In the last several years I have seen rather dramatic examples of how people have changed the environment. In the US, as I write, one of the worst oil spills ever is changing the Gulf of Mexico, deserts grow due to water consumption in the west, while in the east, mountains are removed to extract fossil fuels. I have often wondered…Can we change for the better?
As I write the temperature outside is -81 F! This time I am writing from 40,000 ft … our flight has successfully crossed the Atlantic and we are flying over eastern Canada. I checked the London Volcanic Ash Advisory Center this morning before we left and I was pleased to see that the ash cloud had dissipated. As I reflect on yesterday, I can say that it was another successful day at the Lake E conference.
Leading project scientists, Julie Brigham Grette and Martin Melles
Germany morning of day three… Our luggage arrived yesterday so we have clean clothes!
In the last two days I have seen more bikes and Smart cars than I have seen in a long time!
We have arrived in Germany! Unfortunately our luggage has not! Oh well… at least this time I am not dependant on lots of heavy clothing for survival. Of course with Eyjafallajokull, the Icelandic Volcano we almost did not make it. As we flew across the English Channel this AM I was able to see a high altitude brown haze on the horizon which according to the London VAAC must have been the ash plum.
East coast of England with volcanic ash cloud.
In the last year not a day has passed that I have not found myself reflecting on the incredible adventure to Lake El’gygytgyn. This experience continues to influence my life and my classroom in numerous ways. Although it has been a little over a year since my return from Lake E, this week marks a new chapter in my expedition. I have traded in my heavy ECWG parka for a white lab coat! Julie and the other members of the science team invited me to participate in the 5th International Lake El’gygytgyn Workshop to be held at the University of Cologne. Polar TREC has generously agreed to fund my on-going participation with the Lake El’gygytgyn Project.
For those of you who have been following regularly... today I am posting this journal from a broad-band internet connection! I made it to Moscow! I just took my first shower in a month! I also called home via skype read some email and now I need to pack my bags one last time before I leave Russia. I am a little disappointed that I did not get to see Red Square and other sites in Moscow, but at this point, I am happy to be headed home. I have 4 hours in the hotel Salut before I fly out again... After flying from Pevek to Sergut, Sergut to Moscow, I will fly Moscow to London, London to Chicago, Chicago to Philadelphia, Philadelphia to Greensboro!!!!
It is hard for me to write this without getting a little emotional... It has been such a privilege for me to join this expedition!...
According to plan, at this point, I should have been in the air between Pevek and Moscow.
This morning I went to shower so I would feel a little better on the long flight from Pevek to Moscow. When I returned to the room, I learned the disappointing news that our plane never left Moscow...consequently we had no plane for the return trip. Now my return flights to the US will also need to be re-booked.
The temperature is dropping which is good for the work at the lake.
Unfortunately, because of another worn part on the drill rig, the drilling at the lake has stopped until replacement parts are delivered with the flight from Moscow.
Such is the pace of life working in the Siberian Arctic.
Today I worked on editing and reducing my collection of over two thousand digital images from...
After a long day waiting yesterday, we got word that the plane that was cancelled yesterday was coming today... very fortunate for us, the expedition, and the town of Pevek. Normally in the wintertime, the plane from Moscow only comes once every two weeks. As many of you are reading this I will be in the air somewhere between Pevek and Moscow.
For Pevek, fresh food is getting scarce, on the last shopping trip no fruit was to be found and vegetables were all looking very wilted. For the expedition, the replacement parts for the drilling operation are on the way. And for us we are on our way home.
So why did I come? For science, education, adventure... I found all that and much more. Although at this point I have no idea if I will ever return to Siberia, if given the opportunity...
A frequent question before I left was; What will it be like to work on a large international expedition? There is so much to say in this regard. A neat symbol of the expedition and continual reminder of our international group was the flagpole beside the office and lab. Once all the country colors were raised, It was interesting to see the number of times when crew members or scientists in camp would stop and pause for a moment as they looked at the colors!
Another fun example of the mix of culture was visible in the foot ware. This was particularly noticeable in Pevek before we went to the lake. I was amazed at how the local residents navigate icy streets and stairs while wearing stylish boots and shoes.
Listening to conversations on the rig, in the office, or kitchen was also...
