Pole
Where last we had left off on my January adventures I had just arrived at “pole”, snowmobiled out to the telescope 800m from station, and begun my software training. It was January 8, and I had to pee. I discovered Diamox, the anti-altitude sickness medicine, makes one want to pee a lot, which is compounded by the fact you are to drink more water to combat altitude sickness and to handle the extremely dry pole air. Luckily there was an outhouse right by the telescope.
When we got back, I went to the station store and check out the offerings and bought some letter writing and postcard writing materials. I was pleased to see that we had VOIP phones, and whenever we were in satellite coverage (about 11 hours a day in a sliding window, moving 4 minutes earlier each day) we were allowed to use them to call friends and loved ones! I called Casey and we had a long conversation, the first of many.
The next day (it is eternal sunshine here in the summer, but people still keep regular schedules for the most part; we are also living on New Zealand, Christchurch time) I did some pole tourism photos,
and the next weeks were filled with training, science talks, tours, experiments, and even a bit of free time which I used to read sci fi, take naps, play the piano, attend the occasional party, study Chinese, play around with new instruments in a group, and setup with my electronics and social media. Many people sat around milling after meals, doing crosswords (we get the Times Digest here) and sometimes I participate my first foray into crosswords. Here is my colleague Amy working on one:
I’ve been to yoga class a few times, held in our gym by volunteers, and every time it’s been of exceptional quality. Group events have included bingo, parties, movies and open mic nights, but I still haven’t managed to see a movie while I’ve been down here. Here’s Amy at a party, which was held half indoors and half outdoors:
I’d rather read a book in the sauna or greenhouse (right now I’m working my way through the Baroque Cycle trilogy by Neal Stephenson).
I am about to go on my first indoor run on the treadmill. Update: success! I haven’t been running at all in more than a month. Before I went to Australia in December I got a cold which lingered until about the time I arrived and had to acclimatize. I went for a 1.5 mi run, did pushups (tricep and normal), sit-ups, planks, kettle ball lifts, squats, stairs and lunges for a good 30 minute work out. I’ve since been running, but still not more than 2 miles. I hope to have it in me to train for a marathon while I am here. Next I had “house mouse” which I have every Wednesday; namely to clean the shared bathroom on my hall! In the winter I may have more community duties and volunteering to help out with other people’s work is often welcome. I may even get to train to run the power plant.
I continued to do a lot more training, sometimes working upwards of 12 hour days especially when the head of our experiment was in town and we wanted to take especial advantage of his presence. I learned that I could open most of the heavy doors on the telescope by myself, for maintenance and inspection, and climb on the roof of the telescope. I also learned how to grease the gears, and became comfortable with daily checklists we go through to make sure operations are smooth, as well as running the observation schedule of the telescope.
I often wrote letters, and mailed them whenever the post office was open (twice a week) and Casey and I, while not intending to talk every day, ended up talking almost every day and setting up an easy way to share low resolution photos and articles of the day via dropbox. I am really grateful to have enough connectivity to keep in touch! We’re also both working on personal improvement projects; Casey is widening his cooking skills and using them more often (and sending me great photos) and I have been regularly practicing singing (about 3 hours a week). I also managed to call my mom several times. I have a phone number in my room you can call (check that I might be up by seeing what time it is in Christchurch, anytime before midnight is OK): 720-568-1636. Yep, it’s a Denver number. Go figure. I have an answering machine so feel free to leave a message, or even do something like read an interesting article to me!
Once in there I witnessed a plane crash in which no one was hurt.
I was walking to the telescope which crosses the runway. On seeing the lights saying stop, we did of course, and after about 15 minutes the plane took off. About a minute later, while still on the ground, a piece of metal that looked like a ski flew off, and the plane went lopsided. Unfortunately, the management decided to shut off our internet while they contacted the families to let them know that everything was OK. It was a bit scary being purposely cut off from communication, we are at a fragile position here and very dependent on the powers that be.
Somewhere in there we recreated some historical photos of Amundsen and Scott’s respective expeditions.
I saw sundogs.
I visited an ice cave designed to illustrate the layers of ice that can be analyzed.
I saw the ice core drilling operations which are instrumental to understanding climate in the region and can help understand global climate and climate change.
