14 July, 2003

Broadcast Day

Today in Kotzebue
The weather is getting colder. Tonight it could get down to the 20’s with a small chance of snow. That is about how cold it was in April when I was here. Last year in July Kotzebue had a blizzard.

What Science Is Happening?
We began by broadcasting to Simmons Middle School in Aurora and on the Internet. Dr. David Griffith joined us for some great questions.
It is still too choppy for Steve and Max to dive, so it is a mud grab day again. When we received the call telling us the mud was in, we hot-footed it down to the lab. They tried to get a second grab in but the weather was too bad, so we just got clams for Kate’s project.
Classroom Connections:

So did you observe that yesterday’s building are in stilts? Have any guesses as to why buildings in the Arctic would be on stilts. Below are some more building around Kotzebue. Notice the structures sticking in the ground next to them. What is your guess that these stand for?
Hint: The poles solve the same problem as the stilts do? Email me you guesses. More tomorrow.

Links

Learn more about our project here
View curriculum for this project, “Ask a Scientist” and learn about other Arctic Real Time research at Arctic Alive
City of Kotzebue Webpage
Listen to the local radio station KOTZ live

What do you notice?

Baby brittle star and an ice cream cone worm (see the cone shaped shell it makes?)

Some good sized isopods

This polychete in the neftid family and his tail (the same piece on the right) was over 4 inches long. He would stick out his proboscus and look for food.

Gerald washing the mud sample into sieve.