30 August, 1997

This will be my third night on the Louis and we are still at anchor in Resolute Bay. There is one large piece of equipment that needs to be loaded before we can leave, a bulldozer. Although I don't expect it will be very useful during our leg of the cruise, it needs to be transported to a SHEBA ice camp. The camp is part of a major US program (Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic) to better understand air/sea/ice/albedo feedback mechanisms. Ice and snow are among the most reflective of the Earth surfaces. If global warming is occurring, more ice would be expected to melt, reducing the energy reflected back to space and increasing the energy absorbed at the surface, which would further warm the planet. By having a better understanding of this process, scientists will be able to build mathematical models that will predict how our planet will change. When I think about the importance of this project, I realize how fortunate I am to be aboard.