John Hodge (l), chair of the Greater Piedmont Chapter of The Explorers Club, and Dr. Jon Leader, vice chair, display the Explorers Club flag he and a team from USC will carry to Chile on a scientific expedition Dr. Brian Helmuth, professor of marine ecology at USC, and John Hodge, coastal geologist and environmental attorney with Haynesworth- Sinkler- Boyd Law Firm have received an expeditionary flag from The Explorers Club for research they are doing in Chile this month. Along with team members Jean Place, professor of molecular physiology, David Wethey, mathematician, and Alyson Tockstein, undergraduate student, of USC, they will work with two scientists in Chile to examine the effects of climate change along the Pacific coast of Chile.

The Explorers Club sponsors members on expeditions which are intended to further the cause of exploration and field science. The Explorers Club flag has been carried on hundreds of expeditions since 1918 to both poles, to the highest peaks of the greatest mountain ranges, to the depths of the ocean, and to outer space.

For information, contact David Brinkman, secretary of the local chapter of The Explorers Club at dobrink@bel l -

south.net.