Heidi Roop | Ice Stories: Dispatches From Polar Scientists

Heidi Roop, who recently finished her masters thesis on Arctic climate change and lake sediments, will be heading south to work as a science technician at the West Antarctic Ice Sheet Divide. Through her interest in geology, Heidi has been able to travel around the world researching climate change and environmental issues. She has never been to Antarctica and is looking forward to the opportunity to spend three months helping to collect and document ice cores.

Project Page: Frozen History

All Posts By Heidi Roop

A Day in the Life of the DISC Drill

By Heidi Roop · February 4, 2010 ·

4 comments

WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA-- Here is a short video that summarizes all of the steps in collecting an ice core using the Deep Ice Sheet Coring (DISC) drill... {Read More »}

Ash Deposits and Ice

By Heidi Roop · January 13, 2010 ·

6 comments

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 »}

Up, Up, and Away: Weather at WAIS Divide

By Heidi Roop · January 4, 2010 ·

2 comments

WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA-- With flights constantly coming and going with cargo, fuel and passengers, monitoring the weather conditions here at WAIS Divide is a critical and ongoing task... {Read More »}

Get That Heart Rate Up!

By Heidi Roop · December 27, 2009 ·

6 comments

WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA-- In Antarctica, as I constantly work in this cold environment, I can sense my body working really hard. Staying warm is a primary challenge and keeping enough energy to complete my daily tasks is a tough. However, as with anywhere in the world, it is still important to get exercise... {Read More »}

Happy Holidays from West Antarctica

By Heidi Roop · December 24, 2009 ·

1 comment

WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA-- We are certainly guaranteed a white holiday celebration here at WAIS Divide... {Read More »}

Tent Time

By Heidi Roop · December 14, 2009 ·

3 comments

WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA: As I am learning first-hand, there is quite an adjustment period to life in the field in Antarctica... {Read More »}

You’ve Got Mail and a Birthday!

By Heidi Roop · December 10, 2009 ·

3 comments

WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA-- Many of our crew will be celebrating birthdays while down on the ice so I thought I’d share what an ice sheet birthday looks like... {Read More »}

Packing Cores: A Critical Piece of the Puzzle

By Heidi Roop · December 8, 2009 ·

2 comments

WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA: Before we start drilling again this season, we are shipping out about 1,000 meters of ice that overwintered here are WAIS Divide... {Read More »}

The Question Everyone Wants to Ask but Doesn’t….

By Heidi Roop · December 6, 2009 ·

3 comments

WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA-- I know that I was curious before I got here about many of the in’s and out’s of Antarctic life. One basic aspect of life is using the restroom and I wasn’t exactly sure how that worked down south... {Read More »}

We’ve Landed in the Middle of an Ice Sheet!

By Heidi Roop · December 1, 2009 ·

3 comments

WAIS DIVIDE, ANTARCTICA-- We finally arrived at WAIS Divide. Our flight departed as planned and now the crew is here learning the ropes and getting used to how to survive constantly cold temperatures... {Read More »}