PODCAST. “My life in Antarctica” (3/6): the song of the seal

Sophie Faille is an emergency physician in the Paris region. In the winter of 2023, she was selected to be the doctor at the French scientific base Dumont d’Urville in Antarctica for 15 months. Franceinfo gave her a microphone to tell the story of this extraordinary experience. The 3rd episode tells the story of an outing with scientists on the ice floe.

To get out of the base, it takes a lot of preparation, says Sophie Faille: “The main risk is falling into the water when walking on the ice floe.”she describes, so you have to carry a change of clothes in addition to the poles and small crampons that you attach to your shoes. When the weather is particularly cold and windy, with temperatures felt as low as -35°C, you line your ski-type clothing with plastic sheets: “It’s really simple, but it cuts the wind and really changes everything!” she testifies.

Today, the researchers will dig into the ice floe to measure its thickness. To be able to walk on it, the ice must be at least 20 centimetres high. Simon, a bioacoustician, then installs a hydrophone under the ice floe, in the water, a device that will record the seals’ song.I listen to them speak, he says, I try to decipher their language.“

The vocalizations recorded by Simon’s device underwater, under the ice floe, make it possible to monitor the presence and activity of the animals without disturbing them.All these disciplines that study ecosystems and species have the aim of protecting them”Simon explains to those who might wonder what the point is of going all the way to Antarctica to do science.

For Simon, yes, coming to Antarctica is worth it, if only for the scientific mediation.”The work we do is used for example for journalism, to reach people who will dream of Antarctica, or it is used to work with children, to transform our scientific knowledge to make it an object of education.” For him, it is “to use stories like this to build a slightly different future.“

“My life in Antarctica”, an original franceinfo podcast by Solenne Le Hen, broadcast by Thomas Coudreuse, to be found on the franceinfo website, the Radio France application and several other platforms such as Apple podcasts, Podcast Addict, Spotify, or Deezer.