WWU Shannon Point Scientist Selected for Antarctica Research Review Panel

Suzanne Strom, senior marine scientist at Western Washington University’s Shannon Point Marine Center, has been selected by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to serve on its review panel for the Palmer Station Long-term Ecological Research (LTER) program. Strom will be at Palmer Station in Antarctica for four days in mid-December. The trip to Palmer Station will take four to five days each way, sailing across Drake Passage on a U.S. research vessel that departs from Punta Arenas, Chile. According to its website (http://pal.lternet.edu), the Palmer LTER study area is located to the west of the Antarctic Peninsula – extending south and north of the Palmer Basin from onshore to several hundred kilometers off shore. Palmer Station is one of the three United States research stations located in Antarctica. The Palmer LTER studies a polar marine environment with research focused on the Antarctic pelagic marine ecosystem, including sea ice habitats, regional oceanography and terrestrial nesting sites of seabird predators. The Palmer LTER is one of 26 LTER research sites located throughout the United States, Puerto Rico and Tahiti; each focused on a specific ecosystem. The purpose of the review panel on which Strom will serve is to provide the NSF sponsor with expert assessment on whether the Palmer Station program is meeting its objectives and to recommend on future directions. Strom’s expertise in food web dynamics of marine systems and her experience serving on review panels for NSF led to her selection. Strom said that she is excited by the opportunity to set foot on this unique and extreme part of the Earth. Noting the uncertainties of travel in that part of the world, she added “I hope I get home in time for Christmas!” The Shannon Point Marine Center is a program and facility of Western Washington University that is dedicated to the advancement of the study of marine science. More information about the marine center can be accessed at its website at www.wwu.edu/spmc/