Heads up on the HGS Guest Night Speaker scheduled for May 19 at the Houston Museum of Natural Science!
She is on a science expedition called 2041 International Antarctic Expedition lead by Robert Swan, famous polar explorer.
As the sole geoscientist on the expedition, Eaton will study geothermal energy, a 24/7 renewable energy source that's independent of the number of hours of sunlight in a day or of the wind speed. As a geoscientist, she will also emphasize the key role that the disciplines of geology and geophysics play in studying climate change in Antarctica and around the world.
On May 19th, Eaton is the keynote speaker for the Houston Geological Society's annual outreach event. Her presentation, entitled "A Geoscientist in Antarctica: Following in Shackleton's Footsteps," will be presented at the IMAX Theatre of the Houston Museum of Natural Science.
You can follow the mission on its website http://expedition.2041.com/ and the facebook page http://www.facebook.com/2041robertswan
Her website is http://susanreaton.com/2012
Susan is sending updates using Twitter and you can follow her at @SusanREaton_Geo.
Here are the dispatches to far :
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MARCH 10
Antarctica: Dispatch Number Eight Brown Bluff, Western Antarctic Peninsula 63° 31' South and 56° 53' West
The IAE 2012 team conducted its final and most challenging team exercise of the expedition on a glacier at Brown Bluff – under the watchful eyes of the mountaineering leaders, IAE 2012 groups comprised of roughly eight climbers navigated a glacier dissected by crevasses. Large boulders have toppled from Brown Bluff to the beach where they have been sculpted by wind, sand, ice and water
Roped together and working collaboratively, the groups’ strengths represented the sum of their diverse and unique members. Working together during the past two weeks – both in Ushuaia and the hostile Antarctic climate – had fostered trust and respect in each other, enabling team members to confront the unknown together. It’s hard to believe that – prior to the IAE 2012 – a large percentage of the team members had never experienced snow.
Geologically speaking, Brown Bluff was simply fascinating; the towering bluffs were the result of an explosive volcanic eruption under ice. I've never seen anything quite like Brown Bluff during my entire geological career. For the geoscience crowd, I've included an abstract from a 1997 article written by I.P. Skilling which aptly describes the geological genesis of Brown Bluff.
I.P. Skilling, 1997, Evolution of an englacial volcano: Brown Bluff, Antarctica; Bulletin of Volcanology, Volume 56, Numbers 6-7, Pages 573-591. Abstract -- Marine shallow-water to emergent volcanoes have been described in detail, but comparable englacial centres are not well documented. Brown Bluff is a Pleistocene, shallow water, alkali basaltic volcano whose deposits were ponded within an englacial lake, enclosed by ice >400 m thick. Its evolution is divided chronologically into pillow volcano, hyalotuff cone, slope failure and hyaloclastite delta/subaerial stages. Seventeen lithofacies and five structural units (A-E) are recognised and described. The pillow volcano stage (Unit A) is similar to those of many submarine seamount volcanoes. It comprises extrusive and intrusive pillow lavas draped by slumped hyaloclastite. Units B and D define the hyalotuff cone stage, which was centred on a summit vent(s), and comprises slumped, poorly sorted hyalotuffs redeposited downslope by sediment gravity flows and ponded against an ice barrier. This stage also includes water-cooled subaerial lavas and massive hyalotuffs ponded within a crater. Cone construction was interrupted by drainage of the lake and slope failure of the northeast flank, represented by debris avalanche-type deposits (Unit C). Unit E represents the youngest stage and consists of a Gilbert-type hyaloclastite delta(s), which prograded away from a summit vent(s), and compound subaerial lavas. A second drainage episode allowed subaerial lavas to accumulate in the surrounding trough.
MARCH 9
Antarctica: Dispatch Number Seven 62° 13' South and 58° 49' West
Celebrating International Women’s Day (IWD) in AntarcticaIWD celebrates the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future. Several women took part in 2041’s International Antarctic Expedition (IAE) 2012. Susan R. Eaton and Angela Shaw, a Canadian who works for Shell in London, England, hold the Canadian flag.
I was both honoured and thrilled to celebrate International Women's Day (IWD) on March 8 with the 50-plus women participating in 2041’s International Antarctic Expedition (IAE) 2012. One hundred years ago, Sir Ernest Shackleton explored Antarctica because it was there, and because it was unclaimed by any nation. Today, Antarctica remains unclaimed by any nation, and belongs to the citizens of the world.
What a difference a hundred years makes on so many fronts – seventy percent of the IAE 2012’s team of explorers was female, originating from all parts of the planet, from both developed and developing nations. Culturally diverse and speaking a multitude of languages, the women forged a common bond amidst the harsh backdrop of Antarctica. As women and global citizens, we travelled to the Bottom of the World to study climate change, renewable energy and global sustainability issues. During our journey of exploration and discovery, we determined that the issues facing our respective nations are very similar, and that education and awareness of global sustainability issues will lead to societal change.
Comprised of 72 people from 22 nations, the IAE 2012 Team included 14 women from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The IAE 2012 Team also included Zeena Al Towayya, the first Omani woman to travel to Antarctica. Al Towayya is an IT professional affiliated with the Caledonian College of Engineering in the Sultanate of Oman. The IAE 2012 Team also included another first – Sahar Al Shamrani, the first woman from Saudi Arabia to travel to Antarctica. Al Shamrani lives in Dubai where she produces in the morning show called “Good Morning Fellow Arabs” for MBC.
“By going to the southern hemisphere I am sending a message to all Arab women that nothing is impossible and also show the world what Saudis are capable of,” said Al Shamrani in an interview prior to departing for Antarctica
The women from the Middle East were no shrinking violets – they camped overnight on the ice, hiked up mountains and across glaciers,