Perry Spector is a newcomer to Antarctica. He has this incredible opportunity because he has just begun a Ph.D. program with John Stone as his advisor.
Perry is resting after dinner in the endurance tent after a long day of fieldwork.
He had almost declared himself an art major upon entering college, but then took a geology class and was "hooked". Perry recieved his bachelor's in geology from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota. Prior to his admission to graduate school at the University of Washington, Perry focused more on the geophysics centering around the cryosphere (Earth's ice). However, he decided that he wanted "more of a field component" in his career. He's still exploring what aspect of glaciology he wants to focus on for his dissertation; he has many varied interests. Ideally, he'd like to keep his foot in both the paleo and modern glacial fields. He's interested in landscape evolution, climate change, and glaciation. Next year, he'll return to Antarctica's Shackleton Glacier to continue working with John on dating the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Perry has strong hopes and the intention of finding funding to conduct research for his dissertation down here.
Perry was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri. He is interested in climbing, road cycling, ultimate frisbee, crossword puzzles, and like me, is an NPR junkie. Not only was he fortunate to spend Christmas on Mt. Kyffin in Antarctica, but he's also celebrating his 25th birthday today! Happy Birthday, Perry!
One evening at the Central TransAntarctic Mountain (CTAM) camp, we went snowmachining into the nearby hills. Perry rode on the sled and watched camp recede behind us.