There Goes the Neighborhood

A curious penguin observes a group of scientists temporarily squatting on an icy terrain in Antarctica. WHOI scientist Ben Van Mooy (right) is leading a team that will core through the sea ice to sample tiny marine plants, or phytoplankton, that bloom beneath. While days are growing shorter and colder on Cape Cod, the opposite is true in Antarctica. Increasing sunlight and melting ice support a highly productive ecosystem off the west Antarctic Peninsula. These phytoplankton are the food source for krill, which nourish charismatic megafauna up the food chain, such as whales and penguins. (Photo by Joee Patterson, USAP)