Today is Easter Sunday here in Russia. A quiet day here with many of our group sleeping late. I will be here in Pevek two more days before I fly to Moscow. I have edited several more videos that I recorded while at the lake. The first video is another in my series of conversations with Julie. Following up yesterday's video about measurements in the physical properties laboratory, in this video, Julie discusses some of the first science results from the lake.
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Here is another that Julie and I had fun discussing and I had fun putting together... This really should have been posted on April 1st , but, because of the earlier delays, we were not yet at the lake. In addition, until arriving back in Pevek, I have not had the time to work on the video! It is not definitely...
Here is another of my stories from the camp, a tour of the Physical Properties Measurement Laboratory. In the lab, we measure various properties of the sediment cores to collect an initial set of data from the cores as soon as the cores are brought back into camp. We measure temperature, diameter, seismic properties and magnetic properties. We were hoping to measure the density of the sediment, but the instrument used for this needs a small amount of radioactive material. Due to Russian import regulations, we were not able to transport this measuring instrument into the country. The measurement lab is run by Catalina Gebhardt and assisting her with her work is Carsten Meyer-Jacobs, both from Germany. Although both communicate in excellent English, they were a little hesitant to...
Today has been a bittersweet day...I did not go out to the rig, but instead packed my bags while waiting for the arrival of the helicopter to begin my long voyage home.
Although I am now writing from Pevek, my story is far from over. There are more stories I want to share. (Particularly now that I am back to a slightly higher speed internet connection!)
For starters, I have been working on several more videos to introduce you to a bit more of the work I have been doing for the last several weeks. If you have been following along you were introduced to Drilling 101 back on April 5th. That video showed the drilling basics of tripping pipe and the work from the perspective of a driller. Once we started drilling for sediment, the science team shifted into high gear. Here are two...
My time here at the lake is winding down. If the weather holds, and it looks like it will, the helicopter will come and I will fly out tomorrow.
Out on the rig, the down-hole logging team is recording another hundred meters of the borehole, so many of us from the day shift stayed back in camp today. I spent some time in the core logging laboratory. Volker Wennerich, from Germany showed me some of the diatoms in the lake sediments.
Diatoms are microscopic animals with tests (hard shells) made of silica. The number and kind of diatoms in the sediment is a good indicator of the past climate history of the lake. In times when the lake was warm with more nutrients, there were more diatoms, in times when the lake was frozen year-around, there are fewer.
Five of us also went out on...
As I write I am out on the drilling platform, the drilling crew is working on a repair so the drilling has temporarily been paused. The wind is really picking up so I don't think I will go out for a walk... So now is a good time to tell you about yesterday afternoon.
I went out to the rig with the lunch bus because of working the previous night. When I arrived, everyone was really working hard. The transition to the narrow diameter pipe was clearly a good decision, earlier our core recovery percentage was not as good, but all morning, the drillers were achieving a near 100% recovery. This was great news continued on into the afternoon. I was helping cut, measure and catalog the core samples as they came "on-deck". Around five in the evening, we noticed a few strange light...
After arriving at Lake E, I promised Addie Holland and Kristina Brady that I would go out with them to the rig for the night shift one night. I kept postponing this until they were about ready to give up on me. Finally last night everything seemed to work for my schedule.... well everything except for sleep. I was supposed to get back to camp early yesterday so that I could get a nap before dinner and catch the 7:30 crew change bus to the rig. Unfotunately, I never saw the afternoon nap...
We were optimistic when we arrived because the day shift started a successful run of coring with the new small diameter pipe. Unfortunately, a bent drill pipe made our first job of the night "tripping-out" the pipe. When over 450 meters of pipe need to be raised to the surface, that...
Happy Easter to every one back home... Here in Russia, Easter will be celebrated next week!
I have been working on a series of videos... conversations with Julie Brigham-Grette about Lake E, geology, wildlife and our project. Here is the first... a description of our location here at Lake E.
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I was late getting up this morning and I almost missed the tundra bus that was to take the day shift out to the drilling platform... (more on that later) When I got out to the rig, I was helping measure and document the sediment cores that we were extracting. It is so exciting to see the sediments that have been buried in the lake for more than 2 million years! The deeper we drill, the older the sediments, the more time it takes to "trip-in and trip-out" the drill pipe. I am...
