Drake Passage
Last evening we, the guests of National Geographic Endeavour sailed from Ushuaia, starting our journey towards the last great wilderness on earth, Antarctica. Our destination on the continent, the Antarctic Peninsula, lies about 550 miles from the southern tip of South America, and in order to reach it we must pass through the notorious Drake Passage.
The Drake Passage was named after the 16th century privateer Sir Francis Drake. In 1578, blown off course to the south after his transit of the Strait of Magellan, Sir Francis inferred that there was an open connection between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. However it wasn’t until the year 1616 when the ship Eendracht, captained by the Dutch navigator Willem Schouten, did the first recorded passage.
It is in the Drake Passage where the Antarctic Circumpolar Current flows unimpeded all the way around Antarctica. Likewise, the passage gives the winds of the Southern Ocean an uninterrupted channel in which to funnel, and this part of the world is famous for horrendous weather. So far we have been lucky, and had a relatively benign crossing, a slight swell on our starboard side, gently rocking the ship.
The waters of the Drake Passage are incredibly rich, full of dissolved nutrients that in turn allow species below the surface, like fish, squid, and krill, to thrive. In return these nektonic creatures support the many populations of seabirds and mammals that transit these waters. Today we are followed by Albatross (black-browed, grey-headed, and the largest of the species the Wandering), some which have flown 1000’s of miles for food, and find it here in the nutrient rich water. Small Antarctic Prions and Blue Petrels dart in our wake, scooping up tiny crustations that have been catapulted to the surface by our prop wash.
Late this evening we cross the Antarctic Convergence, our first entry into the biological realm of Antarctica (the political boundary being 60¢ªS). This “line” where the cold, northward flowing waters of the Antarctic, meet and mix with the relatively warmer waters of the sub-Antarctic not only separates two hydrological regions, but also areas of distinctive marine life associations and of different climates. As the colder waters slip beneath the warmer, there are areas of upwelling, creating an area of high marine productivity, especially for Antarctic krill. Don’t expect to feel a bump or see much more of than a fog bank, as the convergence can be between 20 – 30 miles wide. Having entered the Antarctic, the sub-Antarctic birds, like the black-browed albatross will bid us adieu, and true Antarctic species like the Antarctic Petrel will take over as our escort until we reach the peninsula.
Tomorrow we hope to spot land, and our adventure in the Antarctic truly begins.
Last evening we, the guests of National Geographic Endeavour sailed from Ushuaia, starting our journey towards the last great wilderness on earth, Antarctica. Our destination on the continent, the Antarctic Peninsula, lies about 550 miles from the southern tip of South America, and in order to reach it we must pass through the notorious Drake Passage.
The Drake Passage was named after the 16th century privateer Sir Francis Drake. In 1578, blown off course to the south after his transit of the Strait of Magellan, Sir Francis inferred that there was an open connection between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. However it wasn’t until the year 1616 when the ship Eendracht, captained by the Dutch navigator Willem Schouten, did the first recorded passage.
It is in the Drake Passage where the Antarctic Circumpolar Current flows unimpeded all the way around Antarctica. Likewise, the passage gives the winds of the Southern Ocean an uninterrupted channel in which to funnel, and this part of the world is famous for horrendous weather. So far we have been lucky, and had a relatively benign crossing, a slight swell on our starboard side, gently rocking the ship.
The waters of the Drake Passage are incredibly rich, full of dissolved nutrients that in turn allow species below the surface, like fish, squid, and krill, to thrive. In return these nektonic creatures support the many populations of seabirds and mammals that transit these waters. Today we are followed by Albatross (black-browed, grey-headed, and the largest of the species the Wandering), some which have flown 1000’s of miles for food, and find it here in the nutrient rich water. Small Antarctic Prions and Blue Petrels dart in our wake, scooping up tiny crustations that have been catapulted to the surface by our prop wash.
Late this evening we cross the Antarctic Convergence, our first entry into the biological realm of Antarctica (the political boundary being 60¢ªS). This “line” where the cold, northward flowing waters of the Antarctic, meet and mix with the relatively warmer waters of the sub-Antarctic not only separates two hydrological regions, but also areas of distinctive marine life associations and of different climates. As the colder waters slip beneath the warmer, there are areas of upwelling, creating an area of high marine productivity, especially for Antarctic krill. Don’t expect to feel a bump or see much more of than a fog bank, as the convergence can be between 20 – 30 miles wide. Having entered the Antarctic, the sub-Antarctic birds, like the black-browed albatross will bid us adieu, and true Antarctic species like the Antarctic Petrel will take over as our escort until we reach the peninsula.
Tomorrow we hope to spot land, and our adventure in the Antarctic truly begins.
