8 February 2016 PolarTREC Orientation...Let the Fun Begin

Waiting is the Hardest Part

I had been through this waiting stage before....many, many, many times. Little did I know that the wait was over - I was going to Antarctica! Let's not get ahead of ourselves here - I am not heading to the frozen continent for about six months. Instead of an update on ice, ice and, well, ice, let me tell you a little about how this process all began.

The Call that Changed Everything

It seems like just yesterday that I received the call. I was driving home from a rather challenging day at work and the phone rang. I recognized the name on the caller ID and my heart skipped a beat; it was Sarah, a program manager from PolarTREC. Following my interview with a group of three Antarctic researchers, I jumped each time the phone rang, waiting for Sarah to call to tell me if I would join their research team. When the phone rang on that rainy November day, I crossed my fingers that the news was good. Good does not even begin to express the outcome of that phone call. I received word that I was selected by this group of researchers to travel to Antarctica for a once in a lifetime opportunity. Since that day, time has moved in fast forward. In no time, I was boarding the plane in Boston at 6:30AM EST last Saturday and flying 4,000 miles to Fairbanks, Alaska for a week-long PolarTREC orientation.

I landed in Fairbanks at 5:00PM AKST and hit the ground running.

The new names to remember, new places to visit, new technology to learn and the tons of valuable information to learn will make this week one to remember.

Information Overload

It is only day two and my notebook is filled with helpful hints, to-do lists and scientific concepts and vocabulary. This week, I am the student. So...what have I learned? Here are a few items that I have learned in the past two days:

1. How ARCUS contributes to our understanding of polar research
2. Challenges of polar research
3. PermafrostPermanently frozen ground.'s role in carbon dioxide (CO2) levels
4. How the Antarctic CircumpolarLocated or found within the Earth’s polar regions. Current (ACC) impacts iron (Fe) levels in the Southern Ocean

And so much more...

I hope that the next four days of orientation bring as much excitement, joy, new friends, information and exhaustion (in a good way, of course) as day one.