More Snow???, November 24, 2005 Options

[Dena_Rosenberger]

More Snow?
24 November, 2005

Happy Thanksgiving!

Where’s Rosenberger?
At Pony Lake on Ross Island in Antarctica

It is a two hour Pisten Bully ride from MacTown (McMurdo) to Pony Lake across the sea ice. This is a long and bumpy ride. My field clothes are really nasty since I have been wearing them for three days straight and doing hard labor! I guess I’ll wash them today.
We pass several islands on the way to pony lake: Inaccessible Island (used for lot’s of Search and Rescue (SAR) training), Tent Island, and Little and Big Razorback. After the sea ice melts in December or January, these will be islands off the coast of Antarctica! We had to stop and check a few of the larger cracks in the ice to make sure the ice can hold the weight of the Pisten Bully. The Pisten Bully was full with all of our packs and ECW gear along with four helpers to help us shovel and dig.


We stopped on the way home and got some more pictures of the beautiful Barnes Glacier. It is approximately 300 feet high!


Our lead scientist, or PI (Principal Investiator), Christine Foreman, has set up a private tour with New Zealand’s Antarctic Heritage Trust, an historical organization that is restoring Ernest Shackelton’s hut at Pony Lake. They are camped near this hut for the entire summer. We are very lucky to get Neville Ritchie as our guide. He is the lead archeologist on the restoration and very knowledgeable on the history of the race to claim the South Pole a century ago. He also has several people helping him piece together the history of the conditions under which Shackelton lived during his expedition. They examine everything found in and around the hut, from their canned food supply to the trash dump over the hill to the dog houses. After Shackelton’s party finished building this hut, six of his men attempted to summit Mt. Erebus. Five of them summitted the 12,448 ft active volcano to make the first ascent of an Antarctic Peak. One turned back due to frostbite and has his big toe amputated. Ernest Shackelton used Manchurian ponies to haul sledges on his South Pole attempt in 1909 and because of this, named the lake here Pony Lake.
> Shackelton's Hut at Pony Lake:


> Neville Ritchie, lead archeologist


On day three at Pony Lake, we arrived at the pit that we had spent two days digging out and found that it had partially filled with snow from the light snow that had fallen the night before. Apparently the moderate winds had blown it over our wall and dumped it into the pit. Everyone was disheartened but we grabbed shovels and sleds and started digging. We had to clear a spot down to the frozen lake surface so that Christine can get ice cores for analysis.



Because we do not want to dig our pit out every time there is a snow flurry, we built another wall to the south of the pit and about 10 meters away. Since the wind comes from the south, this should cause the snow to build a drift behind the wall and NOT in our pit. We’ll see next time we go out on Sunday if this plan worked.
> My block snow wall with the penguin rookery in the background:


We were able to get three ice cores to bring back to the lab. A non-motorized ice corer must be used so as not to disturb the penguins.
> Christine gets an ice core:


There are about 2000 nesting pairs at Cape Royds, which is where Pony Lake is.

> Penguins with the Royal Society Range in the background:


Many of the penguin pairs have built a nest of rocks and laid an egg, which they are guarding carefully. Unfortunately, the skuas are very aggressive and will grab an egg whenever they can.




The ice cores must be transported back to the lab in an ice chest so they don’t begin to melt. Once back in the lab, they were put in our walk-in freezer at a temperature of – 20 degrees C! Can you calculate that in Fahrenheit? C = (5/9) (F – 32)



The cores will be separated into three sections: The upper layer with the fewest organisms; the middle layer, with a higher concentration of organisms; and, the bottom layer, which is at the benthic area in the lake (right at the soil level) and very concentrated with organisms.

> The pit at the end of the day:


McMurdo celebrates Thansgiving on Saturday with a big dinner. There is a 5K Turkey Trot Saturday morning which I will be running (or walking).

Did you know?
The depth of ice in the middle of the Antarctic continent is about 9000 feet yet it seldom snows!

Current Conditions at McMurdo Station
Improving conditions over the next two days as a high pressure ridge builds onto the continent.

Right now:
Mostly cloudy with some snow flurries
Weak esterly winds
Pressure: 29.140 inHg
Temperature: 25 oF/ - 4 oC with a wind chill factor bringing it to -11 oF
Pressure: 29.315 inHg
Sunset: February 20 at 1:38 am

[sloth]

For those ice climbs with questionable pro, I recommend the manual core sampler instead of screws.

Interestingly, and timelyly, today's paper has a report of CO2 studies based on a continuous record from Antarctic cores going back, now, 650 kyears. The paper is being reported in Science and shows that current CO2 levels at Dome C are 27% higher than they have ever been in all the history covered by the cores. Also there was an article about singing icebergs, which were heard practicing rhythm and blues at 0.5 Hz.

