Journal Entry

The Anticipation

I barely slept last night in anticipation of my on-ice day today. I can’t believe it’s finally here. I’ve been preparing to go to Antarctica for a little over a year now and it always seemed so far away. But last night it really hit me. It’s here. It’s happening.

My day started early, heading back to the Clothing Distribution Center (CDC) to check-in for my flight. After weighing my bags, they issued me a boarding pass.

BoardingPassMy boarding pass on top of my official United States Antarctic Program (USAP) parka.

A few hours later and we were set to board. We were lucky not to have any delays as they’re extremely common!

LC-130

We took a bus over to an LC-130 airplane, operated by the U.S. Air Force. The Air Force helps us get to Antarctica, but there are no military operations in Antarctica (in accordance with the Antarctic Treaty).

BoardingAirplaneBoarding the LC-130 airplane in Christchurch, heading to McMurdo Station. Notice the skis on the bottom!

Notice that this airplane has skis in addition to wheels. The skis themselves are retractable, so wheels can be used on the take off in Christchurch and skis can be used for the landing in Antarctica.

This airplane is probably unlike anything you’ve ever ridden on before. The cargo is loaded into the back and the passengers in the front. The chairs were pull down canvas nets and our bags were strapped down in the middle. There was one toilet with a curtain around it, just a few windows, and a bag lunch waiting for us on the seat. Once the engines fired up, we all put in our earplugs – these planes are loud!

InsideAirplaneInside the LC-130, we all sat in pull down canvas nets and our bags were strapped down in the middle. You can see the "loadmaster" sitting in the back - he's in charge of keeping the back portion of the plane in good working condition.

Eight Hours Later

After 8 hours of sleeping, eating, reading, sleeping and some more eating, I started to see ice out the window. We were getting close.

WindowIceMy first view of the Antarctic ice, from the window of the LC-130.

Again, we were super lucky that we did not “boomerang” back to Christchurch. Since there is no radar at the airfields at McMurdo, pilots have to rely on their sight to land safely. If your plane gets close to the airfield and the visibility has decreased too much, you turn around and head back to Christchurch only to try again the next day.

Getting to McMurdo

There are two airfields, both sitting on the Ross Ice Shelf – Phoenix Airfield and Williams Airfield. Right now, in the middle of summer, the sea ice at Phoenix Airfield is getting a bit too thin to use safely. So instead my plane flew into Williams Airfield. “Willie” is about 45 minutes away from McMurdo Station.

We hopped on a truck (this particular type is a Delta) and strapped in for a bumpy ride. We passed New Zealand’s Scott Base and drove around Mount Erebus (the southern-most active volcano on earth!) and finally arrived at McMurdo Station.

TruckOur ride from William's airfield to McMurdo station.

McMurdo Station

McMurdo is the largest of the three U.S. bases (the other two being Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station & Palmer Station). It hosts approximately 1500 people in the summer, and approximately 150 people in the winter. Imagine a small college campus and it may look something like McMurdo Station.

McMurdoA view of McMurdo from Observation Hill.

After a short briefing, we went to our rooms to get settled. The rooms are dorm-style, so I’m sharing with three other women.

After refueling in the cafeteria we headed over to “bag drag.” I picked up my checked bag, retagged it and dropped it back off to be taken to the South Pole. Then, a group headed to Observation Hill, an outlook point that’s about a 10-minute walk from “town.” The view is spectacular.

HandstandObligatory handstand picture at the top of Observation Hill. ObservationHillA stunning view of the Ross Ice Shelf from the top of Observation Hill. Along the crack towards the left of the picture you can see several seals laying on the ice. This picture was taken at midnight and look how high the sun is!

The ice, the mountains, the seals, the sun – a perfect scene.

South Pole Tomorrow (?)

I’m scheduled to fly to the South Pole tomorrow, assuming it doesn’t get delayed. It’s still so surreal to me that I’m actually in Antarctica! It’s crazy beautiful with so many interesting people working here. I can’t wait to explore more and I hope you’ll follow along with me! Feel free to post comments and questions below – I’ll reply to them as soon as I can!

Comments

Tue, 01/17/2017 - 03:29

Judy Fahnestock

Nice job on the handstand! (a perfect 10!) The LC-130 airplanes look like an old design of an airplane. Do you know how old they are?

