Antarctic Animation: Gestures and Lines Describe a Changing Environment

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Antarctic Animation: Gestures and Lines Describe a Changing Environment Antarctic Animation: Gestures and lines describe a changing environment By Lisa Roberts A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy College of Fine Arts, The University of New South Wales. October 2010 Dedication I dedicate this work with love to my children Josef and Katherine, grandchildren Joshua and Benjamin, and to my teachers Lenton Parr, Simon Pockley and Kathryn Yeo. i Abstract The need to engage the public with accurate information about climate change is urgent. Antarctica has become the focus of research for scientists and artists who seek to understand the complex forces at work. Different perceptions of Antarctica are surveyed. These perceptions are expressed through data sets, art works, dances, words, tones of voice and gestures. An iconography of primal gestural forms is iden- tified that has been used since pre-history to make visible expressions of connection to the natural world. The primary research methodology is practice-based. Interviews with expedi- tioners, online responses and improvised movement workshops are used as sources for animations and art works. Animated forms arise from circling, spiraling, and crossing gestures. These ancient choreographies describe the dynamic structures that shape the Antarctic ecosystem and reflect structures within the body through which they are generated. Animations are presented at international conferences and exhibitions of Antarc- tic arts and sciences. An online log is used to display the animations and invite responses. The responses are evaluated. Archetypal gestural forms are found to expand the meaning of climate change data. Recognition of these primal forms (as body knowledge) is found to add a dimension of meaning to scientific information that is an essential component of accurate communication. ii Contents Dedication i Abstract ii Acknowledgments vi Declaration vii How to read the thesis viii Chapter 1. Introduction 1 Imagining a different view 1 Problems of perception 7 An animated response 7 Overview of the study 8 Chapter 2. Perceptions 9 Aesthetic balance 9 Believing is seeing 11 Icons of place and time 14 Images of deception 18 Relationships laid bare 22 Arctic reflections 27 Planar and global geometries 30 Chapter 3. ...towards an iconography 32 We are ourselves nature 33 Desperate flows of methane 36 Changes in the ocean 38 Beauty and biomass 40 Satellite views 43 The body draws lines 47 Imagined space 49 Mapping relationships 58 Oceanic views 59 Chapter 4. Gesture and line 62 Elemental forms 62 Whole making 68 Dual resonance 75 Spontaneous forming 77 iii Table of Contents Chapter 5. Methodology and methods 82 Interviews 84 Online interactions 85 Movement workshops 87 Drawing 92 Direct observations 92 Scientific reflections 94 Artistic reflections 96 Animation 99 Animation interfaces 102 Art works 103 Chapter 6. Antarctic Animation 108 Insights 108 Energies 110 Chapter 7. Discussion 119 Everything and nothing 120 Connectivity 123 Improvised movement 123 Improvised animation 129 Beauty of the data 133 Depths of wonder 137 Reading the ice 140 Chapter 8. Conclusion 145 Reciprocity 145 Impact of the animations 147 Shared insights 151 Next steps 155 Postscript: The journey home 156 Glossary 158 Appendix 160 Appendix 1: Interviews 161 A: Fred Elliott and Jack Ward 161 B: Pamen Pereira 165 C: Dominic Hodgson 167 D: Siobhan Davies 173 E: Steve Nicol 180 F: Jo Whittaker 181 Appendix 2: Science notes 191 Appendix 3: Foundation work 194 A: Beware of Pedestrians 194 iv Table of Contents B: Roget’s Circular 198 C: A Little Skiting on the Side 202 Appendix 4: Effort actions 206 Appendix 5: Movement workshop scores 207 Appendix 6: Production process 210 Appendix 7: Animation interfaces 212 List of Figures 221 List of Tables 230 Bibliography 231 v Acknowledgments This project was supported by an Australian Postgraduate Award and admin- istered by the College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales. Foundation work that led to the project was supported by an Australian Antarctic Division Arts Fellowship and funding from the Australia Council for the Arts. I am grateful to my supervisors, Simon Pockley and John Hughes, who inspired and encouraged me. Technical assistance in all aspects of the project was most gratefully received from my partner Ken Wilson, Antarctic expeditioner and tireless explorer of less- known places. His encouragements and challenges helped to make the work more achievable and meaningful. To my family and friends I owe deep thanks for understanding my need to focus fully on the project. I wholeheartedly thank those who contributed: Scientific data and other information: Australian Antarctic Divi- sion: Cathy Bruce, Barbara Frankel, Nicholas Gales, Gómez-Gutiérrez, So Kawaguchi, Rob King, Steve Nicol, Nick Lovibond, David Watts, Peter Wiley; British Antarc- tic Survey: Nerilie Abram, Athena Dinar, Dominic Hodgson; Instituto Antkr- tico Argentino: Rodolfo del Valle; Bernadette Hince, Rob Jung, George