I've had quite a few questions from both kids and adults asking how I got the opportunity to travel to Antarctica. In my case - being a teacher, having an Einstein fellowship in Washington, DC that has me working on the educational aspects of the International Polar Year - and a good bit of luck being in the right place at the right time - were what combined to put me on this boat. But I thought I'd pose this question to a number of different people and let folks see the myriad of avenues of life that could put someone on the track to coming to Antarctica. Take for instance Gunnar Olsson - whose passion for scuba diving brought him on board the Oden. He's a machinist's mate - and the primary crew member who is responsible for performing regular check-ups on the props and anything underwater on the Oden. Today he was making the prop maintenance check and here are a few shots from that job.
prepping to dive
setting the mask
final preps
duct tape fix
over the edge
going under
So - maybe you love to scuba - that alone could be a route to Antarctica - I look forward to showing you some other paths and jobs that folks do here, both on the Oden crew and as scientists. And I'm glad to know our prop will be well attached for the journey - I hear that can ruin your whole day!