Thu, 01/19/2017 - 22:25

Kate Miller

Thanks! I think this is my most epic handstand picture to date :)
Yes, some of the LC-130 airplanes (also known as "Hercules," or "Herc" for short) that fly here are pretty old - dating back to 1973! Other LC-130s that fly to the South Pole are newer models, a recent as 1993. I guess it's luck of the draw which one you get!

There are also Basler airplanes (I didn't fly on one) which hold up really well. Because they're not pressurized, there is much less stress on the aircraft during takeoff and landing. Therefore, Baslers have a much longer lifespan.

Tue, 01/10/2017 - 04:35

Period 1 IB ph…

So the sun doesn't set, but what does it do? What's that like for you?

Tue, 01/10/2017 - 08:19

Team Travis fr…

How is jet lag affecting you? What time zone are you in? Can you walk through all the time zones at the pole?

Tue, 01/10/2017 - 10:05

Jennifer

Hello!
I teach 2nd Grade at Oakridge Elementary. My students are studying plants. Is there any plant life in Antarctica (on land or in the water)?

Tue, 01/10/2017 - 10:57

Richard Strausz

How are the residents' medical needs addressed? (Thanks for taking the time to write!!)

Thu, 02/02/2017 - 10:34

Mrs. Burgin

We are so honored that you answered our question! I will share this with my class soon. We're writing a nonfiction book about plants and are thrilled to learn about unique plant environments!
All the best!!

Tue, 01/10/2017 - 21:40

Kate Miller

Hi Period 1 IB kids! Great to hear from you...and a great question too!
Yes, the sun doesn't set here at this time of year. In fact, summer months (September through March) are really just one long "day" without the sun ever setting if you think about it! Instead, the sun goes around the sky in a circle (actually a slight spiral, but you wouldn't notice this). Right now the sun is at a pretty consistent angle of about 20degrees above the horizon (or two fist lengths up). The highest it ever gets here is 23.5degrees on the Summer Solstice (December 21...our Winter Solstice). Do you recognize that angle of 23.5degrees? It's the same as the tilt of our earth...and that's not a coincidence! It's some pretty cool geometry - learn about it in this article: http://physics.weber.edu/schroeder/ua/sunandseasons.html

To answer your second question, it's been really weird for me so far. Probably a combination of the sun never setting and my general excitement of making it to McMurdo yesterday caused me not to want to go to bed. I think it was 2am before I forced myself to lay down, but even then I didn't FEEL tired (even though I knew I should be). I will say that having the windows covered in my dorm room helps a lot for falling asleep...just not so much for waking up in the morning. To give you a sense of what this means, look at the last picture in this journal post - that was taken at MIDNIGHT! It's pretty crazy.

Tue, 01/10/2017 - 21:49

Kate Miller

Hi Team Travis from Period 5! Great to hear from you - I love this question.
When I flew from Washington D.C. to New Zealand a few weeks ago, I definitely had jet lag. I think the first day I just crashed and took a ridiculously long nap in the middle of the day, which made falling asleep at night even harder! New Zealand is 18 hours ahead of you guys, after all! This made New Year's Eve especially fun because people in the New Zealand time zone were among the first people to experience 2017. After a few weeks of touring around New Zealand, I felt pretty well adjusted to their time zone.

Time zones in Antarctica are determined by the country of origin. For example, the only way to get to McMurdo Station or the South Pole Station is to pass through New Zealand. Thus, McMurdo and South Pole are both on New Zealand time. Since I was already adjusted to that, coming to Antarctica wasn't a tough in terms of jet lag. However, the sun never sets here at this time of year which is definitely messing with my sleep patterns. How do you know when to go to bed when it's always light out? Take a look at my response to Pd. 1 in the comment above for more details on that.

Since time zones are determined by the country of origin for a station, I can't really walk through all the time zones at the pole. However, I could (and will) go to the geographic south pole and walk "around the world" in a minute :)

Tue, 01/10/2017 - 22:18

Kate Miller

Hello Oakridge Elementary's 2nd graders! So cool you're studying plants. Let me do my best to answer your question.
Not a lot of plants grow in Antarctica and there are a few reasons why: First, it's really really cold and not many plants are well-adapted to such temperatures. Second, Antarctica experience 6 months of sunlight (great for plants that use photosynthesis for energy!) followed by 6 months of darkness (not so great for plants that use photosynthesis for energy). Third, most of Antarctica is covered with ice and snow with only about 1% of soil exposed. That soil is pretty poor quality, too. Finally, Antarctica is the world's largest desert, so a lack of moisture is also an issue for many plant species.

