1. Glider Team Dr. Josh Kohut Prof of Oceanography Rutgers Univ. Elias Hunter Marine Scientist Rutgers Univ. Palmer Icebreaker Chip Haldeman Instrument Specialist Rutgers Univ. Clayton Jones Senior Director Teledyne Webb Research The Glider Team, led by Dr. Josh Kohut, will use an autonomous robot called a glider to track very small changes in the water temperature and salinity (saltiness). The temperature and salinity values are like a unique “fingerprint” to identify different water masses. Based on these small changes, the team will be able to tell what type of water is present in the Ross Sea and where it is moving. In this case, the team is looking for a water mass called Modified Circumpolar Deep Water (MCDW). The science team believes that this water, which “upwells” from the depths onto the shallow Ross Sea shelf, carries critical nutrients and trace metals that allow the ecosystem to thrive. The team will use real-time information from the glider scout to determine exactly where the ship will travel, a method called “adaptive sampling.” In December, Chip and Clayton will deploy a glider by helicopter to get a general picture of the water masses. In January, Josh and Elias will board the Nathaniel B. Palmer to deploy gliders to guide the team’s sampling strategy while underway.

2. Iron Team Dr. Chris Measures Prof of Oceanography U Hawaii at Manoa Dr. Karen Selph Research Specialist U Hawaii at Manoa Dr. Mirko Hatta Postdoctoral Scholar U Hawaii at Manoa Maxime Grand Graduate Student U Hawaii at Manoa The iron team, led by Dr. Chris Measures, will obtain trace-metal clean water samples using a special rosette system and determine the concentration of the trace elements: iron (Fe) aluminium (Al) manganese (Mn) They will map out where iron is available and see if it relates to phytoplankton productivity. They are also hoping to determine if the iron is in the Upper Circumpolar Deep Water (UCDW) mass or added along the way by interaction with the sediments.

3. Particle Team Dr. Phoebe Lam Assistant Scientist Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Dan Ohnemus Graduate Student MIT The Particle Team, led by Dr. Phoebe Lam will be collecting marine particles from the water column using battery-powered pumps. These are filtration systems that filter hundreds of liters of seawater through different sized filters. Some of the analyses include measurements of particulate trace metal concentrations and particulate iron speciation (chemical form of iron), rare earth elements and isotopes, and particulate organic carbon (POC) concentrations. The particulate trace metal concentrations, chemical speciation, and rare earth elements help to determine the source of iron to iron-replete regions. The POC measurement will help determine the efficiency of carbon transfer to depth in iron-replete compared to iron-deficient regions. Daniel Ohnemus will also do some incubation experiments to see if particulate iron is “bioavailable”, i.e., whether iron in particulate form can be used by microorganisms.