69.79° North, 33.59° East – Sunny and calm sea
Setting up for the start of scientific operations
On 5 and 6 August, laboratory space was distributed to the different groups according to their scientific needs.
The expedition members then accessed the equipment brought on board the Akademik Tryoshnikov from Germany and Switzerland. After opening the shipped containers stored in the hold, the different scientific groups were able to collect their instruments and bring them to the onboard laboratories. Around 300 boxes of around 25 kg each had to be carried around the ship. Although heavy, this felt like Christmas!
All the equipment which is not needed immediately, will remain in the hold to avoid taking up valuable and scarce space in the working areas. All the boxes and containers were lashed down in case the weather deteriorates and the ship starts rolling.
In the late afternoon of 6 August, all the expedition members had to participate in safety training organised by the crew of the Akademik Tryoshnikov.
In parallel, the onboard IT team managed to set up an internal network providing access to emails as well as to crucial data such as sea-ice conditions and the weather forecast.
After all these preparations, we are now ready to start with data collection as soon as we reach our first station!
Header photograph: The expedition members participated in safety training organised by the crew of the Akademik Tryoshnikov. Let’s hope this will never be needed, but safety comes first!
Rights: @ 2021 Swiss Polar Institute, CC BY 4.0 