Antarctica Sea Ice Tracker

By Zoe and Indi

Room 1 have been lucky enough to be asked by the University of Otago, Sea ice Researchers to help them name a tracker that is going to watch Ice movements in Antarctica. These trackers monitor Sea Ice level changes due to seasons and also Climate Change. On Tuesday the 21st we started researching Antarctica and looking at the resources they use to help track the ice, to hopefully help us name the tracker. We got assigned the tracker number eight to name. Then on Thursday we had a zoom call with someone in Antarctica. Her name was Inga Smith. We also meet with Maeve's mum Andrea. On the zoom we talked about how when you place the trackers in the ice you need to use a measuring tape and then they stick a metal pole into the ice to see how deep the ice is. Our tracker is in ice 1.4m thick and sits 14 cm above the ice. Then they would put the tracker in the ice and stick 3 black flags around it. The black flags mean there is something dangerous over there so other people wont touch it. Inga is staying at Scott Base and they use wifi from the Starlink satellites. We learnt that the freezing temperature of sea water is 1.9 degrees. The coldest it has ever been in Antarctica is -89.6 in 1983 and the hottest it has ever been is 3 degrees at scott base. 

The name we have decided on for the tracker is "TahiToroa"- Toroa representing our school (Albatross) and Tahi for Room 1. 

We cant wait to monitor our trackers movement of the ice and see how it changes between now and next March.

By Zoe and Indi