Today I witnessed a new Antarctic phenomina. Not quite snow and not mist. If you look through the air it sparkles with millions of tiny crystals. They float slowly towards the ground. It is called diamond dust for obvious reasons and happens on days which are very clear but with enough high cloud to give some precipitation. Impossible to get a good photo of I'm afraid.
Today I went on a nice trip in a boat. A few folk plodding along in a small RIB. Sounds pleasant?
Well, that doesn't describe today's adventure very well. After dinner the boat team took us land lovers out to show us around their world. So we went from the base south around the icebergs and growlers that I have watched from the tower window. They are truly beautiful fruits of nature. As with many of the experiences I've been fortunate to have so far, pictures do not do them justice.
The bergs are very different to how you would expect them. They are far more dynamic than I imagined before going south. At this time of the year they exhibit signs of melting away. Holes appear in them and then they split in two with an explosive snap. They also melt on the side that faces the sun and become off-balanced. After some time they turn over causing a mini tsunami. Not surprising when they way over 1000tons a go.
The most notable aspect of them is colour. Not totally white as you might expect but often shades of blue. The really deep blues come from really old ice that is super compressed. When caves form in the bergs it is a beautiful sight to see dramatic shapes and shades that resemble an ancient rock cavern. Only this one will disappear within days.
They move quick too. Not by currents so much but rather the wind. So when the wind blows towards you a clear patch of sea can become a car park for bergs within an hour or so. Like large sail boats adrift with no crew. With a south and north cove here you always have one clear and one choka with bergs.
Some of the bergs have passengers. Seals sitting lazily waiting for the final destination.
The date has come when I finally move the place I will call home for the next 1.5 years. I arrived at 4pm on the 2nd November. My head is spinning. I have spent the last year staring the webcam watching the seasons come and go. So now when I look across at the glaciers and icebergs it appears to be like I'm looking at a screen and its not really happening.
Here is a view from the new office which is the orange comms tower you can see from the webcam (looking north):
The view in the opposite direction looks over 20km of sea to a volcano looking island called Jenny Island. From my old office window I could see the car park and Addlestone train station.
There is so much to take in here. Life is so very different to that back in 'the real world'. Some massive differences like the climate, views and constant daylight. Some not so obvious like the fact that none of the doors here have locks on them.
Beer here is 60p a go. Although no good ales of course. The food is great and consists of two large meals a day, fried breakfast, snack such as egg bap or giant muffin for smoko AM and PM and then a large storeroom of snacks available 24/7. It is going to be hard work keeping temptation at bay.
One of the really nice subtle differences here is that everyone smiles and is happy. It is inconceivable that you would pass someone on base and not say hi. Even the penguins walk up to you and say hello, flap their wings and walk off again.
Well I finally made it! I have stepped foot on Antarctica. Well to be more precise, I stepped foot in Antarctica.
I have spent a week in New York with my girlfriend Mary. We went to a bar in Manhattan called the Antarctica Bar. The card above is from the place. Note the obligatory penguins :) You can check out the website at http://www.antarcticabar.com/
I couldn't find out why it had such a strange name although the bar was very different in character to the other drinking opportunities in the area so I can't help but suspect it is run by an ex FID. I thoroughly recommend it if your passing.
One of the more fun courses is the 'elevated platform' course. Two days at Cambridge mostly out in the back yard on a cherry picker. It is a simple course with very little theory so a great one to have towards the end when your all washed out.
There is a mini exam of 20 multiple guess questions regarding safety. Hard not to get full marks if you read the questions correctly. Then out to the yard to have a go on the machine. BAS has an old electric trailer type platform which we train on. It goes up to about the second floor height and swings out over the top of roofs etc. Great fun. I recommend taking rough clothes and a pair of old gloves.
I had an amazing experience today. It felt like a life defining moment. Certainly a realisation of what I had become a part of. It happened as I was handed a piece of ice.
During the week long BAS conference we had a talk from each of the three main science departments. One of the talks was from a doctor who was part of the team ice core drilling on the Antarctic Peninsula. He talked passionately about what he had done in his career with BAS to date, and what he hopes to do this coming season. He showed un-deniable evidence that the global warming currently taking place is as a result of man, and that it is not the same as past warming/cooling episodes. This is the kind of evidence that may once have a dramatic effect on governments decisions and the future of our planet.
The ice handed around was a splinter from the last core taken. It fizzed as it warmed in my hand. The tiny air bubbles were liberated as the ice melted. It is these gas bubbles, formed as the ice was created that tell us what the environment was like back then. This piece of ice was 40,000 years old. It was an honour that he had gone to the trouble to bring the ice to the talk.
I realised afterwards that it was this kind of expert that I studied at university almost a decade ago. The sort of person you looked up to whilst researching an overdue essay was going to be working along side us. More to the point, these people will depend on me to make their work happen. Makes you think...........
You might be thinking that this is the kind of title that doesn't fill you with anticipation of the treats and excitement that might follow. You would be right. By far the most IT nerdy course on the list, this is a week in rural Bristol learning about the aged operating system that many public sector organisations use to run their networks.
Novell is the betamax of the networking world. Microsoft joined the networking market much later in the day and as such didn't for many years have a superior product. However, after being on the course it is clear that Novell is a slowly dying beast. Little things like the fact that the course was very hard to find and that the guy giving the course is preparing for growing his prize winning marrows during retirement make you wonder. That said, what there is of Novell is a good simple system for controlling a network. It does what it says on the tin.
Perhaps the most interesting part of the course is it's location. It is the only week spent in a stately home! The house has been transformed into one of those wedding/conference/IT training establishments. Amazing views of the reservoir in the valley below and a very British way of having afternoon tea, in the west garden. Watch out for the beer at £3.50 a bottle of Butcombe Gold.
It was also another occasion to get to know one of the team a bit better. One of the quieter IT bods came along. For a lot of people you have to delve deep to find the real person. This guy is very much like that. After a few nights of beer I was treated to learning about a different point of view, a different background, a different future. One thing is for sure is that each person I've met at BAS so far is a very different character. I guess I add to this list.
