Journal Entry

I got my airplane tickets for going to Antarctica!

Flight info Houston to AucklandThis is my 15 hours flight from Houston to Auckland, NZ the dates show that this flight will cross the International Dateline)!

My Visa paperwork for staying in New Zealand came the next day.

NZ VisaThis is my letter of introduction for getting a Visa for staying in New Zealand for up to one year.

The same day as my Visa, I also received my hotel reservations for my stay in Christ Church, New Zealand.

Hotel in Christ ChurchThis is where I and most of the AWS team will be staying while in Christ Church, NZ before deploying to "the Ice."

Christ Church is where the United States Antarctic Program sends Americans to McMurdo Station on Antarctica. Unless that is, you are going to the American base called Palmer Station on the Antarctic Peninsula. If you are going there, you travel through Punta Arenas, Chile.

How long will it take to get to New Zealand?

It will take 4 airplanes to fly 19 hours and 56 minutes in the air to get to Christ Church, New Zealand. But it is not quite that simple. First there are layovers. Finding my gates for the next flight and waiting to board. I’ll leave my house at about 9 AM. on the 23rd and will arrive in Christ Church about 11AM on the 25th. That makes it seem like I’ll be traveling for 48 hours. Actually I’ll be “traveling” for about 31 hours. Where did the other hours come from…or where did they go, depending on how you look at this?

Here is a short video showing the flight path from Pittsburgh to Christ Church, New Zealand.

https://youtu.be/qV3wmQENRsI

When I travel west and cross the International Date Line, an entire day (the 24th of November) won’t exist for me. Weird right? The 24th of November just won’t happen. It will go from being the 23rd to the 25th immediately. Another thing that makes it a little more confusing is that there are timezones to contend with. New Zealand is GMT+13. That means it is 13 hours ahead of the Prime Meridian which originates in Greenwich, England. Because the earth spins counter clockwise the timezones run positive to the East and negative to the west. That means New Zealand is +17 hours for me here in Pittsburgh!

Comments

Wed, 11/14/2018 - 10:28

Guest

Where are you going to land away or in the station

Wed, 11/14/2018 - 10:29

Trent Ackerson

Have you been getting more nervous as time goes on and the trip to Antarctica gets closer.

Wed, 11/14/2018 - 10:32

Guest

Where were you deployed if so in the army

Wed, 11/14/2018 - 10:32

Trent Ackerson

What were you thinking when you were first told you were accepted to go onto the expedition.

Wed, 11/14/2018 - 10:34

Adam west

How do you feel about your expedition

Wed, 11/14/2018 - 10:35

Adam west

Will you miss warmth

Wed, 11/14/2018 - 10:41

Vanessa

Hi Mr. Penn, I was wondering if you had to apply to be able to go to Antarctica? And were you surprised that you were chosen to go?

Wed, 11/14/2018 - 10:41

Ally .R

Hello Mr.Penn I'm Ally from Dansville,MI. I was wondering would you bring your equipment in a suitcase or in a crate.

Thu, 11/15/2018 - 18:29

Mike Penn

We will fly for about 5 hours from Christ Church, New Zealand to Antarctica. We will land at a place called Pheonix Air Field on the permanent sea ice a few miles from McMurdo station on Ross Island. We will then ride in big vehicles specially designed to ride on the Ice and snow. One of the vehicles is called "Ivan the Terrabus."

Sun, 11/18/2018 - 18:55

Mike Penn

Trent, I was driving home from school on January 31st when I received the email that I had been selected. It was a great day and I had to take a few minutes to completely understand that it was for real!

Sun, 11/18/2018 - 19:00

Mike Penn

Adam, I'm going to answer both of your questions here. I am very excited about my expedition and I'm ready to get going. I will miss being able to be warm easily, but the cold is a big part of the exciting nature of the experience. Don't you think?

Sun, 11/18/2018 - 19:02

Mike Penn

Vanessa, Yes! There was an extensive application process to include an interview. It took me several weeks to get my application written correctly!

Sun, 11/18/2018 - 19:09

Mike Penn

Ally, I'll pack my own things in a regular suitcase. I'll have a journal about that in a few days. We will be issued out Extreme Cold Weather gear in Christ Church, New Zealand. We will be given a big orange bag to carry all of that gear.

Mon, 11/19/2018 - 07:32

Gage

Are you scared if flying cause a lot of bad stuff can happen

Mon, 11/19/2018 - 14:10

Mike Penn

Gage, I'm not afraid of flying. Even though I have a 15 hour flight, flying is the safest mode of travel. The chances of an accident are far less than riding in a car. I did some research and I'll be on a nearly brand new Boeing 787-900 Dreamliner. Air travel doesn't get much safer!

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