Australians

McMurdo acts as a "hub" of sorts for some of the different countries who are going to bases that are either to small to handle large aircraft or don't have the heavy equipment to keep an active runway for the entire season.  These people come down through McMurdo and then get transferred to their base.  This year we have done this for the Italians, Koreans, New Zealanders, and the Australians.  Most went smoothly, until the Aussies came a few days ago.  First, they were delayed in Hobart a few days waiting on good weather both at their base, Casey, and at McMurdo.  They flew down and boarded the flight to Casey and the plane had a mechanical fault, then the weather turned bad....and stayed that way for three days.  They are still here.  There are 54 Aussies waiting to get out of McMurdo.  All of them have been really nice and have been seen out hiking around and enjoying the recreational activities here.  We just heard that the plane is broken and they will be here yet another day.  It is great to experience a place where so many different nationalities get along and help each other out. 

Aussies looking at our map to plan their hiking routes around McMurdo.

A map of the different stations.  Casey is where the Aussies are trying to get to.

In keeping with the peaceful nature of Antarctica and all nations cooperating I thought I would include one of the best sentences from the Antarctic Treaty:
Recognizing that it is in the interest of all mankind that Antarctica shall continue forever to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become the scene or object of international discord;
Acknowledging the substantial contributions to scientific knowledge resulting from international cooperation in scientific investigation in Antarctica;

And peaceful it is.  If only the whole world could live this way.........

And if you want to read more from the Antarctic Treaty.
http://www.nsf.gov/od/opp/antarct/anttrty.jsp

Happy Halloween

We had our Halloween party last Saturday.  The majority of the people here work 6 days per week and are off on Sunday, therefore most of the parties are held Saturday night.  We don't want to have the party on Wednesday night, even though it is Halloween, and then have to come to work the next day.  There were several great costumes that were Antarctic-themed and probably wouldn't be funny to anyone who hadn't been here.  Several poke fun at the company and some of the policies here.
Cargo decorated the gym the night before the party.  We hung large parachutes from the ceiling and draped spiders and skeletons through them.  We also had large inflatable ghosts and gargoyles. 

Historic Hut

It is lightly snowing today, but calm and fairly nice outside.  Not warm, but pleasant with my nice warm coat, gloves and hat.  So, I took a short walk down to Scott's hut.  It was the first hut used by Scott's 1901-04 expeditions when the ship Discovery became stuck in the ice in McMurdo sound.  The hut is remarkably well preserved for being made of wood and for being so old. There is a seal carcass outside the hut that is still there from the expedition that used the blubber.  It is not rotting due to the cold temperatures and lack of bacteria.  It is a short walk from McMurdo and there are many Weddell seals lying on the ice sunbathing nearby.

Scott's hut

Seal carcass

Beautiful sunset.  In about two weeks it will be daylight 24hrs per day so I am enjoying the view now.

Scott's hut with McMurdo behind it

Crary Lab

Everything here in McMurdo revolves around the science work that is being done here.  The scientists come down here and do tons of research involving everything from penguins to volcanic activity.  The Crary lab is named after Dr. Albert P. Crary, the first person to set foot on both the North and South poles.  The lab consists of three levels, which they call phases.  Phase I consists of the biology labs and the library and meeting rooms.  Phase II is the earth sciences and atmosphere labs.  This is where the video from Mt Erebus's eruptions are recording.  The third phase is the aquarium and more labs pertaining to marine biology.  It is quite an amazing place and talking with the scientists, or beakers as they are called here, is very interesting.

Urchins being studied

An emperor penguin wing and egg on display

Many different critters in the small aquarium.  These were in the "petting zoo"

Fish being studied

My lovely little room

Housing here is very similar to any dorm room type situation.  We live two people to a room with a shared bathroom in between each room.  There are about twenty rooms on the floor with a lounge.  We are in a three story building and downstairs there is a sauna and the laundry room.  It a small but comfortable space.  My roommate had lots of great stuff to decorate the room with.  We are able to mail stuff down here so there is quite a bit of neat stuff here.  People send down huge TVs, pillows, curtains and all kinds of stuff.  I think it is more fun to find stuff around station and turn it into something great or reuse people's stuff.

The papasan chair and the bean bag face the TV

Our little flowers above the toilet. Note: the vase is a beaker.

Facing our beds, they are divided by wardrobes.  My bed is behind the red curtain and my roommates is on the other side behind the TV.  Our chinese lanterns add soft light to the room.

Diving

Yesterday I had the opportunity to assist some of the scientists with their dive.  We went out into one of the dive huts, which are located on the sea ice.  They had drilled a large hole through the ice.  It was a bit over a meter thick.  The scientists that were diving were studying some worm colonies living here.  They dove down and took some samples, which took about 45 minutes.  The water was around 80 ft deep and I could see the rocks on the bottom.  Great visibility!  I was there to help them with their gear and tanks so they could get out of the water.  Brrrrr. 

Ugly little town



Overlooking McMurdo from a hike along the ridge

 McMurdo is an ugly little town.  It began as a naval base back in 1956, as really hasn't changed much.  It is the largest station in Antarctica and is right on the ocean.  It is built on volcanic rock so the snow gets pretty dirty once the wind starts blowing.  The hills are steep and the rocks can be treacherous, but you still can't beat the five minute commute to work.  We all walk to work and pretty much everywhere else, except the runway, which is almost 15 miles away.  The town has a few bars, the science lab, a small library, a gym, a small store, and a few other amenities.  We are only allowed to walk on marked trails when we go hiking.  This is to minimize the impact on Antarctica, as well as avoiding falling into crevasses.  Since there are limited resources here, people get very creative and we have lots of fun.  Our living quarters become a very social place.

Beautiful Place

The glacier behind Hut point.

Antarctica is one of the most beautiful places in the world.  I will give a little info on McMurdo station to begin with.  It sits on volcanic rock and overlooks the sea.  The sea is frozen now so it is a white expanse butting up to the transantarctic mountains.  There are glaciers cutting through the mountains.  The sun can be intense here, making them shine and appear blue.  The town of McMurdo itself is quite ugly, but overlooking the sea ice is well worth the view.  The ice is still very thick and goes on for several miles.  The ice is still so thick that we can land our planes on it.  In a month or so, the ice will be too thin and the runway will be moved to the permanent Ross ice shelf. 

Antarctica

I am starting a blog about my experiences in Antarctica.  I am currently working a 5 month deployment to McMurdo Station, Antarctica.  This blog will show some of the different things that go on down here.  Even though it is cold here, we have a good time with music, parties, hiking, and tons of other activities.  Don't worry, I plan to post some pictures along the way.