Atlantis

I rounded the corner, and the wind hit me - literally. The force of the air pressing into my chest felt like I had walked straight into a brick wall. I stumbled backward and grabbed the railing. Any sane person would have turned back, walked back down the stairs, and retreated inside. But I am not a sane person. 

I pressed forward, one steel-toed boot step at a time. On R/V Atlantis, scientists are allowed on the bow - and I was determined to take full advantage of that access. I was practicing my ritual, breaking up long periods of laptop work by stepping outside, no matter the weather. It was important to me to experience the environment and remember where I am on planet Earth.

The motion of the ship intensified as I marched determinedly forward. The closer I got to my destination, the more I could feel the bow's upward swing with each wave. Then a rogue wave splashed against the side of the vessel, and I was sprayed with chilled seawater. I laughed - my old friend was saying hello. This cold, polar ocean is home. 

Friends, I am on a very unique expedition right now. This is my first time on R/V Atlantis - on any American research vessel, for that matter - in 11 years. It is my first time in the Canadian Arctic. As we approach our study site, Atlantis itself will cross the Arctic Circle for the first time. This expedition is privately funded, and most of the people on board are not professional scientists - very atypical conditions for an Atlantis cruise. 

I am at sea because the Royal Canadian Geographic Society partnered with WHOI to explore two shipwrecks: Quest and Terra Nova. Both vessels have historical connections to the "Heroic Age" of polar exploration, having been owned by Shackleton and Scott, respectively. Even though both explorers are best known for their Antarctic exploration, their ships sank in the Arctic. This expedition will be the first time that Quest is visited by any human or robot (it was found with sonar in 2024), and it will be just the second time that Terra Nova is surveyed with video. My two great loves - Arctic biology and shipwreck ecology - are colliding. 

The rolling waves outside seem a world away from the sweltering heat wave back home. In just a few days, we have gone from the sun-drenched WHOI pier with friends and colleagues waving goodbye to the steel-blue, rolling Gulf of St. Lawrence. And I wouldn't have it any other way. 

You can follow along with the expedition here, or on the homepage for Canadian Geographic.