Who we are and what we're doing!


Welcome to our project site! We are six National Science Foundation-funded researchers from Pacific Lutheran University, Berkeley Geochronology Center, University of Washington, and the University of Maine who are studying the glacial history of the Pensacola Mountains in West Antarctica.

Our 2011-2012 field season is almost underway! We will spend about two weeks in McMurdo equipping ourselves for another month in the Pensacola Mountains. We spent December 16th, 2010 through January 17th, 2011 in the Pensacola Mountains, where we mapped and sampled glacial deposits along the Foundation Ice Stream. This year, we will revisit last year's field sites, and map new regions of the mountain range.

Our work will track the thinning history of the Weddell Sea Sector of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, and will also provide insights into ice sheet dynamics, and the history of sea level contribution from this sector of the ice sheet.

In the coming weeks and months, we will use this site to show you our preparations for the 2011-2012 field season, and to share our initial results as they emerge. Please check back to catch up with our progress. Thanks for finding us!

Friday, December 2, 2011

Christchurch to McMurdo Station!

Hello Friends,


Our flight to McMurdo went very smoothly. We started our day yesterday at 6:00 AM, when shuttles arrived at our Christchurch hotel to transport us to the Clothing Distribution Center at the airport. We dressed in our ECW gear, finished packing our checked and carry-on bags, and checked in for our flight. 


All packed up, dressed up, and ready to enter the USAP passenger terminal!
The check-in process is not unlike checking in for a commercial, international flight. We had to show our passports, and all of our bags had to be screened. No sharps are allowed in our carry-on, but we could carry-on liquids. Unlike a commercial flight, everything had to be weighed. Our checked baggage, our carry-on, and even each passenger had to be weighed. Once weighed and checked in, we received a boarding pass for our flight.


Kat weighs her luggage and then herself!
Ready to go with our boarding passes. 

A bus transported us out to the tarmac where our C-17 was waiting. Each of us was greeted by a trained security dog named Milo before we were allowed to board the bus:
Matt emerging from the security checkpoint.   
Kat and Matt (at left) on the bus! We are very excited to be heading south. 
Greg has cleared security. 
Milo the security dog!
Our plane was piloted by a friendly and highly-skilled crew from McChord AFB near PLU! It was great to chat with some folks from home. We were provided with flight lunches to sustain us over the 4.5 hour flight.
Our flight lunches and chariot await! It's hard to see, but McChord is written on the tail!

On board! The accommodations in a C-17 are quite comfortable.
These planes are gigantic, and carrying a lot more than scientists. C-17 and C-130 flights bring  fresh food, mail, scientific cargo, and everything else that the station needs supplied and resupplied throughout the season. 
A few members of our friendly and skilled C-17 crew. 
I had a chance to chat with  one of the crew members; this plane will make 9 roundtrip flights from Christchurch to McMurdo before returning to Tacoma. They fly down to Christchurch via Honolulu!
Our safety briefing. "Place your mask before helping those around you."
About an hour out, we were told to bundle up in preparation for landing. 
Ready to deplane!
We arrived at McMurdo at ~ 1:30 PM, Christchurch time. The station adheres to the same time zone as Christchurch. The plane lands on a runway on the sea-ice. We were one of the last planes to land on the sea ice this season. The sea ice is slowly melting and will soon be too thin to support a plane. Over the next several days, the airfield will be moved further inland onto the ice shelf.

It is awesome to emerge from the plane, and set foot on the snow-covered ice of the airfield. Our view included other planes at the airfield, McMurdo station, and Mount Erebus, an active volcano that rises above the ice shelf. 
Matt's first steps in Antarctica! Partly cloudy, but otherwise wonderful. A balmy 33 degrees F with a wind chill of 25.  
The ice runway is a hectic place! Lots of heavy machinery for cargo and refueling. Lots of transport vehicles driving around to take passengers to and from planes.


Once we snapped a few pictures, we were ushered onto the legendary McMurdo transport: Ivan the Terra Bus. A short drive across the sea ice brought us to McMurdo station. 

Our extra burly transport!



My colleagues are very patient with me as I take pictures for the blog. 
Matt pointing to Observation Hill which rises above McMurdo Station. 
Our new home! None of us are rooming together, but we're all in the same building. 
Chris showing off our new office and his new haircut. Today, he has an appointment at the McMurdo barbershop to dye it red!
Our mountaineer, Chris, arrived three days ahead of us, and has been working hard to prepare for our departure. In the coming days we'll have lots of training, briefings, and cargo logistics to work through! My schedule for today includes a laboratory safety briefing, an environmental safety briefing, a science operations briefing, and a refresher course on field safety. We will be busy!


More from us soon. Hope all is well back home,


Claire



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