Murphy, Cameron Smith, Mark Taylor, Ken Wilson; Artistic insights: Lorraine Beaulieu, Karin Beaumont, Philippe Boissonnet, Bill Burch, Michael Burton, David Carter, Jan Chaffey, Colin Christiansen, Jack Colwell, Rena Czaplinska, Phil Dadson, Andrew Davidson, Siobhan Davies, Aidan Davis, Rodolfo del Valle, Athena Dinar, Stephen Eastaugh, Fred Elliott, Yoris Ev- eraerts, Larysa Fabok, Noel Gieleghem, Michaela Gleave, Gómez-Gutiérrez, Lisa Goren, Peter Gormley, Mircalla Havier, Kim Holten, Hobart Hughes, Tod Iolovski, Megan Jenkinson, Andrea Juan, Bronwyn Judge, Jenna Kelly, Anthony Lucas, Meredith Lucy, Alasdair McGregor, Christine McMillan, Catherine Magill, Bill Manhire, George Murphy, Steve Nicol, Diane Patterson, Pamen Pereira, Cather- ine Ryan, Jonathan Sinatra, John Smith, Rupert Summerson, Hilton Swan, Coral Tulloch, Jack Ward, Joanne Whittaker, Peter Wiley; Peer responses: Carmel Bird, Maxine Blackburn, Margaret Brooks, Sylvia Chard, Peter Charuk, Nina Colossi, Nicholas Dawkins, Arthur Desrues, Dillon Cole- man, Siobhan Davies, Jennifer de Leon, Bryan Fricker, Valerie Grieg, Casey Hand- mer, Caroline Huff, Denis Kelynack, Ben McInnes, Kimberley McIntyre, Sharon Pittaway, Vikki Quill, Elaine Russell, Juanita Sherwood, Robert Stephenson, Kathryn Yeo. vi Declaration ORIGINALITY STATEMENT I hereby declare that the work in this thesis is my own work and that to the best of my knowledge it contains no materials previously published or written by another person, or substantial proportions of material which have been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma at UNSW or any other educational institution, except where due acknowledgment is made in the thesis. Any contribution made to the research by others, with whom I have worked at UNSW or elsewhere, is explicitly acknowledged in the thesis. I also declare that the intellectual content of the thesis is the product of my own work, except to the extent that assistance from others in the project’s design and conception or in style, presentation and linguistic expression is acknowledged. Signed Date COPYRIGHT STATEMENT I hereby grant the University of New South Wales or its agents the right to archive and to make available my thesis or dis- sertation in whole or part in the University libraries in all forms of media, now or here after known, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. I re- tain all proprietary rights, such as patent rights. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis or dissertation. I also authorise University Microfilms to use the 350 word abstract of my thesis in Dissertation Abstract International (this is applicable to doctoral theses only). I have either used no substantial portions of copyright material in my thesis or I have obtained permission to use copyright material; where permission has not been granted I have applied/will apply for a partial restriction of the digital copy of my thesis or dissertation. Signed Date AUTHENTICITY STATEMENT I certify that the Library deposit digital copy is a direct equivalent of the final officially approved version of my thesis. No emendation of content has occurred and if there are any minor variations in formatting, they are the result of the conversion to digital format. Signed Date vii How to read the thesis The work submitted for examination consists of animations and an exegesis. Inside the back cover of this text you will find a data CD that contains 46 ani- mations, associated material and a .pdf of the exegesis. Icons in the margins (for example, the foot prints to the right of these words) will refer you to the same iconography on the CD. The exegesis needs to be read alongside the animations. A computer with a CD slot is essential for accessing the data disk. To view the animations: • Insert the CD into the CD slot • Open the CD (double-click) • Open the folder, ‘animations’ • Open ‘index.html’ Your browser will open the .html file even if your computer has no access to the internet. However, because the CD includes links to website pages, internet access is needed. Most of the material submitted for examination was developed online through the website, http://antarcticanimation.com. While this material is available online, and some links to it are included on the CD, the website itself is not being submitted for examination. The website provides an insight into the complex interactions between people that occurred to develop the thesis. The Adobe Flash Player plug-in and a web browser (preferably Firefox) are needed to access the animations from both the CD and website. If these are not already installed, free versions that are compatible with your system can be selected and downloaded from: http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/otherversions/ http://www.downloadfirefoxbrowser.com/ Speakers or headphones will be needed to hear sound. Unless indicated ‘(Silent)’, all the animations have sound. Sound levels vary, so the volume control on your computer may need to be adjusted accordingly. The volume control on most com- puters is located on the menu bar of the Desktop or on the keyboard and is usually indicated by an icon that resembles a loud speaker.
