We've had a long week and have made a lot of progress on our science, but I will always remember this as the week that my computer's hard drive decided to die. It's been a tough couple of days. The great IT team here tried their best to save her, but my computer's days are over. I do have everything backed up to the cloud, but I can't access my photo library easily from there so the pictures I'm sharing here are poached from my team members. Luckily, I got a loaner laptop and I'm working on getting a new laptop from New Zealand on one of the upcoming ice flights. Cross your fingers for me!

We spent two days scouting sites for our upcoming weekly samplings. Our criteria are 1) snow, 2) sea ice, and 3) detectable levels of bromoforms (compounds with bromide in them). These compounds can be metabolized by some phytoplankton and cyanobacteria in the ice and snow into new compounds that, if volatilized, may contribute to ozone depletion. However, there are other bacteria in the ice and snow that may have the ability to degrade these compounds before they are released. We want to quantify the different parts of this biochemical balancing act in our study.

Mitch is our sea ice POC (point of contact) and he helped us select our potential sites. Both sites had bromoforms, but the sea ice at the first site was too hard to core, as well as being close to McMurdo, the New Zealand base, and two airfields. So we chose the second site, in the shadow of Mt Erebus, which is an active volcano nearby.

We haven't had a day off since we arrived here, so we are all planning on taking it relatively easy this weekend in preparation for our real sampling to start next week.

On Wednesday, we had our full day sea ice training so that we would be allowed to go out onto the sea ice. This is essential since our entire project is based around gathering sea ice and snow-on-sea-ice samples (more on that later). Our class piled into two Hagglunds, pictured above, and headed out on a relatively low visibility day to find some cracks in the sea ice. In the class, we learned how to spot anomalies in the sea ice (not easy, because wind blown snow also looks like sea ice anomalies), as well as how to profile them and determine which vehicles are safe to cross. This decision is based on a combination of crack width and sea ice thickness.

We have also completed our snowmobile training, so the plan for this weekend is to practice packing up our field gear and finding a nearby spot to take some samples. Since all the support staff here have signed on to support a science station, many of them have enthusiastically offered to help us with our project. Only those who have passed sea ice training can actually go out, but maybe we can find a few people willing to help us haul hundreds of pounds of gear down to the snowmobiles :)

In case anyone wonders what we do in our downtime here, I'll share a bit of how I spend my time. I have been working a lot, in the evenings as well, but I'm making more of an effort to take a bit of time away from work so I don't go crazy. I've been going to the gym in the early mornings - there is a gym with cardio equipment and one with weight equipment with a large multiuse room where I do yoga. Last night, Karen and I joined a pick up volleyball game in the third gym, which was a lot of fun. We all took the outdoor recreation training so I'm hoping to get out on one of the hikes near the station this weekend since the weather is supposed to be beautiful. There are social spaces here where people go in the evenings, but I haven't gone yet.  If I decide it's fun to hang out with a bunch of 20-somethings in a bar-type environment I'll probably give that a go.

As we got close to the runway (called Phoenix), we were instructed to put on our ECW. Everyone stood up and wrestled on their Big Reds, which are the super warm coats that we are issued in New Zealand. As we got off the plane you could see why the Antarctic program chose red coats. They stand out nicely against the snow and ice, making us very visible. We loaded into the buses that are specially designed for traveling over snow and ice (one is called Ivan the Terra Bus) and headed into "town". 

Today was the closest we have gotten to actually flying on a plane down to Antarctica. We were all optimistic this morning: we woke up at 4:30 am and there was no flight delay. We all loaded on the shuttles, got to the clothing distribution center, got suited up, weighed and checked in, and then bussed over to the plane. That's when things started to go a little sideways.

​When we arrived on the tarmac we had to stay in the buses for a while because there were some repairs that needed doing on our C-17. Ok, we're used to waiting by now. The plane was fixed and we were handed our sack lunches and boarded the plane. We knew there were strong winds forecast for today, but things seemed relatively mild. There was even a rainbow! We sat in our seats for about an hour, even going through the safety briefing and inserting our ear plugs. After an hour they announced that the winds had picked up and they would not be able to take off. We then performed everything in reverse, checked into our third hotel in a week, and went to visit the Antarctica Centre, because if you can't actually go to Antarctica it seems to be the next best thing. 

