Bell 412 slingin’ some cargo.
Friday Dec 15 was the 8th day on station for the majority of the team. In the morning, we went through environmental training in the Crary. Library, the last of our mandatory training sessions before we head out to Davis Ward. At the end, we spotted a helicopter bringing back some cargo, which was pretty cool to see. Flying helicopters is hard enough, without the hanging weight. There’s no shortage of impressive people and feats down here.
A view of “The Barrier”, otherwise known as the Ross Ice Shelf. Pressure ridges are visible in the foreground and a sliver of Scott Base to the right. Ross and many other early explorers called it “The Great Barrier” because it prevented ships from going further south. Today, ironically it’s a nice flat highway going all the way to 85° S if you’re running dogs or driving vehicles.
Later in the day, we went over our field safety plan with Kate Koons, one of the safety leads, and our science implementer, Jenny Cunningham, to make sure we’re ready to head out into the deep field. (Brian something or other was also there, but not sure what his last name was). They talked us through hazards that we might encounter-weather, wind, the stoves in our tent, for example-and how to mitigate their potential for harm. For our stoves, the rule is they can only be on if someone is in the tent AND awake. We also check we’re getting proper ventilation to minimize the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. Our team will have daily checkins with people back at McMurdo so they know we’re safe and doing well. (We’ll be updating the blog from the field, so you’ll also get updates on how we’re doing and how meteorite collecting is going.) ANSMET has a field safety guide that’s handed out to participants before we get down to the Ice, so we’re extra prepared. Kate said that always reassured her and her team that we were ready to work away from station.
Discovery Hut and Mt. Discovery.
Our team also learned that our departure date for the field has been pushed back a bit. We were originally scheduled to go out on Monday, Dec 18. Now, Brian is going out to groom our runway and start setting up camp on Dec 20 with Emilia, a volunteer from the BFC Berg Field Center-the department from which we get much of our gear, including our tents and sleeping kits). The flight window for the rest of the team starts on Dec 26. We’re the backup mission that day, meaning that if the team that has priority that day can’t fly because of weather or other factors, then we can take to the skies and then the Ice. Otherwise, It’s Dec 28 or 29 for us. We’re all super excited and ready to start meteorite hunting.
The Crary Lab tree and a very appropriate ornament. 2 ml of nog for you all!
In the meantime, we’re enjoying the sights and social scene McMurdo has to offer. More and more Christmas decorations are popping up around town. Daniela attended a salsa class led by the LDB team at Gallaghers, one of the local bars. Minako, Lauren and others went on runs and hit the gym. The ANSMET women are planning on running the Hut Point 10K on Sunday. We got our bib numbers and our mission now is to find costumes for the race. We’ve already spotted some cool costumes around town, including a donut. Erin is hoping to find the inflatable T-Rex. The rest of us are still doing recon.
McMurdo as viewed from Hut Point, with the ice fog creeping over Observation Hill. That fog is a harbinger of summer on the Ross ice shelf but not very welcome, as it messes up flight schedules pretty badly.
Wish us luck- on the costume search and the course-apparently it’s really hilly!
Lauren at Hut Point, with a couple of pinniped friends (Leptonychotes weddellii)) in the background. Now THAT would be a great costume for the McMurdo 10K.
-from Daniela, with pics from Minako and Lauren