1 June 2009 Real Life at Camp

                      Buildings

Life at NEEM begins and ends at the big black dome. This permanent building is 3 stories high, with a first floor kitchen, bathroom and dining room.

It is heated by the waste heat of the generator that powers the camp.

This waste heat also heats the snow melter that makes water for the camp.

The second floor is like a study hall and lounge. There are tables for working on computers, 3 couches, and 6 bunk beds (that are in a heated dome!). Here you will find many computers clicking in the evening, though there is very limited internet connection. There are also satellite phones here, but this morning I heard the field leader say one of the Iridium satellite phones is not working either. Communication to others can be difficult when you are at the top of the world!.

Climb the ladder and you will be on the top floor.

This is the field master’s "roost” where he does most of his communication with the outside world. I climb this everyday to find out the weather on the display.  The view from this floor is amazing as you see white ice until your eye meets the horizon!

All of the tents are used for sleeping, storage or experiments. Much of the science equipment is left on pallets or drums outside, elevated so it won’t get buried under the snow.

There are also large white tanks which hold enough fuel for the camp to last one month. 

Sleeping

A few people sleep in the heated dome, but it is noisy from people coming and going all night. The rest of the camp sleeps in tents which have heaters to keep them

dry and relatively frost free, and NOT to create warm room temperatures inside.

I have slept two nights in Dome 2, the girls’ tent. Both nights the temperature was -20 C (-20 X 9 divided by 5 +32= Fahrenheit). Do the math and look for the answer below!

So my first night I took off my heavy boots and snuggled down in the sleeping bag in my clothes I wore that day, even my hat.

I put a hot water bottle down at the bottom to keep my feet warm. After about an hour, I felt like my socks were a little wet so I brought out my water bottle to check it. Yes, the stopper was leaking! I changed my socks and threw the bottle under the bed. (Hint for Fahrenheit temperature: the next morning the water bottle was frozen solid).

Last night I put my hot water bottle in a zip lock bag to prevent any leaks. I also slept in most of my clothes again and pulled the sleeping tight so my head was inside the bag.

(All my roommates do this and I don’t know if they are in their beds or not!) After a few hours, I woke up with my back and fleece bag liner feeling wet and cold because I was dressed too warm and my body perspired. In below freezing temperatures and in the middle of the night, I had to get out of my sleeping bag and take out the liner and change my clothes. This morning the liner and my clothes were frozen solid!

I think tonight I will figure this sleeping out!

Eating

The cook, Sarah, makes wonderful food for the 24 people here at camp. Breakfast is on your own from 7-8 AM, lunch is served at 1 PM and dinner is at 7 PM. She cooks for people from 6 different countries. She told me she has been cooking for research centers in the Polar Regions for 11 years!

Sarah was talking about two tomatoes outside. Tomatoes, in -16C? She told me that was her tent she lives in since she is here all summer long.

Work

The main work of the camp is the ice core drilling, but the camp doesn’t run without everyone pitching in. Here is a list of duties I found on a kitchen wall:

• House Mouse- assists the cook, makes runs to the refrigerator tent for food, sweeps floor, cleans the kitchen, dining tables and bathroom, and takes the garbage out.

• Drinking water-checks and refills by shoveling snow into the cook’s snowmelter at least 3 times each day.

• Main snowmelter-checks and refills (by shoveling snow) for water that is not for drinking 3 times each day.

• Dishwasher-puts dishes in the dishwasher and puts them away after all meals.

Last night the second floor watched a movie and ate popcorn on a big classroom screen!

Answer to my first night’s temperature:-5 degrees Fahrenheit