Tomorrow we will try it all again. Today is Saturday in New Zealand and we were originally supposed to fly out on Monday October 9th. At this point there are two other groups who have arrived in NZ and their departures to the ice are also being pushed back since our group has not left yet. It's not wonder that so much of this program's budget gets eaten up with lay-overs in NZ.

After waking up at 4:30 am to make our ice flight today, I checked my email and realized I didn't have my hotel checkout receipt. This made me immediately suspicious. I called our flight info line at 4:48 and sure enough, a 24 hour flight delay due to weather. I forgot to check the McMurdo station weather cams this morning, but things aren't looking too bad right now.

This blog post gives a nice overview of weather at McMurdo and how storms are categorized.
So instead of flying to Antarctica this morning, Shelly and I set out on a long walk/hike at 7 am to the top of Coronation Ridge. After walking through not so lovely parts of outer Christchurch, we climbed up to Victoria Park and were able to catch panoramic views of the city and do a bit of bird watching.  For those bird nerds out there, we saw silvereyes, common black birds, a bellbird (doing what looked like a really cool mating display, which I caught with a mediocre photo), a New Zealand pigeon, and I think a swallow.

Some friends in Seattle sent me  a long list of questions about my experiences around this trip. I'm going to answer some of those questions in this post and will get to others in later posts. 
What was the hardest part of getting ready to go?
Knowing I would be leaving my family behind for 2 months.
What is the thing you’ll miss the most?
Izzy & Esther

What is the thing you are looking forward to the most?
Getting to work in and discover something new about such an amazing place.

What is the thing you are worried most about?
Being cold!

What is the closest to this kind of adventure you’ve ever had?
I've never been to such a cold place before. In terms of field work travel, I got to go on a research cruise off Bermuda in 2019 to study copepods. In terms of long work travel I worked in a lab in Brest, France for 4 months in 2013.

What was the application process?
There wasn't one. The professor I work with is part of the grant that was awarded to do this work. She didn't want to go on the trip (she has been to Antarctica before) and she asked me if I would be interested in going. Once I said yes and became part of the team I had to pass the physical qualification (PQ), which involved some extensive doctor and dentist visits and lots of medical tests. People do fail this part so I was relieved that I passed. 

What made you want to go??
I have always thought it would be amazing to do science in Antarctica. I would never go on a tourist cruise because I think they are generally damaging to the environment and should especially not be allowed in such a delicate ecosystem. I don't know if anyone else will ever offer me this opportunity, so I decided to take it.

 How many people are on your team?
5

How long will you be gone?
2 months

How much stuff are you allowed to bring?
About 100 lbs of luggage

Do they give you a packing list? What is on it?
Not a very long one. They mostly dictated how thick our long underwear should be. Everything else is personal choice, although they should have been much more explicit about the lack of towels. I read some blogs I found to put together my packing list.

Do you get to bring any food from home?
Nothing fresh because of customs laws in NZ (and probably in Antarctica too). I brought dark chocolate.

Did you bring any pictures or any other things from home?
I have lots of pictures on my phone and computer. Esther made some drawings for me to take.

What is the Internet connection like there?
Not great!

How often will you be in touch with friends or family in the states?
I hope I can call my family most days. If the wifi is overloaded or not working well, I can use a calling card. (Yes, the 20-year-old guy at QFC was very confused about what a calling card was and why I would want one, but they do carry them still.) I won't be able to do a lot of video chatting, but I should be able to text and call often.

We arrived in NZ with our mountain of luggage on a beautiful sunny day. (Don't worry, the next day was more typical weather for spring in NZ: plenty of rain. But we won't have much of that on the ice so I'll appreciate it for now.) While walking around the city on our first day we came across the rest of our team from Sweden!

