Loading the ship for departure.
The rear of the NB Palmer readied for loading
One of the most often overlooked aspects of any trip is preparation. With an overnight to Grandmas' you probably get by with forgetting something.However a 6-week expedition to remote East Antarctica is obviously a massive undertaking. Preparation and planning begins years prior to departure. Teams of scientists and their assistants, the ship's crew and support staff all play a vital role. Once all the planning is coordinated a key component is shipping and loading all the supplies and equipment. This is generally a team effort between the scientists, marine technicians and the ship's crew. In addition specialists from various companies and institutions will assist in delivering delicate scientific equipment.This includes a team from the Wood Hole Oceanographic Institute and USAP, delivering and assisting in setting up the gravimeter. I'll explain its use in a later journal.
Scientists, Marine Technicians and other specialists planning the loading of some of the gear.
The Marine Technicians carefully unloading some equipment
The process of acquisition, shipping and loading thousands of items (including our Styrofoam cups for the incredible shrinking cups project!)from so many people is no short of remarkable. In future journals you will get to know more about the workings of an expedition and the role of these people. In others I'll talk about the machines and equipment these scientists and technicians use during the Totten (pronounced taughten) cruise.
equipment stored in one of the labs
We are almost ready for departure!
Happy Australia Day!