Krill
Marine biologist Karin Beaumont is a former scientist of the Australian Antarctic Division, and has completed a PhD on microzooplankton. She extends her scientific inquiries into Antarctic marine biology through her arts practice.
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What was/is your role in Antarctica and when have you worked there?
I first went to Antarctica as a postgraduate student undertaking research for my PhD thesis. I spent two summers (1996/7 and 1997/8) at Davis Station, Antarctica working in Ellis Fjord (68.5°S, 78°E) and O’Gorman Rocks: a well documented site just off the coast of Davis station. My work investigated the contribution by microzooplankton (microscopic animals) to the draw-down of carbon from the atmosphere. Marine algae, like terrestrial plants, take up carbon from the air. The microzooplankton eat the algae so there is a transfer of carbon from the algae to the animals. Some of this carbon is excreted as faecal pellets, otherwise known as ‘plankton poo’. Whether this poo floats or sinks is important for understanding how much carbon the oceans can take up from the atmosphere. See http://www.scienceinpublic.com/sciencenow/2004/releases/karinbeaumont.htm
Since then, I have returned to Antarctica on 4 more trips, two as a scientist deploying the Continuous Plankton Recorder and as a Krill Biologist. My most recent trips have been as Deputy Voyage Leader, on Voyage 1 2004 to Casey station, and earlier this year (2007) on the SAZ-SENSE Marine Science voyage to the Southern Ocean.
What physical changes have you observed in the landscape?_(For example the changing extent of sea ice, locations and proliferations of wildlife, and rate of ice melt.)_Can you describe and/or explain the changes?
I have observed changes within a season of the types and numbers of plankton, and also changes between seasons. These are related to changes in temperature and salinity in the ocean as well as the extent of ice-cover. Such changes trigger changes in the plankton community which affects other animals in the ocean. The interactions between all the creatures in the ocean is very complex! I have observed changes in ice-cover and the timing of sea-ice melt. While I have not personally observed such change, I am aware of changes in the ocean such as ocean acidification which is affecting the health of some species, such as the sea-butterfly mentioned above.
What aesthetic changes have you experienced in the landscape?_(For example the changing colours, shadows, and sounds.)_Can you describe and/or explain the changes?
Antarctica is a land of contrasts and contradictions largely due to the extremes of weather: the changes in the quality of the light within a day; the clear blue skys contrasting with the grey / whiteout of a blizzard. The silence and stillness versus the howling winds and blowing snow. The pastel skies in summer versus the increasing darkness bringing other atmospheric phenomena such as ‘sun-dogs’ and ‘aurorae’. Changes in the Antarctic station community affect the sights and sounds of the station environment: the hustle and bustle of summer compared to the reduced numbers of people on station as winter approaches.
Is there visual, numerical, visual or written data available that could be used to animate the changes you have observed and/or experienced?
Changes in the ice-cover of Ellis Fjord could be animated. Perhaps a simplified version of the planktonic food web and / or visually representing some of the carbon flow through creatures in the ocean.
Some of my wearable artworks could be animated such as ‘Silica Shards’ & ‘For the Love of Krill’, as well as ‘Shining Star’ (still a work in progress).