Unfortunately I heard from the researchers that their funding is often cut in recent years, as congress wants to stay away from research that shows climate change.
I took a tour of the ice tunnels beneath the station,
where I learned where our water and waste are taken from/to, and along the way visited the power plant, the fuel storage, and the food storage, Indiana Jones style.
Almost every week in the summer there is a science talk in the “galley” (there are a lot of naval terms here, as it used to be a naval base, even the airport code “NPX”, N is for naval), which is attended by people from a variety of roles on station. Only a fraction of those on station are scientists and many are support personal. “Carps” or carpenters, “UTs” or universal technicians, “Fuelies” or fuel service staff, “wasties” those that handle the station waste both bio and inorganic, “Comms” which handle satellite and radio communication, the galley staff (some are stewards or “stewies” ) and more-ies.
I’ve been totally impressed by the food here, and they (despite it not being in their contract) have been very willing to cater to vegans. There are 4 on station right now, and every meal we have protein full options from tempeh, seitan, beans, tofu, and more. They also set aside some vegetables for us, in the event the main serving is cooked with butter, and their are often vegan soups. It’s be super easy to be vegan here so far, as there’s no worry of the kitchen staff not knowing exactly what that means. A big thank you goes to them! Several times we’ve had salad here from the greenhouse which is a special treat, and recently one of the planes brought in “freshies” (fresh fruits and vegetables) so we had fresh kiwis, oranges, avocados, and grapes. It’s amazing how good fresh fruit and veggies taste, appreciate them!
So far I have also learned to drive a snowmobile, and done so many times (in the winter it will be too cold to do so, so I’m enjoying the fun while it lasts):
I’ve also joined the Trauma emergency response team (1 hour of training per week, being on call every other week) and the winter overs get to do additional training as a clinical assistant (1 extra hour of training) which would be on an as needed basis. I got a cool patch!
So far I have learned how to do triage and to use an ultrasound machine, as well as to draw blood or prepare an IV:
Did you know you can ultrasound eyeballs to assess whether the retina has been detached? It is also great for looking at whether there is internal bleeding. I’m having fun learning these useful skills. The “South Pole Club Med” or “Medical” is right down the hall, and I’ve been there twice outside of trainings. My eyes got a bit dry and I got some eyedrops (1 minute) and a dentist has been visiting and I got a teeth cleaning (the southern most dentist for sure!). It’s a cosy feeling being so close to food, social life, and colleagues, a bit like college. On reflection I also live at the airport, and the gym and the movie theatre.
What’s next
I will be continuing training until approximately February 15, when the last plane leaves.
The C-130 Hercules planes (“Hercs”) are only rated to -50C, and that’s about the time it drops below. Then there will be about 45 of us left on station to “spend the night” until about November 1 when the first Herc arrives, when people begin to be able to be relieved by their summer crew.
After then we’ll get no more mail or supplies; everything is here on station that we will need for the winter we hope. I hope my mail arrives before then, I have several packages coming I mailed myself, and that others mailed me. Update: one package I mailed myself arrived, and they will prioritize my mail.
Communication
You are welcome to try to send a postcard, which just might reach here before winter (it is too late to send packages).
Christine Moran (winterover, grantee)
South Pole Station, A-379
PSC 768 Box 400
APO AP 96598
The address is a US address, so you can mail at any USPS for US rates. If the postcard or packages reaches New Zealand by the first week of February it will very likely reach here.
So far I have received 4 letters, 9 postcards and two packages all of which have really brightened my already sunny day!
Also feel free to reply via email directly to this newsletter or to christine.corbett@gmail.com (they go to the same place) and call me at 720-568-1636 at a time reasonable in Christchurch, New Zealand hours (the phone number is US so no worries about long distance). Just leave a message if I am not around with your name, number and a convenient time to call.
I will write more newsletters based on what you want to hear about so feel free to ask any questions! I am also happy to schedule remote educational talks or conversations (audio only) to a wider audience, just get in touch. I’ll hopefully be writing at least one newsletter a month, maybe two, and will be posting on my science blog https://www.codexgalactic.com more about the science (I will link any blog posts I make in my newsletter).
Finally, if you found this newsletter interesting, feel free to forward to a friend or family member. Looking forward to staying in touch.
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