WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA-- Our primary goal here at WAIS Divide is to drill and collect ice cores and get it shipped back to the United States. Rarely do we see anything other than clear ice with some scratches and cracks, but around 1600 m deep we retrieved a core with a visible dark band in it. We think that this layer is a tephra layer, or a volcanic ash deposit!... {Read More »}

SOUTH POLE, ANTARCTICA-- Soon after we took off I saw something in the snow from the window and I took a photograph of it. When I zoomed in on the photo I discovered that it was a crashed plane!... {Read More »}

ABOARD THE RVIB N. B. PALMER, ON THE WEDDELL SEA-- As luck or fate would have it, the sea ice around Antarctica seems to be unusually persistent this year, reaching far beyond its usual summer extent, which makes moving forward a slow going process... {Read More »}

WHILLANS ICE STREAM, ANTARCTICA-- The first order of business was to set up camp. First we collected all our gear at our chosen site and pitched our cook tent... {Read More »}

WHILLANS ICE STREAM, ANTARCTICA-- We landed at our field site after a three hour flight from McMurdo Station. Climbing out of the plane we were in a white flat expanse... {Read More »}

ABOARD THE RVIB N. B. PALMER, ON THE SOUTHERN OCEAN-- After leaving Punta Arenas, Chile, on January 4th, 2010, and enjoying the calm waters of the Straits of Magellan and the coast of Argentina on our way to the Weddell Sea we have now reached the dreaded Drake Passage.... {Read More »}

MCMURDO STATION, ANTARCTICA-- Today I visited the (New Zealand) Scott Base. The New Zealand base is next to some spectacular pressure ridges, which are caused by tides where the sea ice meets the land... {Read More »}

SOUTH POLE, ANTARCTICA-- It has been a fun and eventful holiday season here at the Pole which included a great Christmas dinner, a Race Around… {Read More »}

CAPE ROYDS, ROSS ISLAND, ANTARCTICA– Since the early 20th century when exploration of the Ross Sea became common, killer whales have been sighted regularly and described as the most abundant whale in the area. Recently, the killer whales... {Read More »}

BEACON VALLEY, ANTARCTICA- One of the more common questions that I am asked regarding the field camping experience is how do we dispose of our waste in such an environmentally protected region of the world? Nothing can be released into the soil. Everything must be contained and returned to McMurdo... {Read More »}