A Dive at Palmer Station, Antarctica

Surface video of Kate Schoenrock and Ruth McDowell making a research SCUBA dive in Hero Inlet, right off Palmer Station in Antarctica. Maggie Amsler and Bill Baker are the dive tenders.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Antarctica
• SCUBA
• diving
• Kate
• Ruth
• Maggie

[Wasserspeier06]

What happens with the boats if you don't need them anymore? Do you sell them?

[sublittoral]

The rubber boats last many years but do have a finite lifetime in these harsh conditions. They are used until they are no longer deemed safe to use by our boating experts. Then they are destroyed with as much saved for spare parts as possible and the rest is shipped north for disposal.

[Wasserspeier06]

@sublittoral

Thank you for the answer.

Harsh conditions for sure. It's cold here in Germany, too. Currently +5 degree Celsius :-)

You must have a lot of boats down there. Zodiac Mark V or bigger? It would be interesting to see the work of your boat experts. Maybe you could make a video of such a boat disposal, because normally you don't see such a procedure.

Bye, Matt

[sublittoral]

Matt -- Thanks. Fortunately, they do not get destroyed very often! Our larger boats are Zodiac Mark V size but the new ones are called F-580s. The same size overall but a bit tougher and with some features that make them easier to maintain. There are also a few smaller F-470s (Mark III size) that are preferred by groups like bird researchers who need to go ashore in lots of different places and who do not have a lot of gear to take with them.

[Wasserspeier06]

@sublittoral

Very good equipment (and not the cheapest one). The Navy Seals use the same type of boats. Hope to see more of your work.