Aurora - August 12, 2013
The summer solstice occurs around June 21st. Areas north of the Arctic Circle (66.5° N latitude) receive 24 hours of daylight for 60 days. At a latitude close to 62° N in Frobisher Bay the sun dipped below the horizon for a few hours. This was fortuitous because sometime after midnight we received a wake-up call from the bridge (the area where the captain and crew navigate the boat). The aurora was visible on the deck, along with meteors from the Perseid meteor shower. It was a great display, and much warmer than when I saw them in Fairbanks, Alaska in March of this year. You can see my previous aurora blog to understand about the formation of the Northern Lights.
Midnight sun chart showing days of 24 hours of daylight for different towns in Nunavut (Retrieved from
Aurora and Perseid Meteor Shower (courtesy of Explorer Guest)
Refueling - August 12, 2013
The daylight hours of the morning began with a trip to the marine gas station. Typically when your car is low on gasoline, you drive to a gas station, park, turn off your engine, hook up to the pump, and begin. Now imagine filling your car with gasoline while driving down the road on a long trip, by hooking up your car directly to a gasoline tanker out on the highway. Remember to steer occasionally and realize that you are at the mercy of the truck you are tethered to. This is how we refueled in the early morning hours out in the middle of Frobisher Bay. The captain had contacted the Oratank ship from Svendborg Denmark. We rendezvoused in the open waters off of Frobisher Bay away from land. They tethered our ship to theirs, and sent a fuel line over to us on a buoy. After hooking up we started receiving our 40,000 gallons of fuel to run the ship for another 10 to 11 days. It cost $150,000 plus a delivery charge of $55,000. This works out to $5.12/gallon. Maybe now it won't be so painful when you have to fill up your vehicle for $40 compared to almost one-quarter million dollars.
Refueling Site in Frobisher Bay
Refueling at Sea
Since we were at the mercy of the Oratank for close to 4 hours (yes, it takes a long time to deliver 40,000 gallons), the ship was very bumpy. The stabilizers could not be used, and we lost many of the guests to the bathrooms and their beds with seasickness. I took the advice of my fellow PolarTREC teachers that traveled on icebreaker expeditions and took a few Dramamine when I first arrived on the boat. It worked wonders and I never succumbed to my land legs and stomach. Unfortunately, my fellow educators and roommates, Crystal Thiele and Christina Riska had a rough time. One member of the staff mentioned that the best cure for seasickness is to sit under a tree. Trees are hard to come by in the Arctic, but once we got to land, the world was a better place for my educator buddies.
Christina Riska and Crystal Thiele (l to r) National Geographic Educator, and Brooklyn, NY teacher
Noble Inlet - August 12, 2013
The afternoon brought our first tundra hike of the expedition. Prior to heading out, we were required to scrub our walking shoes/boots, and vacuum all of our outerwear including backpacks. This prevents guests from introducing any invasive species, especially plant seeds, into the Arctic. We were greeted with mosquitoes on our hike, especially in the boggy areas. I really enjoyed walking on the tundra. It reminded me of the soft foam padding they put in new playgrounds. Some areas are so spongy that it even felt like walking in a jumping castle at times.
Hike in Noble Inlet