Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 01/01/2009 - 17:36
Forums
Oden Antarctic Expedition 08

Hi Jeff. Happy New Year!

I was wondering about sleep patterns in 24/7 daylight. In the Nat. Geo. video, "Mysteries Underground" we learn that cavers tend to sleep for longer and longer periods but also stay awake for longer periods. Are you having trouble maintaining your normal sleep/awake cycle? Are you finding that you need less sleep? Or is it that all the excitement of this amazing adventure is preventing you from sleeping?

Take care,

Tom

LHSA Earth Science 

Fri, 01/02/2009 - 09:19

Jeff Peneston

Tom,
Happy New Year!I know exactly the line in the film you are talking about and the answer to all of your questions is YES to some degree.  
I don’t really have a problem with the 24 daylight because the ship has a very regulated schedule of meals and meetings.  When it is time to sleep I just pull the blinds in my room and it is pretty dark.  The real problem I am having is that I know that I need to be up at 7am each morning and out on the ice by 8:30 but I spend a great deal of time 100 feet up in the bridge with wrap around windows.  At midnight, I am still strongly motivated to do computer work while constantly looking up and staring out the windows at a truly amazing view.  For example, at this moment it is 1:10 am and I am looking out on an ocean that is 70% covered by sea ice floes. The open water between them is almost glass calm and it is hard to remember that we are still 70 miles from the coast.  200 feet in front of the ship are 2 adelie penguins who swam over to us, walked across the ice to check us out and then went to sleep a few hours ago.  In the open water near them are 4 emperor penguins diving for krill.  I can see for about 20 miles in every direction and on this white landscape you can see just about every living thing above the water.  I can see at least 6 groups of emperor penguins on the floes and 2 seals.  I have been at sea since Thanksgiving and in the ice for 3 weeks and I can tell you that this environment and these views don’t get old.  Plus I have 5 video projects that I am working on and would love to complete and post.  It is hard to push it all aside and go to bed.  My problem is not physiological it is decision making.
And just to complicate the answer to your question, tonight we will finally adjust the ship’s clocks to account for our westward trip around Antarctica.  We are at 75? S and 151?W and yet we have maintained the same ship time since leaving Montevideo.  Tonight we move to McMurdo/New Zealand time and at 4am it will become 8pm and they are going to serve dinner.  I had to read those instructions several times and I still can’t get my head around it.  My plan is to stay up late tonight and then sleep through the change and skip Jan 2.  I am not alone in this plan.
Enjoy the last few days of your break,     
Take care,
Jeff  

Sat, 01/03/2009 - 05:47

Lollie Garay

Jeff, I told you you wouldn't want to sleep  ! The hardest part will be back in the states! Seen any Orcas yet???
Lollie