On Sept. 10, the U.S. National Science Foundation announced that the agency is terminating the lease for Nathaniel B. Palmer Icebreaker, the sole U.S. icebreaker dedicated to Antarctic research.
This move, which came as a result of budget cuts under the current administration, worries polar researchers, including Naomi Ochwat, a postdoctoral researcher in CIRES’ Earth Science and Observation Center.
Ochwat is a glaciologist who studies the changes on the edges of Antarctic glaciers and how they relate to climate change. Decades of data collection conducted from the decks of the Palmer has been integral to her work.
“There was a cruise back in 2006, where the Palmer went to an area that I study on the Antarctic Peninsula,” Ochwat said. “It was one of the few times the sea ice was actually low enough that they could reach the front of the glaciers that I study. Now 17 years later, I’ve used that data, and it’s been very important for the research I’ve done.”
As the National Science Foundation plans to decommission the Palmer after it returns from its last expedition this October, Ochwat shares her take on what’s at stake.
Why is the Palmer icebreaker important for United States’ Antarctica research?
We are currently a global leader in Antarctic research and Antarctic exploration, where the Palmer is an integral aspect of the U.S. Antarctic Program.
Earth’s climate is rapidly changing, and in order to understand the extent of those changes, we need to know what’s happening in Antarctica, especially along the glacier edges, where we have a lot of drastic changes happening right now. Antarctica is really far away, and we rely heavily on research vessels to get there.
The Ross Ice Shelf at the Bay of Whales, Antarctica, and the Palmer in the background. (Credit: Michael Van Woert/ NOAA)
Are there other reasons beyond research?
Antarctica is a very special place because nobody owns the continent, and so you don’t have any official territories or any kind of land ownership. As long as you are on the Antarctic Treaty, you can go to Antarctica to study it, following the treaty rules. So it’s important to be able to say we have a presence in Antarctica.
Having research stations and these research vessels puts us at the forefront of science and the forefront of Antarctic science and exploration on a global scale.
Why do polar researchers need a designated ice-breaking vessel?
Parts of Antarctica have persistent sea ice year round that can restrict access to areas along the coast. The sea ice can be several meters thick in some places, and you don’t have the ability to wait for it to melt out, so you absolutely need an ice breaker in order to go through the sea ice. You have a very short period of time in which you can go to Antarctica—the sea ice has its own schedule.
What does it look like to conduct research on the Palmer?
You’re usually at sea for at least a month, and you’re doing research that entire time, except when you’re crossing the Drake Passage (between the tip of South America and the Antarctic Peninsula) which is known to be very rough seas. It’s equipped with enough supplies so scientists can spend large amounts of time doing research without having to return to port. I’ve never been on the ship, but the data it collected has been vital to my research.
In 2006, the ship went to the eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula to the Larsen B Embayment, and it collected multi-beam bathymetry data, meaning it mapped the topography of the sea floor. This dataset has allowed me to investigate the role of the bed topography on the 2022–24 glacier retreats in this area.
How does Antarctic research impact everyday Americans?
If we’re talking about sea level rise, we’ve already seen the kind of flooding that can happen with storm surges, which have been exacerbated by sea level rise. So, you’re not going to be able to live on the coast because your house insurance is going to be skyrocketing, or your job in your warehouse that was right on the coast is going to be flooded, and now you can’t work there.
People are going to move, and I think that’s one of the biggest things with climate change and sea level rise. It is not so much that the sea is rising, but more that people are going to have to relocate because of it.