While in Longyearbyen one of the best things that we did was hike in search of the fabled fossils at the base of a glacier near town.
Here is Julia (below) and Derek (atop) a steep pile of scree.
Once we got the hang of it, we were finding fossils everywhere in that scree.
Evidence that Spitsbergen once looked like a very different place! Note the thumb for scale. Below is one of the typical sized plants in the area now–much smaller than that fossil leaf (raindrop for scale). This flower was growing amongst the fossils.
Most of the animal fossils we found were worms.
The following day, Julia, Derek and I flew from Longyearbyen to Oslo. Laurel stayed on to visit with friends that she had made during her winter in Longyearbyen 2 years ago.
Our last views of Spitsbergen:
Even though the field work portion of our work is done, we will keep updating this blog with our results and news throughout the year.