UPDATE #3: Dec. 9, 2009--Thoughts on McMurdo

"McMurdo is the biggest research station on the continent, right now there are more than 1.000 inhabitants. To be there is kind of a weird experience, it is an artificial society, a permanent coming and going. Some stay for the whole season, some just stay as transients to go out to the field soon. But there you find the most interesting people with lots of different motivations to come down. When you are in McMurdo you would not think you are on the harshest continent on this planet. The food in the galley provides all kind of freshies, fresh baked bread, there is even an ice cream machine.

Mac Town, as it is called here (and by the way, there is a whole new vocabulary to learn down here), offers all kind of logistic support for the science. The lab (Crary Lab) is equipped with a huge variety of instruments and different labs to conduct your studies. The people at Crary Lab are extremely helpful with any kind of sorrows you have.

The team of the DOM project (described in www.polartrec.com) was already in McMurdo, our PI Dr. Christine Foreman from Montana State University already planned everything out, the lab stuff was packed, food was pulled from the food store (and they picked well!!). We had to differentiate all our cargo which needs to go out to the Dry Valleys in different “freezing categories” (can freeze, do not freeze, keep frozen). This information is crucial for the helicopter pilots who transport our gear out to the Dry Valleys to our future camp at Lake Fryxell.

The Day has come! We are out of here! Our helicopter is waiting for us at the helo pad and surprise - too much gear! We´ve got tents, sleep kits, all of our scientific equipment, personal stuff and food. Quite a load!"

UPDATE #2: Dec. 5, 2009--Into the Field

Let the research begin! Following several days of survival training, the expedition team departed from their McMurdo home-base and hit the field to begin their research.  Birgit has shared some early images of the work, living, and leisure situations the team has enjoyed thus far:

 

WORK: A close-up of ice crystal formations. Birgit will investigate ice matrices such as these (on a far more zoomed-in level) to determine the types of microbes dwelling within, as well as the composition and extent of radioactive deposition from past societal events.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 LIVING: A tent is erected in an Antarctic snowfield.  In the foreground, an array of situational tools stand about.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 LEISURE: A couple of scientists kick back in their Big Reds and enjoy a program or two on the television between work sessions.  (Un)surprisingly, the reception proved to be a dash snowy. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

UPDATE #1: Dec. 1, 2009--Touchdown, Birgit!

We're Here! After traveling nearly half-way around the world, Birgit finally landed at McMurdo on December 1. Departing on November 25 from Vienna, Austria, Birgit hopped to Dubai, UAE, then to Bangkok, Thailand , then to Sydney, Australia, then to Christchurch, New Zealand!  On November 30, this globe-trotter was on the move again as she made the final jump to the southernmost continent: Antarctica.

Traveling to Antarctica:

"The trip started with an extremely thorough medical test of each participant of the team. If you are sick you cannot go there to avoid troubles in case of a medical emergency which makes sense.

So, I travelled via Vienna to Dubai, to Bangkok, Sydney, Christchurch where all participants of the USAP (US Antarctic Program) get issued the so called “extreme cold weather gear” which consists of a big red parka (the “big Red”), lots of fleece underwear, funny white boots, called Bunny Boots (which are really warm and insulated by air, don´t make an elegant foot though and each weighs about 50 kg).

In order to travel to Antarctica you need to wear all this gear – you never know where the plane comes down and so you need to be prepared for the worst. And this is really a funny feeling when you wait in warm New Zealand equipped with all this gear. Besides, there is the possibility for a boomerang flight which means that the plane cannot land in McMurdo, Antarctica, and needs to turn around.

It is really exciting to step onto these planes, a C-17 from the US Air Force. There are no regular seats but you are sitting just beside tons of cargo on the side and nothing resembles a typical flight. It is noisy since there is no insulation but there is one single peek-hole where you can look outside and after hours you finally see the frozen polar ocean which makes your heart just jump up and down.

Landing in McMurdo is just breathtaking – we land on 2m of sea ice on wheels, extremely gently. These pilots are real artists!

Opening up the door is quite a holy moment and somehow indescribable since you step down into a completely different world. The wind is howling, it is bright out there, snow is blowing around and you feel your heart open up, finally to be back!!!!!!! It is stunning and you could cry!!!!"

Birgit's Current Research Focus:

"The main project is depicted well by PolarTrec. I am adding some more scientific perspectives to this project. The main objectives:

Expand the inventory of possible radioactive depositions originating from atomic bomb tests and the accident at Chernobyl. We have observed on Austrian glaciers that there is still a high load of manmade radionuclides and with glacial melting there is more radioactive burden remnant.

Moreover, we will study the impact of microbes travelling in the air and how they inoculate remote areas like polar regions. Together with my older brother we will study the lipid acid patterns to get a glimpse of where they come from and how far they can travel.

Another side project to the DOM team will be the detection of biomass in the ice by a 532nm laser. This is a new method to see microbes in ice in situ without destroying the ice matrix. This method was developed with Dr. Mike Storrie-Lombardi at the previous TAWANI-expedition."