US ITASE Logo

 

Week 11 - January 5, 2003 to January 8, 2003

Date: 01/08/03
Latitude: 77 degrees, 51 min. South
Longitude: 166 degrees, 40 min East
Temperature: –1° C/ 30° F
Wind speed: 3 knots
Wind Chill: –3 C/ +27 F
Wind direction: Northerly
Meters of ice collected: 920

Notes on daily life:

By Paul Andrew Mayewski
The Last Log for the 2002–2003 US ITASE Field Season. Despite logistic challenges this season proved to be extremely successful ­ in fact it was about 120% successful since we managed to do extra scientific work while waiting at Byrd, complete all originally planned science goals, and add on a mini–traverse from Pole to collect data needed in preparation for future seasons. The field season was a success because despite the challenges everyone pulled together to make the trip safe, extremely enjoyable, and highly productive.

The members of the team are slowly going their separate ways. The first three team members to leave McMurdo were Brian Welch, Blue Spikes, and Jim Laatsch. Brian will we hope make it to a family reunion in Hawaii in a few days and then back to St. Olaf College to teach and begin analyzing the immense volume of radar data he collected. Blue is returning to the University of Maine to finish his Ph.D. as a NASA Earth System Science Fellow. Jim returns to finish his undergraduate degree at Dartmouth College.

Gordon, Markus, Betsy and Andrea arrived at McMurdo on 6 January. Gordon is returning to the University of Maine to do his research, and may be back in Antarctica next year with Blue working on another project. Markus is returning to the University of Arizona to finish his Ph.D. in atmospheric chemistry. Betsy is returning to her teaching duties and students at the Phoenix Country Day School. Andrea is staying on in McMurdo for a few weeks to work in the Berg Field Party Center and help off load the resupply vessel and then back to her home in Ely, Minnesota.

Dan, Susan, and Paul returned to McMurdo on 7 January. Susan and Dan are both returning to finish their MSc. degrees at the University of Maine. Both will write up portions of the US ITASE ice core results for their theses. Paul will return to his duties as Director of the Institute of Quaternary and Climate Studies at the University of Maine and other research projects in Antarctica and Asia.

Mark will be back in McMurdo today. He will return to his business of building ice–coring equipment at Glacier Data in Alaska.

Lynn and Carl will probably be back in McMurdo on 10 January after winterizing our two Challengers. After that Lynn will return to work with MDU Resources in Oregon. Carl will be staying on in McMurdo until October working as a mechanic in the Heavy Shop.

On behalf of US ITASE we would like to thank everyone who followed our adventures and everyone who supported us. We would particularly like to thank our families and friends, the Raytheon support staff at McMurdo and South Pole, the 109th Air National Guard, the Museum of Science (Boston), and the Office of Polar Programs at the National Science Foundation.

back to top

Date: 01/07/03
Latitude: 77 degrees, 51 min. South
Longitude: 166 degrees, 40 min East
Temperature: –1 C/ +30 F
Wind speed: 3 knots
Wind Chill: –3 C/ +27 F
Wind direction: Northerly
Meters of ice collected: 920

Notes on daily life:

By Dan Dixon
Today we woke up bright and early at 2:00 am for a Video Teleconference (VTC) linkup with the United States. The reason why we had to do it so early is because South Pole station does not have satellite access all the time and this time of day is the best because fewer people are awake on station to use up the bandwidth. Unfortunately, the satellite video link up was not successful and we ended up doing a conference call via the telephone instead. The call was a success and every team member left at South Pole had a chance to answer some questions from the press. Later that morning, at 12:00 noon, Paul, Dan, and Susan boarded a Hercules LC–130 aircraft headed for McMurdo. As they headed out from South Pole the aircraft flew directly over the Transantarctic Mountains. The view from the aircraft windows was truly exceptional. A few lucky passengers managed to ride the whole way in the LC–130 cockpit, a privilege few get to experience.

Carl, Lynn, and Mark are still at South Pole Station. Mark has some last minute packing of the drills to do and is due back in McMurdo tomorrow. Lynn and Carl have to finish winterizing the trains and are due back on Friday. Winterizing the trains involves, among other things, jacking the CATs up off the snow and de–tensioning the tracks so that they will survive in the severely low winter temperatures.

back to top

Date: 01/06/03
Latitude: 77 degrees, 51 min. South
Longitude: 166 degrees, 40 min East
Temperature: 2°C/ 3°6 F
Wind speed: 5 knots
Wind Chill: –1° C/ 31° F
Wind direction: Northwesterly
Meters of ice collected: 920

Notes on daily life:

By Daniel Dixon and Betsy Youngman
Who would have thought that we would ever have called the weather in Antarctica warm? However, that was the first word that came to mind as Markus, Andrea, Gordon and Betsy stepped off the plane from the South Pole and on to the runway here at McMurdo Station yesterday afternoon. The air felt so warm and mild, the snow was damp underfoot and one didn't even need a hat or gloves for the first time in two months. It is a marvelous feeling to have shed a few layers of clothing. Summer has arrived here on the coast of Antarctica, what a change it is from the conditions at the South Pole! I even have seen little rivulets of water running off the hillsides and down the streets. There is a smell of summer mud in the air. The conditions at the South Pole were severe in comparison, although relatively mild compared to the norm. The coldest temperature we experienced during our brief stay there was about –28 C and the winds never rose much above 10 knots. Dan, Susan, Paul, Mark, Carl and Lynn are still at Pole. They were treated to a tour of the new Pole Station. The new South Pole Station is still under construction. There are multitudes of temporary housing huts erected nearby to house all the workers involved. There are also hundreds and hundreds of meters of cargo and building materials staged around the construction site, the whole area seems like an industrial business area. During the tour we were informed that by the time the new station was finished the whole area would be cleared leaving only the Dome, the Arches, and the new station (along with the existing science buildings). It wasn't until we actually walked around inside the new station that we really grasped its sheer size, it really is enormous. There are still several parts of the building yet to be added, by the time it is finished it will be almost double its present size. Only a small part of the building was finished and furnished, the rest was composed of huge metal girders, bare steel pipework, and kilometers of wiring. It was quite a spectacle to see the workers inside milling around like ants, trying to complete their construction deadlines. Part of the new station is due to have winter–over staff staying in it at the end of this summer season. The huge building on the surface is only a part of the construction effort. Underground, there are several huge arches housing all the essential facilities. One of the most important new buildings is the new fuel arch, this has to be large as fuel is arguably the most valuable resource on station. A new power plant with several giant V12 CAT engine generators roars away producing all the power needs for the station. The room itself looks as if it is composed entirely of shiny steel pipes of all shapes and sizes. There is a brand new heavy shop for fixing the heavy equipment and machinery around the base (and there is a lot of it). The old heavy shop has been turned into a gym and storage area. There are new water supplies and sewage disposal facilities. One of the most unusual things we were shown was the network of underground tunnels. These tunnels are carved out of the snow and are the utility conduits for essential pipework and wiring, it was very eerie standing in there surrounded by cold white walls and looking at the pipes and wires disappearing off into the distance. All in all, our stay at the South Pole has been a most enjoyable one. We were provided with all the facilities we could possibly need; showers, washing, tools, and as much hot food as we could eat. It was a perfect welcome for weary travelers. The staff and workers at Pole were constantly helpful and always had a friendly smile; we look forward to returning there again someday.

 

back to top

Date: 01/05/03
Latitude: 90 degrees South
Longitude: 0 degrees West
Temperature: –26° C/ –14.8° F
Wind speed: 10 knots
Wind Chill: –37.6° C/ –35.7° F
Wind direction: Southerly
Meters of ice collected: 920

Notes on daily life:

By Susan Kaspari
The ITASE team was busy today breaking down camp and packing up our gear to return home. Brian, Blue and Jim are back in McMurdo. The rest of the team is wrapping things up at pole and will return to McMurdo over the next few days. Today Markus and Betsy packed up the atmospheric tent for the last time, Mark finished drilling with the 3" drill, Paul, Susan and Dan packed up the ice cores and drilling equipment and Lynn, Karl, Gordon and Andrea were busy breaking down the sleds. Paul gave the Sunday science lecture this evening in the galley to a large audience. It was great to see so many people interested and enthusiastic about ITASE. After being out in the field for the last month and a half, arriving at South Pole is both extremely exciting and a bit overwhelming. South Pole is a bustling station with over 200 people doing research and working around the clock. After the solitude of the Polar Plateau, all of the constant activity of South Pole is a bit of a shock. The actual Geographic South Pole is marked by a silver post in the ice, and because the ice constantly flows the marker is moved each year to remark the correct position. There is also a ceremonial South Pole that looks like a barber shop pole with a silver ball on top surrounded by flags of countries that are involved with the Antarctic treaty. The main structure of South Pole station is a large silver geodesic dome under which the galley, some berthing and logistical buildings are located. Various arches that are mostly buried under the snow spread out from the dome. A new station is being built that is elevated on beams – it looks like a space station. There is a clean air sector where atmospheric sampling takes place, a geophysics lab called Skylab, and a region where astrophysics takes place. About 30 people live under the dome, and the remaining people live in Jamesways (large arched canvas structures) or Hypertats (similar to a Jamesway, but made of metal). The ITASE team has continued to sleep in the kitchen module and the Blue room since bed space is limited at South Pole and we are also very comfortable staying in the traverse modules. We've happily taken advantage of the amenities that South Pole offers – we've taken showers (people at Pole are allowed a two minute shower twice a week) and have indulged in some fresh fruit, vegetables and real ice cream in the South Pole galley. It's fun to talk to new people, and many of us have old friends that are working on station. Since leaving site 5 our schedules have been chaotic. All of us are looking forward to things slowing down so that we can return to a normal sleep schedule. It feels great to have completed the traverse with all of our scientific objectives successfully accomplished.

     

back to top