December 28, 2013

"A scientific mission ship, trapped in dense pack ice off East Antarctica, is still awaiting rescue after a Chinese icebreaker failed to reach it."

"The Snow Dragon icebreaker was itself stalled by heavy ice, officials say."
Although trapped for the moment, the scientists are continuing their experiments. They have been measuring temperature and salinity through cracks in the surrounding ice.....

The goal of the modern day Australasian Antarctic Expedition is to repeat many of the original measurements and studies of the Mawson expedition to see how facets of the environment have changed over the past century.
Here's the Spirit of Mawson page about the current expedition.

31 comments:

Hagar said...

Why does the PLA have an icebreaker?

familyfuninthekitchen said...

Tangential thought:

Considering that Antarctica covers the earth's South Pole, who decides what is East Antarctica?

madAsHell said...

It's the middle of summer in the southern hemisphere, and they are trapped in polar ice.

How does that happen??

I'm thinking they're going to need to hike out.

virgil xenophon said...

Beware! Global Warming! Global Warming!

tim in vermont said...

I am not convinced that global warming is something we don't need to worry about, but yeesh! The ice has been increasing in Antarctica on a trend, this isn't a one-off.

The stratosphere has not cooled in twenty years, when it was coming off a volcanic event, not due to global warming.

I just think that the climatologists seem to know a lot less than the ones who get quoted in the press all the time claim.

Ann Althouse said...

It's like that "Twilight Zone" where everyone is suffering from terrible heat as the earth has broken out of its orbit and is heading toward the sun. Then the guy wakes up and realizes that it was only a dream, the earth has broken out of its orbit and is heading away from the sun, and everyone is suffering from the cold.

Unknown said...

Crew studying Global Warming trapped in ice. Capt. Al Gore unavailable for comment

SGT Ted said...

Currently, Climate science majoritarianism is not trustworthy anymore.

The global warming Government/University Patronage Industry has destroyed it's own credibility in service to their own hubris, egomania and political agenda overriding the lack of actual evidence.

SGT Ted said...

Warmistas seem to think that those of us out here doubting them have no familiarity with science and the scientific method.

My skepticism is entirely because of my understanding of the scientific method, having learned it and lived it growing up; my father had been a marine biology research scientist and his degree was in botany/ecology. My mother is a retired nurse.

Current screeching about "climate change" is more a religious and political advocacy and not an adherence to science based on the actual evidence and observations.

Illuninati said...

SGT Ted said...

"Current screeching about "climate change" is more a religious and political advocacy and not an adherence to science based on the actual evidence and observations."

Well stated SGT. Some people call the greens the watermelon party because they are green on the outside and red on the inside.

My understanding is that CO2 is indeed an essential greenhouse gas which helps keep the early habitable. The effect is logarithmic so that each incremental increase in the gas causes a diminishing effect on the climate. The global alarmists depend on computer models which include a positive feedback by clouds and moisture in the air to make their predictions. Science is based on experimental results, so until the computer models can make accurate predictions their results are speculation.

traditionalguy said...

Is this another incidence of God's Gore effect joke that seems to dump "unprecedented" cold ice and snow anywhere a Global Warmist Propaganda show is happening.

This trip was a Government funded PR stunt for BBC and Australian version of the BBC, both of which are AlGore Propagandists only.

MadisonMan said...

Considering that Antarctica covers the earth's South Pole, who decides what is East Antarctica?

(laugh) People from the Northern and Western Hemisphere, of course.

policraticus said...

Somewhere, Ernest Shackleton is laughing.

virgil xenophon said...

tradguy/

Have you noticed that the maj tv networks have taken great pains to avoid any mention of the word "climate change," "global warming" etc in their coverage of this situation and when they interview the scientists involved BOTH sides avoid the topic like Dracula avoids the cross. From their coverage the uninitiated would come away with the opinion that this was strictly a voyage tracking the history of previous explorers for its own sake--strictly a tourist/historical thingee. NOT A WORD about the real, original intent of the voyage has passed the lips of either the interviewer or interviewee on ANY network to date AFAIK

virgil xenophon said...

