Winter is the perfect time to visit Antarctica for Stanford Woods Institute Senior Fellow Rob Dunbar. With the help of an ice-breaking research ship, Dunbar, an Earth Sciences professor, is leading a trip to study the food supply in the Ross Sea – a giant phytoplankton bloom visible from space – at the onset of winter. It is the first such research trip seeking to trace the bloom in February and March when the days grow shorter and temperatures drop. For recent photos and updates from Dunbar's 70-day expedition, visit the research voyage site.

March 27 Update: New blog post by Cassandra Brooks, a PhD student with Stanford's Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment & Resources.

March 12 Update: New video (below) shot by Dunbar features ship-board ice, water sampling and spectacular images of the Ross Sea floor.

Feb. 28 Update: New blog post re: onset of Antarctic winter by Dunbar's fellow researcher, Cassandra Brooks, a PhD student with Stanford's Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment & Resources.

Feb. 21 Update: Brooks posted to National Geographic Ocean Views a time-lapse video (below) narrated by Dunbar from aboard the National Science Foundation icebreaker Nathaniel B. Palmer. 

"Studying Antarctica’s Ross Sea: A Day’s Work in 60 Seconds" 

 
 
At the onset of the voyage, Dunbar answered climate change questions – via video – from McMurdo Station, Antarctica. Watch Dunbar’s video response below. The online Q and A session is part of Stanford Open Office Hours, a free public version of the university tradition in which instructors take a few hours each week to talk with students outside of class.