After one night in the igloo, the bed felt pretty good last night... I just did not spend enough time in it! The down-hole loggers finished their work around mid-night so the night shift started preparing the rig for switching to the narrow diameter pipe.
When I arrived with the morning crew, the pipe rack was loaded down with the HQ pipe. The first job of the day was to "trip-in" all the narrow diameter pipe. The larger diameter PQ pipe will stay in the hole as a protective casing while we are drilling with the narrower HQ pipe. By lunch time the HQ was down in the bore hole and we were ready to start drilling again.
I came back with the lunch bus as it is my intention to go back out on the platform with the night shift... I suppose if I can survive the night in the...
Today was another full day out here at Lake E. On the drill rig we recovered more sediment cores today than many of the previous days. As I mentioned yesterday on one of the Ask the team questions, I've been occupied with many different activities. Yesterday I built a wooden cabinet for one of the water pumps. This simple task was considerably more difficult here at the lake. As with many construction projects, we had to make several trips to the hardware store... except at Lake E where can you go? Fortunately, the crew has anticipated such needs and we brought several containers loaded with hardware. These containers had what we needed and we successfully completed the project.
Today, we needed fresh water to drink while out on the lake so we bored a hole in the ice and...
I wanted to share the video about ice safety. If you read yesterday's post, I told you about working with Volker Neth our German-Canadian Ice engineer. Here he is in his own words describing work on the ice platform.
[video]
It was good to talk with many of you this morning... THANK YOU for your patience. As you could see with the 8 or 10 (I lost count) dropped phone calls, communication from here at the lake is very difficult. I am glad that many of you were able to hold on. If you have a question that you did not get the opportunity to ask during the web-cast, please log on to the "Ask the Team" part of this web site.
Last night was a treat! After we returned to camp from the drill rig, we looked back across the lake to watch a beautiful full moon rise over...
Today has been a busy day... and fortunately, for all the activity, the weather has been spectacular. Not a cloud in the sky and temperature around 0 F. I can't believe how warm it was today.
The major activity in the middle of the day was the scheduled helicopter flight... so the day shift did not go out to the rig. This was actually a good thing because the night shift ran out of drilling mud...(a special type of clay called bentonite is used to lubricate the drill hole) So in the morning many of the science team caught up on emails and paper work as we waited for the arrival of the helicopter. A little after Noon, the sound of the helicopter was heard in camp and we all went out to the heli-pad.
The flight brought several important things, new drillers (Jerry and Joe...
LIVE FROM IPY EVENT COMMING SOON!! WE WANT TO TALK TO YOU!Today was another logging day out on the drilling platform. Because of the continued difficulty extracting sediment, it is very important that we have measurements from the down-hole logging team. Since we have reached a sediment depth of approximately 200 meters, the German logging team was scheduled to drop their probes down the borehole today.
I mentioned in the journal yesterday, that if something breaks, it is important to have enough equipment and tools and the right people to fix the problem. I saw that process in action today. The other day, one of the plastic tubes for the sediment collection was stuck in one of the drilling tools. While the down hole logging team was working, the drillers were not too busy...
LIVE FROM IPY EVENT COMMING SOON!! WE WANT TO TALK TO YOU!
I spent a good part of the day out on the drill rig again... the longer I am here, the more I learn and the more useful I can be. Whether turning pipe wrenches, cleaning the floor, or packing the sediment cores, there are many jobs on the drill rig.
As I learned before I came, the Lake El'gygytgyn drilling project, is the most northern drilling project ever undertaken. I often wondered... Why is this project so unique? For one thing, it is very difficult working out on the middle of a frozen lake in the middle of the Siberian tundra. If equipment breaks, we hope someone can fix it, because there is no repairperson to call. If a part needs to be replaced, we hope someone anticipated the problem and brought a spare... there...
Although the wind is still blowing, it is not as hard as it was last night. Today was another day for drilling out on the platform. Our results continued to be mixed... sometimes we were pulling up good quality sediment core, other times we had trouble with sandy sediments.
Between "tripping" in and out the drill and cores, we had time to examine some of the sediments. Pavel Minyuk, the lead Russian scientist taught me about the different types of sediments in the cores we were bringing to the surface. After several meters of lost sediment, we found this lump of very hard clay.
We also examined some of the coarse sediment under the microscope, including this piece of Vivienite.
After several difficult shots, (attempts at drilling for core) we extracted several...
