At Sea--44°1i’ S, 21°26’ W
Today is our second day at sea on our transit from Tristan de Cunha to South Georgia. We are sailing toward the great Southern Ocean, which we will officially enter when we cross the Antarctic Divergence sometime in the next two days. We are now in the middle of the “roaring forties” and they are living up to their name. Last night we experienced our first real weather of the voyage, a nice force 8 gale which Endeavour handled with characteristic grace. Today the weather has moderated. The wind has been backing around to the southeast all day, and is more or less on our port beam now. This is the ocean that we have come through 80 degrees of latitude to find. The steady winds are perfect for the great soaring birds and all day we have watched as wandering albatross, pintado petrels and prions glide past the ship. We also see the magnificent sooty albatross (pictured) whose sharp white-eye patch is a key to its identification. This is the one place on earth where the winds and the ocean currents can circle the earth unimpeded by land and their vigorous and steady flow provide the environment in which these birds have evolved and to which they are beautifully adapted. By taking full advantage of the wind blowing over a rough sea surface they can soar for miles without flapping their wings, rising with the rising air at the wave crests and sliding down into the troughs with almost no effort on their part. We look on in awe, hour after hour, at the sheer beauty of this perfect adaptation.
Today is our second day at sea on our transit from Tristan de Cunha to South Georgia. We are sailing toward the great Southern Ocean, which we will officially enter when we cross the Antarctic Divergence sometime in the next two days. We are now in the middle of the “roaring forties” and they are living up to their name. Last night we experienced our first real weather of the voyage, a nice force 8 gale which Endeavour handled with characteristic grace. Today the weather has moderated. The wind has been backing around to the southeast all day, and is more or less on our port beam now. This is the ocean that we have come through 80 degrees of latitude to find. The steady winds are perfect for the great soaring birds and all day we have watched as wandering albatross, pintado petrels and prions glide past the ship. We also see the magnificent sooty albatross (pictured) whose sharp white-eye patch is a key to its identification. This is the one place on earth where the winds and the ocean currents can circle the earth unimpeded by land and their vigorous and steady flow provide the environment in which these birds have evolved and to which they are beautifully adapted. By taking full advantage of the wind blowing over a rough sea surface they can soar for miles without flapping their wings, rising with the rising air at the wave crests and sliding down into the troughs with almost no effort on their part. We look on in awe, hour after hour, at the sheer beauty of this perfect adaptation.
