Aurora Australis

10/03/2007

The Aurora Australis has arrived. This statement can have two interpretations, or three or seven, but for now I'll go with two. Firstly, the ship the Aurora Australis has arrived and is now floating in Davis harbour. The ship is currently being unloaded and loaded with freight. In a day I will board the ship and try to make myself as comfortable as possible in my cabin which will serve as my nest for the next three to four weeks. It is a strange feeling to see the ship out there, waiting to take us home.

The second and more spectacular interpretation of the arrival of the Aurora Australis is that the Aurora lights have been lighting up the late night sky for the last few days. The Aurora are a glow in the night sky usually only seen in polar zones. Auroras are believed to be caused by the collision of charged particles (e.g. electrons) with atoms in the Earth's upper atmosphere (at altitudes above 80km). As the charged particles collide with atoms of gases in the atmosphere, the atoms become energized. Shortly afterwards, the atoms emit their gained energy as light which causes the glow (tending to be green). Other colours are sometimes seen but so far I have only seen green curtains of light dancing in the sky. This is one of the Antarctic phenomenon I most wanted to witness. Now, I can go home.

A nice ending

03/03/2007

The last working week in Antarctica and it had a bit of everything. A day trip back to the Larsemann Hills, a few days of wild weather preventing activity outside, helicopter flights throughout the nearby Vestfold Hills and some spectacular sunsets.

One day was spent retrieving the GPS equipment left in the Larsemann Hills the week before. We flew along the edge of the plateau, flying low to admire the crevasse fields and different patterns in the ice. It was a pleasant day to be out and about. After the survey gear was packed away we went for another wander through the area. I don’t think I could ever get tired of exploring in those hills.

We had flown to the Larsemanns by helicopter. On arrival, the Russians, who have a base nearby, came up to greet us in their tank. The tank was an ex-military medical vehicle which had been modified to suit the more friendly Antarctic atmosphere. There is little use for gun mounts and cannons in Antarctica as the wildlife is protected and wouldn’t put up much resistance anyway.

After our little trip the weather turned grim and just about everybody was stranded on station for a few days, until the strong winds died down. The wind was consistently over 40 knots, gusting to over 60 knots. This was a good reminder that you really are at the mercy of the environment down here. When the wind picks up and the temperature drops the only thing to do is get comfortable and wait for it to blow over. I spent those few days reading, finalising reports, watching movies and exercising in the gym. It was great to compare the grey sky and sea to the sight we had seen in the same harbour only days earlier when the sunset created the effect of a solar pillar and lit up the sky and icebergs in the most amazing colours.

Once the wind settled we spent the next couple of days flying in amongst the Vestfold hills from lake to lake, surveying the water levels of the lakes. Some of the lakes are well below sea level and are as much as ten times more saline than sea water. A taste test proved this. It was a nice final project to finish off our work in Antarctica. Hopping from lake to lake, performing short surveys, appreciating the views and simply enjoying being outside and soaking up the last of our time on the continent.

The summer season is finally coming to a close and the ship will arrive in a few days to collect about 50 people from station and leave 20 others to manage the station throughout the winter. There is an extremely positive and friendly atmosphere around station as we approach the end. It is funny how people seem to get on really well when they are just about to part. I have noticed this quite a bit as I have been continually on the move for the last few years. For some reason people seem more relaxed and perhaps let their guard down a bit more when they know they won’t see each other for a long time. It has been impressive to watch a group of people who were once strangers band together during the season and create a strong community. I have had a wonderful time in Antarctica and enjoyed every moment down here. I have seen some spectacular places and had some extraordinary experiences which I am sure will only cause me to smile when I reflect upon them in the future. I am going to lay my pen down now and set aside the book which has covered my adventure On Antarctica.

Vacation

24/02/2007

The Larsemann Hills is a nice spot to visit if you ever get the chance. A splatter of mountains wedged between the coast and the ice plateau, about 100km from Davis Station. Helicopter is the best form of transport, flying over icebergs and huge crevasse fields, where the plateau runs into the ocean. Conveniently, Australia has a small field base setup in the hills. Law Base. This consists of two apple and three melon huts (named according to shape) and Reid hut. After spending some time in polar pyramids in the snow, huts are welcomed as luxury stye accommodation. Mattress beds, couches, dining table, gas stove, heater and electricity powered by generator. It all sounds pretty basic, which it is, but you don’t go on holidays to spend all your time in the hotel. You go on holidays for the adventure, to see something different, to see something amazing.

Your humble narrator visited Law Base under the guise of work. Two GPS units were set up over two survey marks in the hills and left to collect data for the week. I like to think that when the GPS are collecting data I am also working. We spent two full days in the Larsemann Hills even though it took a grand total of about two hours to install the GPS units. The rest of the time was spent exploring and having fun.

