Drake Passage, Southern Ocean
We have begun our expedition to Antarctica! The National Geographic Endeavour pulled away from the pier in Ushuaia, Argentina, sailed east in the Beagle Channel and headed south out into the Drake Passage late last night. We are recuperating from the past couple of days of travel, spending the entire day in the infamous Drake, a body of potentially rough water separating the southern tip of South America and the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. We experienced moderate seas, luckily with a following swell, and we made good speed throughout the day. By the early afternoon we were crossing the Antarctic Convergence zone where the colder, southerly Antarctic water meets the warmer, sub-Antarctic water. There was a noticeable change in both the air and seawater temperatures.
Throughout the day we encountered magnificent seabirds, from the smallest (black-bellied and Wilson’s storm petrels) to the largest (northern and southern giant petrels). But the biggie for the day was an old, white-tailed wandering albatross (pictured) which has a wingspan of around eleven feet. That’s hard to discern on the open ocean, but when it flies near the giant petrels (which come in closer to the ship and have a five-to-six-foot wingspan), the massive size of these seabirds comes to light. Relative size and the open ocean will be the theme of our coming days as we approach icebergs, penguins, pack ice and the islands of the peninsula off of the most isolated continent, Antarctica.
We have begun our expedition to Antarctica! The National Geographic Endeavour pulled away from the pier in Ushuaia, Argentina, sailed east in the Beagle Channel and headed south out into the Drake Passage late last night. We are recuperating from the past couple of days of travel, spending the entire day in the infamous Drake, a body of potentially rough water separating the southern tip of South America and the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. We experienced moderate seas, luckily with a following swell, and we made good speed throughout the day. By the early afternoon we were crossing the Antarctic Convergence zone where the colder, southerly Antarctic water meets the warmer, sub-Antarctic water. There was a noticeable change in both the air and seawater temperatures.
Throughout the day we encountered magnificent seabirds, from the smallest (black-bellied and Wilson’s storm petrels) to the largest (northern and southern giant petrels). But the biggie for the day was an old, white-tailed wandering albatross (pictured) which has a wingspan of around eleven feet. That’s hard to discern on the open ocean, but when it flies near the giant petrels (which come in closer to the ship and have a five-to-six-foot wingspan), the massive size of these seabirds comes to light. Relative size and the open ocean will be the theme of our coming days as we approach icebergs, penguins, pack ice and the islands of the peninsula off of the most isolated continent, Antarctica.