Recommended publications
  • GSA TODAY • Southeastern Section Meeting, P
    Vol. 5, No. 1 January 1995 INSIDE • 1995 GeoVentures, p. 4 • Environmental Education, p. 9 GSA TODAY • Southeastern Section Meeting, p. 15 A Publication of the Geological Society of America • North-Central–South-Central Section Meeting, p. 18 Stability or Instability of Antarctic Ice Sheets During Warm Climates of the Pliocene? James P. Kennett Marine Science Institute and Department of Geological Sciences, University of California Santa Barbara, CA 93106 David A. Hodell Department of Geology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 ABSTRACT to the south from warmer, less nutrient- rich Subantarctic surface water. Up- During the Pliocene between welling of deep water in the circum- ~5 and 3 Ma, polar ice sheets were Antarctic links the mean chemical restricted to Antarctica, and climate composition of ocean deep water with was at times significantly warmer the atmosphere through gas exchange than now. Debate on whether the (Toggweiler and Sarmiento, 1985). Antarctic ice sheets and climate sys- The evolution of the Antarctic cryo- tem withstood this warmth with sphere-ocean system has profoundly relatively little change (stability influenced global climate, sea-level his- hypothesis) or whether much of the tory, Earth’s heat budget, atmospheric ice sheet disappeared (deglaciation composition and circulation, thermo- hypothesis) is ongoing. Paleoclimatic haline circulation, and the develop- data from high-latitude deep-sea sed- ment of Antarctic biota. iments strongly support the stability Given current concern about possi- hypothesis. Oxygen isotopic data ble global greenhouse warming, under- indicate that average sea-surface standing the history of the Antarctic temperatures in the Southern Ocean ocean-cryosphere system is important could not have increased by more for assessing future response of the Figure 1.
    [Show full text]
  • 36. Comparison of Winter and Summer Growth Stages of the Diatom Eucampia Antarctica from the Kerguelen Plateau and South of the Antarctic Convergence Zone1
    Barron, J., Larsen, B., et al., 1991 Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, Scientific Results, Vol. 119 36. COMPARISON OF WINTER AND SUMMER GROWTH STAGES OF THE DIATOM EUCAMPIA ANTARCTICA FROM THE KERGUELEN PLATEAU AND SOUTH OF THE ANTARCTIC CONVERGENCE ZONE1 Greta A. Fryxell2 ABSTRACT On ODP Leg 119, specimens collected of Eucampia antarctica (Castracane) Mangin var. antarctica exhibited mor- phological and distribution patterns that contrasted with those of Eucampia antarctica var. recta (Mangin) G. Fryxell et Prasad. E. antarctica var. antarctica was found over the northern Kerguelen Plateau, north of the summer Antarctic Convergence Zone, in the subpolar plankton and in the sediments. E. antarctica var. recta was found close to the conti- nent in Prydz Bay. It was also collected near and under the ice in the northern Weddell Sea on a National Science Foun- dation Division of Polar Programs project (1983-1988). A key feature for distinguishing the two varieties in the field is the growth habit, with curvature in broad girdle view of the nominate, subpolar variety in both the winter stage and the more lightly silicified summer stage. A low ratio of terminal to intercalary valves results from the repeated division of the original doublets into chains of considerable length of the winter stage. Small spines around the elevations of one valve serve to clasp the sibling valve and maintain the chain formation. Cells of E. antarctica var. recta tend to be somewhat larger than E. antarctica var. antarctica, and they form chains that are straight in broad girdle view but slightly curved in narrow girdle view.
