Sausages and Sastrugi

Sailing North

2008-03-19T22:02:00.016Z

Wandering Albatross

Leaving behind the small clutch of winterers alone on the ice, the Shackleton made good speed through the Stancomb-Wills ice stream, where one of the largest glaciers in Dronning Maud Land meets the sea, creating icebergs as it does so. March is late in the season to be sailing so far South and there was good evidence of sea ice thick enough to walk on for several days sail.

Snow Petrel

However, a decent storm made the passage easier breaking up the ice and making passage easier. Well, easier in some respects for the winds and rolling seas consigned most of the departing passengers to our bunks.

Another Wandering Albatross

'Our bunks', as for the first time ever I found myself suffering from the intractable nausea that plagues many who sail on the Shackleton, as it corkscrews through the Southern Ocean; the shape of its ice-strengthened hull predisposes it to an unpleasant rolling motion. I never had a problem on the long sail South even during the longer period we spent sailing between the sub-Antarctic islands; I suspect I will have more sympathy in future.

Frozen Winch Gear
With it well below zero sea spray freezes across the ship

After a few days of rough weather- during which I struggled to help with the indent of the ship's surgery before it sails into the North Sea for its summer work- the skies cleared, the wind dropped and albatross appeared trailing behind the ship.

Diomedea exulans- Wandering albatross

Its difficult to capture photographically just how large the Wanderers are, they have the greatest wingspan of any bird on earth, ranging upward from 10 - 12 foot across and watching them, they seem to soar for ever, without once beating their wings.

Yet More Albatross

I was very fortunate to visit one of their breeding sites, at Bird Island, South Georgia, on the way South, where amongst part of the BAS station's research work is the long-term monitoring of their numbers. Sailing north as we were to Cape Town, we were a long way from any islands yet albatross will quite happily travel across the whole length of the Southern Ocean without touching land.

Light-Mantled Sooty Albatross
Wanderers were not the only birds to follow us north

Unfortunately, of the 21 albatross species, 19 are considered threatened, the Wanderers particularly are vulnerable with only 8,000 breeding pairs, many of which nest on Bird Island. One of the greatest threats comes from long-line fishing, where trawlers trail long baited and hooked lines, which unfortunately attract not only fish but also a large variety of birds- often fatally. For more information about the threat to these spectacular birds and what can be done to protect them- Save The Albatross.

Evening Light Catches The Wanderer

'And a good south wind sprung up behind;
The Albatross did follow'

I am not enough of an aficionado to tell whether all these photos are of the same albatross or whether over the several days that they hovered comfortably over the stern of the ship, we were visited by several different birds. As we headed north, circuit training on the ships heli-deck was made all the more unusual by the bird's presence overhead.

Even More Albatross

I have been away for 18 months now and it has been a fantastic period of time and I have learnt and done a lot, some of which is already making the news. (The photographs might be similar to some of those on this blog). As South Africa approaches so the temperatures rises and the Antarctic seems far behind. With Cape Town my job comes to an end and with it this blog. It will be a few weeks yet before I am back in the UK, as I am going to have a short holiday but I look forward to seeing everyone- for regardless of the material and slightly less tangible things that I have missed (which includes rain), it is friends and family that I have missed the most.

The Moon

I have been incredibly privileged to work somewhere so incredibly beautiful and untouched by man. I only hope that we can continue to protect and preserve the Antarctic as one of the last great wildernesses. However, the effects of climate change are already all too visible and that will ultimately be detrimental not only to the Antarctic but across the globe. We, as individuals, need to take responsibility for that now before it is too late.

Cape Town
My final destination

The Last Few Days

2008-03-06T19:37:00.000Z

The Memorial

My last post from Halley has come around all too quickly, two summers and a winter have passed and it is time for me to head north, leaving the Antarctic far behind. The last few days were a great reminder, however, of why I enjoy this place so much.

With too many people on station to sail out to Cape Town on the Shackleton, a pair of Balser flights took a large number out flying them out across Dronning Maud Land. On the flights disappeared a large number of those who had wintered with me, they were in Cape Town enjoying salads and cocktails within the day. They were soon missed.

De-icing the Basler's Wings

However, the problems with flying this late in the season were only too apparent, the Antarctic winter is fast approaching and with temperatures dropping and bad weather increasing, the time-frame for flying plane starts to rapidly narrow. Moreover, with the low temperatures sea ice starts to form again and the escape routes north out of the Weddell Sea rapidly disappear.

Sunsets Over The Fully Clad Podule

For me, however, the last week or so was a fantastic opportunity to spend time on base when at its most beautiful. For Halley has a very different feel between both the summer and the winter, not just in the number of people, the weather and the obvious contrast in day length but more subtle aspects such as the colours, the quality of the light and the stillness. Halley is a place that is very much more beautiful in the winter than the summer.

The Tag Board
Brass tags for winterers, wood for summer staff

With little time left there was a rush to document the seemingly routine things on base that make it so different from the outside world. Items like the tag board, where each individual is represented by a different tag so that, particularly during the winter, you can be accounted for immediately in case of a fire. The board is accompanied by a sign-out book in which the time expected back is also completed, such that an attraction of leaving here (and there are a few), is the freedom to go somewhere without having to indicate where or the need to carry a VHF radio.

Halley VI and V
Karl (Project Manager) gives a sense of scale to the new base.

Other things that will not necessarily be missed are items like Nido, the replacement milk powder and the all-pervasive smell of AVTUR (the generic diesel based fuel)- though even that I have learnt to love. I guess that after friends and family, I suppose what I am most looking forward to are food items: salads, real milk, crisp fresh fruit and seafood, not just for their flavours but their textures too.

Inside the Ice Cave
Photo thanks to Richard Burt

A last minute boon was a plan on the penultimate night to sleep in an ice cave that had been painstakingly excavated across the summer in the windtail of the CASLab. The last ice feature we dug, several months back for Ant's birthday, had rapidly filled in with drifting snow. This latest one meanwhile had plenty of space for three of us to bed down for a comfortable night's sleep; they insulate their heat remarkably well and the cavern was well above the external -25°C.

Rich Burt in the Ice Cavern

I was fortunate to be on the last Sno-Cat transfer down to the ship and with the slightly premature departure of the last flight to make the best use of a weather window, it meant a final night on a very quiet base. The new wintering team are only eleven compared to the eighteen from our year (with only Deano (Comms Manager), staying on for a second winter), it will have a very different feel to our relatively large team

Last Melt Tank Dig

A beautiful sunset, a few final outdoor jobs to be done and without the bustle of a large number of people, it all contributed to the ambience of a typical winter's day at Halley. Having consigned all my luggage that will sail home in the hold of the ship a week before, it was easy to enjoy without the pressure of last minute packing of my bags.

