UM Professor Featured on “The Nature of Things”

A University of Manitoba professor and researcher is helping to bring the hidden world of icebergs into focus for audiences across the country. Dr. Juliana Marson from the Clayton H. Riddell Faculty of Environment, Earth, and Resources is featured in a recent episode of The Nature of Things. This episode is titled “The Berg,” where she shares her expertise on the science and significance of icebergs. The episode offers a compelling look at the life cycle of these formations and their broader environmental impact, highlighting Dr. Marson’s contributions to advancing our understanding of polar and marine systems.

Filming "The Berg"

Initially, Dr. Marson was contacted by the production team behind The Nature of Things to participate as an expert to help guide them. As the episode developed behind the scenes, Dr. Marson was eventually invited to be featured in the documentary as well.

When it came to the filming process, Dr. Marson recalls some back-and-forth discussion with the crew. She suggested some relevant experiments that she could perform on camera. These experiments included working with a tank of water to demonstrate the formation of icebergs, and another experiment that included clay that was cut out of the final product. 

The shooting took place over two days during iceberg season in St. John’s, Newfoundland in the Spring of last year. The filming was held at Memorial University, where the particular building used was created with icebergs in mind. Other filming locations included bay settings where icebergs can get captured, and other remote locations to get a feeling of the tundra.

Dr. Marson initially started her research in polar oceanography, which later developed into ocean modeling that uses large computers to build models and understand the behaviour of the ocean. She found an interest in the life cycle of icebergs and how they melt in an ocean system.

Icebergs: A Hidden Threat

When asked to share some of the dangers of icebergs, Dr. Marson had the following to say. “As mentioned in the episode, around 90% of icebergs are actually underwater. Most of it you don’t see! Different shapes form underwater, like a foot, that you don’t see. So, you may think that an iceberg is much further away. Smaller icebergs pose more of a problem; big icebergs you can see from space, satellite images can be used to warn ships of placement and movement. But the little ones are hard to detect, and it can be hard to tell them apart from sea ice satellite images. Sometimes there’s no warning, so they pose a danger. Think of foggy days with no visibility. You may bump into one of those.”

Developments in Technology and AI

“The Berg” also shared some insight into the developing technology behind finding icebergs and predicting their paths. Dr. Marson is currently working to understand the many paths an iceberg can take and how it impacts their size. Dr. Marson stated “If we have the detailed description of trajectories, we can prepare better for ship routes. As an oceanographer, I look at the impacts that the ocean has on itself and the surrounding climate. That has to do with icebergs releasing freshwater, whereas oceans are made of saltwater. When they combine, you change the dynamic of that region of the ocean, creating a difference in density. If you change the dynamics, you’ll change ocean climates, ecosystems, etc.”

When looking at the emergence of Artificial Intelligence and its relationship to Dr. Marson’s work, she mentioned that it is mostly being used right now to detect icebergs in satellite images. Until now, detection had to be made manually, where people had to review satellite images and delineate what is and what is not an iceberg. It can be difficult to tell apart large icebergs from vessels of a similar size.

Dr. Marson mentioned that AI is useful in understanding “iceberg lineage” as well, which would explain how a big iceberg, or “ice island”, breaks down into smaller pieces, and how you can track where each part came from. She also shared how demanding some models can be when researching icebergs, which sometimes can outpace the capacity of AI. Some simulations require up to 32 large computers running at once, which AI can help to mitigate.

Learn More

Currently, Dr. Marson is leading an international group with an interest in icebergs. This includes scientists, historians, artists, and more from across the globe. They are developing a peer reviewed paper focused on the science of icebergs, which Dr. Marson is aiming to be published sometime next year. You can learn more about Dr. Marson and her research at her website: https://sites.google.com/view/portal-ocean/portal

To watch “The Berg” on The Nature of Things, you can use the following links: 

https://gem.cbc.ca/the-nature-of-things/s65e09

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7jJ59lxLv8