12 Feb 2019
The Madre de Dios Archipelago was the target of a Franco-Chilean caving and scientific expedition, organized by the Centre-Terre. This maritime karst region ranks as the most extreme one in terms of rainfall. The resulting surface denudation rates reach 0.1 mm per year, which is world record. Charlotte spent more than one month in this area. She examined caves for speleothems, which may provide a unique way to improve the sparse knowledge about past climate at this latitude (51°S).
Her trip was successful and she learned a lot from the other scientists on the team, participated in lake coring, performed geomorphological studies, and sampled glacial sediments. Besides all the new discoveries, it was also a unique human experience, where the extreme weather conditions strengthened the ties between the team members.
Photo credit: Centre-Terre
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