Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 12/09/2011 - 07:57

Kaleb: Do you have to sleep wearing a bunch of coats to stay warm?

A'lexus: Have you found any old ship wrecks or other interesting things?

Star: Have you found any dead or injured animals because of the pollution?

Robert: Have you been able to pet a penguin?

Lauren: From the data your team has collected, what can you infer about the effects pollution has had in Antarctica?

Lewis: How do you get around? Do you ride a snowmobile?

Michelle Brown

Hello period 4!Thanks for the great questions!
Kaleb: McMurdo dorms are very warm! I wear typical pajamas that I'd
wear in Austin. Often I get hot here. This will probably be a very
different story when I get to the South Pole and sleep in a tent at the
AGO site though! In Happy Camper school, they recommended to just be in
one or two layers though, because the sleeping bags are very warm.
A'lexus: Great question about ship wrecks! There is a plane crash site
here that they will occasionally take tours to, but I have yet to see
it. Otherwise, everything else is pretty new!
Star: Another great question! I haven't seen any animals that have
been damaged or injured because of pollution. This is because the
pollution here is pretty contained. There are organisms, such as worms,
who can live in polluted areas, so they are typically found in such
places (for example, where the sewage was dumped into the ocean). This
is actually an advantage for them because other organisms, like
crustaceans, can't survive in such places. It also allows scientists
like my research group to get a better idea about whether a place is
polluted or not. If there are no crustaceans but worms, one can infer
that the area is polluted.
Robert: I would love to get to pet a penguin, but there are very strict
rules here. You are not allowed to approach or touch any of the animals.
If the animals come towards YOU, that's okay, but you still can't touch
them.
Lauren: Wow Lauren, another stellar question! Great use of the word
"infer" too! You must have a good science teacher ;) Our inferences
right now are that the pollution that has occurred and is occurring at
McMurdo Station is still here--it hasn't dissipated (spread), but it
also hasn't left the area. This is good news actually--nothing is
getting worse!
Lewis: Different activities call for different modes of transportation.
For example, two days ago we went out to the sea ice runway to collect
samples across a wide distance, so we took snowmobiles. To get to a
dive hut on the sea ice, we took a Pisten Bully, which has big tracks to
get over sea cracks. I just took a bike trip to Scott Base--the New
Zealand base 3 miles away. For local samples we're on foot!
Great questions!! I hope to get more from you all when I'm at the South
Pole and the AGO site!
Sincerely,
Ms. Brown