We continue making our way southeast towards the Ross Sea for an exciting new chapter in this already incredible voyage.

This morning, we had part two of visiting scientist Alessandro Silvano’s presentation, “Southern Ocean.” We came to grips with what exactly Antarctic bottom water is, how it forms, and why it is important to Antarctica and the rest of the planet. Later in the morning, naturalist Jessica Farrer presented her case for the conservation of the Antarctic toothfish, diving deep into why and where this incredible fish species needs to be protected from overfishing.

In the late afternoon, naturalist Gabriela Roland introduced us to the Southern Cross Expedition (1898-1900), describing how the crew of this exploratory expedition experienced being the first people ever to spend a winter on mainland Antarctica, thus leading the way for future Antarctic explorers.

After three days at sea, we are chomping at the bit to meet the White Continent when we wake tomorrow morning.