Here is a short video that summarizes all of the steps in collecting an ice core using the Deep Ice Sheet Coring (DISC) drill. Thomas Bauska of Oregon State University helped me put together this video. Enjoy!
It is hard to believe but I am already home! I arrived home sooner than I thought due to a rapid sequence of unanticipated flights! I am certainly exhausted after the long journey! The WAIS camp closed down more quickly than we thought and I left WAIS only to find myself on a plane back to Christchurch less than 12 hours after leaving the field! 36 hours after that, I collected my luggage in Flagstaff and arrived at home safe and sound!
I didn't realize how much I missed sunsets, the night sky, and easy access to fresh vegetables. I also love having a warm bed and, of course, a flush toilet!
I have lots more to post about WAIS Divide and since I am now back in the land of internet, stay tuned for videos and photos that I was unable to send while out in the deep field.
On January 25th we finished drilling! The final depth of the ice collected was 2561.57m! We collected over 1,000m of ice this season and are hopefully on track to finish drilling next year. Replicate coring will hopefully follow in the 2011-2012 season. It is hard to believe that the season is already coming to a close! It feels like we just got here and got the operation up and running. Now, we will spend the next several days cleaning up camp, cleaning out the arch, and preparing for another great season of drilling next year.
Most of our crew left camp today. They all headed back to McMurdo Station and are preparing to catch a flight off of the continent. The rest of us will follow in a few days. Until then, we will be busy getting all of the cargo ready for next year. All of the...
We have one of the best and coldest commutes to work out here at WAIS. WE often take snow machines to and from the drill arch to camp around meal times and when we are moving lots of people and cargo around. This video is a little summary of that work commute on a snow machine. It is a short commute, only about 1.5 minutes, and rarely is there traffic! We are usually really bundled up to stay warm and always wear our helmets for safety. Many of our snow machines have sleds on the back so we can take 5-7 people to the arch or town at a time. We even have a gas station for our snow machines!
The premix
Mr. Wesche came to visit WAIS Divide! What a great surprise! It is rare to have a friend just hop over for a visit when you are in the deep field in Antarctica.Body: We had a special guest for the day here at WAIS Divide! Mr. Wesche, a PolarTREC teacher who is at Byrd Camp, flew in with his crew to come visit. I'd like to think he came just to see me but I think the ice cores were more exciting! I got to take Mr. Wesche around camp and show him how our little camp on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet differed from Byrd Camp. Both Byrd and WAIS Divide have the same type of buildings and the same number of people.
Apparently, the only real difference between the camps is that we have the drill arch, or the large structure that is dedicated to the DISC ice core drill. In 1967-1968 there was an...
WAIS Divide, Antarctica: Our lives out here at WAIS as core handlers and ice core drillers revolves around ice but, we must have water (in its liquid form) to survive! Even though we are surrounded by snow we have to put lots fuel and energy into turning that snow into potable water.Our camp uses about 200 gallons of water a day for dishes, cooking, drinking water, laundry, showers, etc. On average our camp has a population of about 45 people. That is about 5 gallons of water per person per day. Compare that to the average American, who consumes about 90 gallons of water a day, and we are doing quite well on the water conservation front. However, most of the consumption of water back home is used for waste removal and showers. Since we are only allowed one five-minute shower a week and...
WAIS Divide, Antarctica: Our primary goal here at WAIS Divide is to drill and collect ice cores and get it shipped back to the United States. My job, along with several other core handlers, is to document and inspect the ice for anything interesting and document it so we know at what depth and quality (the presence of cracks, fractures or breaks in the ice) the ice is in when it is collected. Rarely do we see anything other than clear ice with some scratches and cracks but around 1600 m deep we retrieved a core with a visible dark band in it! We think that this layer is a tephra layer, or a volcanic ash deposit! It is very rare to see such layers with the naked eye in ice cores so we all feel very lucky. Enjoy this video I made for Ice Stories with our ice chemistry expert Dr. Ryan Banta...
We have now been coring for about two and half weeks and we are finally getting the hang of drilling, documenting, and packing the ice cores. We work 24 hours a day in three shifts. During each shift three drillers and three core handlers all work at the same time. The arch itself is split into the two sections. The warmer (-10°C) of the two sides is where the drillers work. The entire drilling set-up is contained on this side of the arch. The cold side of the arch (-26.9 °C) is where I work and it is typically about 10-15°C colder on the core handling side than the drilling side. The cores are pushed through the wall from the driller's side to the core handling side so the ice is never exposed to the warmer temperatures. However, as the days go on here in Antarctica, cold is becoming a...
