Ahhh, the final day of the official PolarTREC Orientation. I am thoroughly exhausted, overwhelmed, and absolutely ready to continue sharing my adventure with all of you. I know that I still have a lot of learning to accomplish before I head to Antarctica. I hope to continue journaling and practicing all my newfound technology skills over the next many months. I am excited to learn how to incorporate video into my website entries. Lots to do, thank goodness I have plenty of time.
The glorious conference room in Fairbank's Westmark Hotel
The day ended with a light dinner during which I got to see some of the Polar science lessons and amazing ideas that previous PolarTREC teachers created. My students will soon get to explore Glacier Goo and create models of different types of sea ice. I had a chance to meet a few more people who are working in Antarctica this winter, otherwise known as the Antarctica austral summer. The Mystery Antarctic guest who has hung out in our conference room for the last few days made it to the dinner, too. The guest wore much of the gear that I'll take down to the Dry Valleys- a Mustang jacket, bunny boots, overmitts- looks comfortable, doesn't it! (No, there really isn't a person inside all that gear!
The Mystery Antarctic person (?) who visited Fairbanks for a couple days
Bunny Boots- typical boots worn in Antarctica and in Fairbanks.
The National Science Foundation's United States Antarctic Program patch