Final Ships Cargo
Hasty labelling of northbound boxes

Despite my absence of skis on the ship, the weather and the light was too perfect not to take a pair of base skis and spend an hour on the perimeter. I know all too well how much I will miss Halley, particularly standing in the semi-darkness, alone, in the middle of the Antarctic.

Panorama from the North of Base
Click to enlarge

With limited daylight and a need to get round the Stancomb-Wills ice stream in good light, it was an early start with a procession of Sno-Cats taking the last five of us to join the ship and the majority of the new winterers to release the ships mooring lines and wave goodbye. For us Cape Town should be less than a fortnight's sail away.

Leaving Halley

I would quite happily have swapped my place on the ship with any one of the small handful of people standing on the ice, waving as water appeared between us and the ice shelf. They will, I am sure, have a fantastic winter, I just wish I was spending it with them.

Leaving Creek 4
The winterers see us off

From Five to Six

2008-02-29T01:50:00.016Z

Out With The Old....

The most exciting part of the summer is the new base starting to take shape. The summer has been good in respect of the weather and has meant that as the end of the season approaches it is possible to get an idea of what Halley VI will look like.

...& In With The New

There will eventually be eight large podules, connected to make the new base, excluding the large central podule, which will be built next year, the other seven are at various stages of completion. Only one of them will spend the winter clothed in the glass reinforced plastic cladding (as in the picture above), the rest will spend their winter under large tents ready for further work and the lengthy cladding process next summer.

Sastrugi at Creek 4

With hands needed on site to secure the tents, it gave me an opportunity to spend a day getting close to what will house my successors in a few years time. The buildings are impressive and a lot has been achieved over the last few weeks.

A 'Naked' Podule

Each podule sits on four large skis so that they can be moved, not only to the eventual site some 16 km from here but hopefully several times again in the future as the ice shelf continues to move the location of the base closer to the sea. Moving 50 plus ton objects across snow is a unique challenge, so the snow over the next year between the two bases will be groomed and compacted regularly to give a firm base to tow the podules upon and prevent them sinking into the ice shelf.

Inside the 'Command' Podule
The large box on the left will be the new surgery

Inside the steel superstructure that forms each unit, are pre-fabricated boxes containing the different rooms be they offices, pitrooms or wash blocks. The design means it is quicker and easier to fit as well as installing the power and heating in the limited time that the Antarctic summer allows on site.

Fitting the Heating and Ventilation

The construction work is being carried out by Morrisons Falklands Ltd (MFL), while BAS provide accommodation and all the other features that are required to support a large work force in what, despite the summer sun, is still a very remote and cold environment. Though half their workforce is British, the remainder are South African amongst whom Afrikaans is very much the first language, even if everyone can converse easily in English.

On the Building Site

As the season winds to a close there was also a chance to look inside some of what will form the new accommodation. I realise at this point I have not included photos of many features from around base, including the pitrooms where we sleep. I have no idea why they are called pitrooms but the name is very firmly attached and all twenty of them on the Laws have two bunks in them. During the winter, there are enough rooms for one each but come the summer, every bed on station is filled.

Jules Kite-skiing

The great problem with the current pitrooms is the sound-proofing (one of the major design specifications for the new build), you can hear a book being turned in the next pitroom and the less sound sleepers are often woken by distant snorers. During the winter when the temperature was in the deep 20s and below, thick ice would happily form on the inside of the double-glazed windows and then subsequently slowly melting, leaving large pools of water across the carpeted floor. The new pitrooms look like they will avoid similar problems.

The Pitrooms
L- my current room R-Vicky looks around the future

While the building continues, the Shackleton has meantime returned from South Africa and rather than an intended run in the middle of the season to Cape Town, with not enough cargo to justify the extra journey it remains tied up against the ice. The ship also brings the dentist in for a check-ups on all the winterers, which for an afternoon meant that there was on base a surfeit of medical cover.

The Brunt Ice Shelf Medical and Dental Team
L to R: Penny (dentist), Myself, Hannah (incoming wintering doc), Mel (Shackleton doc)

The second arrival of the ship means more fuel to be laid down for the winter, while at the same time old fuel dumps have to be raised as the snow level rises and threatens to bury them.

Raising Fuel Dumps

The black drums draw in heat at times over the year they have been buried melting the surrounding snow, which then refreezes. As a result the drums at the end of a summer are firmly iced in but moving several hundred 45 gallon drums is a lot more pleasant in the warm sunshine than when the wind is blowing and it is -20 and it provides a good days work outside.

Working Ship Side
Jumbo on the sea ice

As cargo comes off the ship, so there is plenty to head north, all the waste from the winter has already gone but there is a fair amount of waste from the construction site, all of which must be removed from the Antarctic and heads north on the Shackleton.

Moving Fuel

The summer is drawing rapidly to an end and with it my time South. The sun is setting again and the temperature is dropping. There is just never enough time to do everything before I leave...

Frosted Beard

A Long, Cold Summer

2008-02-20T23:57:00.024Z

Halley VI Rising from the Snow

Despite a weekend of escape down to the coast, with relief successfully out of the way it has been a busy summer season. The whole base continues to work twelve hours a day, six days a week in an effort not only to support the construction of Halley VI, which continues to rise out of the snow surface but also prepare the current base for another winter.

Twin Otter Close-Up

On top of this all, the Twin Otter (the workhorse aircraft on base), has been kept busy with plenty of field science to support and maintain as far South as 84°. There are various automated weather stations and low-powered magnetometers (measuring minute fluctuations in the earth's magnetic field), dotted around the continent, which require an annual visit, to both raise above the snow surface and download the accumulated data.

Twin Otter Returning From A81

For while a lot of science on base is being wound down for the next couple of years, while the base is transferred, there are more automated bits of science kit being set up in the field this summer. Along with the low-level ozone monitors, which gave me a chance to head out in the plane, one field party has spent a fortnight installing instruments to measure the earth's geo-electric field, while Sune is still out in the deep field to the west on an extended geological project.

Working on a Space Frame

On the construction site that dominates the west of the base, all but one of the modules that will make up Halley VI are starting to take shape; the last, central and largest module will come in next year. Once the space frame bases on temporary skis were offloaded from the Anderma and successfully dragged across the ice shelf on temporary skis, the Morrisons construction teams went straight to work making the best use of good weather.

Kiting Across the Brunt

Once transferred onto their heavier, permanent skis, which will eventually allow them to be dragged from their construction site on base to the eventual location of Halley VI, the internal modules (pre-made accommodation and work spaces) are loaded on and the steel frames that will support the external cladding then built around them. The photo at the top of the article demonstrates the modules in various states of completion.

