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Welcome to the 2010-2011 POLENET Field Season! We’re just getting geared up to head to Byrd Surface Camp and are attempting to reach 40 GPS and seismic sites located across the continent. Come along with us! Check out our new video podcast and stay tuned for the next one from Byrd Camp in West Antarctica!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

P.S. You will all be pleased to know that Frosty Boy has recovered and has rejoined us in the galley!

Current location: McMurdo Station, Antarctica

Current temperature: -9º C  Windchill: -14º C

While this blog is in place principally to provide the ins and outs of POLENET field operations, I would like to diverge for a moment and tell the story of one very eventful lunch session in the McMurdo Station galley.

But first, we must go back to 1960s Australia and New Zealand– to the origins of one of McMurdo’s very close friends. The affection and loyalty towards this particular friend is lasting and sincere, and for many years, its return has been one of ever-flowing creaminess.

Creaminess? Yes, I am talking about Frosty Boy, McMurdo’s soft ice-cream dispenser.

Those who have traveled to McMurdo before will know the meaning of Frosty Boy. In a place that is constantly changing- the weather is never certain, people fly in and out all the time, friends switch from day-shift to night-shift, beer runs out, ice turns to water turns to ice again. Through it all, Frosty Boy is there, a constant and comforting friend.

So it was quite alarming when, in the middle of a very busy lunch (as McMurdo is quite crowded in the middle of the summer season), our poor friend let out a loud and lasting screech that silenced the galley and made even the people down the hall turn their heads in amazement. The poor girl who happened to be the last to turn the handle stood wide-eyed, unsure how to proceed. “Unplug it!” someone yelled.

Something was unplugged from the wall, and the screeching came to a faltering, miserable stop, and a hush fell through the room, as we all realized that this was something serious.

Saddened at the site of our wounded friend, we turned back to our meals, only to be startled minutes later by a burning rubber smell and smoke, followed by further screaming from the depths of Frosty Boy’s soul. A group of people rushed to pull Frosty Boy from his nook, reaching back to unplug him from his last link to life support.

If we didn’t believe it the first time, we sure believed it now. Frosty Boy was down.

There are many theories as to why this happened. The old ice cream machine from South Pole, aptly named “Frosty Girl” was recently transferred to McMurdo. Perhaps Frosty Boy felt his territory impeded upon?

Or take the most recent flavor that was pumped through his veins: Strawberry Balsamic. Maybe it was just too much.

But as we watched our friend being gutted and closed down for the repair shop, we took refuge in the final words of our Dining Assistant: “He’s come back from worse.”

While we wait for Byrd Camp to open, we continue to fly to stations close to McMurdo when weather is good. And we send our best wishes to Frosty Boy during his eminent recovery.

-megan

Working in Antarctica requires a set of finely tuned tools: patience, endurance, and optimism. At the mercy of the weather, your plans change with the wind, requiring many layers of alternate strategies. Meetings often revolve around phrases like “what if” and “plan B and C.”

All plans must start somewhere, though, and for us, the first stop is McMurdo Station.
Established in 1956 as a military base, McMurdo Station sits at the tip of the Hut Point Peninsula on Ross Island, just off the coast, making it accessible by both aircraft and ship. “Mactown” acts as an operational hub for most U.S. research programs scattered across the continent, requiring almost all personnel and cargo to first pass through McMurdo before transitioning to deep field sites. With more than 100 structures on site, a harbor, and an airport, McMurdo provides scientists with the chance to gather their team and gear, organize flight logistics to camps, and receive training in deep-field safety and survival techniques.

A recent epidemic of “intestinal crud” has put everyone on station in a hand-washing frenzy, with the small station hospital serving up some much needed hydration and rest to those who have been affected. Being such an isolated community, McMurdo wages a constant battle against the influx of germs arriving on passenger planes from New Zealand throughout the summer season.

The POLENET team is trickling in, coming from across the world to prepare for work at McMurdo, Byrd Camp, and Patriot Hills Camp. Here is the latest update from Principal Investigator, Dr. Terry Wilson:

Hi Everyone –

The full ‘early team’ of 15 is on the ice now for just over one week and all goes well. We have advanced valiantly through every training class and planning meeting. One hopeful outcome: a possible new scenario to obtain synoptic weather information from Byrd Camp. Equipment is all staged for the McMurdo-based work, and gear and equipment for Byrd work is pouring in to the cargo system. Two flights, with camp staff and science construction group, made it to Byrd last week, however a major storm pinned them down this week, and no flights, so opening of the camp for science may be a few days late. Helo work from McMurdo has started – completed an upgrade at Mt Coates, were turned back from Brimstone Peak due to weather, and are scheduled to go to Fishtail Point tonight. Due to extended bad weather at Rothera station on the Peninsula, a KBA Twin Otter has remained there instead of reaching McMurdo as planned. This has delayed the start of our fixed-wing work from McMurdo. We are poised for work at any site, with any transport, so things will keep moving ahead over the next week…….

Terry