TERIA and the Antarctique 2.0°C scientific project
The Antarctique 2.0°C project is led by the association Juste 2.0°C. Student researchers from the Ecole Normale Supérieure are setting off on an expedition from France to the Antarctic aboard a sailing boat transformed into a travelling laboratory.
The objective: to study and analyze the impact of global warming on the various marine and shoreline ecosystems in the Antarctic.
Antarctique 2.0°C et TERIA
The scientific project Antarctique 2.0°C is led by the association Just 2.0°C composed of 30 young people passionate about the climate and the environment. Antarctique 2.0°C is the first project led by the association.
6 students from the Ecoles Normales Supérieures are going on a 6-month sailing expedition as part of an interdisciplinary research project.
This project consists of 5 axes :
TERIA, partner of the event, is supporting Lana LENOURRY on the penguin tracking mission.
To assist her in her research, Lana has two PYX receivers that allow the surveying of points by using a Stop and Go* post-processing solution.
Thus, one PYX receiver is used as a GNSS base, the second as a mobile for georeferencing targets. A specific software was also developed by TERIA’s technical team to facilitate and automate the processing of the collected data.
In addition, other French partners such as YellowScan, which provides Lidar technology, and Instadrone, a drone for photogrammetric surveys, are involved.
*Stop and Go is a way of doing post-processing to quickly measure GNSS points in open areas.
The team's route
The team of researchers embarked on a 6-month journey :
- Beginning of October 2021 : Departure from the port of Marseille
Crossing of the Atlantic Ocean for about 2 months - November 2021 : Arrival in Punta Arenas, scientific and logistical base for the Chilean Antarctic missions. Start of the polar scientific projects.
- Early December 2021: Arrival in the Antarctic zone where our researchers will stay for 2 months.
- Beginning of February 2022: Departure from the Antarctic zone with stopovers in Ushuaia and the Falklands before heading north again.
End of March 2022: Back to Bretagne
First days in Antarctic
At the end of December 2021, after more than two months aboard the Louise, a sailing boat specially designed to navigate in the polar regions, the team of young researchers finally arrived in the Antarctic.
More than 60 intense days of sailing through the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Ushuaia, the Falkland Islands and finally the Antarctic. A journey that has been rich in emotions for our sailors, both on a scientific and human level.
Here they are ! The team is stepping on the Antarctic soil on Ardley Island, the sampling on land is starting.
From left to right: Lana is in charge of penguin observation, Baptiste studies microbiology, Niels works on climatology, Margot is interested in the sociology of science, Olivier takes care of the chemistry of microplastics and Clément deals with biogeochemistry.
Lana starts her first drone flight with great efficiency and an accurate measurement of the GPS coordinates thanks to the PYX to track the images made by the drone subsequently.
She is assisted by her colleagues, Baptiste and Niels who place, move and geolocate the targets.
Heading to Lions Rump by foot, the landing on the beach being impossible because of the numerous rocks and agitated waves. Arrived on the beach, the team enjoys sumptuous landscapes, meets elephant seals and a multitude of penguins.
Despite the wind, Lana managed to carry out all her flight plans, she doubled her second flight in order to precise her photogrammetric data to optimize the 3D modeling of the sites she was flying over. Baptiste assists her by setting the GPS targets and taking the coordinates with PYX.
After Lions Rump, the crew continues towards the south. During the crossing, the massive icebergs become more and more important. Our adventurers finally land on the island of Cuverville.
Lana sets up her protocol and achieves her flight plans to cover the whole penguin colony. The images are taken from different angles for a better topographic view of the site.
On their side, his teammates also continue their missions.
TERIA wishes a lot of courage to our scientists for the rest of their expedition in the Antarctic.
See you soon for new adventures !
Back home
It is the end of March, after 6 months of expedition, the whole team is back in France. It is now time to look back, each one in his own way is slowly recovering from this long trip.
To continue to follow the research of our scientists, diaries have been set up on their website. Each week, our researchers will keep us informed of the progress of their project.
Lana came back early because of the Covid, and as soon as she recovered from her emotions, she quickly started again her research on the penguins. In this first report, she shares her feelings and explains how she will analyze all the data collected during the expedition.
If you want to follow their expedition, it’s here :