The Halley VI Energy Modules
The tent goes on the first module

The first modules to disappear under the temporary tents which will protect the structures through the winter, were the energy modules (inspiringly named E1 and E2). The generators and other plant that will be required to power and heat the new station are now in place and with the tents on, the next job is to put in all the M&E (mechanical and engineering), works to power and fuel them, even though they will not be up and running for a couple of years.

Fog Descends on Base

While most of the work is taking place at the site of Halley V, there is a long season of preparatory work for a small team of people at the eventual site of the new base. A journey of just under an hour in a Sno-Cat, took me the 16 km to the where the base will stand in a couple of years time once it has been completed. I went with the nominal excuse of helping with some maintenance work (though I think the only useful part was making the packed lunch) but it was a chance to see where the new station will be- even if is just a large expanse of flat, white snow like the rest of the Brunt...

Halley VI Construction Site

The team working out there have been marking out the sites for where each of the pods will end up, as well as running cabling between them and the outlying science buildings and masts that will support a lot of the science equipment, particularly the radars which formed an iconic part of the Halley skyline before they were taken down a few months ago.

Current Halley VI Skyline
Coiled cabling sits on mounds above the snow

Meanwhile, on base the summer is an opportunity- given good weather, a surfeit of personnel and some time- for general maintenance required to keep the base running over the next few years. It has been good weather, in that there have been far fewer manky (local, long-standing slang for overcast and dull) days or days dominated by blows than last year but cloudless skies have meant that January was on average the coldest January since records began at Halley, edging as it did into positive Centigrade on only a couple of occasions and even then for only a few hours.

The Emergency Clothing Container Indent

Generally the base is in a good state of repair and would last many years yet if it were not for the threat of calving of the ice shelf taking the immobile buildings with it, however, the one area where its age is showing are the tunnels.

Descending into the Melt Tank Silo

A couple of the bases prior to Halley V, were built underground but soon had to abandonned as the weight of accumulating snow and the movement of the ice stream that leads the base to move 1.5 metres a day, gradually warped and crushed them rendering them uninhabitable. Though the current tunnels are nowhere near that state, the strain on them is beginning to show; the new base will not have a similar system as its fuel and melt tanks will be sited above the snow surface.

Digging at the Bottom of the Melt Tank Silo
Brian and Andy look on as I am supposed to be digging- not taking photographs

As a result I found myself back in the tunnels, digging places where the encroaching ice threatened to cause problems. Digging snow continues to be a major part of life at Halley be it on the surface or 35 metres down.

Looking East Over the Laws

Along with the extra (but not exactly significant) medical burden of living on a construction site with a hundred people around, there are other various medically related duties to discharge, one of those is looking after the Major Incident Plan, covering the response should we have two or more seriously injured people. Though such a scenario could be comfortably dealt with in the UK, with the limited resources in the Antarctic, it becomes a lot harder to handle.

The Exercise 'Accident' Scene

With the constant turnover of staff, its become an annual event to run an exercise based around a realistic scenario to ensure that the plan is fit for purpose as well as a chance for individuals to rehearse their role should the worst happen. Given that Hannah, the new wintering Doc is also on station, I took the opportunity to step back and watch the scenario I had set up unfold.

The Drewry 'Hospital'

Despite the inherent pandemonium that ensues in a scenario where the participants are unsure as to what is going to happen, it all went reassuringly well, though it remains the hope that it will never have to be tested in reality. Planning the whole thing was made harder as we had an acute shortage of petrol on base which power the ski-doos; that said a petrol shortage has made the whole base a lot more pleasant with less noisy ski-doos whizzing around and more people on skis.

The Fassi Crane in Action

Despite the long hours, I have managed to get out frequently across the week to ski; my cross-country is coming along and I am finally getting to grips with the dark art of ski-waxing. The winds have not been that great for ski-kiting and regardless, as I am unlikely to be doing much once I leave here, my large kite is being passed onto one of the new winterers.

Winterer's Sunday Afternoon Trip to the 4km Marker
Photo thanks to Dave Evans: L to R- Dave, Ant, myself and Deano

Worryingly, time runs on fast and I am full aware that before too long I will be heading out for Cape Town on a ship. As whenever one approaches the end of a stint somewhere, there is some excitement about the next steps but this is heavily overshadowed this time by the realisation that I am going to miss this place a lot, made worse by the knowledge that I am very unlikely to come back.

Sun Pillar Over Halley
Not long now before the first sunset of 2008

The Best 25 Hours In A Long Time

2008-01-27T21:51:00.000Z

The Cliffs At Creek 4

exciting photos, this entry will be less about the base and more a self-indulgent Having finally caught up with writing about relief at length and including some not particularlyreminiscence of a spectacular day and a bit last weekend. Intentionally long on photos and short on words...

Late Evening Manhauling
Photo thanks to Rich Burt

Ant (Z-Chef) and I have wanted to travel by ski off-base for a while now. As exciting as travelling by ski-doo across miles of the Antarctic is, there is something particularly romantic and simple about travel under your own propulsion. A post-winter manhaul trip would not have been practical for various reasons and there has been little time or conditions amenable to do so safely at any other point.

Ice Cave Buried In the Cliffs

So the arrival of a ski-enthusiastic Field GA, an urge to get off-base and a Base Commander supportive of outdoor activities, we planned a trip to the only caboose off-station at the moment at Creek 4, where the cargo came off the sea ice. However, any trip further afield than a few kilometres off base requires a half-unit to be taken, either towed behind a ski-doo, lashed to the roof of a Sno-Cat or in our case manhauled.

Lashing the Manhaul Nansen

cooking stove and pans), a medical box, copious paraffin fuel (stored in A half-unit is essentially an emergency kit to allow survival for an extended period of time should bad weather descend. It consists of an emergency tent, a pots box (with a Primusjerry cans), P-bags (the sleeping bags and insulation for sleeping), manfood boxes (dried field food), along with a few other bits and pieces including rope and climbing gear. By not taking ski-doos we are able to avoid the large number of petrol jerrys and vehicle spares that would usually be carried and use a lighter Nansen sledge- a manhaul sledge- as opposed to the more robust versions that are designed to travel at greater speed. Along with all our personal kit, the whole thing came to about 150- 200kg between us, a lot for just a night away!

Heading Out Into the Bondoo

Having planned it since before relief, we felt it would be prudent to at least have a trial run before heading out across the shelf, around base. Several evenings were spent towing the cumbersome cross-country ski-track maker around the perimeter, playing with kit and the fan trace until we were all satisfied we were all pulling the same load, even if some arrangements seemed to defy our understanding of physics, and were happy with the skis and skins set up. (Skins are strips of either fur or artificial fibre glued to the bottom of the ski to provide extra traction)

In Training
L-R- Rich Burt, Ant and myself- photo thanks to Les Johnson

So last Saturday evening (the 19th), given that we are all working Saturday until late and Ant had the Saturday dinner to cook, serve and scrub the kitchen down after, we finished lashing our personal kit, donned manhaul harnesses and headed off base at about 9 at night. The benefit of 24-hour daylight, is that the illumination on the three hour trip or so hours down to the coast means even at midnight, that there is no need for torches and sunglasses are mandatory.

