meeting into a non-boring, and even exciting experience… 

1. Start the meeting by introducing lots of weird names everyone has to repeat 3 times to get it right. Laura P. took care of warming up our brains by telling us about viruses on the ice, as well as the efforts currently ongoing to culture the famous purple algae. She introduced one of her favourite fungus, which is able to swim and is named Chytridiomycota. Later, Martyn tried desperately to pronounce it correctly… but to be fair, we probably would have also failed, after 4 hours of Zoom. 

2. Make sure you have a brave member to dare asking for breaks even when the PI chairing suggests we should go on. The problem when you are discussing exciting topics with interested and curious people is that you're very likely to go over schedule. Then, two solutions arise: either you extend the planning or you cut the breaks… There, you need someone to stand up for the negotiation: no way, you can't bargain with snack breaks! Thanks Eva!

3. Get the discussion emulsify so much that PhD students want to revise their (freshly created) plans. This is the point where you find out your plan will never be set in stone, and communicating your ideas may leave you with more questions than you had to begin with. But that is a good thing and really confirms that these scientific meetings are worth all the Zoom time. Ate is now on its way to update his plan to an even better one!

4. Make space for weird discoveries such as the presence of testosterone on the ice by Laura H. and the possibility of remaining shower-free for 4 weeks of fieldwork (this time we will not mention any name…)

5. Listen to the PIs trying to reassure the new PhDs students on their potential apprehension about camping on the ice: "It's not that cold, I was sleeping in underwear!" Thanks Alex, that was the most convincing argument!

6. Last but not least: build a team of which members listen to the others, are happy to learn, share, and help

Although we would all have enjoyed this first meeting to happen at GFZ, this online version did not prevent us from sharing our respective works in a positive atmosphere. Getting feedback on our work is essential to make progress, as other members can help spot mistakes, give another view angle on a dataset, introduce new methods or suggest different implications of the results. In addition, carrying a synergetic project, especially in time of covid-19, definitely requires getting in touch with each other to keep a coherent direction and develop collaboration between members. It became clear that the synergy between us is working, as many collaboration ideas have been set out on the spot during these discussions. Having a multi-disciplinary group of people with a wide range of expertise is definitely a great bonus in this aspect. We also discussed upcoming fieldwork, and what to deal with when living on the ice for several weeks. For us fieldwork-newbies, it was reassuring to hear that we can build on the experience of the rest of the team to help us stay warm, nourished, well-rested, polar bear and crevasse safe, but most of all, happy.

 

At the end of this meeting, we all came to the same conclusion : "I learned so much, and I'm so excited for what's to come!"… and our smiles on the picture below say it all. 

 

Luckily it was still possible to get a group photo (thanks Elisa!), with the bonus of peeking into everybody's home, such as Chris and Eva who were apparently ready for fieldwork…

 

PS: The Deep Purple team grew quickly over the last few months, and is expanding still, so expect to see the newest members introduce themselves in this blog over the coming time… Stay safe, and tuned!