This season we have been blessed with a wealth of great weather. It even reached +25F today! That is balmy for us cold weather lovers! With air temperatures that high, many folks are measuring temperatures in their tents around +95F! Wow- that is HOT! As a result, many of us are sleeping with the windows and doors of our tents wide open!
However, clouds rolled in again this evening prompting me to take some photos of how the lighting can change so dramatically on the flat white of the West Antarctic ice sheet. Standing in the same place this morning and then as I went to bed, I captured two drastically different photos.
In the first, taken this morning when the sun was out, it is easy to see the horizon and footprints in the snow. The shadows created by the sun provide definition in the snow. The second photo, taken from the same place as the first, captured what we call "flat light". When the clouds roll in and the sun is obscured, it can minimize the shadows that create definition or depth on the surface of the snow. As a result, the light gets "flat", making it difficult to identify the horizon and the snow beneath your feet. In flat light conditions, it can be dangerous walking around as it is nearly impossible to see snow drifts or divets in the snow below you. On nights like this you can often see people stumbling around camp! Can you see the horizon or footprints in the second photo?
This photo was taken in the morning when it was warm and sunny. You can clearly see footprints and the horizon.
This photo was taken in the same spot as the first but you can no longer see the horizon. Can you see the footprints? Clouds rolled in and obscured the sun, creating the condition known as flat light. Navigating in this type of lighting is nearly impossible.