Yesterday was dedicated to prep for our time on the ice. We all took our covid tests (our team is covid free!) before going to the CDC (clothing distribution center) where we were instructed in the very complicated bag contents and size restrictions. Somehow, no one thinks to make a website or handout with this information and it is all relayed to us verbally. I'm pretty sure some of us will be repacking our bags before boarding the plane. We have weight restrictions on our checked bags, which includes our "boomerang" bag that contains necessities for a few days in case our flight has to turn around and come back to NZ; we have size restrictions on our carry-on (it must be very small); and we must pack every single electronic thing in our carry-on, including individually packaged batteries. I've just learned some of this information for the first time, so I will need to get a bit creative with my re-packing.

We got our ECW - extreme cold weather gear - and tried it all on. Someone had decided that since I am 6' tall I must wear a men's L in everything. I had to exchange all my clothes. But eventually we were all outfitted in ECW that fits us well enough and should protect us from whatever comes our way while doing fieldwork on the ice. Except for leopard seals. I'm pretty sure they could bite through any ECW we have. Luckily, they are quite slow on the ice.

We also learned that our plane is broken.  At McMurdo station. So our plans to leave on Monday have shifted a bit. It seems that the plane may be ready to leave on Tuesday, but it looks like a storm is coming through Tuesday and Wednesday, so there could be more delays ahead. Luckily, Christchurch isn't the worst place to be stuck for a few extra days.

We won't see anything green for a couple of months, so we have been walking around Christchurch quite a bit. We have walked along the river, visited the Botanic Gardens, done the earthquake memorial walk, walked all the way to the ocean...It's a very scenic area and it's been fun to experience the spring weather "out of order" (from a northern hemisphere perspective).

I have no idea. Well, I have some ideas since I have asked, read blogs, and read the information provided to me by the US Antarctic Program (USAP). Fun fact: At McMurdo they provide you with sheets, blankets, and a pillow, but you have to bring your own towel. I have almost everything assembled (I'm still conflicted about which "casual shoes" to bring...), although my cats are doing their best to disrupt my careful prep work.

At the risk of repeating a list that several (more experienced) bloggers have already shared, here is what I will be stuffing into my ~100 lbs of allotted luggage space:
Outerwear and base layers

• 2 vests (1 "down", 1 fleece)
• 2 lighter weight jackets
• insulated ski pants
• ski goggles
• ski mittens
• heated gloves
• heated socks
• 2 gaters
• 1 scarf
• 2 hats (fleece and knitted)
• wool glove liners
• 3 pairs of long underwear of various degrees of warmth
• 2 pairs of polarized sunglasses (selected by my 3-year-old)

Other clothing items

• 3 pairs of sweat pants/fleece pants
• several pairs of athletic tights (1 fleece lined)
• many pairs of wool socks
• a stack of underwear (I'm paranoid about running out, although logically know I can do laundry) and bras
• pair of PJs
• 3 wool sweaters, 1 sweatshirt, 1 fleece hoodie
• flannel-lined pants
• 3 t-shirts and 5 long-sleeved shirts
• snow boots
• a wool dress
• shower shoes (I feel like I'm going back to college)
• probably more athletic clothes than I'll need

Other items

• 6 bars of Theo's dark chocolate with coconut
• my flute and some music (who doesn't want a flute concert from someone who hasn't played in 20 years?)
• insulated thermos and mug
• books and NY Times magazines
• vitamins and meds (within New Zealand custom limits!)
• tissues
• multi-use bandana
• head  lamp
• camera with extra battery and snow landscape accessories, including handwarmers to keep it warm
• pictures my 3-year-old drew for me
• a US calling card in case the wifi is down and I want to call my family
• lots of lotion for a dry climate!
• soap, shampoo, and conditioner bars
• so many feminine hygiene products
• towel & washcloths
• bathrobe
• pain relievers and cold meds

I'm sure I'll be adding a few things here and there, but I think this is most of what I'll need. I hope...I need to go quickly put it all in a suitcase before the cats cover everything with their fur.