    [Show full text]
  • Antarctic Primer
    Antarctic Primer By Nigel Sitwell, Tom Ritchie & Gary Miller By Nigel Sitwell, Tom Ritchie & Gary Miller Designed by: Olivia Young, Aurora Expeditions October 2018 Cover image © I.Tortosa Morgan Suite 12, Level 2 35 Buckingham Street Surry Hills, Sydney NSW 2010, Australia To anyone who goes to the Antarctic, there is a tremendous appeal, an unparalleled combination of grandeur, beauty, vastness, loneliness, and malevolence —all of which sound terribly melodramatic — but which truly convey the actual feeling of Antarctica. Where else in the world are all of these descriptions really true? —Captain T.L.M. Sunter, ‘The Antarctic Century Newsletter ANTARCTIC PRIMER 2018 | 3 CONTENTS I. CONSERVING ANTARCTICA Guidance for Visitors to the Antarctic Antarctica’s Historic Heritage South Georgia Biosecurity II. THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT Antarctica The Southern Ocean The Continent Climate Atmospheric Phenomena The Ozone Hole Climate Change Sea Ice The Antarctic Ice Cap Icebergs A Short Glossary of Ice Terms III. THE BIOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT Life in Antarctica Adapting to the Cold The Kingdom of Krill IV. THE WILDLIFE Antarctic Squids Antarctic Fishes Antarctic Birds Antarctic Seals Antarctic Whales 4 AURORA EXPEDITIONS | Pioneering expedition travel to the heart of nature. CONTENTS V. EXPLORERS AND SCIENTISTS The Exploration of Antarctica The Antarctic Treaty VI. PLACES YOU MAY VISIT South Shetland Islands Antarctic Peninsula Weddell Sea South Orkney Islands South Georgia The Falkland Islands South Sandwich Islands The Historic Ross Sea Sector Commonwealth Bay VII. FURTHER READING VIII. WILDLIFE CHECKLISTS ANTARCTIC PRIMER 2018 | 5 Adélie penguins in the Antarctic Peninsula I. CONSERVING ANTARCTICA Antarctica is the largest wilderness area on earth, a place that must be preserved in its present, virtually pristine state.
    [Show full text]
  • Book Reviews
    Book Reviews Colin Brooker. The Shell Builders: Tab- preservation consultant, has provided by Architecture of Beaufort, South Car- it. Brooker explores tabby from every olina, and the Sea Islands. Columbia, conceivable angle, including its chem- SC: University of South Carolina Press, istry, antecedents, variants, history, www.sc.edu/uscpress, 2020. 320 pp., and literature, and writes with winning illustrations, notes, bibliography, index. ease. His research is impeccable, and US $39.99, paper; ISBN 978-1-64336- his knowledge of the material profound. 072-0. He has seemingly investigated every surviving remnant of the stuff, from Coastal concrete, or tabby, as they call it an old foundation repurposed under a in the Carolina and Georgia Lowcoun- Daufuskie Island lighthouse to a crum- try. No history-minded traveler there bling chimney base situated by a Hil- can miss it—that delightfully practical ton Head baseball diamond. But even concoction of lime, sand, and oyster more interesting than Brooker’s archi- shell that was used to erect brooding tectural knowledge, is his cast of char- river forts, plantation big houses, slave acters—“landowners … sea captains, dwellings, barns, sugar mills, cisterns, pirates, merchants and speculators, rice gates, seawalls, and box tombs. politicians, governors, an occasional Tabby was fashioned from the ocean’s clergyman, one or two signers of the bounty and spread largely by means Declaration of Independence, several of naval power. Surviving examples, heiresses … and women widowed with backgrounded by spreading marsh, fortunes large enough to fuel ambitions placid estuaries, and moss-hung live of suitors and new husbands alike.” (9) oaks eloquently conjure up a culture Who knew that such a modest com- tuned to its distinctive environment.
