2017 / 2018 Field Season – Page 2 – ANSMET, The Antarctic Search for Meteorites

Successful pull-out to Shackleton

January 16, 2018

We made it!! We were successfully pulled out today to Shackleton. The wind had picked up a bit last night and the temperature had dropped even more. It was really cold this morning but so very beautiful. The snow put on a wonderful display of sparkle and glitter to...

Back in McMurdo, taking the “reek” out of recon…

January 16, 2018

Team B is back in McMurdo after a 400 mile journey on a 70+ year old aircraft. A 1944 (modernized) DC-3 (Basler) was our ride today, getting us back to McMurdo just in time for dinner. Its sister aircraft built in 1942 (and owned by the same company) carried...

Behind the Scenes: Francis Sheil, Head Chef at Shackleton Glacier Camp

January 15, 2018

A native of Lawrence Kansas, Francis Sheil found his way to Antarctica in 2007. He was an executive chef at a small restaurant with travel aspirations. A friend of his worked in the program here and, after a few phone calls, he found himself at the bottom of the...

A new day tomorrow

January 15, 2018

Our pull-out got canceled today around 2:30pm. Weather conditions at Shackleton Glacier Camp were too treacherous to fly in and didn't improve even though weather conditions here at Mt. Cecily are still splendid with crystal clear blue skies and no clouds. Barb and I have rolled out our sleeping...

What is this white stuff falling from the sky?

January 15, 2018

We awoke today prepared to make our way back to McMurdo. However, early this morning, camp was heavily fogged and by the time the two-hour hold passed it was snowing and visibility was a few 100m at most. We'll be in Shackleton for at least another night and, if...

Pull-out update

January 14, 2018

Today is the most beautiful day we had all season long. Barely any wind, brilliant blue skies, no clouds to be seen in any direction of the sky. We can even see the tips of mountains to the north (Davis Ward?) so clear is it today. The temperature is...

Pinnacles and meteorites

January 14, 2018

Yesterday afternoon the winds died down a bit and we were able to head out to our "achondrite orchard" ice field to pull the flags. We had A LOT of flag on that ice field. And achondrite orchard gave us one last good-bye present: 6 more meteorites including another...

Lazy Sunday in SHG

January 14, 2018

Sunday in Shackleton. Beautiful mountains, phenomenal weather, fed three square meals a day, our own tents, no more 'Poo bucket'; what more could we ask for? In reality, there isn't an enormous amount to do around here, but while away the time. Starting with a boring note, and ending this...

25 things you may not have realized about life in the Antarctic deep field…

January 13, 2018

We are still waiting for that flight to McMurdo and rumour has it Tuesday could be our first chance. In lieu of a blog post comprising what we filled our time with today, we offer instead a list of "25 things about ANSMET life that you may not have...

Pull-out or not to Pull-out

January 13, 2018

Friday we woke up to howling 25 knots winds and -5F (-20C) with a windchill of -40F, so a normal day here in the field. We have finished searching our beloved moraine and besides pulling flags we are pretty much done with our work here. We have recovered all...

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