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Archive for December, 2007


My Wild Ride

By Kathryn Schaffer Miknaitis · December 15, 2007 · comments 1 comment
For the last month, one of the major projects on the telescope has been measuring the surface of the 10-meter reflector and adjusting it carefully to create a very accurate surface. This entire project has… {Read More »}


The Skidoo Situation

By Slawek Tulaczyk · December 12, 2007 · comments No comments yet
In this audio dispatch I describe our skidoo mishaps, and how our bad luck was swiftly followed by aid and good fortune. … {Read More »}


Dirt and Decay in the Clean Land of Ice

By Kathryn Schaffer Miknaitis · December 11, 2007 · comments No comments yet
The South Pole is one of the cleanest places I have ever been. Outside, the environment is absolutely pristine and essentially unchanging. There is no soil, no solid ground, no vegetation or animal life for… {Read More »}


Caught in the Storm

By Nadine Quintana Krupinski · December 9, 2007 · comments 2 comments
WHILLANS ICE STREAM, ANTARCTICA-- In this audio dispatch I describe the storm that temporarily halted our research and left us stranded in our tents. Listen to the sounds of the storm when I stick the… {Read More »}


The Toilet on the Ice

By Nadine Quintana Krupinski · December 9, 2007 · comments No comments yet
In this short audio dispatch I describe one thing you might not think about when picturing us living on the ice—our toilet. Listen as I describe the process of putting up our Toilet Tent, pictured… {Read More »}


The Crevasse Encounter

By Nadine Quintana Krupinski · December 9, 2007 · comments No comments yet
In this audio dispatch I describe our first (and hopefully last!) encounter with a crevasse. … {Read More »}


Seeing Lake Mercer through the Ice

By Slawek Tulaczyk · December 9, 2007 · comments No comments yet
In this audio dispatch I describe a major achievement in our project: using radar technology to see Lake Mercer beneath the ice, gathering important data on the lake, and setting up instruments that will enable… {Read More »}


Our Voyage to Whillans Ice Stream

By Nadine Quintana Krupinski · December 6, 2007 · comments 1 comment
In this initial audio dispatch, I describe the long journey to our field camp, the logistics of setting up camp once we got there, and the feeling of seeing the last plane depart leaving nothing… {Read More »}


Crevasse Safety and Mental llusions

By Nadine Quintana Krupinski · December 6, 2007 · comments 1 comment
Any time we travel to a new area, we take a series of precautions to avoid crevasses. First, we look at high-resolution radar and visible light satellite images that show many of the crevasses and… {Read More »}


Sighting Lake Mercer, and Skidoo Singing

By Nadine Quintana Krupinski · December 6, 2007 · comments No comments yet
Yesterday we made a trip to Lake Mercer, the second lake of the four lakes we plan to visit during our field work. The lake has been informally named Lake Mercer because it’s located on… {Read More »}

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