PMEL in the News
First Autonomous Circumnavigation of Antarctica
The Southern Ocean around Antarctica is a dangerous and foreboding place. Wind speeds can exceed 80 miles per hour and waves as high as a 5-story building are common, along with frequent icebergs. Adrienne Sutton is quoted.
Melting ice probably isn’t causing extreme winter weather, but there is a connection
Climate change skeptics often point to recent, record-breaking winters as evidence against global warming. But in reality, greenhouse gases may be just as responsible for extreme winters as they are for heat waves. For decades, experts have observed that melting ice in the Arctic (caused by climate change) coincides with unusually bitter winters at lower latitudes. Jim Overland is quoted.
El Nino gone; winter outlook unclear
A weak El Nino went away in July as sea-surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean along the equator cooled to within a normal range, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported Thursday. Nick Bond is quoted.
Seafaring robot crashes into iceberg, still finishes scientific trip around Antarctica
13,670 nautical miles. 50-foot waves. One big collision. Over the weekend a Saildrone — a 23-foot long uncrewed marine robot — withstood the tempestuous seas around Antarctica to complete the first-ever circumnavigation of the continent by a drone. Adrienne Sutton is quoted.
Saildrone’s Journey Around Antarctica Uncovers New Climate Clues
The robot sailboat is called #1020. It’s a lackluster moniker for a machine that just spent seven months battling its way through 12,500 miles of frigid, massive waves to circumnavigate Antarctica. The robot, made by startup Saildrone, is the first of its kind to complete the harrowing journey. More important, it’s the only scientific vehicle to have captured such a detailed environmental picture of the state of the Southern Ocean, bringing back data that could be key to our understanding of climate change. Adrienne Sutton is quored.