Since the US team arrived in camp the weather has been spectacular, the air has been clear and calm. Well, change is in the wind. Finally, around lunchtime today, we were pleased to see that the flags that represent most of the participating countries flying high in the Arctic wind.
As the day went on, the winds have steadily increased. With a strong north wind blowing, the down-hole logging team finishing their 30 hour run of measurements, Volker Neth and I went out to survey the ice road on the vestikhot. For the first time since arriving, I can say I was really cold... riding on top (not inside!) of a vestikhot at 25 mph at -20 F is COLD!!! The batteries in my video camera were freezing, so I was holding the camera on the exhaust pipe to try to keep it warm... but that...
Today was a day for scientific logging of the borehole. Because of the earlier problems we want to continue the scientific study with extra care. We have retrieved sediment cores to a depth of approximately 150 meters below the lake bottom (320 meters below the ice). Since the drilling has once again encountered sandy sediments, which are difficult to drill, the science team decided yesterday to log the drill hole to be sure and acquire a complete record of the sediments we have already extracted.
What does it mean to log the hole? The whole reason for drilling the sediments in Lake E is to learn about the past climate history of the Arctic regions. We can learn about the climate by studying different physical properties of the sediments. Some of the properties that we measure...
I think I may be adapting to life here in Siberia. This evening I had my first trip to the banya... after cleaning up, I walked back to my balok wearing only a T-shirt and light pants. When I paused to look at my thermometer and saw that the temperature was -16 F!
I wanted to show you a few images from yesterday... For my first trip in the Vestikhot (like a modified tank) I got to ride "shot-gun" while Zhenya drove us out to the permafrost bore hole that was drilled last fall. Martin and Jochem, the German down-hole logging crew wanted to inspect the hole to determine if they could safely deploy their scientific instruments down the bore-hole. This hole has some added challenges because there is a thermister string (temperature sensors) already in the hole. This 140 meter...
After the helicopter left the lake yesterday, I took a tour of the camp. I wish you could have come along... so here is the next best thing.
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P.S. Today I had my first ride in, behind, and on top of a Vestikhot!
T-Mart...staying warm at Lake E
You really can see Alaska from here!!! During our afternoon walk, I looked to the East and believe it or not, I could see Betsey Wilkening over in Alaska doing research on the snow up in Barrow!
Take some time to click over to the left and check out Betsey's journal about life up at BARC in Barrow Alaska! She will be hosting a Live From the International Polar Year Webcast in just a couple days. Be sure and sign up for this live event.
We are having such a good time in Pevek, we think we may stay!
Some of the others thought they saw a walrus laying out on the Arctic ocean... upon closer inspection they realized that it was wearing some big fur hat...
If you are still guessing... look at today's date! Hope you have...
We have finally arrived! After 12 days of travel and waiting, we have finally arrived at Lake El'gygytgyn. This morning we woke to clear and calm weather... perfect weather for a helicopter flight. (No, not April Fools!) We hauled all of our gear out to the airport, waited for the paperwork and proper clearance, then loaded the helicopter.
We flew across Pevek Bay, then miles and miles of tundra en route to Bilibino. In Bilibino we picked up the drill bits and other necessary equipment that were needed for drilling at the lake.
Julie brought along a detailed topographic map of the region and we were able to follow the course of our flight. After about an hour and a half, we knew were getting close and smiles were shared all around when we looked...
Many of you are wondering as to why our team, (currently 7- three Germans and 4 Americans) are spending so much time in Pevek. Clearly, it was not part of the original plan to fly ¾ of the way around the world to spend over a week waiting at the Pevek weather station.
In mid-March as we were preparing for our journey, spirits were high when we received the reports that the team at the lake was collecting the first sediment cores. After many weeks of delay due to weather and things beyond our control, drilling was progressing well and the science team estimates that they retrieved sediments containing climate data dating back to more than 1 million years ago! Then, right after we began our journey, the drilling equipment broke. The team at the lake carefully proceeded to a back-up plan...
While staying in the Pevek meteorology station, I got to thinking... which is a dangerous thing for a science teacher... How can a weather junkie like me not find out about the meteorology station just three stories down stairs? While I am at home, I am a CocoRaHS observer (NC-GL-13 Browns Summit 3.2NW). While I am here in Russia, I miss not getting up every morning to make my precipitation measurements! (For those of you who do not know about CocoRaHS, it is a program across the US that coordinates citizen weather observations with the US National Weather Service. Visit us on the web and join the ranks of observers!)