As usual, fantastic pix.

[Guest]

Wow Rosen - some of those shots are truly beautiful! Hope your staying warm! Cant wait to see you back here in San Diego =)

J. Ragland

[Heather Lockwood]

Hey Rosen,

I didnt know you had one of these. This is pretty cool. I hope Anarctica is everything you thought it would be and more! I can't wait to hear all your stories about it. See ya when yo get back. I hope you had a great Thanksgiving. And cool shots of those penguins!

Heather

[Dena_Rosenberger]

Hi Heather!
Of course, you have orange font. Thanks for the warm wishes, Antarctica is unbelievable! In fact, I still pinch myself all of the time. Ouch! There I go again!

Tell everyone hello for me,
Rosen

Hey Rosen,
     
      I didnt know you had one of these. This is pretty cool. I hope Anarctica is everything you thought it would be and more!  I can't wait to hear all your stories about it. See ya when yo get back. I hope you had a great Thanksgiving. And cool shots of those penguins!

        Heather

[Jessica Darlington]

Hi Ms. Rosenburger!!!

Oh my gosh, the scenery is absolutely beautiful! What an awesome experience you must be having there! I especially love the picture of the penguins and the big, beautiful, blue and white mountains in the background. Seeing the pictures of your ice wall you built to protect your pit reminds me of an igloo and it makes me want to build one!!! The snow in your pictures looks so white and fluffy, but I have a feeling that it is really hard. Is it? I love seeing the pictures with the mothers standing over their eggs, that makes me depressed to hear that the skuas take them! Well, I hope you have fun and that no more "snow flurries" put snow it your pit!

Jessica Darlington

[Dena_Rosenberger]

Hi Jessica!

It's so nice to hear from you! Thanks for the compliments. I am having an incredible experience here. It is truly an astounding continent.

I hope you are doing OK in Chem

See you in January!

Ms. R

Hi Ms. Rosenburger!!!

Oh my gosh, the scenery is absolutely beautiful!  What an awesome experience you must be having there!  I especially love the picture of the penguins and the big, beautiful, blue and white mountains in the background.  Seeing the pictures of your ice wall you built to protect your pit reminds me of an igloo and it makes me want to build one!!!  The snow in your pictures looks so white and fluffy, but I have a feeling that it is really hard.  Is it?  I love seeing the pictures with the mothers standing over their eggs, that makes me depressed to hear that the skuas take them!  Well, I hope you have fun and that no more "snow flurries" put snow it your pit!

Jessica Darlington

[Chuck]

Mr. Graham Is a dork and he made me come here.

[aimee vigil]

Mr. Graham Is a dork and he made me come here.

hey chuck, i dont know you and im sorry but im going to use your space for a second. how do you put in your own comments to rosenburger?
to mrs rosenburger:
hi, how are you? you must be having such an awsome time in the antartic! i especially love the B.Glacier! that is sooo beautiful.
mr graham has some cool homework assignments, i would have never have thought to come here by myself to check things out. take care
aimee

[The Lockwoods]

[FONT=Times][SIZE=7]Hey Rosen,
Its Heather, Sithean and Tanya; We just wanted to say Merry Christmas, although I (heather speaking) was informed that we are too late since u are a day ahead of us which i did not know. But better late than never. We hope you are having a great time down there and Cant wait to see you when you get back. Have a great christmas.

The Lockwoods

[Lisa Weber]

Hey Rosen!

You have the most beautiful pictures posted on here! Especially the Basrnes Glacier! It is amazing!!!

P.S. 2nd period misses you!!!

[Dena_Rosenberger]

Hi Lisa!

Thanks for the photo compliment. It is so beautiful here that the pictures just kinda' make themselves. (Well, not exactly...I am glad I took a photography class at Grossmont College before I came).

I miss you guys, too. I will see you in a few weeks. Study for your chem final!

Love,
Ms. R

Hey Rosen!

You have the most beautiful pictures posted on here!  Especially the Basrnes Glacier!  It is amazing!!!

P.S. 2nd period misses you!!!

[Lisa Weber]

Did you know that my sister was in your class four years ago when you went to the North Pole?? Maybe in four more years when you have my brother you'll go somwhere else! Maybe... somewhere in the middle??!

[Dena_Rosenberger]

Hi Lisa:
I totally forgot she was in my class for the North Pole! That is pretty funny...I guess your family is my good luck charms. Hmm....where could I go next?

See you soon!
Happy New Year!

Ms. R

Did you know that my sister was in your class four years ago when you went to the North Pole??  Maybe in four more years when you have my brother you'll go somwhere else!  Maybe... somewhere in the middle??!