Episode 120: Dr Abbie Smith (Australian Antarctic Division)

In this episode Craig interviews Dr Abbie Smith who is a Research Associate with the Australian Antarctic Division and is also an Adjunct Researcher at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), University of Tasmania.  Abbie’s recent and current specialty area of research is Antarctic krill, and in particular the migratory behaviours of the krill and how their dynamics influence carbon flux in the Southern Ocean. And earlier, Abbie devoted the years of her PhD to investigating the dynamics of iron in Antarctica’s coastal waters. We hear Abbie talk engagingly about her pathway into Antarctic and Southern Ocean studies and about her past and recent research on krill, and including her team's investigations that led to a paper published in the prestigious journal Science earlier this year. She provides interesting and entertaining explanations of how their findings on the level of carbon sequestration and flux, linked to krill movements, has led to a rethinking. And Abbie also provides wonderful insights into what it is like to work in the deep south, as a participant in voyages that involve collaborations of scientists from across many disciplines, and even cultures.