I spoke with Rita, our translator, this morning and I got permission to join one of the meteorologists when they went out to make afternoon measurements. Rita then...
Progress has been made transporting the needed drilling equipment from the US to Moscow and from Moscow to Siberia. As this important cargo travels around the planet, we continue to wait here in Pevek. All of the experienced members of the team understand that this is one of the many challenges of undertaking scientific research in remote Arctic regions. We fill our days by taking turns on the one computer that has dial-up internet access (9 people!), having great conversations and getting some other work done.
Today brought another surprise... day light-savings time! I did not realize until yesterday that Russia does not change time on the same schedule as the US...consequently all of the Americans on the team had to spring forward twice this year!
Since the weather was nice this...
There are several puzzles in today's journal...
First puzzle: Today we wanted to visit the Pevek museum. Since most stores do not open until 10 or 11 in the morning, we decided it would be best to wait until about 11. After dressing in our warm clothes, Martin, Jochem, Kristina, Addie and I set out on a short walk to the museum. After arriving, we were disappointed to find the door locked. We spent a long time trying to determine when (or if) the museum would be open today. From this sign, can you determine when the museum is open?
We could not agree about the schedule posted on the sign. Later, several of us returned and were able to tour the museum. We all wished for our translator so we could learn more about Chukotka. The first room of the museum has exhibits in Natural history....
Today was a slow day... we are still in the waiting place. Although some good news has arrived, we will likely be in Pevek several more days. Arrangements have been made for some of the equipment that is needed down at the lake to be flown in from the USA and other parts of Russia. Until all the material arrives, we continue to wait.
After our 4 pm dinner, we were planning to walk back to the Roshydromet station. Since the weather took a turn for the worse, we decided that walking 4 km home was not a good idea. In spite of the wind and snow, several of us went to the magazine(grocery store) to purchase some necessities.
This walk was a good test for our cold weather gear. I am looking forward to tomorrow, as I will be going to school. I have been invited to speak to...
I am still in Pevek. The good news is that arrangements are underway to secure the needed equipment for the drilling operation at the lake. Today, as we were waiting in Pevek, we were invited to visit the Pevek School. Addie, Kristina, Jochem, Martin and I joined our translator Rita for a visit to the school. The school here in Pevek has been recently renovated; in fact, it just opened for students in February.
When we arrived, we learned that school was not in session and students were on holiday. However some students and teachers were present and we were invited to attend a seminar with where students were giving various presentations. We were invited into a large auditorium where we were introduced to the students and teachers. The first speaker was a student who gave a presentation...
We are in the waiting place...
After thousands of miles and days of travel to know our final destination is just 200 miles away is a little disappointing. As I am learning, seldom is geologic drilling a smooth and problem free undertaking. To expect anything different at the northern most drilling site in such a remote location of the world would be foolish. Although we all want to get down to the lake, at this point our team needs to remain in Pevek to coordinate some replacement supplies for equipment that has been damaged or lost in the drilling process at the lake. This morning Julie, Volker and Kristina traveled to a nearby mining camp to consult with a local mining company.
Meanwhile Addie, Jochem, Martin and I spent time getting to know each other. We discussed family, culture...
I am starting this entry from the air somewhere over Northern Siberia...
Today was a busy day. We got up early 6:45am (11:45 pm the previous night on home time) to eat a quick breakfast before heading in to down-town Moscow. Marianna, Volker and the US team went to a briefing at the US embassy in Moscow. We gathered at the Embassy gate and several embassy personnel from the Science and Environment office met us. After passing security, they ushered us into the embassy compound and to a large briefing room. At the briefing, Julie Brigham-Grette gave a presentation about the Lake E project to an international audience of diplomats and embassy support personel from many different countries.
We were pleased that Ambassador Beryle attended part of the briefing. In his remarks to...
For those of you not from Greensboro or who don't get the Greensboro paper, our expedition was featured on page A1 of the Greensboro News and Record the morning I left!
Here is the article: Mission Siberia
All packed and ready to go...