    [Show full text]
  • G Eelong G Allery Annual Report
    Geelong Gallery annual report 2009–2010 Geelong Gallery Little Malop Street Geelong 3220 T 03 5229 3645 Open daily 10am–5pm Closed Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and Good Friday www.geelonggallery.org.au Geelong Gallery annual report 2009–2010 01 Contents President’s report 02 Director’s report 04 Honorary Secretary’s report 08 The Geelong Art Gallery Foundation 16 The Geelong Gallery Grasshoppers 18 Friends of the Geelong Gallery 20 Collections report 21 Financial statements for 30 the year ended 30 June 2010 Government partners and sponsors 44 Geelong Gallery annual report 2009–2010 02 President’s report Since the Gallery’s last AGM, my predecessor Overall, I’m delighted to confirm that the year’s as President of the Geelong Gallery, Michael programs and initiatives went successfully to Cahill, has stepped down from the role, having plan, with all the Key Performance Indicators served in different capacities on Gallery boards that underpin the Gallery’s funding agreements and committees for some two decades. So, with our local and state government partners it is with great pleasure that I place on record either comfortably met or, more often than here our sincere thanks to Michael for this not, substantially exceeded. remarkable commitment to the Board and to the Gallery, noting as I do so, and with real A wide-ranging exhibition program was satisfaction, that Michael retains a formal link delivered to critical acclaim, the Gallery’s with us as continuing Chair of the Gallery’s financial performance was sound, corporate Acquisitions committee. sponsorships were retained and extended, the collection grew through purchase, As usual on these occasions, brief outlines bequest, acquisitive prize, and gift with of the Gallery’s financial and general operating the Geelong Art Gallery Foundation keenly performance over the previous 12 months supportive throughout.
    [Show full text]
  • 6 July 2006 Excellency, You Will Recall That in My Letter of 26 January 2006 I Announced the Designation of Ambassador Enrique B
    6 July 2006 Excellency, You will recall that in my letter of 26 January 2006 I announced the designation of Ambassador Enrique Berruga of Mexico and Ambassador Peter Maurer of Switzerland as Co-Chairs of the Informal Consultative Process on the Institutional Framework for the UN’s Environmental Activities. As I announced during the meeting held on 27 June 2006, I am herewith sending you their summary of the process. Ambassador Berruga and Ambassador Maurer have carried out these informal consultations in an efficient and fruitful manner and in close cooperation with Member States. I am very grateful for all the work they have done and the skilful leadership they have provided in the course of this process. I would also like to thank Member States for engaging so seriously throughout the consultations. I know that your deliberations have been most constructive and that discussions have been conducted in a very positive spirit. We can all agree on the importance of the work carried out in this process and I believe that much progress has been achieved. You have identified key areas where there is common ground and a deeper understanding has emerged with respect to those issues requiring more work in the future. All Permanent Representatives and Permanent Observers to the United Nations New York 2(2) It is therefore important to explore further our options for improving the environmental work of the UN in order for the Organization to be better equipped to help protect the environment around the globe. It is my understanding that there is considerable interest amongst delegations in seeing this process continue and move forward into the next session of the General Assembly.
