Polarstern / CAML expedition: Good bye Antarctica
The big
© G. Chapelle / Alfred Wegener Institut
A nasty surprise when we wake up: the fog which appeared yesterday right as we left the Antarctic Sound is still with us. Intense day of work again, but a bit different: writing the expedition reports, presenting the preliminary results, packing all the material and samples, cleaning the labs, there is plenty to do. The atmosphere is also evolving: we still are on Polarstern, of course, but our spirits are now increasingly drifting towards Europe.
Meanwhile, the trip back North continues. The crossing of the 60th parallel, which means we officially leave Antarctica, happens during the night, I mean a real dark night... We will have to wait until 10 o'clock the next morning to see the fog vanishing. The sun is finally back, but above a sea with very few birds âthe Antarctic Convergence is also behind usâand there is no ice in sight for the first time since the first of December... quite a sudden departure.
