The first penguins returned October 2 to the island research station run by the Germans on land owned by Chile-also known as Bernardo O'Higgins Station (Bernardo O'Higgins was what you could call the "George Washington" of Chile). This station is located on one of the northernmost areas of Antarctica, spared some of the worst weather Antarctica has to offer.
Because it is uncomfortable for me to sit (and still is) I didn't visit the O'Higgins webcam until today, October 17. What a thrill to see the penguins back again - and watching their life cycle through the Antarctic spring and summer will help me entertain myself this winter as the Midnight Sun shifts south.
This is the "blog" of the camera (the Germans no doubt build very talented cameras) - you can use the Babelfish service to translate, if you don't speak German. This is a link to the cam itself.
In 2008 the penguins arrived on September 17 which looks to be a "historic" early arrival. In order to arrive, there must be open water in certain nearby waters. That apparently happened with a storm on September 25.
So is "global warming" just a fluctuation in the natural cycle? Or is this a "hiccup" in Global Warming? The arrival some 2 weeks later than last year, coupled with the early snow in parts of Pennyslvania a couple of days ago, gives us food for thought.
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