Around the South Pole Station there are no plants that can survive. It's just too extreme. But inside South Pole Station there's a greenhouse with tomatoes, kale, basil and lots of other yummy veggies. This especially keeps the winter-overs (people who stay at the pole all winter) happy because they don't get any shipments of fresh food during those months - the greenhouse produce is their only fresh food! Of course, the greenhouse is an artificially controlled climate. There are lights to mimic sunlight as well as temperature and humidity controls. In fact, it's really nice to sit in the greenhouse and soak in that humidity for a bit because the air is just so dry here!

Because the South Pole doesn't have any native plants to study, there are no biologists around to look to for answers about plants that may live elsewhere in Antarctica. So, I did a little research of my own. It turns out there are two flowering (also known as "vasular") plants in Antarctica (Antarctic hairgrass & Antarctic pearlwort). There are also 800-1000 non-flowering (or "non-vasular") plants around Antarctica. These are mostly mosses, liverworts, lichens and fungi that have become well-adapted for such an extreme environment. Finally, there are some non-native plants in Antarctica, brought here by people. We try to minimize this by checking our gear for seeds and taking all food waste off the continent. Take a look at this article for more details about these plants: https://oceanwide-expeditions.com/blog/the-plants-of-antarctica

As for marine plants surrounding Antarctica, there are also not too many. There ARE various types of phytoplankton though. These plants are so small they look like little specks in the water. They can't swim in water like other animals can, so instead they drift along with the current. Phytoplankton use photosynthesis to make their energy and are part of the foundation of the marine ecosystem. One type of phytoplankton are called the diatoms. Another PolarTREC teacher, Ms. Pekarcik, researched diatoms in the Southern Ocean this year. Check out here blog here: https://www.polartrec.com/expeditions/southern-ocean-diatoms

Thanks for your question - if you have more questions, please don't hesitate to post them in a comment. I'll do my best to get you an answer from the experts here!

Tue, 01/10/2017 - 22:32

Kate Miller

Hi Richard. Thanks for your question!
Here at the South Pole Station, there is one Doctor and one Physician Assistant here to help the residents with any medical issues. They have walk-in hours at the clinic during specific times and also take appointments. Of course, they're on-call for emergencies, along with firemen and women.

McMurdo Station also has a clinic. I'm not sure how many people are on the medical staff there, but I would imagine more than at South Pole simply because there are more people at McMurdo (1500 people at McMurdo vs. 150 people at South Pole in the summer). There is also a dentist at McMurdo too! I heard a story of someone at the South Pole who was in need of a root canal being flown to McMurdo...on Christmas Day!

Finally, there is a nurse in Christchurch who ensures you have your flu vaccine and can administer altitude sickness medication.

All in all, we try our best here to mitigate the risks. Before coming to Antarctica, I had to get "PQ'd" or Physically Qualified. This included a variety of different medical and dental exams and tests, which were then verified and approved before they would book my ticket. If you're interested, you can read more about the PQ process in this journal: https://www.polartrec.com/expeditions/ice-cube-neutrino-observatory-201…. We always wash our hands or use hand sanitizer after using the bathroom and before each meal. At McMurdo there's even a special washing station outside of the Galley. Finally, we're very conscious of keeping safe working and living conditions in and around the Stations. Using Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) when appropriate is always a must.

The worst case scenario is that you have a medical condition that required you to be evacuated. We call this being "Med Evac'd" and it is no fun. Anything from severe dehydration to severe altitude sickness to more serious injuries and illnesses could result in a Med Evac. The logistics of a Med Evac are tough because Antarctica is such a remote place. This is especially true in the winter months when plane are not scheduled to fly due to the extreme cold and 24-hours of darkness. There was a risky, but successful winter Med Evac earlier this season: http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/21/health/south-pole-medical-evacuation/

Please continue to post questions like this one! I love finding out more information about life in Antarctica!

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