When I woke up this morning it took a moment to realize that I was actually in Antarctica. I must admit that it is a little disconcerting to always have sunlight. As you may know, there are times in Antarctica when you have 24 hours of daylight and there are times when you have 24 hours of darkness. You really need to pay attention to what time it is. I wish that my watch was on military time because that would let me know if it is 7:00am (0700 hours) or 7:00pm (1900 hours).I went to the dining hall or galley as everyone calls it and had an omelet (made to order). I could get used to having someone cook and clean for me.
After breakfast I rushed to the lab. I didn't want to be late for my first team meeting. Every morning, except Sunday, the entire team meets in the lab at 7:30am for a meeting. Stacy evaluates what needs to be done and makes assignments.
Today Scott and I have "Sea Ice" training. After the team meeting we suited up in most of our ECW (extreme cold weather) gear and took the rest of it with us in an orange bag along with a water bottle and a pee bottle (there aren't any bathrooms on the ice).
We had a lecture for about an hour. Danny, our instructor, explained the difference between glacier ice and sea ice. Essentially, glacier ice starts on land and can spread onto the sea. Sea ice actually forms from sea water. Which type of ice do you think is salty?
After the lecture, all of us (one instructor and nine students) climbed into a Hagglund. This is a vehicle that can traverse the ice and carry a fairly heavy load.
The Hagglund is a tracked vehicle built in Sweden for use on snow and swampy terrain. It has two units and is made of foam-filled fibreglass which allows the vehicle to float.
Danny drove for quite a while and since I was sitting in the back section it was a very bumpy ride. I saw my first seals as one of the guys spotted two Weddell seals in the distance. I was so excited that I didn't even think about being uncomfortable.
We finally stopped and got out to examine the ice. The next thing we did was learn to determine the thickness of the ice by drilling holes. Danny showed us how to operate a gas-powered drill. You start by attaching a drill flight which is a meter long and then you attach a drill bit to the end. You place the entire thing on the ice and drill straight down. If you reach the surface of the ice and you haven't broken through to water, then you pull out the drill flight and attach another one meter drill flight to the first one. You then insert the drill with the two meter drill flight back into the original hole and continue drilling. You can attach as many drill flights as you need to break through the ice.
Scott is using a gas-powered drill to got through the ice and reach water.
When you reach the water it gushes up through the hole. It looks just like a volcano that you make with baking soda and vinegar.
As the drill breaks through the ice, the water from the sea gushes up through the hole much like a geyser.
To determine who thick the ice is, you lower a device that has a bar attached to a metal wire and a measuring tape into the hole. You slowly pull the measuring tape back up until the bar catches on the hole. You then read the measuring tape to see how deep the ice is. When you are finished then you pull up the metal wire. It is amazing how something so simple can be so useful.
Using a tool that consists of a metal bar attached to a wire and a plastic measuring tape, one is able to determine the depth of the ice.
After we finished drilling, we all got back into the vehicle. Our next stop was to learn to identify cracks in the ice. We learned about the different colors of flags that are used to mark the ice (black means stay away). We also got to do some more drilling.
Different colors of flags are used to mark the ice. Red and green flags marks accessible roads, blue flags mark the fuel line, and black flags mark areas to avoid.
All of a sudden we spotted a penguin in the distance. As we stood there, it headed right for us. It alternated between waddling and sliding on its belly. The penguin got to about 12 feet from us. We just sat and watched it (and took lots of photographs). It was an Adelie penguin which is the most common type of penguin in Antarctica. It was adorable.
An Adelie penguin was curious about us and came to investigate. It is the most common penguin on Antarctica.
I think my favorite part was watching it walk away. What do you think (I apologize for the quality of the video but I am working on the mechanics of making it better. The noise in the background is our vehicle. However, the penguin is still adorable!).
http://
We were all so thrilled about seeing the penguin. We got back into the vehicle and headed off. Danny took us to see the ice cave. It was gorgeous. The crystals looked like snowflakes frozen in the air.
The view inside the ice cave is mesmerizing.
The final stop was to learn to make holes in the ice to use to anchor your tent or anything else that you don't want to blow away. Remember that Antarctica is the windiest continent.
Today's training was long and hard and absolutely amazing. We even saw more penguins on the drive home. After such an incredible day I was exhausted. It was time for me to head to my home in Antarctica just like my little friends.
Five Adelie penguins waddle home. Aren't they cute?