P: Gore is a reverse Cassandra: i.e., he is always wrong and all the useful idiots always believe him..

Wince said...

Ann Althouse said...
It's like that "Twilight Zone"...

Video Clip: The Midnight Sun
"The Midnight Sun" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.

A prolific artist, Norma, and her landlady, Mrs. Bronson, are the last people in their apartment building. Everyone else has either moved north where it is cooler or perished from the extremely high temperatures. Norma and Mrs. Bronson try to keep each other company as they see life as they know it erode...

As the temperature grows hotter the two women increasingly perspire. Mrs. Bronson's mind cannot manage the psychological pressures any longer and she beseeches Norma to paint a picture other than hot topics such as a burning city, screaming deliriously, "Don't paint the sun anymore!"...

Feeling that her latest painting might cheer her friend, Norma displays a beautiful oil of a waterfall cascading over a lush pond. Mrs. Bronson, unable to cope with the unbearable conditions of the raging sun, deliriously claims that she can feel the coolness and delightfully splashes in the imaginary water before she collapses to the floor and dies. The thermometer surges past 120°F, and eventually shatters. As her oil paintings melt, Norma screams and also collapses...

The scene cuts to the apartment at night with snow outside the window. The same thermometer reads -10°F. Norma is bedridden with a high fever and is accompanied by Mrs. Bronson and a doctor. She was only dreaming that the Earth was moving closer to the sun. In reality, the Earth is moving away from the sun and will eventually freeze. Norma tells Mrs. Bronson about her nightmare, adding, "Isn't it wonderful to have darkness, and coolness?" Mrs. Bronson replies with a sense of dread in her voice, "Yes, my dear, it's... wonderful."

lemondog said...

The Snow Wimp icebreaker a/k/a Snow Dragon, had the local population of penguins snickering....

May be China will ask, dare I think it, Japan for help using its icebreaker.

Wince said...

"The poles of fear, the extremes of how the Earth might conceivably be doomed. Minor exercise in the care and feeding of a nightmare, respectfully submitted by all the thermometer-watchers in - The Twilight Zone."

Anonymous said...

Expedition is to repeat many of the original measurements and studies of the Mawson expedition

tut tut.

Repeating Shackleton's expedition, now that would be ballsy :)

virgil xenophon said...

Yes, AA & EDH, I remember watching that episode in the original as a teen

Signed: The Fighting Fossil, lol

rhhardin said...

Laugh if you want, but the earth is in fact doomed.

Along with the universe, later.

lemondog said...

Laugh if you want, but the earth is in fact doomed.

Before or after Congress convenes?

I'm certain that they can legislate a rescue plan or something.

A. Shmendrik said...

Hey Joe! Send the backup to the backup to the backup rescue ship! And make it pronto!

Wince said...

virgil xenophon said...
I remember watching that episode in the original as a teen.

I remember the story more because our camp counselor read it to the pack from a book of TZ episodes.

Alex said...

Rod Serling was a fricken genius. His work still towers above all sci-fi TV dramas.

Paul said...

That much ice??? But but but... what about GLOBAL WARMING? I thought there would be no ice by now. Didn't Al Gore say so?

n.n said...

If they would use a chaotic model, then sudden changes of ice flow would not have come as a surprise. However, it would limit their claims of possessing skill to predict the future, which would force an adaptation of their behavior and financing accordingly.

jr565 said...

How many polar bears did they run into?
See? Global Warming.

jr565 said...

Back in the 70's it was global cooling, back in the 90's- 200's it was global cooling.
Now it's global stasis. Followed soon by cooling. Then maybe some warming. Then maybe some stasis. Then some cooling...

Quaestor said...

Just some perspective on that trapped research vessel... it's officially summer in the Antarctic.

Clyde said...

Any good Gaian would tell you that you are all just haters and want those cute, cuddly, Coca-Cola drinking polar bears to die. How can you live with yourselves?

/sarc