2 December 2009 Reconnaissance

I am still pinching myself in disbelief that I am even in Antarctica! Yesterday, had I actually started pinching, I would have arms that were completely black and blue by this morning, because my "oh my goodness I am in Antarctica" moments were so many and so often! Last night, the DOM team had a trip to the Cotton Glacier, where we are sampling water to look at the dissolved organic matter and bacteria. In true Antarctica fashion, the trip we took is called a "Reccy," which is short for reconnaissance. Our goal of the trip was to see if there were streams of flowing water in a few specific sites on the Cotton Glacier. We are planning to leave McMurdo shortly for the field camp at Lake Fryxell as the field camp is much closer to the sampling sites on the Cotton Glacier. However, if we returned from the Reccy flight without seeing any flowing streams there would really be no reason to move to the field camp soon. Luckily, on our Reccy we found two of the three stream sites had flowing water, so we are leaving tomorrow for Lake Fryxell! One of the coolest parts of the Reccy was the manner in which we traveled- by helicopter! For some of our team this was their first helicopter ride and for others it was the first ride in a long time. I traveled in helicopters when I fished in Alaska, but never in one as fancy as those we have at McMurdo. The helicopters here have seats for nine people, space for lots of survival and safety equipment, and still more room for science gear! We all had to wear helmets and seatbelts, but the helmets are attached to the helicopters communication system, so we could talk to each other through headsets.

Christine, Heidi, Collin, Mike I was so excited to fly in a helicopter over Antarctica! Collin Helmet and seatbelt a requirement. Glasses, just cool! Christine pointed out a number of points of interest on our way to the glacier. Heidi and I

The flight to the Cotton Glacier took us over part of the Ross Ice Shelf and out to the edge of the ice where it meets the Sea. Through some of the Transantarctic Mountain Range. Past valleys and lakes, some covered in snow, others bare rocks or with the tongues of glaciers creeping in. The mountains were jagged and rocky, almost like a mountain of legos built up in a rather haphazard way. The colors of the mountains, pinks, oranges, reds, and browns. The snow and ice in whites and brilliant, jewel-like blues. The dark swaths of volcanic soil coloring the ice where the winds carried it from the dry ground. The views out of every window on the helicopter were breathtaking, poetic, and unforgettable.

An iceberg! The ice looks like pieces of a puzzle The Transantarctic Mountain Range and the Ross Ice Shelf More of the Transantarctic Mountain Range A tongue of a glacier

We stopped at two sites on the Cotton Glacier to get out of the helicopter to sample the flowing water in the streams. Both of the sampling sites are near streams Christine sampled from in past Antarctic seasons. It is important to try to sample from areas that are near past sites as this helps when comparing data between seasons. I had the best responsibility while we were sampling- I was the photographer. Christine, Mike, Collin, and Heidi were responsible for testing out specific pieces of equipment to make sure they were working properly. I am hoping that on future trips to the streams that I will have a chance to try the sampling equipment, too.

Touch-down at the 1st sample site

Can you see any differences in stream characteristics between the two sampling sites? I would love to read your observations! If you notice any similarities or differences, or any striking features, send me a post through Ask the Team! Sampling Site 1

Not something I ever imagined. Heidi, Collin, Christine Mike sampling at the 1st site on the Cotton Glacier The colors of Antarctica astound me!

Sampling Site 2

The water is flowing on the Cotton Glacier! I wonder what type of DOM and bacteria we will find at this site. Collin The view from the second sampling site on the Cotton Glacier

On the flight back to McMurdo Station, our pilot informed us over the helmet headset that we were stopping at a place called Marble Point to get a little more fuel for the helicopter. Marble Point is a remote location that has a few huge fuel tanks, a small office building, a few storage buildings, and a little house. The purpose for the Marble Point station is to fuel the helicopters that take people to and from field camps and remote sampling sites. The person who fuels the machines lives alone at Marble Point for two weeks at a time. Emily, Marble Point's only inhabitant right now brought us cookies while she topped of the tanks of the helicopter. Emily says that she loves working at Marble Point, but she is not completely disconnected from McMurdo, she has a phone and gets plenty of stories from the pilots. ☺

Collin, Heidi, Mike, Christine

Back in McMurdo, we filtered all the samples of water the DOM team collected, had a brief meeting to compare notes and make sure everyone had the correct information in their lab notebooks, then Christine, Heidi and I went to bed (at 2 am.) Mike and Collin still had quite a few hours of lab work ahead of them as they needed the water samples as fresh as possible when running tests for their experiments.

Good practice for me, as this is my big responsibility for the team

Leaving the Crary Science Building at two in the morning, the sun was still high in the sky and I was soaking in the sunshine, so gloriously happy after an incredible day!