    [Show full text]
  • The Southern Ocean 118 Worldwide Review of Bottom Fisheries in the High Seas
    THE SOUTHERN OCEAN 118 Worldwide review of bottom fisheries in the high seas 30°W 15°W 0° 15°E 30°E °S °S 10 10 47 °S a n t i c °S A t l O c e a 20 n 20 t h o u 41 S Bouvet Prince Edward 51 Island Islands R i d i a g So t e ut S o hern Crozet °S c O o °S S South Georgia ce 30 Island an Islands u 30 t h 48 I n d Kerguelen e Islands g i id a McDonald R g Islands r n Weddell e Heard b Sea Island ss u O 5858 a -G en c el u e rg Bellingshausen e a K 87 n 87 Sea Davis Amundsen Sea n a Sea e c S O o n Ross r e u h S Sea t t outh u o h e 88 S rn O P c ea a n c i °S f °S i M 30 c 30 a O c c qu Macquarie e a a r Island 81 n ie R 57 i d g e °S °S 20 20 Tasman 77 Sea °S °S 10 150°W 165°W 180° 165°E 150°E 10 Antarctic Convergence FAO Fishing Areas 200 nautical miles arcs CCAMLR Regulatory Area Map Projection: Lambert Azimuthal equal area FAO, 2008 MAP 1 The Southern Ocean 119 Southern Ocean FAO Statistical Areas 48, 58 and 88 GEOGRAPHIC DESCRIPTION OF THE REGION The Southern Ocean surrounds the continent of Antarctica, and constitutes about 15 percent of the world’s total ocean surface (CCAMLR, 2000).
    [Show full text]
  • The Polar Regions
    TEACHING DOSSIER 1 ENGLISH, GEOGRAPHY, SCIENCE, ECONOMICS THE POLAR REGIONS ANTARCTIC, ARCTIC, GEOGRAPHY, CLIMATE, FAUNA, FLORA, CLIMATE CHANGE, THREATS, CONSERVATION NORTH POLE SOUTH POLE 2 dossier CZE N° 1 THEORY SECTION THE ARCTIC AND ANTARCTIC The Arctic and the Antarctic have a number of points in common: low temperatures, darkness that lasts for several weeks or months in winter, and magnificent expanses of ice... There are several different types of ice1, including sea ice, which is ice that contains salt, and ice caps and icebergs, which consist solely of freshwater ice. How- ever, once we get past these initial similarities, it doesn’t take long to realise that the Arctic and the Antarctic are two totally different regions. THE ARCTIC - Frozen ocean surrounded by land - North Pole: located approximately in the centre of the Arctic Ocean - Ocean covered to a large extent by permanent sea ice - Holds almost 10% of all the Earth’s continental ice (7% of the world’s reserves of freshwater) - Outer limit: place where the temperature never exceeds 10°C during the warmest month (July) - Area: 21 million km2 (14 million km2 of which is the Arctic Ocean) Ice drift Maximum extent of the sea ice in summer Maximum extent of the sea ice in winter Outer limit of the Arctic 10°C Figure 1: Outer limit of the Arctic and seasonal variation of the sea ice The Arctic Ocean is bordered by broad, shallow continental plates and consists of two main basins (4 km deep on average) separated by a range of underwater mountains: the Lomonosov Ridge, which joins the north of Greenland to the New Siberia Archipelago along a line that runs close to the North Pole.
    [Show full text]
  • John Cruthers
    MENZIES AUSTRALIAN & INTERNATIONAL FINE ART & SCULPTURE Sydney 24 September 2015 Several of the best works in this sale are well above the buying budgets of my clients, so as usual I have not written about them. This is a shame, because if any of you has a spare $350,000, Ian Fairweather’s Fascismo is a superb late painting and easily museum standard. But overall it’s an interesting sale containing some unusual and offbeat items. So I have taken the opportunity to introduce some new artists I’ve not previously recommended, and to reiterate my enthusiasm for a couple of others I’ve had little success with. Other works I’ve not recommended because I have no-one collecting in the area, for example the two terrific 1973 prints by US pop master Jim Dine, or the 1976 screenprint by Bridget Riley, the major figure in the international op art movement. I hope you enjoy seeing some new artists and, as always, I am very pleased to discuss any works of interest to you that I have not included in the presentation. JOHN CRUTHERS rococo pop pty ltd In a recent sale I recommended a painting by Albert Tucker called Woman 1950, of a prostitute standing in a doorway in a bombed-out looking Paris. I commented that the years Tucker spent overseas, roughly 1947-60, represented a highpoint in his work. He saw a lot of great art, worked hard and strove to produce work that measured up to the best contemporary art he was seeing. The current work is a study in which Tucker tries a variety of stylistic devices borrowed from late cubism to depict the female form in interior space.
