Marc, the cosmogenic nuclide exposure age specialist,  picks out a “small” sample  he really wants to bring home from the Miller Range. John and I look on in dismay (photo from 2007 added by rph).

This is my second trip to Antarctica with ANSMET. So while I’m really looking forward to joining my colleagues and experiencing “cold” and couldn’t keep myself from noticing what goes on behind the scenes. It started at O’Hare. On my flight we’re at least six folks going to Antarctica: a drilling engineer, a fireman, a construction worker, several microbiologists – I wonder if they’ve ever studied an ANSMET tent after a field season? During my career I’ve been fortunate to participate in many field expeditions but nothing compares to Antarctica. The breadth of science is incomprehensible, in addition to those I met in the airport, in the hotel are scientists working on measuring the neutron energy spectrum at the South Pole, just fantastic! And I haven’t gotten to Antarctica yet! The logistical footprint to do all this geology, biology, and physics is immense. People meet you at the airport, shuttle you around Christchurch, arrange for cold-weather gear, and transport us to Antarctica. This is a huge effort requiring the gracious folks of Christchurch, hotel staff, NSF and their contractors, the Air Force Reserve, the list just goes on. Everyone keeps careful track of everything, including reservations at the McMurdo Christmas Eve dinner – I’ve been told I have one. I take it this means I won’t deploy to the field until a little after that. I wonder if Santa goes to the South Pole ever? So there is a lot going on that allows us to go out and search for pieces of asteroids, the moon, Mars, maybe even one day we’ll find a piece of Mercury. So thanks to NASA, NSF, and the legions of dedicated people who keep all these moving parts working together.

-sent by Marc Caffee from Christchurch (relayed by rph)