The White Cliffs of the Brunt

The total weight of the sledge may seem heavy but on a well-maintained Nansen (with thanks to Alex Gough- who gave them some much needed attention during the winter), running over a near perfect surface (hard ice base with a light snow cover), and with three of us hauling the time passed rapidly and sociably strung out in a line ahead of the sledge. The 14 kilometres or so passed fast and the sun was dipping low by the time we arrived at the caboose; a few weeks yet and the sun should set once more. The persistently photogenic altocumulus was illuminated such that you felt you could reach out drag yourself up and peer across the cloud tops.

Nearing the Caboose
Photo by Rich Burt

After a very comfortable nights sleep in the familiar caboose that has been moved to the head of the creek from its old site at Windy Bay, we sprang out early, radioed into base for our field sched and roped up for a walk out onto one of the headlands. Despite the ambient temperature of -10°C or so, the sun was out and there can have been few more beautiful places on earth.

Walking Out On the Headland
Roped up in case of crevasses

Rich had reconnoitred, during his time working off the Shackleton during relief, a safe cliff (free from overhangs and cornices), for some abseiling and climbing about a kilometre or two from where the Anderma had tied up. After setting up the anchor, I headed off over the edge first, abseiling the forty or so metres off the ice shelf down to the sea ice beneath.

About to Go Over the Edge
Abseiling off the cliffs onto the sea ice, the open sea with pack ice only a hundred metres or so away- photo by Rich Burt

Until this point, it felt as we were alone in the middle of nowhere, no other living organism anywhere on the edge of this vast desert. Suddenly halfway down the cliff, it became clear that this was no longer true; a loud exhalation of air and a disturbance in the water revealed a pod of Orca swimming along the ice edge.

The Large Dorsal Fin of a Male Orca

That moment, suspended 20 metres in the air feet against a brilliant white ice cliff, with deep blue skies looking out over the sea and pack ice, without another human being in sight, interrupted only by my first sighting of Killer Whales, cannot be captured adequately in photographs or prose.

Adélie Penguins

The reason for the presence of these first non-human mammals I have seen in a year, soon became obvious as two small penguins waddled over inquisitively towards the foot of the cliff. Jokingly referred to as 'Jellys' for their small size and resemblance to Jelly Babies- at least to Orcas- Adélie penguins are the only other penguins along with Emperors that live off the Antarctic mainland and these were the first I had seen since South Georgia.

Ant Abseiling

The pod continued swimming lazily along the ice edge, they are brought in by the abundance of both types of penguin around the sea ice, either moulting adults or young heading off into open water for the first time. Adélies form the perfect snack- though this pair were still wandering around the ice when we left later in the day.

Rich Burt Ice Climbing

Ant after a few minutes of watching the Orca followed me down and then Rich. I have never been a climber yet BAS is replete with those who get kicks out of climbing rock, ice, whatever. It is not something I have been able to understand or empathise with the stories- until now.

Still a Long Way to Go

After an exhilarating climb back up the face, we headed back to the caboose to rendez-vous with four people who had turned up by Sno-Cat from base for an afternoon's climbing.

JD Stops to Admire the View

The whole area is particularly photogenic, all the more so on a bright sunny day. The other appreciable aspect is the lack of noise. Even on a base in the middle of nowhere there is still the continual hum of a generator in the background with the drone of ski-doos and large vehicles super-imposed at the more noisy times.

Vicky (Z-Base Commander) Mid Abseil

The same is not true at the creeks, the difference in the intensity of the silence is appreciable, even if it is punctuated by the occasional snort of an orca or the distant creaking of pack ice rubbing together.

Working the Lens
Jim abseiling on the left, I am on the right- photo thanks to Dean Evans

In order to try and get some quality shots, we put in another snow anchor and I abseiled down to try and catch everybody on their way past, against the stunning cliffs.

Female Orcas

Using crampons and dynamic ice axes while belayed from above for the inevitable fall, the climb back up was as exciting as the abseil down, admittedly without the view apart from a large wall of ice.

JD Heads Back Up

Hanging onto ice axes often pitched above head height, led to cold numb hands, such that on reaching the top, there was an opportunity to revisit the pain associated with colder days as the hands re-warmed followed by the waves of nausea that accompany profound re-perfusion.

Watching From the Bottom
Vicky, Ant and Jim contemplate the climb back up

Dean and Jim were particularly glad for a chance to go climbing as their winter trips had been particularly badly affected by bad weather, spending their first trip almost entirely within their pyramid tents., while for the second trip they were confined inside Windy Caboose in the midst of 60+knot winds until the last day.

Deano Heads Back Down Again

After a good afternoon's climbing, we roped up again and headed back to the caboose. The Sno-Cat was quickly loaded and the four headed back to base.

Roped Up
An unusual Alpine 7

I am sure each of the three of us left behind must have thought for thirty seconds about throwing all the kit in the back of the 'Cat and taking the easy route home, particularly after a good day's climbing. The trip back however was just as good as the trip out.

Improvising Repairs to Ant's Skis

The Antarctic is beautiful, even those who deride the Brunt for its bleak flatness and lack of mountains could not help but appreciate its desolate beauty. A beauty all the more inspiring when viewed leisurely on skis than on the back of a noisy ski-doo. Despite a few problems with Ant's skins losing their grip with the skis, we were back on base by 10 that night. an eventful 25 hours after we left.

Back On Base
Ant (L) and I (R) power the last mile home- photo by Rich Burt

I am incredibly fortunate to be able to spend a weekend in such a way and it is weekends like this that I am sure I will look back on with the most fondness and excitement. What more could you want, great company, weather, orcas, climbing and manhauling? There is little that I can think of more captivating that skiing unaided across the Antarctic, a method of travel that is all the more exciting for its echoes of early polar travel a century ago.

Ant Descends the Cliffs

...& An Equally Busy New Year

2008-01-25T00:21:00.001Z

Coming Alongside the Anderma

Celebration of Christmas was subsumed by the annual relief of Halley V; New Year disappeared into a similar haze as relief shifted up a gear with the arrival of the second ship to visit the Brunt this summer- the Anderma. As soon as the Shackleton was successfully unloaded and then backfilled with the winter's waste and a few other northbound goods, notably including my various research samples, the larger ship appeared over the horizon. It intentionally left Cape Town a few days behind the Shackleton, such that the Halley V and VI reliefs merged into one long haul.

