Thursday, December 03, 2009
Finally! Some Photos!!
I have been a HUGE slacker this season due to the tight restrictions on blog posting but also because when I'm done with work, I want to wrap up and go home... not spend more time on the computer. BUT... I promise to make a better effort at posting photos. And today I taught myself how to make a watermark of my name on my pictures so they can't be stolen.I'm posting photos of more nacreous clouds that I've mentioned in previous posts. If you want more info on them, google away. They are so incredible to see in person... like oil slicks across the sky!
These nacreous clouds appeared the day I arrived on station - August 22nd.
I loved shooting this day... it was a challenge, and I never quite figured out how to not overexpose the brightest cloud. But the clouds were beautiful!!
I snapped this shot a few hours later than the last photo. The clouds changed so much as the sun was setting off in the distance (we couldn't see the sun but it was reaching the clouds).
Every day the clouds were different, and there were some days in between when no nacreous clouds would appear.
This was my favorite single cloud from the whole of nacreous cloud sightings. The pink and green were so vivid!
The day I shot this, the wind was blowing snow all around... made the photos I shot this day much different from the rest of the cloud photos.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Robert Falcon Scott on Twitter??
How does someone who died almost a hundred years ago start twittering?? Check this out: http://www.3news.co.nz/Historic-explorer-tweets-from-beyond-the-grave-/tabid/423/articleID/131535/cat/525/Default.aspx!I'll be posting photos from this season soon, I promise. Just trying to figure out how to organize and protect them all.
Thanks!
Saturday, November 07, 2009
I Haven't Updated in a Long Time
Sorry to those few dedicated readers out there for not posting on a regular basis over the past month. I've been swept up in the craziness of Mainbody and have abandoned the blog. I don't have much to post about, and we've been told to watch what we post this season. I like earning money, so I don't want to get fired. That means I'm really going to limit what I put out on the web.I will give you a link to this cool satellite image of Ross Island, where McMurdo Station is.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Wind Gusts
The wind is gusting at 50 knots or more today, and it sounds like a thunderstorm at times. It's one of those days you wish you could curl up in bed under the covers and come out when it's warmed up outside.Monday, September 28, 2009
A Visit to the Kiwi Snow Cave
Over the winter two kiwi folk (otherwise known as New Zealanders) decided to build a snow cave and live in it. They spent over 100 hours digging out the three-room dwelling in a snow drift behind the main building at Scott Base. I was lucky enough to get to visit the snow cave on my first visit to Scott Base this season. My coworkers and I were invited for dinner by their station's science support staff, and Paul the electrician was hanging out with us post-dinner. We asked for a tour of the cave he built with his friend Gav so he walked Pat and I out back and before we knew it he dove face-first through this tiny little hole into the snow cave. Not thinking things through, I decided it would be better for me personally to go in feet first. Well, of course this snow cave was built to keep the wind out so once I got down to the lowest point, I needed to go up and into the first room of the place. This turned out to be quite a problem since I couldn't really see "up". Luckily Paul was there to rescue me and pulled me up through the tunnel by my feet. He did say it was one of the least graceful entrances he had ever seen to the place. Thank you, thank you. Once Pat made her way in, we hung out in the bedroom for a little bit. It consisted of two flat carved out spots where they had air mattresses and sleeping bags with a handy light on a stand near by. Then we crawled into the guest room aka the party room. There is a giant snow post in the middle with a light inside it, and this room is a working power point (as you'll see in the third photo). I decided to just peek into the third room instead of falling through another hole to get there. This room was the movie room where they had attempted to show a few movies. The only problem with it is that the projector kept freezing on them. Go figure!You can buy the snow cave by clicking on this link. All proceeds go to charity. Also, you can check out more photos of this piece of prime real estate.
On our way in...
Pat and Paul in the guest room.
A real working power point. In a snow cave. In Antarctica.
I took this photo without my flash to give you an idea of the ambience of the place.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Hand-washing Police
Someone came up with the brilliant idea two weeks ago to make each department volunteer, or as we like to call it "voluntold", to stand guard by the hand-washing sinks outside the Galley to make sure everyone scrubbed up before entering. There is a big concern about spreading germs on station, and one way to minimize (supposedly) is to wash your hands before entering the Galley.
My department had a PM shift standing out front of the Galley for dinner. It was also the last time they made anyone stand guard.
My sign says, "The CDC recommends 20 seconds of scrubbing with soap to avoid spreading germs. Don't hate me because I'm clean. Hate me because I'm beautiful." And I obnoxiously timed people as they washed their hands.
This is my friend... we'll call him T. He let one guy pass by without washing his hands and one of the head honchos saw. He yelled out, "T, cut off his head!" Um, I think that's a little extreme.
Friday, September 11, 2009
First Flight Photos
All of these photos were taken by a talented winterover photographer named Chad Carpenter. He put them on the I: Drive so I grabbed them to show you our arrival. Click on them to get a better view!
You can sort of see me in the last photo where we're all crammed into Ivan the Terra Bus. Look on the right side of the bus. Count back three men down the aisle. I'm the one peeking out behind the third guy. You can really only see my glasses and my hat. I had my overstuffed carry-on smooshed on my lap and could barely see over it.