Antarctic seafloor life stores carbon for centuries. Marine ecologist Dr. Narissa Bax explains Antarctic blue carbon, the carbon captured and stored by marine organisms and ocean habitats. The episode follows carbon from phytoplankton through cold-water coral gardens, sponge fields, kelp, and other seafloor ecosystems, where some of it can eventually be buried in sediment for hundreds or thousands of years. Bax examines the growing scientific effort to measure this seafloor carbon storage, its relationship with biodiversity, and how blue carbon could support marine protected areas and conservation policy. The discussion also considers bottom trawling, carbon credits, and the limits of presenting Antarctic blue carbon as a simple climate solution.

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Episode Transcript and more information on the Pine Forest Media website

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Hosted, produced, and edited by Clark Marchese

Find Dr. Narissa Bax website here.

Read Dr Bax’s publication: The Growing Potential of Antarctic Blue Carbon

Episode Transcript and more information on the Pine Forest Media Website

Follow Pine Forest Media on Instagram @pineforestmedia

Hosted, produced, written, and edited by Clark Marchese

Cover art and PFM logo by Laurel Wong.

Theme music by Nela Ruiz

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Elephant seals collect data beneath the Southern Ocean. Dr. Clive McMahon explains how researchers equip southern elephant seals with miniature conductivity, temperature, and depth sensors. As the seals dive and travel through remote waters that are difficult to observe, especially during winter, the animal-borne sensors collect information about temperature, salinity, depth, and ocean productivity before transmitting observations by satellite. The data help scientists study elephant seal tracking, foraging, body condition, and population change while improving Southern Ocean monitoring. They also reveal physical processes connected to Antarctic dense water, global ocean circulation, weather, and climate.

Episode Guest: Dr. Clive McMahon

Review the research publication discussed in the episode here

Visit Dr. McMahon’s publications on Google Scholar

Visit the website of the Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences

Episode Transcript and more information on the Pine Forest Media Website

Follow Pine Forest Media on Instagram @pineforestmedia

Hosted, produced, written, and edited by Clark Marchese

Cover art and PFM logo by Laurel Wong.

Theme music by Nela Ruiz

Find some more Pine Forest Media podcasts below

Listen to Oceanography on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

Listen to Plastic Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

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Jackie Ronne changed who could explore Antarctica. Polar historian Dr. Joanna Kafarowski recounts how Ronne joined the Ronne Antarctic Research Expedition in 1947 as a full expedition member and became one of the first two women to overwinter on the continent. The episode follows her journey from the National Geographic Society to Antarctica, where male expedition members initially signed a petition opposing the women’s participation. Learn how Ronne contributed to expedition operations and scientific objectives while facing isolation, sexism, and extraordinary pressure. Her story reveals the institutional barriers that kept qualified women out of polar exploration for decades.

Episode Guest: Dr. Joanna Kafarowski

Visit Dr. Kafarowski’s website here

Connect with Dr. Kafarowski on LinkedIn

Find: Antarctic Pioneer: the Trailblazing Life of Jackie Ronne

Find: The Polar Adventures of a Rich American Dame: The Life of Lousie Arner Boyd

Episode Transcript and more information on the Pine Forest Media Website

Follow Pine Forest Media on Instagram @pineforestmedia

Hosted, produced, written, and edited by Clark Marchese

Cover art and PFM logo by Laurel Wong.

Theme music by Nela Ruiz

Find some more Pine Forest Media podcasts below

Listen to Oceanography on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

Listen to Plastic Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

Listen to Something in the Water on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.