    [Show full text]
  • Printmaking As an Expanding Field in Contemporary Art Practice
    Printmaking as an Expanding Field in Contemporary Art Practice: A Case Study of Japan, Australia and Thailand Marjorie Anne Kirker Dip.F.A. (Hons), University of Auckland; M.A. Art History, Courtauld Institute of Art, London Doctor of Philosophy Submission for Final Examination Creative Industries Faculty Department of Visual Arts Queensland University of Technology 2009 1 Statement of original authorship The work contained in this thesis has not been previously submitted to meet requirements for an award at this or any other higher education institution. To the best of my knowledge and belief, the thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person, except where due reference is made. Marjorie Anne Kirker Signature: Date: 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments .......................................................................................................... 6 Abstract ........................................................................................................................... 7 Chapter 1 THE PROBLEM AND ITS CONTEXT .............................................................. 10 1.1 The Research Problem and Its Significance ............................................................. 10 1.2 Key Research Questions to Be Addressed ................................................................ 15 1.3 Objectives of the Research ...................................................................................... 16 Chapter 2 LITERATURE INFORMING RESEARCH PROBLEM ....................................
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 6 Antarctic Oceanography the Region of the World Ocean Bordering on Antarctica Is Unique in Many Respects. First of All
    Chapter 6 Antarctic oceanography The region of the world ocean bordering on Antarctica is unique in many respects. First of all, it is the only region where the flow of water can continue all around the globe nearly unhindered and the circulation therefore comes closest to the situation in the atmosphere. Secondly, the permanent thermocline (the interface z = H(x,y) of Figure 3.1) reaches the surface in the Subtropical Convergence (Figure 5.5) and does not extend into the polar regions; temperature differences between the sea surface and the ocean floor close to the continent are below 1°C and generally do not exceed 5°C, i.e. 20% of the difference found in 1 the tropics (Figure 6.1). What this means is that our 1 /2 layer ocean model cannot be applied to the seas around Antarctica. Fig. 6.1. Temperature profiles for different climatic regions near 150°W (Pacific Ocean). (a) tropical (5°S), (b) subtropical (35°S), (c) subpolar (50°S), (d) polar (55°S). The temperature scale is correct for the polar profile; other profiles are shifted successively by 1°C. Note the shallowness of the warm surface layer and the absence of the permanent thermocline in the polar region. Data from Osborne et al. (1991). It may seem strange that having spent five chapters on a discussion of temperate and tropical ocean dynamics, we now begin our regional discussion with a region that does not fit the earlier picture. However, our earlier discussion is not entirely irrelevant; it taught us how to get an idea of a region's dynamics by identifying the important forces and looking at their balance.
    [Show full text]
  • Salmon-Future Harvest from the Antarctic Ocean?
    MFR PAPER 1063 Northern Hemisphere fish might tap the rich kn/J stocks of the Southern Ocean. Salmon-Future Harvest from the Antarctic Ocean? TIMOTHY JOYNER, CONRAD V. W. MAHNKEN, and ROBERT C. CLARK, JR. INTRODUCTION The ocean surrou nding the Ant­ arctic continent IS an e normou res­ en oir of protein. A worl d inc reas­ ingl~ beset with food shortage can­ not for long afford to let it re main unhane~ted. The ke) to thi un­ tapped bount) I a little red cru ta­ cean. Euphausia superha. that looks like a small shrimp and is commonl y Krill, a small crustacean of the species Euphausia superba, forms a major part of the food called I·.rill A product of the im­ supply of the whale population of the Southern Ocean . mense fertillt~ of the Southern Ocean. its food suppl) is a sured by lush estimated th e potenti al a nnual catch ought we not to try to get help from pastures of single-cell ed marine pl a nts of krill to be 100 mill ion tons . some other creature better equipped In the fertde zone of circumpolar Thi eno rmous abundance of krill by nature to do it ? To a limited up\\elling (Figure I). Second in the ha been a source of fascination to extent baleen whales once did this. short A ntarctic food chai n. kri II fis hing a nd food interests throughout H owever. as they breed slowly and underlies the remaining links made the ~orld . The So\iet and the Japa­ produce few offspri ng.
    [Show full text]