by Fishgate@sanap | Mar 5, 2019 | Antarctica, News, Overwintering Team, SANAE, Team member, Team Photo
The SANAE57 (57th SANAE Overwintering) Team is currently onboard the S.A. Agulhas II, heading home after 14months on Antarctica. ALSA was privileged to catch up with the team during take-over (in January) at SANAE IV, the fourth South African National Antarctic Expedition Station.
Back (L-R): Elias Seabi, Lux Tanyana, Sabelo Biyela, Cobus van der Merwe, Hloni Rakoteli; (front) Stephanus Schoeman, Foster Mashele, Will Jelbert, John Skelete, Bo Orton. This photo is also now part of South Africa’s Antarctic Legacy – on the ALSA archive (click here).
Each member of SANAE57 was introduced in the team’s first newsletter. Read below Will Jelbert’s (team leader and doctor of the team) introduction at the start of the expedition and hear what he had to say after the expedition (in take-over). If you want to read more about this expedition member make sure you read the September Edition of this team’s newsletter.
Excerpt of SANAE57’s first team newsletter – December 2017 (Click here to view this newsletter)
https://www.facebook.com/AntarcticLegacySA/videos/vl.317523262441303/316209675763530/?type=1
Anché Louw, Antarctic Legacy of South Africa, 05 March 2019
by Fishgate@sanap | Feb 26, 2019 | Announcement, Marion75, News, Overwintering Team, Science, Team member
This competition, initiative of SAASTA (the South African Agency for Science and Technology Advancement), is a great way of encouraging young scientists in developing skills to communicate science to the broader public. Doing this in your mother tongue can be a difficult task as not all scientific words can be translated and this skill was also tested in this competition, as 2019 is the International Year of Indigenous Languages.
One of the SANAP overwintering personnel on Marion Island, Marike Louw, sees the need to communicate science and the setup of the scientific environment on Marion Island. Marike is one of the four female botanical field assistants on the island and her job (since April 2018 until May 2019) is to estimate percentage vegetation in 3x3m plots, which is scattered all over the island. This data is gathered for a SANAP project, i.e “Invasions in the changing sub-Antarctic“, run by Dr Michelle Greve of the University of Pretoria. This job entails a lot of hiking and hard work in challenging weather conditions, which she is totally up for. Read more about Marike and the other three botanists in the November issue The Wanderer, the Marion Island Newsletter (Click here).
The competition was divided into five categories; article, open, indigenous language, video and audio. Marike entered for three categories i.e. article, video and audio. She was awarded with 2nd place in two of the three categories (video and audio). Check out the video and you will truly be inspired by the enthusiasm and love for science that the Marion Island field assistants have. Marike is also very proud to be among a team of 24 overwinterers on Marion Island, where all 11 official South African languages are spoken (listen to the audio).
Video Category (English):
Title: Denizens of Marion Island | Theme: Science transforming Society
Intended platform: Online education platform
Audio Category:
Title: Rainbow Nation on a Sub-Antarctic Island | Theme: Science transforming Society
Intended platform: Education South African podcast or a radio platform
for a broad science-interested audience
Read more about this competition here.
Anché Louw, Antarctic Legacy of South Africa, 26 February 2019
