We had a very rocky night as the winds have picked up significantly. At 8:30 this morning it was 1.6° C (35° F) with winds gusting up to 60 knots (111 km/h, 69 mph). In the hopes that the weather would improve in a couple of hours we cruised the Drygalski Fjord before saying good-bye to South Georgia and heading out to sea towards Antarctica.
Due to rough seas and high winds the outdoor observation decks have been closed.
Today was a sea day which means there was plenty of time to visit the science center and attend some interesting lectures.
The science center had some interesting critters which had been caught in the engine cooling water filter the day before. Extremely strict environmental regulations in South Georgia state that you cannot take anything from the area nor put anything into the environment. Since it is unknown exactly when or where the little critters were picked up they will spend the rest of their days in the science center.
These little guys are known as Squat Lobsters. Adults can grow up to 5 cm (2 in.) and can be found at depths of 1000 meters (3280 feet).
Lectures today included „Whales in our waters“ – an overview of the the species and identifying characteristics.
Later in the afternoon there was a presentation from the on-board ornithologist on his earlier field work on Bird Island, South Georgia during the 1980‘s.
