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Arctic West Fall 2009 Trip
November 1, 2009
Frozen science, arctic ice dives
by Petty Officer 3rd Class Pamela J. Manns
On the frozen water in the Northern Arctic Ocean research divers wiggle into their black and blue dry suits. They wear long underwear and fleece under their protective-outer shells. They slip on fins, don masks, fit gloves, shoulder breathing tanks, struggle into neoprene hoods, and plunge into the Arctic through a triangle-shaped hole cut by a hand-held saw.
The researchers are trying to unearth the consequences of ice loss to the sea ice habitat and ice-associated food web in the Arctic. They use a variety of tools to access the ice but diving is the only tool that allows them to access the deeper-reaching keels of thick sea ice ridges. Through diving, scientists gain a real understanding of the Arctic marine environment.
The dive team reached the Arctic by traveling aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Sea, an icebreaker homeported in Seattle. This is the first scientific-dive operation conducted from Coast Guard icebreaker since 2006, when a diving incident on the Coast Guard Cutter Healy cost two Coast Guard members their lives. “Since the incident on the Healy, Coast Guard members do not conduct science-oriented dives any more,” said Lt. Kellee Nolan, a dive officer temporarily serving aboard the cutter.
Nolan, an honor graduate from the Navy Dive School and veteran ice diver, is overseeing the dives and ensuring that the divers are safe through the whole evolution. Nolan, who is typically assigned to the International Ice Patrol in New London, Conn., was selected as safety officer because of her polar experience, and will be returning to her usual assignment at the end of the scientific cruise, around Nov. 1, 2009.
The researchers pick their dive spots based on mounds of ice that form on the surface. These mounds indicate ice ridges below that are home to many small organisms, called meiofauna and macofauna. These tiny creatures are essential nourishment for fish that feed on them, the seals that eat the fish, and the polar bears that are dependent on seals for survival in the Northern pack ice.
Dr. Katrin Iken, associate professor of marine biology at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, is the lead scientist for this project that is funded by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s Ocean Exploration Office. She has gone on many ice dives; however, said that this is the first time that her research has brought her to the Arctic during this time of year. “We want to know how changes in ice conditions are affecting these small creatures, and from that we might be able to tell how it is affecting the large ones,” she said.
To do that Iken and her three dive-team members, also from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, gather samples of ice chunks from the under-ice ridges and collect fauna to study and analyze. Some of those studies are conduct aboard the Polar Sea, others are taken to their home lab for analysis.
The divers spend between 20-30 minutes underwater collecting samples, and are attached to a line tended by a qualified person on the surface. Iken said the divers could spend up to 40 minutes in the icy water before having to resurface, although most dives are shorter than this maximum time. They are also capped from diving more than 60 feet.
At water temperatures hovering around freezing, warmth is an important part of preparing to enter the water. The divers wear a polypropylene base layer and second layer of fleece to hold in heat. Their suits stay dry, but it offers no thermal insulation. Their neoprene hood absorbs water and is warmed by the radiant heat their head produces. Iken said the first things to get cold are your fingers. “You could wear more than two layers of liner gloves, but then you trade dexterity, needed for collecting samples, for warmth,” said Iken. Iken spent around 10 months getting ready for her cruise aboard the Polar Sea.
“You have to make sure all paperwork is in order and prep your gear,” said Iken, “and make sure you have spare parts for everything.” Iken has been conducting polar research since 1992, and has been on more than 20 scientific missions. She considers “diving a research tool, depending on the scientific question of the specific project.”
The Polar Sea picked up the scientists on Sept. 26, 2009, in Barrow, Alaska. The polar class icebreaker, one of three in the Coast Guard’s fleet, is currently transporting several groups of scientist to different areas around the Arctic in support of various scientific missions. “The crew is very happy to be a part of the scientific research,” said Capt. David Vaughn, commanding officer of the Polar Sea.
Underwater research, such as this, is reliant on teamwork, and requires dedication to safety and science. Nolan said, “You can tell the three divers from the University of Alaska Fairbanks are a very cohesive team, have a lot of experience, and have great communication among them.”
The research divers are an experienced group of marine scientists. The research conducted on board the Polar Sea and back home in their lab in Fairbanks is part of the larger quest to uncover the consequences of continuous ice loss.
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