Sea ice geophysicist Melinda Webster will be blogging from the RV Polarstern, an icebreaker ship locked in Arctic sea ice for the MOSAiC expedition. Webster will use MOSAiC data as a blueprint to evaluate and extend the seasonal capability of data from NASA’s ICESat-2 satellite for sea ice research.
We did it. All leg 4 MOSAiC participants passed the coronavirus tests with flying colors. After spending 18 days in quarantine, we departed from Bremerhaven on Monday.
For the most part, everyone treated quarantine as regular work days. The ice team had daily coffee hours, where we virtually got together to learn more about one another, talk about the upcoming expedition, and describe the different views from our hotel rooms. Our meals consisted of meat, fish, or vegetarian based on our selection on our first day. The hotel staff would place our meals outside of the hotel room, knock, and walk (run?) away. They were kind to us. Additional highlights of solitary quarantine include: watching ducks and ducklings, seeing ships going in and out to sea, and admiring the gorgeous sunsets.
By the second week, we had tested negative for COVID-19 twice, which meant we could graduate to group quarantine. Group quarantine consisted of being able to walk outside our hotel rooms and having meals together, but we maintained strict social distance measures at all times and stayed within the hotel’s perimeter. We had 30-minute slots for the gym, held group meetings, and underwent multiple types of training: safety, data management, and communications, all being valuable. Meeting everyone in person and feeling the sunshine and fresh air was an overwhelmingly positive experience.
48 hours before departure, we had our final COVID-19 test and received the results less than 12 hours later. The final day was spent packing, updating software and phone apps, downloading data, and making phone calls to family and friends. We also got our masks ready for the bus journey from the hotel to the two ships, the Maria S. Merian and Sonne.
Now we are in the North Sea, motoring along in sunny and calm conditions. We’re in close communication with the leg 3 ice team, getting ready for the upcoming rotation and finding ways to optimize our limited time with one another. It’s a surreal feeling that all of these moving pieces have come together, despite the challenges, and MOSAiC continues. To the north, we go!