I left Greensboro ahead of schedule on Saturday and after waiting much of the day in the O'Hare airport in Chicago, I met the rest of the US portion of the science team. More introductions later... Julie Brigham-Grette, Addie Holland and Kristina Brady and I were all on the same flight. I was concerned on how uncomfortable I would be on a 9 hour flight in Economy class... as you can see it was very difficult...NOT.
I was fortunate enough to have the 3 middle seats on the 767 airplane! We flew into Moscow's Domodedodovo Airport....
With two days to go, the time has come to start packing. I have a small selection of clothes, sleeping bag and pad, personal items and of course Extreme Cold Weather Gear (ECWG). Considering that my cold weather boots weigh five pounds, I am a bit concerned about fitting everything into the two large duffle bags that I will be taking to Siberia. For those of you that have not seen one of my school talks, you may be wondering what the ECWG is like. With apologies to MR. USA and thanks to photoshop... this short video will give you an idea...
[video]
P. S. After many weeks of delay, two days ago I received an email saying that the lake drilling had finally started, as I write, a new email arrived saying that today the drilling had reached 63m below the lake bottom. We estimate that...
In one week, I will be boarding the plane for Russia, but today was my last day at school. Next week is spring break so today was a day for good-byes. In class, students had fun trying on some of the extreme cold weather gear that will keep me warm and safe while working in Siberia.
Clearly if Griffen were to join the expedition, he would need a smaller pair of Carharts ...although he fit with plenty of room to spare in one of my duffel bags!
The great administration and faculty coordinated a going away party at break time! (Apologies to all who can read the Russian, Ms. Vance (who is fluent in Russian) said that the cake decorator at the bakery could not figure out the Cyrillic alphabet in order properly form the letters.)
I will miss you all!...
February 28, 2009 Survive!Before we get started on the subject of survival training... late Friday afternoon, the ARCUS computer specialist told some of us to go out to see the Ravens that were cleaning up after the sled dogs in the parking lot. Extra Credit Question... what is the word used to describe a large group of Ravens?
Our final day of orientation was survival training. Tuck Brouhard, of LTR Alaska (Learn to Return) was our instructor. I will spare you the images of lacerations, broken bones, bear attacks, and frostbite that we viewed right after lunch. Considering my personal experience with chainsaws, I am pleased that I was OK looking at all of these pictures. (For those of you who do not know, five years ago I severely cut into my leg with a chainsaw.)We...
As part of our Polar TREC orientation, we have taken a number of field trips around Fairbanks. We've visited the University of Alaska large animal research station, U of A Museum of the North, BP world championship ice carving competition, the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory permafrost tunnel and the Alyeska Pipeline.
Musk Ox! The University has a large research program to study these unique creatures. Believe it or not, these creatures may hold a key to the efficient production of bio-fuels. Musk oxen live on very poor food sources, yet they survive in one of the harshest environments on the planet. Scientists at the research station are studying how the animals digest the poor quality food and convert it into energy. The small organisms in the digestive tracts of...
OrientationSo you thought I was going to Russia...Why am I in Alaska? I am attending the 2009 Polar TREC orientation. I along with 19 other teachers, who will be traveling to the Arctic and Antarctic, are learning how to communicate with the world from the ends of the earth. The week has been very busy and I have mixed emotions. In some ways, I feel like I have learned a lot, in other ways I can't believe I will be going home in just a few days... There is so much left to do.Our days have been packed with technology lessons, learning about Extreme Cold Weather Gear, practice sessions and encouragement from some Polar TREC alumni from previous years.
Yesterday I made my first satellite phone call, after considerable trial and error; I sent my first email via sat phone. In addition,...
Tuesday 02.24.2009What a morning! I am in Fairbanks for Polar TREC orientation with other teachers who will be working with scientific research in the Arctic or Antarctic. Many of us were distracted Tuesday morning as news came in that this morning would be the finish of the Yukon Quest. So we paused our busy orientation schedule to dress in winter gear and walk down town. The temperature was about -1 F on the frozen Chena River. The Yukon Quest is the longest international sled dog race that began in Whitehorse Yukon, Canada and ends in downtown Fairbanks. www.yukonquest.com. While waiting, we all had the opportunity to meet Lance Mackey, four time Yukon Quest champion and Iditarod winner. After waiting in the cold, the announcer told the crowd that spotters at the edge of town...
