Another wander back to 2012 and the SIPEXII expedition. At the last sampling site (unplanned, we were stuck) - we had a visit from a Minke whale!
It decided to expand a hole that a seal made the day before - in ice about 10cm thick and not quite solidly frozen - for some room to breathe. The whale hung around for quite a while, returning to this spot to grab air.
It was .. very spectacular.
Crazily enough, a small team of us had been working in that exact thin ice channel the day before, installing some instruments to try and observe ice growth. Then de installing on whale visit day!
Somewhat nerve wracking, especially seeing a seal chew its way through while we were there. Here's a view looking away from where the whale came to say hi - a thin ice region with snow cover (a refrozen lead), surrounded by thicker, heavier ice and deeper snow.
Dr. bicycle whisperateror