PS 97 PaleDrake ANT-XXXI/3

KREPS, G; SCHNEIDER, W; CANNELLA, B; FENCO, H

Otro; PS 97 PaleDrake ANT-XXXI/3; 2016

ALFRED WEGENER INSTITUT

The Polarstern expedition PS97 ?Paleoceanography of the Drake Passage (PaleoDrake)?started on February 16, 2016 in Punta Arenas (Chile) and ended on April 8, 2016 again inPunta Arenas. Onboard Polarstern were 44 crew members as well as 52 scientists,meteorologists, technical staff and helicopter pilots. The scientific members belonged to sixworking groups with research expertise in geology, oceanography, geodesy and biology.Scientific members came from Argentina, Chile, Germany, France, Netherlands, Peru,Switzerland and Spain. One Chilean and two Argentine scientists on board fulfilled the role ofofficial expedition observers, nominated by their home countries.The principal working area of cruise PS97 was the Drake Passage which forms the majorgeographical constriction for the flow of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and plays anessential role in the modern ocean circulation patterns and global climate. Despite itsimportance for modern and likely also future climate, little is known about past climatic andoceanographic changes on longer, geological time-scales in this region. Therefore, theprinciple scientific goal of the marine geological work is to enhance understanding of thepaleoceanographic role of the Drake Passage during Quaternary global climate variations atorbital and sub-orbital time-scales.