CIM researchers begin the return journey to Vigo from Antarctica

Researchers at the University of Vigo’s Centre for Marine Research (CIM), a member of the CIGUS Network, an initiative launched by the regional government (Xunta de Galicia) that groups together centres of accredited scientific excellence within the Galician university system, have begun their return journey following a month on Deception Island. Their journey is being delayed due to adverse weather conditions.

Due to adverse weather conditions, the return voyage is proving more complicated than expected for researchers from the University of Vigo’s Centre for Marine Research (CIM), members of the XXXVII Antarctica Campaign. The crossing between Deception Island and King George Island, which normally takes one day, on this occasion, was a three-day journey. Rough seas are making navigation difficult for the oceanographic ship Hespérides, and those on board, who include scientists Mariano Lastra, Jesús Troncoso and Jesús López.

After a month in Antarctica, during which the cold, blizzards and rough seas complicated the work, the researchers have now begun the return journey to Vigo. They left the Gabriel de Castilla army base on Wednesday 14th and hope to arrive today, Friday, on King George Island. Weather permitting, from there they will board a plane that will take them on a 2-3 hour flight to Punta Arenas. They will then have to fly to Santiago de Chile before taking another plane to Madrid, where they are due to arrive on Monday 19th February. A complicated and exhausting journey, but one that is well worth it when they look back on the great experiences of the past month, during which, Mariano Lastra explained, “the camaraderie at the base was excellent, and the army personnel went out of their way to facilitate our work and ensure we had all possible comforts. The rest of our colleagues working on other scientific projects were also very good company, because we all looked out for one another, providing support and encouragement to ensure progress in all the projects. In the Antarctic, collaboration is an obligation, not an option”.

The team of CIM scientists arrived at the Spanish base on 13th January to carry out the second work campaign within the framework of the Radiant project (the first edition was in 2023), one of the thirty initiatives included in the XXXVII Antarctic Campaign coordinated by the Spanish army. Their objective was to assess the effect of solar radiation and temperature on the degradation of macroalgal biomass in sedimentary intertidal zones in Porto Foster, on Deception Island.

Objectives accomplished

The researchers are satisfied with the work completed during this period. “We were very lucky with the weather. We didn’t see much sun, but the conditions were good enough to finish all the field samples and experiments planned. However, some difficulties did arise”, Mariano Lastra stressed. “Thanks to the support of the army personnel managing the base, we were able to solve the problems that cropped up as we went along. Some days the weather was so bad we were forced to remain at the base, without going out into the field, and on other days, the conditions at sea were poor and the Zodiac couldn’t be launched”, Lastra recalled.

However, the researchers were proactive, thanks to their experience in eight previous campaigns in Antarctica, and they took these possibilities into account in their planning. “We had enough time to ensure that if something went wrong, we could try again. That’s something we’ve learned from the campaigns. In Antarctica, when you calculate the time for a task or an experiment, you have to multiply it by two, just in case”, Mariano Lastra admitted.