The Anderma Up Against the Ice

The Anderma was designed as a large Russian icebreaker to carry amongst other things military tanks around the world, used now for commerical shipping, she has the requisite size to carry the large steel frames that form the skeleton of each of the seven or so podules that will make up the new base. As well as the frames, there is an enormous amount of construction cargo that has had to come ashore, dwarfing the amount that could be carried on the relatively small Shackleton. The Anderma absolutely dwarfs the BAS ship, as they sit tied up against the ice. Along with the cargo, the Russian ship bore a handful of the construction team, full of stories of Russian meal times with endless cabbage soup, a sharp contrast to the relative luxury of the Shackleton, with its salads and bottled beer.

A Sno-Cat Approaching Across the Sea Ice

One of the constraints in the whole construction project is the relief stage, particularly the sea ice. As thick as the ice is and it is supposedly at least a couple of metres thick, there is a limit to the weight of objects (in the order of tonnes), that any ice will tolerate, which neccesitates a lot of the construction taking place on site despite the brief summer season available for work (around 10 - 12 weeks), as opposed to being pre-fabricated and towed into position.

Offloading Cargo

The unavoidable risk of working on sea ice (as opposed to the several hundred metre thick shelf ice that separates Halley from the sea underneath the Brunt), requires various precautions when unloading the ships to protect against not only the loss of cargo through cracks in the ice but the possibility of somebody getting wet in near freezing waters.

Nascent Sastrugi

The most notable is the use of special tracked Sno-Cats which shuttle across the ice carrying no more than a single sledge (which will take a single shipping container), accompanied by a driver and a driver's mate, the latter riding pillion on the sled whose job is not only to help with the cargo but carries a throw-line for the driver should the former get into trouble.

Working the Sea Ice
Dave (Met) and Toddy (Field GA) adjust the straps on their cargo

The Sno-Cats drive off the ice up a ramp, specially bulldozed weeks ago at a prime spot, to surmount the 40m high cliffs and onto the safety of the shelf. At this point their load is unhitched and they return as part of a shuttle system, controlled for the period of the Anderma relief from the bridge of the Shackleton. The latter, as well as acting as a control point for all the sea ice operations, acts as a floating hotel, accommodating the large number of BAS ship's crew and FIDS working the cargo and driving down on the ice. With two twelve hour shifts a day, it is long enough without a two hour journey that would be required to commute to and from base each day.

Road Train Across the Shelf

From the mechanic's caboose at the head of the cliffs, the cargo is linked to form a long train of sledges, which are then pulled the short distance across the shelf at (relatively) high speed by one of the large Challenger prime movers to base. Both ships are close enough to base that if the conditions are right they can be seen miraging on the horizon, so the jourrney is brief.

The Memorial At Halley

The Halley VI relief took well over ten days with this continuous cycle of sledges making their way twenty-four hours a day across the Brunt Ice Shelf. Met at the base end by depot teams on unloading the sledges, the cargo lines for the summer work stretch several miles in length.

Skiway Refuelling
Chad (Z-Air Mech) in action

While a large number of the base have been down on the ship working, I spent most of the time on base. I did however hitch a lift on one of the Challengers to sneak down ships' side for an evening to see the sheer scale of the Anderma, see some of the crew who I sailed South from the UK with and simply an excuse to escape base.

Operating the Platform Crane
Probably not a transferable skill within the NHS- photo thanks to Mel D'Souza

New cargo means a lot of unpacking, most notably on my part for the surgery. The problematic nature of drug expiry dates means that there is, unfortunately, a fair amount of stock that has to be removed, as it has gone out of date unused, as the new drugs and kit are placed on the shelf. Nonetheless, given that the base is isolated for nine months of the year there are a fair few unlikely eventualities which have to be covered for and there will always be some drugs that are carried and sit unused, to cover uncommon but life-threatening illnesses.

End-of-Relief BBQ

Fortunately, given the proximity of the creeks, some good weather and a lot of hard work, both reliefs were over much quicker than expected. Numbers on base have sprung upto nigh on hundred neccesiating the appearance of new temporary accommodation to house the extra numbers.

Blocked Melt Tank

One of the complications of the large number of people on base and the increased water demands means that the melt tank has great demands placed upon it. As a result it struggles to melt all the snow that comes its way as it is filled and there is a tendency for the 30 metre chute that leads down to it, ending up blocked.

Way to the Wings
Steps on the side of a Twin Otter

A blocked melt tank is an arduous and not particularly enjoyable way to spend a few hours. The chute has small doors on it every couple of metres, so following the long climb to the bottom, it is slow progress gradually clearing out compacted snow and ice at each level heading back up to the surface. Until, finally, a lump of snow, thrown in from the top will fall, fall and fall, until there is a resounding double thud as it stops at the dog leg that leads into the tank itself.

Skiing After Work
Joe, Dean and Tamsin take on the perimeter

Throughout the two reliefs, unusually, the Twin Otters have kept flying. Most years the whole base would stop while everyone works on relief but this year with a lot of summer science to be done, there has continued to be a fair amount of work on the skiway for me. While there are four Twin Otters in the BAS fleet, it is unusual for there to be two on base at Halley as most operate out of Rothera supporting the majority of field projects that work from there. So there was a fair amount of excitement to have two on base for a few days.

A Pair Of Twin Otters

As well as the need for Bravo Lima to return for a significant service that cannot be carried out here, the incoming Bravo Bravo has been modified for aerial photography. MAGIC is the BAS mapping division and in one long successful day they succeded in a long high altitude flight across the Brunt Ice Shelf to capture a set of photographs, which will help produce a new map of the area around the base and contribute to our understanding of the glaciology of the shelf. With that goes also the big question for daily living at Halley- when will the ice shelf calve (or break off)? A large part is expected to calve at some point taking with it the current base, hence the construction of a new base- the question is when.

Drum Raising Along the Creek 4 Drumline
The driver's view from the Sno-Cat

With both reliefs safely out of the way and a huge amount of cargo unloaded and brought across treacherous sea ice, the season is now well under way. The surgery window looks east across the base where Halley VI is starting to take rise out of the ice.

The Base Doctor
Photo thanks to Pete Milner

A Very Busy Christmas

2007-12-30T11:00:00.000Z

Up On The Continent
Putting ozone sensors in at 9000 ft

I finally did it! After almost a year in the Antarctic, I have at last stepped on the continent itself; for unlike the Arctic, the Antarctic is a continent with land underneath the ice cap. However, Halley, lying as it does on the Brunt Ice Shelf 150m thick, has water flowing beneath it and though on a good day we can see the continent gently sloping up into a plateau some 30 miles away, the closest I have been was into the hinge zone on my first winter trip, a few heavily crevassed miles short of land.

