17 October 2011 Just For Fun

What do you do for fun?

A lot of students have been asking what we do for fun down here at McMurdo Station. Here's a quick list of fun activites that we have completed:

• Play boardgames (Mike and Stephanie even discovered a boardgame from 1962)
• Watch movies
• Go to talks about science or travels
• Chat in the coffeehouse
• Hike up Observation Hill
• Hike down to Hut Point
• Go to the gym
• Play basketball or soccer in the big gym
• Climb on the indoor climbing wall

Here's another fun activity that is unique to McMurdo Station.

Observation Tube

Another recent addition to the McMurdo community went in today. Called the Observation Tube, or Ob Tube, this contraption is basically a sealed metal tube that we insert through the ice. People from around McMurdo are allowed to go down the tube. In the bottom are windows, which allow observers to peer at the world beneath the ice.

Placing the Tube

Divers Rob Robbins and Steve Rupp selecting a site for the Ob Tube that is a short walk from town and would allow folks to see some interesting animals. Next, a dive hole drilled and the Ob Tube is assembled. Once all the pieces are in place, it is lowered through the dive hole.

Freezing in Place

The Ob Tube is narrower than a dive hole. Although there are long beams at the top to make sure it doesn't fall in, the best solution to making is secure is to leave it alone for awhile and let the ice freeze right around it. The ice holds it in place securely.

Go Observe

All that is left to do is climb down the ladder and peer out the windows. Stephanie and Annamarie have both taken trips down the Ob Tube. It's a pretty cool experience.