As I write, I am in a comfortable warm hotel in Fairbanks, AK. I am attending the Polar TREC orientation along with teachers who will be traveling to other parts of the Arctic or Antarctic. Outside the temperature is -1 F and dropping...a little harsh knowing that when I left home yesterday, spring flowers were blooming in my yard back home in North Carolina.
The flights yesterday from Greensboro to Fairbanks are the most I have ever traveled in one day. I was amazed by the view... WHITE... the world has been white from the time I left Minneapolis, MN. If this part of the world has such a high albedo, (Ask an earth science student if you don't know this word), no wonder it is so cold.
I was getting very tired of sitting on the flight to Anchorage and was pleased when the...
The light snow that fell last night and this morning's two- hour delay provided a nice time for me to catch up on some details... As I am preparing Siberia, I was looking for an easy to pack symbol of Greensboro Day School that I could take along on the expedition.
The GDS Bengal will find a spot in the top of my backpack. Look for him throughout my journal in the next few months. But... before I leave, he needs a name! If you have a good suggestion for a name, let me know. Please visit the "Ask the Team" link at the top of this page. Be sure to include your school and name at the top of your message.
I will also be taking an expedition flag. Look for pictures of the flag flying along with the Stars and Stripes in the arctic winds above Lake E....
To all the Northern Nighthawks:
I had a great time talking with you on Friday!
You had great questions and I hope many of you who did not get to ask questions in person will stop by the "Ask the Team" link on this site and send your questions to me. I know many students from around the country will have similar questions. I look forward to hearing from you.
A special message to the citizens of Mrs. Williams, Wolfington and Mr. Andrews, Pawville. I will be taking your class flags with me to Siberia. Look for pictures of your class flags flying in the freezing arctic winds above Lake El'gygytgyn!
Stay Warm
It is hard for me to believe that the drilling expedition is underway. I will be leaving for Siberia in less than two months. In the mean time, I have been busy preparing to host Dr. Julie Brigham-Grette at Greensboro Day School. Julie will be speaking at several school assemblies, giving an evening presentation as well as speaking to a number of classes. If you live near Greensboro, we would love to see you at the Thursday evening presentation: Understanding Climate Change, Learning from Earth's natural experiments. This event will be held in the Greensboro Day School Center for the Arts at 7:15 p.m. on Thursday, January 29th.
For more info: http://students.greensboroday.org/8thgrade/DrJBGatGDS.pdf
Many of you have asked for some additional information about the...
A week ago I received an email with some great news....
Dear Timothy R. Martin,
The purpose of this letter is to inform you of your medical clearance status to the polar regions. Janet Regier, MD, Medical Director of the Health Unit at the National Science Foundation has approved your medical clearance on November 14, 2008. You are physically qualified for the 2009 season.
This is great news considering the amount of paper work I filled out and sent to the National Science Foundation doctors.So what do doctors need to know if you are headed to a place where it may take days to respond to a 911 call? Pages and pages of information! Here is a sample from the letter that I had to present to my doctor and dentist.
Dear Doctor:
Because of the harsh...
It is a wet and cold day here in central NC... well... I guess cold is a relative term. I am trying to convince myself that in a few months I will be thinking that today's temperature of 3 degrees C is quite warm. On Thanksgiving Day when I checked the temperature for the closest town to Lake E, I saw that the temperature was -38 degrees C!
Considering that this is Thanksgiving weekend and many of you have spent time with family, I thought it would be appropriate to introduce you to my family. As I mentioned in the expedition overview, my family likes to spend a lot of time in the mountains. We were hoping to do some climbing over this long weekend; unfortunately, the rain on Saturday and Sunday has kept us indoors. On Friday, we enjoyed a hike at Hanging Rock State Park with some...
19 November, 2008
In North Carolina, I awoke this morning to our first "cold" weather of the season - cold enough to freeze a thin crust of ice over my Koi pond. The thin pond ice could not even support the weight of my shoe. This got me thinking about how strong the ice will need to be on Lake El'gygytgyn to support the 180,000 lb dill rig. Latest measurements put Lake E's ice at 30 cm - still too thin!
Along with the cold weather, last night I received a long awaited email from Julie Brigham-Grette, the lead scientist on the expedition. After numerous delays and mountains of government paperwork, the final documents have arrived and the local and national governments have granted the final approval to begin drilling. Today was to be the first day of permafrost drilling on...