Crevasses at the Edge of the Continent
Wide enough to consume whole any vehicle (or plane...)

One of the summer science projects is the installation of a network of ozone sensors in the vicinity of the station (vicinity being a relative term as they cover an area that must be close to the size of England). Powered by their own wind turbines, a solar panel and a large battery, the sensors will record the low-level ozone levels across the year before being retrieved next year along with the data they have recorded. They form an extension to one of the projects at Halley to better understand the chemistry of ozone in the lower atmosphere, which has also seen amongst other things the blimp flights over base.

Digging the Kit In
Kirsty (Metbabe), Andy (Ozone Scientist) and Mark (Pilot) get started

Anyway, I got the opportunity to join a flight putting one of these stations in a few hundred miles from base up on the continent, for the other side of the Hinge Zone the continent rises rapidly to a relatively high plateau, noticeable when I came to lug the large battery box about a hundred metres and found myself more out of breath than I expected- they are heavy though! So after a two hour flight in the BAS Twin Otter, we found ourself near the preselected spot, a quick aerial survey suggested numerous crevasses, so Mark took us a few miles further on and then descended.

Flying Back Over the Hinge Zone

Field landings on ice always follow the same routine, a fly-over to make sure there are no crevasses, a descent and 'trail skis' (with the skis on the bottom of the aircraft running along the ground) followed by another fly-over to see if any crevasses hidden by snow bridges have opened up under the weight of the plane. All being well the plane descends for the last time; the beauty of the Tw'Otters is the limited space in which they can stop and take-off with the plane shuddering to a rapid halt.

Putting Up the Solar Panel

As ever, it is the space and silence that is so difficult to describe or capture photographically. Coming in by plane there are no tracks, no marker on the ground, nothing as far as the eye can see and the realisation that perhaps nobody or at least the very few have been across this area before. A brief 90 minutes of digging, a quick check to ensure the instruments are working and its back in the aircraft again for the journey home.

Co-Piloting Bravo Lima

Though the Twin Otters are single pilot planes, wherever they fly in the Antarctic a co-pilot always travels with the pilot, their main skill being the ability to put up a tent, light a Primus stove and Tilley lamp should the plane be forced to spend an unscheduled night off base (all carried in the rear of the plane). So on the flight back, I had the opportunity to sit up front next to Mark in the co-pilot's seat which affords a spectacular view of the Antarctic- a special journey. All the BAS pilots are very experienced and most have experience as instructors, so there was a great chance to learn about the seemingly daunting sets of controls and gauges.

Returning Home

Flying back we came over some spectacular crevasse fields, particularly as the ice sheet runs down into the Hinge Zone, where the Brunt meets the continent. The monster crevasses would easily consume a vehicle or two across their width. However, the most humbling part is as ever flying back in towards base and realising how insignificant our presence is on the whole shelf, with ice extending as far as can be seen around the small black dots that have formed my home for the last year.

The Shackleton At the Creeks

And then began relief. The Shackleton finally broke through a tough patch of ice to find a large lead that led all the way towards us and with a suitable site identified at the creeks, moored up a mere 14km from base; with the larger Anderma five days behind, the pressure was on to discharge the Shackleton to avoid having the second ship hanging around.

Heading Down to the Ship
Sitting on sleds behind a Challenger

The creeks are headlands created by the turning force on the shelf as it slowly flows towards the Weddell sea while still grounded on the underwater hills that form the McDonald Ice Rumples. As the shelf slowly moves westward, the creeks gradually open up until their headlands eventually calve off. With a kilometre of sea ice between the ship and the cliffs, along with a steep ramp created in a day by a pair of bulldozers, Creek 4 provides an ideal site for relief, particularly as the large Cat Challengers can cover the distance from the base to the cliffs in about half an hour.

Returning Home
Kirk (FGA) and I get the ski-doos ready

As mooring the ship up on the ice takes several hours, with the creeks so close by there was a chance on the first evening for a handful of the winterers to spend a few hours down at the ship for a change of scenery and fresh food including the best salad I have had in a long time!

Unloading Refrigerated Food

Relief means all hands to the pump, as all the supplies for the year come in and need to be stowed somewhere. With the increased number of people on station for the summer, that also means a larger Halley V relief in terms of food and drink. Already working twelve hours a day, as we will be for the whole of summer, the whole place moves up a gear, with teams on twenty-four hours a day, in two shifts.

Craning Food Onto the Platform
Jules and Deon get ready to unload the fresh food

Christmas Day, meanwhile, disappeared in a blur of cargo movement, unpacking and the general mayhem of relief. However, the chefs managed to find some turkey from somewhere and as ever rustled up a fine dinner.

The Laws Corridor Lined With Food

With the whole place plunged into relative chaos, space has to be found for items in the already tightly packed Laws. Unpacking the food is a particularly painful process, as each cardboard box is filled with shredded paper to cushion the contents on the journey South. However much care one takes, the paper goes everywhere before being scooped up and compacted so it can be sent back to the UK for recycling.

Solar Halo With Sundogs and Parhelic Circle

In the midst of this epic restocking session, the clouds cleared and what appeared to be diamond dust suddenly appeared, producing for no more than five minutes the optical effect I have wanted to see all winter- a full parhelic circle. That is the horizontal line in the photo above continuing to form a much larger circle over our heads than can be seen in this relatively narrow angle photo. Before I could capture the whole thing in a photograph, it had gone.

Loading Empty Drums For Shipping Out

Having emptied the ship of all its cargo, including around 2000 full fuel drums and several new vehicles, it was time for the waste to head out. Along with all the waste I have spent the winter packaging up, are several hundred empty fuel drums heading back to South Africa for re-use. At nearly 50lbs each, it was another knackering full day's work loading them on to sleds to transport down to the ship, made harder by miserable weather.

The First Load Of Empties Heads Out

The bulk of the moving cargo used to be done by Sno-Cat but the Challengers brought in last year, speed the whole thing up. In essence they are large tractors with special tracks retro-fitted for the snow, which can take much heavier loads at greater speeds across the shelf. The last kilometre or so on the sea ice, though, is still carried out by older and more expendable Sno-Cats taking each sledge individually across the potentially precipitous ice.

Footprints in the Snow

To finish I have at last managed to capture one of the odder sights that are common here, that of footprints in the snow around which the less compacted ice has blown them away leaving them as 'positives' standing proud of the ice surface rather than the usual 'negative' pressed into a surface. It seems therefore appropriate to show the negative as a print, rather than a positive- confused yet?

Crevasses

This comes with best wishes to all my friends and family for this my second Christmas away from home and hopes for a Happy New Year- it will not be long before I am home again.

