Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 06/06/2011 - 06:03
Forums
Solar Radiation on the Greenland Icesheet 2011

Hi, my name is Scarlett A. from St. Mark Catholic School and I have a question. My question is are you ever afraid if something will go wrong or if something came along unplanned?

Tue, 06/07/2011 - 17:16

Jim Pottinger

Hi Scarlett,It's great hearing from you!
You're question is a very good question.
Being in such a remote place can be quite intimidating and there needs to be a certain element of trust, especially in the people your traveling with.
On this expedition, we flew in a ski-equipped airplane and had to take off and land a total of 21 times. Just the fact that it's a plane generates fear for me. The landings were also a concern due to the unknown snow surface. Fortunately, we had outstanding, experienced pilots that kept us informed and at ease.
Other things that make the expedition safer and ease my fears are:
We all have sleep kits in case we get stranded over night at one of our field locations.
There are emergency kits with us at all times. The emergency kits have a tent, food, stove, blankets, flares, matches, lighter, water, and a first aid kit. The emergency kits is stocked to supply two people for 48 hours.
Experience! Everyone on our team has years of experience in the field, especially in the arctic.
I am sure you are wondering about polar bears! All of the AWS locations are too far inland on the ice sheet for polar bears to go. Why? No food! The only place we had to be aware of polar bears was the one night we stayed with the Sirius Sledge Patrol, but the had weapons handy, just in case!
Thanks for the great question!
Jim Pottinger

Mon, 07/11/2011 - 17:43

Anonymous

Thank you for answering my question-Scarlett A.