With flights constantly coming and going with cargo, fuel and passengers, monitoring the weather conditions here at WAIS Divide is a critical and ongoing task. The weather here augments conditions reported from the South Pole Station and is used as an indicator of general conditions on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. We have two personnel who usually complete the weather reports but our primary weatherman is Mike.
While we have a weather station that records variables including temperature, wind speed, wind direction, visibility, and the height of the ceiling, we often have back-ups and different methodologies for crosschecking the output of the weather station. The video in this post summarizes one such check.
Often measuring the height of the ceiling, or clouds, can be difficult and the...
WAIS Divide, Antarctica: We are certainly guaranteed a white holiday celebration here at WAIS Divide. The driller and core handlers will continue to work and collect ice cores so that we can reach our goal of coring to a depth of ~2500 m by the end of the season. However, we will take a break long enough so that all of camp can celebrate together with a nice dinner on the 25th (Friday here in Antarctica). Rumor has it that we will be having lots of cookies and treats in addition to a wonderful meal prepared by our star chef, John.This is a hard time of year to be away from family and friends but our WAIS community is certainly like a second family. We will have a gift exchange and lots of mail has been pouring over the past few days so there will be some presents from home to open too!...
Many of our crew will be celebrating birthdays while down on the ice so I thought I'd share what an ice sheet birthday looks like! Not so different from home but everyone misses family and friends so we try to make it a special day here in camp. Last week we celebrated the birthdays of Ryan Banta and Peter Neff. Despite being busy and working all day, everyone, including the camp staff, went out of their way to make sure they had memorable birthdays! Both Ryan and Peter had special birthday cakes and birthday cards. Ryan got a delicious chocolate cake and Peter had a cake made of cinnamon rolls! Both were delicious!
Peter Neff and his birthday cake of cinnamon rolls
Ryan was even lucky enough to have about 10 letters arrive on a flight the day before his birthday! That is quite...
I know that I was curious before I got here about many of the in's and out's of Antarctic life. One basic aspect of life is using the restroom and I wasn't exactly sure how that worked down south. So, how do you go to the bathroom in the middle of a frozen desert and in an environment that is protected? Well, there are several answers to that question depending on where you are in Antarctica and the facilities available to you.For example, at McMurdo Station, where the buildings are heated and it is like any small city in the U.S., there are just regular flush toilets. There is a wastewater treatment plant that deals with all of the waste and keeps the environment healthy. In the field life is different and there isn't a flushing toilet for about 1,000 miles! At WAIS Divide we have 6...
We finally arrived at WAIS Divide. Our flight departed as planned and now the crew is here learning the ropes and getting used to how to survive constantly cold temperatures. Our team of 11 is now complete and we are spending the days packing up ice cores that spent the winter at WAIS Divide. Last season many of the ice cores were characterized as brittle ice and were too fragile to make the long journey back to the United States. So, now that the ice has "relaxed" and is more stable, we are packing up about 1,000 meters of ice and getting it on airplanes back to McMurdo.
The welcome sign at the entrance of the WAIS Divide galley.
We work in shifts for the packaging because it is easy to get tired and cold in our working environment. Part of ensuring the ice cores do not get...
Today we go! The weather has held and both McMurdo weather and WAIS Divide weather are permitting us to fly! Soon I will board a C-130 Hercules and fly 4 hours (about 1,000 miles) to the middle of the West Antarctica Ice Sheet.
My bags are packed for the last time for a while (phew!) and I am certainly itching and ready to go. We had a great Thanksgiving here at McMurdo, with the highlight being the 5K Turkey Trot Race. I ran it in the cape and outfit Mrs. Peterson made for me and I won the women's division! I think it was the cape. Check out Ms. Dier's post for a silly video of me at the race and update on the delicious food at Thanksgiving (see the journal titled: Dissolved Organic Matter in Antarctica). Despite really missing my family, it was a great holiday! I am looking forward to...
We recently went for a hike on the longest of the trails established on Ross Island--a 9 mile loop to Castle rock, a prominent point between McMurdo Station and Mt. Erebus. The Ross Island Trail System provides the folks stationed at McMurdo with several options for out-of-town travel. However, with the dynamic Antarctic weather a constant worry, hikers have to be very well prepared and communicative with the emergency services in town in order to prevent accidents.
USAP search and rescue workers maintain the trails each summer season, marking the routes with flags and also marking off-trail hazards (crevasses!). Prior to hiking any of the trails that get more than a mile from town, every USAP participant takes a class to learn about staying safe off base. For longer trails, you are...