My Other Home

The Fleet Is On Its Way

2007-12-11T15:31:00.001Z

Alpine 2 Ski-doos Buffeted By The Wind

Just as we (the winterers), were getting used to having a few more people on base. The successive Basler flights have brought the complement on base up to around 60 people. The once empty dining room is now overflowing at meal time while the boot room has become a battle ground, strewn with orange boilersuits and jackets.

The Surgery Office
Photo thanks to Melanie

However, a large number of people on base means that work can start on some of the larger jobs that are needed to keep the base running all year round. Raising the fuel depots falls into this category. The drums contain Avtur, a form of kerosene, which powers almost everything on base, from the generators to the vehicles and planes.

The Fuel Depots

The 45 gallon drums are stored in miniature pyramids, three drums high and like everything else on the snow surface rapidly accumulate snow around them. Worse still, the black drums warm rapidly in the sun, melting the snow around them, which then refreezes as ice. Raising the depots is hard and potentially tricky work, even when using a large Nodwell crane to pluck three drums at a time off the top of the depot.

Raising Fuel
Drum shackles are attached to the drum, which are then freed by the crane

However, as the older hands, who are here for the summer and have accumulated many years experience over the last decade, are not slow to remind us, we have had a lot easier as large bulk tanks now store a large proportion of the fuel, saving us the difficult winter tasks of raising depots and refuelling direct from drummed fuel. Avtur, apart from its pungent and distinctive smell, has the unfortunate ability to permeate into every item of clothing, where it rapidly conducts heat away and means very cold hands should you splash it while refuelling.

Bad Weather at the Garage

The empty fuel drums are mostly shipped out for re-use, though some are reborn as markers along drum lines as the bases spreads its tentacles across the ice shelf. The familiar black specks dot the distance marking both the perimeter and the frequently travelled routes to other important sites (such as the sea for the forthcoming relief), enabling navigation on the otherwise ceaseless and featureless shelf.

Watching the Balser Take-Off
Lance, having refuelled the ALCI plane, watches as it struggles into the air

One of the most difficult things as a winterer, that I have had to get used to over the last few weeks, is the transition from a small team of 18 working together to help look after everything that we do from cooking, to science work, to the general work around base, to the situation where there are more than enough people to cover their jobs and rarely need a hand. In fact while we wait for first the two ships to arrive that bring both the cargo for the relief of Halley V and the construction of Halley VI, there are days when work is thin on the ground and any chance to get outside and dig is coveted. A situation made worse by a miserable five-day blow confining everyone inside and covering the whole place with wet, warm, sticky snow.

Tom and Ant Raising the Perimeter Drums

Melanie, who has been the BAS doctor at King Edward Point for 2007, whom I visited on my journey south also arrived on the last Basler flight in. Having spent almost a year at South Georgia, she will join the Shackleton when it arrives at Halley later this month and provide the medical cover for the ship over the austral summer as it shuttles back and forth between Cape Town and Halley. Meanwhile I have yet to meet Hannah, who is currently on the ship and will swap places with Mel as she starts her job as the Halley wintering doctor for 2008.

Tom Mixing Techno Tunes

That means that unusually there will be two doctors at Halley over the summer period (Hannah and myself), as the outgoing Halley wintering doctor (myself this year), would cover the Shackleton while it was South until it sails home. However, given the large number of people on station this summer and the heavy construction work, there will be two of us providing cover. That said, I hope that neither of us has to do much medical work!

MedEvac Training
Mark (pilot), watches on while Mel sets up the stretcher during an exercise

The Shackleton will call three times at Halley over the summer, the first call or relief, is the usually the longest as all the cargo for the year ahead is unloaded. Relief of the station is always a busy time but this year will be unlike any relief so far, as the MV Anderma, a ship hired to carry a large amount of the construction materials for Halley VI (the new station, whose build will start this summer), is planned to arrive five days or so after the Shackleton.

Caught in a Blow

Both ships have now left Cape Town and are heading South with the Shackleton well into the ice and the larger Anderma a few days behind. Between us and them, though, is the sea ice, the thickness of which is largely unknown until it is tested. The trip down last year took longer than expected due to heavy ice but with a lot of construction work that needs to take place this year, there is a lot more riding on the two ships encountering good ice conditions.

The Extent Of Sea Ice In November
Image courtesy of National Sea Ice Data Centre (www.nsidc.org)

A large number of winterers, mainly from the science teams, will depart with the Shackleton when it leaves at the end of relief, whereas I will be heading out on its third and final departure from Halley around late March. The departing winterers will mean the end of the band formed over the winter at Halley- 'Z or Dead', who have tortured us with Friday night rehearsals and provided some great Saturday nights in the bar.

Z or Dead- Live at the Garage

To celebrate the influx of people they put on one last gig, taking advantage of an unusually empty (as in vehicles rather than people) garage to host a Saturday night party. Along with Tom's German techno warm-up act, it was the finest night from a band whose rock covers have livened up many winter nights.

Raising Drums

Now the fleet are sailing South, this time feels very much like the lull before the storm of the Halley V and VI reliefs. The paucity of things to be done reflects how enthusiastic everyone has been to get jobs done, with any work going quickly snapped up and sorted and perhaps that is why I enjoy working here, generally surrounded by other enthusiastic people who are all here because they want to work, as a rule enjoy what they do and take pride in it. It feels in distinct contrast to NHS hospitals which I have (temporarily) left behind, where those three things may have been true a few years ago but are no longer, broken by ill-planned reforms and external interference.

The Laws Legs in a Blow

Eeking Out The End Of The Winter

2007-11-30T11:22:00.000Z

Baby Emperors

After a few weeks to get used to an extra seven people on base, the rest of November has seen several more flights bringing people, such that by the end of the month there are over sixty people on base. Despite all the flights in, it was also the end of our time together as a wintering team as Sune disappeared off on a flight out into the deep field to start his summer field project.

Unloading the Twin Otter- 'Bravo Lima'

Regardless of all the large Basler flights coming through, there is something quite exciting about the arrival of the first BAS Twin Otter on station, which will be based here for most of the summer. Its role is putting in field parties carrying out BAS science projects in this part of the Antarctic. Despite all the construction work, this is going to be one of Halley's busiest summer science seasons, partly as it is the International Polar Year (IPY), which means the skiway is going to be busy.

Simpson Science Team Head Back for Lunch

All the flying means I have been spending a fair amount of time at the skiway as one of the Doc's jobs is to provide medical and fire cover for all take-offs and landings, along with helping out with fuelling and loading and unloading the planes.

Halley International Airport
The BAS Twin Otter (foreground) refuels while the Basler unloads passengers

Usually almost all the summer staff arrive on the Shackleton, which will not be here until mid-December but in order to get as much done this summer as possible, the ALCI operated Baslers are being used to fly people in en masse. Moreover, there would be no space on the Shackleton, as almost all the berths are taken up with the incoming Morrison's construction team.

