The oceanographic ship enters the Antarctic Polar Circle to collect samples in its waters, as part of a project on pollutants
The oceanographic research ship ‘Hespérides’, based in Cartagena, marked another milestone in the already vast history of the Spanish Navy on Sunday, by once again reissuing the southernmost latitude that any other of its ships has ever reached. On the occasion of one of the scientific projects that it supports within the framework of its XXVI Antarctic Campaign, it sailed to 71º20′ South, slightly higher than what it had already reached in previous years.
The milestone was achieved by developing the scientific project ANTOM-2, directed by Jordi Dach and Begoña Jiménez to determine the amount of pollutants and anthropogenic organic matter present in the waters of the Southern Ocean, as well as their interaction with the surrounding microbial fauna. It was necessary for the ‘Hesperides’ to enter latitudes as southern as possible to investigate the last waters of the Antarctic Ocean.
To do this, the scientific team on board currently collects and analyzes samples of seawater and microorganisms obtained in different locations and depths, from the South Shetland to the Bellingshausen Sea, to analyze the concentration of these pollutants and the activity of the microorganisms that inhabit them. they.
As reported by the Navy on Monday, transit in the waters of the Southern Ocean to a region so far south has not been easy due to adverse weather and sea conditions. The ship has achieved this milestone in the stormy waters of the Belligshausen Sea, characterized by the permanence of storms that make this the oceanic region of Antarctica where the most snowstorms discharge per year. Added to the wind and precipitation is the constant danger of wandering ice, floating in the form of icebergs of glacial origin or sea ice formed by the freezing of the water surface.
After sampling the waters, the ship will head north in the waters of the Bellingshausen Sea until Sunday, when this scientific project will end. From then on, it will concentrate its activity on logistical support for the Spanish bases, before crossing the Sickle Sea in demand for Punta Arenas (Chile), where it will stop this month for resupply work.
four of five parallel
Shortly after three in the morning last Thursday, the ‘Hesperides’ crossed the Antarctic Polar Circle, delimited by the parallel of latitude 66º 33′ 46« South. It was the fourth time on this mission that he had crossed one of the five notable terrestrial parallels (the Antarctic Circle, the Equator and the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn) that divide the terrestrial latitudinal zones. As is customary in the Navy, the crew commemorated this milestone by painting the ship’s forward prow in blue.
The military ship that provides service to science departed on December 16 from the Cartagena Military Arsenal, where it is scheduled to arrive on May 22. By then he will have sailed 26,000 nautical miles, the equivalent of more than one circumnavigation of the world.