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Random Pics
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An Iceberg (first one I've seen - beautiful blueish tones)
Me in front of iceberg - to give some perspective on size
Some island.
Me in front of Mount Erebus (still active). You can see it smoking/steaming.
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Went to my last major training - “Sea Ice.” So today I really learned what sea ice is. With the exception of the sea ice runway, what I probably referred to as sea ice before was not in fact sea ice. For example, the “Happy Camper” course was not on sea ice as I previously thought, but on the frozen Ross Ice Shelf – basically frozen water and snow on the Ross island shelf. Sea Ice is actually frozen ocean or sea water. McMurdo Station is located on Ross Island and is completely surrounded by sea ice and the frozen ice shelf. The sea ice and the ice shelf melt, but dependent on conditions only certain portions may melt.
--We learned how to identify and assess cracks in the sea ice, such that when we travel over sea ice we can determine if they are safe to cross. Cracks are caused by tidal forces, temperature, winds, radiation, etc.
--Identification of cracks are mostly visual. Assessment involves assessing the depth (thickness) of sea ice and how wide the crack is at the crossing point. The general guidelines for assessment are: To clear the snow off the ice to visualize the crack Auger holes through the sea ice over the width of the crack and at the ends of the crack Put these holes in approximately 18 inches apart With the type of vehicle we were using a crack could be 24 inches wide and it would be safe to cross (determined by track length on vehicle).
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Taking a measurement of sea ice thickness/depth after hole was augered through to ocean water.
A line of auguered holes taken on the edges of a crack and in the crack.
Two picture of cracks:
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If the sea ice is thicker than 20 feet that particular section is considered safe and not part of the width of the crack.
Here’s a pic of the Haaglund that we rode in.
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Hope to add a video here of us augering into the sea ice and pushing through to the ocean water.
(Part of assessing safety of crossing crack)
--We also learned how to make anchors (i.e., tents) in the ice and visited an ice cave. Here is a video of the ice cave.
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