• From PRI's The World

Carolyn Beeler of PRI's The World reports: The research team aboard the Nathaniel B. Palmer is starting to wrap up their work studying Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica. As the Amundsen Sea starts to freeze up, the captain of the ship will be constantly on the lookout for gaps in the ice that will carry the ship home.

Grease ice dampens ripples in the water near sunset over the Amundsen Sea. Photo credit: Carolyn Beeler/The World