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Dispatch 1: Let the journey begin!

Jennifer Kosty (Yale University)

September 18, 2026

07:30 local, 69.05◦N, 105.00◦W

Conditions:

  • 0% sea ice cover
  • 2.3◦C
  • Sunrise: 06:27 MDT (local)
  • Sunset: 19:20 MDT (local)
  • Day length: 12 hours, 53 minutes

Welcome to the 2026 Beaufort Gyre Observing System (BGOS) / Joint Ocean-Ice Study (JOIS) expedition! My name is Jennifer, and I am a member of the science team participating in this year’s expedition. I will be writing daily dispatches documenting our scientific activities and everyday life over the next 5 weeks. Thanks for following along!

Today marks our first full day aboard the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent (LSSL). We are currently stationed in Cambridge Bay, a small community with around 1950 residents located in Nunavut, Canada. The journey to Cambridge Bay is long and typically involves multiple days of travel. For example, I left my apartment in New Haven, Connecticut at 5 am EDT on September 16, 2026, and boarded the Louis 34 hours later. I took 2 flights to St. John’s in Newfoundland, Canada, where I then joined the ship’s crew on their charter flight to Cambridge Bay. Other members of the science team flew to Cambridge Bay from Tokyo and Hokkaido in Japan; Woods Hole, Massachusetts in the United States; and Victoria, British Columbia in Canada. We were then flown to the Louis by helicopter pilot Malte Dehler, a process that takes several hours since the helicopter can only hold 4-5 passengers at a time.

Last night was spent unpacking and settling in after a long few days of travel. We will spend today getting to know the new faces on the science team/crew (and catching up with old friends!), unpacking and organizing scientific equipment, and setting up the laboratory spaces. The Louis will be refueling in Cambridge Bay tonight, so we anticipate beginning our journey to the Canada Basin tomorrow evening.

We are looking forward to a fun and productive five weeks of science!

 

 

Figure 1: The most recent sea ice concentration map for the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas (Source: https://data.seaice.uni-bremen.de/databrowser/).
Figure 1: The most recent sea ice concentration map for the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas (Source: https://data.seaice.uni-bremen.de/databrowser/).
Members of the science team and ship’s crew boarding the charter flight to Cambridge Bay in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada on September 17, 2026. Photo by Jennifer Kosty.
Members of the science team and ship’s crew boarding the charter flight to Cambridge Bay in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada on September 17, 2026. Photo by Jennifer Kosty.
The CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent (LSSL) stationed in Cambridge Bay, as pictured during the helicopter transit aboard. Photo by Jennifer Kosty.
The CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent (LSSL) stationed in Cambridge Bay, as pictured during the helicopter transit aboard. Photo by Jennifer Kosty.
Collette Leclerc (left) and Jennifer Kosty (right) pictured during the short helicopter ride to the Louis. Photo by Jennifer Kosty.
Collette Leclerc (left) and Jennifer Kosty (right) pictured during the short helicopter ride to the Louis. Photo by Jennifer Kosty.
Fresh produce to be unloaded and stored in the galley. It takes a lot of food to feed ~75 people for five weeks! Photo by Jennifer Kosty.
Fresh produce to be unloaded and stored in the galley. It takes a lot of food to feed ~75 people for five weeks! Photo by Jennifer Kosty.