Atmospheric research in the most extreme place on Earth: Antarctica

Abhi Doddi (PhDAeroEngr’21) is collecting scientific data outdoors in a 70 mph whiteout blizzard. It is just another day of life in Antarctica.

Doddi, a postdoctoral researcher in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder, is leading a major study involving high-altitude balloons to improve weather forecasting on the Antarctic continent.

He endured years of planning and an ocean voyage aboard an icebreaker ship to reach this remote and dangerous corner of the Earth, and despite the weather, he is excited to be here.

“This sort of data has never been collected before,” Doddi said. “We want to gather small-scale turbulence data over the polar vortex using complimentary observations from radar and balloon-based  instruments. This data is very important to improve the representation of turbulence due to the atmospheric gravity waves and the polar jet stream in the current numerical weather prediction models.”

Ship Journey

Most U.S.-based researchers who study the Antarctic weather do so from McMurdo Station, a United States-run base that is surprisingly accessible, with daily flights aboard military cargo planes during the Antarctic summer.

Doddi’s research required a much more arduous journey. He needed access to a specialized mesosphere–stratosphere–troposphere (MST) radar, and there is just one on the continent – at Syowa Station, a Japanese base only accessible by ship. Japan’s naval icebreaker Shirase makes one trip there each year. Doddi boarded in Australia. From there, it took 20 days to reach Syowa and 38 to return.

“I don’t get seasick, but it gets uncomfortable when swells are 7-8 meters tall, and you’re being tossed in all directions, even while you sleep,” Doddi said.

Breaking the Ice

The ship could travel at 30 knots on the open ocean, but when they reached the Antarctic ice pack, travel slowed considerably as the vessel needed to repeatedly back up and accelerate forward to break through the ice.

The Shirase carried roughly 180 crew plus 100 scientists and engineers. Doddi and his research partner, Tyler Mixa (MAeroEngr’14, PhD’19), were the first non-Japanese researchers to visit Syowa station.

“The language barrier was the hardest thing. Of the entire crew, there were only about 10 people who spoke conversational English,” Doddi said.

With no option for quick departure in the event of a medical emergency, every person on the trip needed to be in perfect health.

“They want you to be bulletproof. If you get a cavity before the trip, until your dentist provides proof that it’s been filled, and your doctor has signed off on your health, and the Japanese medical team has reviewed the records, you’re not getting on the ship,” he said.

Research Variety

Doddi’s work focused on Antarctic atmospheric conditions, but there were a litany of other teams conducting studies across scientific disciplines. There were multiple oceanographers and aquatic life experts, as well as people doing bird studies, ice core samples, and geological surveys.

“One of the teams discovered 3-4 new species of microorganisms on the trip, which was fascinating. No one had ever laid eyes on those organisms before,” he said.

Even after reaching Antarctica, there was more travel – by air. Due to shallow water, the Shirase must anchor 10 miles off shore and ferry the crew and supplies to the base via helicopter.

Blizzard Balloon Launches

Once they landed at Syowa, Doddi’s research got underway in earnest – readying dozens of balloon payloads that would fly to 20 km in altitude while drifting up to 100 km laterally and relay turbulence measurements back in real time.

The work paired broad measurements from the MST radar with precision instruments aboard the balloon-borne instrument systems developed at CU Boulder. As a major goal is improving weather forecasting, Doddi spent plenty of time outdoors in less-than-ideal weather.

“We experienced three different blizzards, each lasting up to three days, with winds in excess of 60-70 mph,” he said. “Those conditions were hands down some of the best experiences of my life. That’s the data we want, even if it meant we were staying up for 48 hours. My sleep cycle was totally messed up,” he said.

It did not help that during the Antarctic summer, the sun never sets.

When it was not snowing, the temperature typically hovered just below freezing – practically balmy for an Antarctic summer – with the warmest days topping out at 5°C (41°F).

Syowa Station, which is spread across 60 buildings, offered few comforts during down time.

“The bunks on the ship were larger and more comfortable than those on the base. It was four people to a room, with no doors on any room, just curtains, and communal baths, like a gym locker room,” Doddi said.

What's a Vegetarian?

He also faced a unique obstacle with food. Doddi is a life-long vegetarian, but base meals were via a single Navy cafeteria cooking everyone the same food.

“I’m a vegetarian from birth, and the concept of vegetarianism doesn’t exist in Japanese culture. They don’t even have a word for it. So I brought 240 shelf-stable meals as part of my personal supplies,” he said.

Although Antarctica is frozen year round, there is still plenty of local wildlife. Doddi saw hundreds of emperor penguins and over 1,000 adelie penguins, in addition to seals, petrel seabirds, and albatross. He was able to do some hiking, but safety precautions were necessary.

“If you were going beyond the perimeter of the base or to access a restricted portion, one of the Navy personnel had to go ahead of you to assess the conditions of the ice for cracks and crevasses,” he said.

Analysis Back Home

With the Antarctic field campaign complete and Doddi back in Colorado, phase two of the project begins – complex and lengthy analysis.

“This was a two-month data collection project followed by a three-year modeling program,” Doddi said. “We need massive super computers to do this modeling. The overarching goal is to provide guidance to improve the weather forecasts for people in Antarctica, so this will help researchers for years to come.”

In addition to Doddi, collaborators on the project are Dale Lawrence, a professor of aerospace engineering sciences at CU Boulder and director of the Research & Engineering Center for Unmanned Vehicles; Mixa from Global Atmospheric Technologies and Sciences (GATS) in Boulder; the National Institute of Polar Research in Tokyo; and Kyoto University.

Map of the Shirase's 20 day journey from Australia, to Syowa Station.
On the 38 day trip back, the ship hugged the Antarctic coast for additional research and to stop at an automated ionospheric measuring station that needed service.