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Laurier grad student Kevin Turner spent two weeks on the icy continent of Antarctica after focusing his study on water movement.

Kevin Turner, a Laurier graduate student in geography and environmental studies, returned to Kitchener last Friday from a two-week excursion to Antarctica. Turner’s main focus of study was on hydrology and the movement of water in and around the Antarctic.

Turner, a graduate from Trent University in geography and biology, sat down with The Cord on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the trip he took with 70 professors and students. Among this group was Nick Betts – another Laurier Master’s student, travellers from across Canada, the US and Japan and even a woman from India who had never seen snow before.

The group spent a day and a half flying to the southern tip of Argentina before travelling through the Drake Passage by boat toward their final destination: Antarctica. Turner described the ocean surrounding

Antarctica as a swirling mass of water that is continually moving in the same direction as the Earth rotates.

This surrounding area is seen as a “protective system for now.” He reflected back, wondering out loud how the world can sustain the area.

"Only until recently have we been able to explore around [Antarctica] and the only reason why it hasn’t been completely explored is because it’s so inhospitable," he said, explaining the effects of its shield of armour. Turner continued, "Right now it’s protecting itself but … we have to push to continue the protection; otherwise, it may go in a different direction and may be impacted negatively by people."

But it wasn’t all serious research on the trip. On a visit to an old whaling harbour from the early 1900s, situated in the middle of an active volcano, the group took a quick swim in the freezing cold water. Turner displayed a series of photos of him running through the water in his bathing suit and then racing back to the warmth of the rocks on the shoreline, produced by geo-thermal energy from the volcano.

Turner also spoke in-depth about the wildlife, using photos to accompany his description of the aerodynamic penguins, petrel seabirds and enormous leopard seals in Antarctica, as well as the South American habitat of "fat and lazy" beavers. Before heading into the Drake Passage, which leads to Antarctica, the group went on a hike in Ushuaia, in the Argentinean province of Tierra del Fuego, where they came across a bunch of dead trees in a valley at the bottom of the Andes mountain range.

In the 1940s, 20 Canadian beavers were introduced to the region to promote fur trade and, since then, "The beavers have multiplied to over 120,000 and have taken over valleys because there’s no predators so they’re just lazy, fat beavers and they’re building these huge dams and drowning all these trees," said Turner.

Turner’s favourite part of the trip was at Neko Bay. He said that after they docked their boat, he was able to sit out on the rocks, taking in the scenery. Turner witnessed what could only occur in an area so remote from what Laurier students typically see. He looked onto the glaciers sitting on the edge of the waterfront and watched masses of ice "fall into the ocean," creating a loud sound that he described as being similar to a thunderstorm.

"Meanwhile," said Turner, "[I had] all these Gentoo penguins hopping around [me], checking things out. But it was just a great time to sit there by myself and take it all in."

After absorbing his surroundings, Turner was able to look at an area that is in potential danger and create a positive message to bring back to Laurier students. He said, "This is a very important part of the world; it needs to be protected and we need to clean up our act in order to help."

Turner tries to live a sustainable lifestyle by taking the bus to school, composting and using cloth diapers for his baby. He pays attention to the products he buys, favouring fair-trade goods. But if you’re not used to such a "green" lifestyle, Turner said it’s something that’s "easy to adapt to;" a lifestyle that he views as something that comes naturally to him.

Among the various groups that Turner went with, his trip was completely funded by International Polar Year, a science and research program that focuses on the Arctic and Antarctic regions.

Original source taken from: http://www.cordweekly.com/cordweekly/news?news_id=2641

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