Everyone in Mrs. Kane's homeroom should be pround of themselves for coming up with so many good questions that they inspired an entire journal entry.
It's Peter Neff here, one of Heidi's colleagues working on the WAIS Divide ice core project. I've been working on several ice core projects in the past few years, and so can tell you a little bit about staying warm on the ice sheets. I've worked on the Greenland ice sheet, and also spend a lot of time in freezers while doing ice core science, so staying warm is definitely on my mind!
The first answer I have is that, YES, we will be able to stay warm most of the time! We have to! One of the first things you learn upon arriving in Antarcitca is to pay attention to your body temperature and that of people you work with. In such a cold climate...
Words cannot do justice to the experience of seeing Antarctica for the first time. It is a vast continent, still with many corners yet to be explored and a very small human footprint. Today, I made my own small footprints (they will disappear!) as I stepped off the plane onto the sea ice. The view was spectacular and truly breathtaking. Mt Erebus, the southernmost active volcano was perfectly framed in the doorway and vast white snow-covered sea ice stretched out in front of me. The buildings of McMurdo Station were in site and I knew I had finally arrived! Now, I have visited all of the seven continents and I have a feeling that this will by far be my favorite. I can't wait to see more of this magical place. Luckily, the adventure is about to begin and I have lots to learn! Now, I have...
Today we had an appointment at the Clothing Distribution Center (CDC). It is quite exciting for anyone who has never been to Antarctica before because this is when you get all of your clothes for the ice! When we arrived, there were bright orange bags out with our names on them and they were filled with all sort of great clothing!
The most important part of the process is making sure all of the clothing fits well so that you will stay warm. Before you can count to ten I had all of the clothing out and was trying all of it on. We got fleece, long underwear, goggles, gloves, mittens, winter hats, socks, boots, boot liners, wind jackets, and a big red down jacket! With all of the clothes on you can hardly tell it is me!
My first time trying on the 'Big Red'.
It took about one hour to go...
We were supposed to fly today to McMurdo but delays in weather have prevented us from boarding the plane! The crew already down on the ice informed us that we would have to wait for a flight next week. I cannot complain too much because many people who are involved in the WAIS Divide project have been sitting in chilly McMurdo for over a month waiting to get a flight to our site! With no one being able to get to camp, everything is delayed at least two weeks at this point. So, we are going to spend time in New Zealand traveling around! Now, five of us, including Maria Banks, Thomas Bauska, Peter Neff, Tommy Cox, and myself are going to have a few days off in New Zealand. We need to soak up as much sun and warmth as we can before heading south!
Here are some photos of our adventures!...
Just a few days ago my bags were packed and I was ready to go. Now, I am well on my way to Antarctica. I am barely awake but am on the other side of the Pacific Ocean all in one piece! My journey began on Monday, November 9th, when I left Flagstaff at 7 p.m. It is now 3 p.m. in Christchurch and it is Wednesday, November 11. Tuesday, November 10th was a lost day as we crossed the international dateline. Enjoy this short video that sums up my journey nearly halfway around the world!
I have now traveled 9,222 miles from my home in Flagstaff, Arizona. Soon, I will hopefully be traveling another ~2,300 miles south to McMurdo Station in Antarctica. Our flight is scheduled for...
My bags are packed and I'm ready to go... or at least I think I am! Packing for this trip was certainly a challenge. It is hard to anticipate everything you might need for three months. Once I am at WAIS I will not have access to any stores, online shopping, Target or Walmart. That means I better have it all in my suitcase because I am going to have to be completely self-sufficient! I made a video to summarize my experience packing. This was the last and final packing of the duffel bags. I hope you enjoy the Duffel Shuffle!
I think I am ready to go. I have several pairs of mittens, 4 hats, sun block, a dancing dress (yes, we dance at WAIS!), long underwear, wool shirts...
A few days ago, I found myself on a plane to La Jolla, California to get my introduction to ice core drilling and Antarctic ice core science. I couldn't help but be confused why I was heading to the beach to learn about ice! We'll truth be told, even Polar scientists like warm weather and great surfing!
At the hotel, I was introduced to my future tent-mates and colleagues. Suddenly, it all felt real...I am really going to Antarctica! This West Antarctic science meeting involved anyone heading to the WAIS Divide site to work this season and any scientists or students working with the ice cores collected at WAIS. We spent the two days listening to talks on several topics including the last 2200 years of atmospheric CO2 (carbon dioxide) recorded in the WAIS cores, the volcanic record of the...