The Larsemann Hills could be considered a naturally formed amusement park. You can wander along beaches covered in ice, gaze at giant icebergs in the bay and listen to the penguins squawking out on the ice flows. You can walk over frozen lakes and smash ice shards watching them scatter in all different directions across the ice. You can sit by the edge of lakes and catch snow falling into your hands. You can edge your way through ice caves and admire the streams of water running from the ice melt. You can watch the sun set into the plateau and see the sky come alive with colour. You can scramble up rock faces and climb mountains. At the peak of each rise you can see even more beautiful sights and interesting areas to explore. You couldn’t help but feel completely free wandering around this place, going wherever you liked, walking towards whatever caught your eye. No restrictions, no time constraints, no worries.

An extra day was given to us in the hills due to the snow and poor visibility, preventing a helicopter from collecting us. We were well prepared for this scenario and had brought an abundance of alcohol. Although I do not drink often I do enjoy undertaking stupid behaviour in exotic locations. I had a long fight with the bottle and although the bottle was empty in the morning, based on the bruises and my aching head, I’d say the bottle won. The last time I woke up in such a condition I was in Germany. That day I travelled halfway across the country from Dresden to Munich with my head slumped against the cool train window watching the countryside blur by. This time I flew 100km along the coast of Antarctica over icebergs and crevasse fields with my head slumped against the cool helicopter window.

A week in pictures

17/02/2007

Every week I write another On Antarctica entry. I set aside the time on a Saturday and construct stories about my adventures for the week, including work related comments, jokes, movie and literature references and personal thoughts. Well, not this week. I'm sick of it. This week I'm simply going to give the fans what they want to see. Pictures. Look at the photos and make up your own stories. I'm having a week off. Enjoy.

Magnetic Island Penguin Colony

Minky Whale

One flew over the penguin rookery

10/02/2007

Another week surrounded by the crowding mass of yahoos within the confines of the asylum which is Davis station. A full week of work around station undertaking several different surveys. Activities performed included a reference mark survey of the permanent GPS station, levelling between tide gauge bench marks, GPS surveys, slushy work, an infrasound survey and a topographic feature survey as a favour for a biologist on station. It is all well and good to keep busy but one must keep in mind that ALL WORK AND NO PLAY MAKES ALEX A DULL BOY.

Details of the general procedure and purpose of the geodetic survey work have already been documented in previous entries. The infrasound survey was done for some scientists at Geoscience Australia. Fancy equipment was setup in the nearby hills and left running all week. This equipment measures meteorological information such as wind speed and direction while taking extremely precise readings of changes in pressure through the use of a micro-barometer.

Although we have been particularly busy on station this week, a nutcase biologist also asked us to survey the old elephant seal wallow with the main feature of the survey being drill hole samples taken in deposits of seal fur. The biologists had drilled through metre high mounds which were made up of layer upon layer of seal fur, malted each year. A survey was requested to observe the position and height of the samples, with respect to each other, the surrounding wallow and water level on the nearby shore. The survey also provided them with a nice little map of the wallow. Of course, to perform the survey involved getting in amongst the colossal beasts, within biting distance, and who better to do that than your humble narrator. The wallow contained about 15 massive seals at the time of survey and I mean massive, some of them weigh several tonnes. There mass makes them pretty slow which was an advantage to the nimble footed surveyor, trying not to upset them too much and get away with his feet attached. Elephant seals aren’t the most modest creatures, constantly snorting, growling and lying around in their own filth. The wallow smells pretty bad as you might expect, comparable to the smell of tanning factories or abattoirs on a hot day, or the royal show. The seals aren’t the brightest animals either, with their thought processes not extending much beyond competing with each other for space. Fighting and confronting each other is just about all they do, practicing all their lives, starting from when they are pups. Despite all this the survey was completed successfully and the seals were quite good natured about my intrusion into their domain. I think some of the seals followed me back to Davis (like little lambs) and I can still hear them growling and snorting (not screaming) on the shore nearby my donga at night.

The Film Australia crew filming a documentary of the recreation of Mawson’s epic sledging trip by an Australian adventurer have returned to station. In Mawson’s adventure everything went wrong. One guy (Ninnis) fell down a crevasse along with most of the food. Mawson and Mertz continued on, resorting to eating their husky dogs for sustenance. Unfortunately, this led to Mertz getting Vitamin A poisoning from eating the dogs kidneys and he died also. Mawson managed to return to a station, although there has always been suspicion that he ate Mertz as a last resort in survival. Being out in the deep field in a small party of two or three you can’t help but think about these stories and imagine how you might handle a similar situation. I have often wondered what my fellow expeditioners might taste like, perhaps with farmer beans and a nice bottle of …

When we were in the deep field we had to melt snow for water. This is a slow process but at least you know where the water is from and that it is clean. On station the plumbers make the drinking water. They do this through a process called reverse osmosis in which sea water is forced through a membrane skin which extracts the salt from the water. I refuse to drink this water and am continuing to melt snow for my drinking water as I am convinced that there is a conspiracy on station in which the plumbers are trying to sap and impurify all of my precious bodily fluids. I will continue to deny them my essence.

My only break from the insanity of the crowd of people on station comes in the evenings when I walk down the wooden plank walkway to my donga, admiring the view of the sun setting over the icebergs in the harbour. I have taken great comfort in curling into bed each night with my good friend Robinson Crusoe and dreaming of a life of solitude.