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ASED started the day with a hike up Mt. Cardigan! We kicked off the morning with a quick overview of how to use a hypsometer, densiometer and basal area prism -- all tools that we eventually used throughout the hike in order to investigate changes in the forest on Cardigan. We stopped at 5 different points along the trail as we ascended the mountain, collecting soil cores to analyze later in the day.
After heading back to campus following the hike, the ASED group then split off into their two sub-groups before subsequently working on two separate tasks. On e group used an NPK soil test kit to measure nutrient levels while the other team examined the collected soil samples with a microscope.
Finally, after dinner, we heard from Dr. Ross Virginia about his sojourns and expeditions across the polar regions. We learned about his research in the Dry Valleys close to McMurdo Station and about his challenges with climate change deniers and their misconstructed arguments.
ASED students climbing up Mt. Cardigan, soil corers in hand.
Field notes from Stop 1 of 5 on the hike up to Mt. Cardigan.
A snippet of Dr. Ross Virginia's presentation in the evening, on how living conditions for scientists in Antarctica have changed over the years.
An image of a soil core collected on at Cardigan Mt., clearly displaying multiple soil horizons.
Contributing Author and Photographer: Avik Chervirala
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