The Cliffs at Windy

The first field project out of here, bearing the sledge call-sign Yankee, was Sune as part of a two-man geological project out in the Sverdrupfjella- the Norweigan name for a mountain range in Dronning Maud Land (Dronning meaning Queen in Norweigan), not far from their station at Troll. This map should give an idea of how far away this all is, incidentally the stations at Kohnen, Wasa and Svea are all summer only leaving Neumayer as our closest wintering companions.

Loading Sune's Kit Onto a Basler
Chris (an ALCI pilot) supervises the process- photo thanks to Dave Evans

Given that he is going to be in the field for nine weeks and travelling nearly a thousand miles on ski-doo around the mountains, there was enough cargo for two planes. Hence one of the Baslers, returning back towards their base at Novo took some of it as far as Troll, where Sune caught up with it a few days later, flown over by Twin Otter, putting some field depots (of food and fuel) in on the way.

Sune & His Birthday Cake

Bad weather, as ever, slightly delayed his departure but it meant that he got to celebrate his birthday on base. He admitted to being keen on shortbread, so continuing my birthday cake making role, I made a half-Nansen sledge from shortbread decorated with field boxes and jerry cans made of sponge. He had an emotional send-off, as much since we will miss him (he will not be leaving via Halley) but also as his departure marks the break-up of this year's winter team.

More Chicks

With the arrival of the ship fast approaching, it has also meant the UAV project gradually winding up, as Tom and his small planes will be leaving with the ship at first call and there is at least a week's worth of packing to be done before the start of relief.

Waiting for the UAV to Return
Tom waits by K24

The three of us involved in flying the UAV (Tom- pilot and project leader, Alex- managing the telemetry and me- launching), have managed to get off base a couple more times, trundling down to the coast at Windy Bay in our specially modified Sno-Cat K-24. As a result we have had several more successful flights out over the sea-ice collecting data as part of a BAS science project to better understand the transfer of energy between sea, sea ice and the lower atmosphere.

Launching the UAV
I pull the plane back on a long elasticated cord and then let go...

In order to get as many flights in as possible, we spent a night out at the Windy caboose. With the UAV's batteries recharging and unable to fly further that day, the three of us took the opportunity to visit the penguin colony down on the sea ice for the last time. (The UAV does not actually fly over the penguins at Windy- the bay is big enough for it to fly several kilometres to the east of the colony itself).

Emperors

Each visit is special and this one was no different. I cannot remember if I have written about this before but it is unusual for any creature to come so close and yet not be perturbed by us and in turn for us not to be endangered in any way. Though it may be anthropomorphic to suggest, the trust they place in us in approaching so close is one of the most thrilling aspects of visiting the colony.

Emperors Up Close

It will be difficult to forget lying flat on the ice taking photographs and being mobbed by inquisitive penguins. We are keen not to disturb any of the birds and aim never to encroach closer than five metres or keep our distance if appears we are upsetting them in anyway, however stand still for only a few moments and the most curious will start to waddle much closer.

Inquisitive Penguins
Tom and Alex approached by waddling adults

At one point, lying prone on the ice photographing chicks with a long lens, I found myself surrounded on four sides by quietly inquisitive adults and chicks all happy to approach within a few feet and watch as I flailed around on the floor with a large rucksack on my back. However, with the sudden descent of low stratus cloud, a rolling bank of fog appeared in the distance and it was time to get off the ice and to leave the penguins behind for probably my last time.

Crepuscular Rays and a Faint Ice Halo
A halo formed by refraction of light through ice crystals high in the cirrostratus cloud

As expected, it is an odd feeling finding what used to be our home increasingly swamped by people who have not spent the year down here with us and are not necessarily attuned to some of the unwritten rules that exist amongst a community of people who have been living together for so long. Furthermore it is also interesting how by benefit of having spent a good winter together, the work of all those coming in is much easier than if there were profound hostilities between the 18 of us. A happy base is understandably more productive.

A Basler Taxis Into Re-fuel
Chad (Z-Air Mech) guides the plane in

Planes Both Big & Small

2007-11-21T20:41:00.000Z

First Contact
The first plane arrives- photo by Sune Tamm-Buckle

The last person I saw, other than those 17 other people I have spent the winter with, was on the 18th February. Now for the first time in eight-and-a-half months there are new faces, mail and fresh fruit & veg, though not necessarily in that order of priority.

Waiting for the Plane

It was a night of snatched sleep on the 1st November as the arrival time of the first plane gradually drifted backwards along with frantic last minute preparations to ensure everything was ready. After its long flight from the BAS base at Rothera and then out over the Weddell Sea, it arrived at half four in the morning with a large proportion of the base huddled on the reassuringly cold skiway apron, trying to catch a first sight of the Basler as it circled over the Brunt.

Unloading Pax and Cargo

Having been deprived of new people for the best part of the year, it is difficult to describe the excitement of speaking to someone new and at the same time the realisation that the great winter we have had together is at an end. Though it is thrilling having new people around and the sudden progress in work taking place is great, deep down there there is a slight resentment, even if jokingly, to new people invading what has been our home for the better part of a year.

Me at the penguins
Photo thanks to Sune

The first plane brought not only our new Base Commander, Vicky, in but also six other people and the base does suddenly seem very busy. It may seem daft but one of those things which miss already is sitting around a large table at lunch time chatting; the influx of a batch of new people means that the previously spacious dining room almost induces claustrophobia.

Vicky in Front of Polar V

While the first BAS plane, one of the Twin Otters, is a while off arriving yet, in the interim two further planes have already been through. All three are Baslers, which are converted DC-3 airframes, which would have been flying during the Second World War but the conversion adds turboprop engines and a major overhaul of most of the planes apart from the airframe itself. Operated by ALCI, an independent logistics operator, the planes are on flying in to support the multinational bases to the north-east of here in the Dronning Maud Land.

Refuelling at the Skiway

One of those planes, which ALCI are also operating, is the new Polar V, the latest plane to join the AWI's (German Antarctic program) operations. It will operate out of Neumayer, about 800 km north of here and our nearest companions during the winter. Painted in the AWI's usual stunning livery, their Basler cuts an impressive sight against the white polar background.

Polar V

We will see a lot more of the first two (all-white) Baslers over the summer as they will shuttle in several flights of BAS personnel from the Russian base at Novolazarevskaya on the north tip of Dronning Maud Land, which is connected to Cape Town by a large Aleutian transport plane. It is unusual for many people to come in much earlier than the Shackleton, the BAS logistics ship, but given the busy season ahead the extra month should make a difference in getting the base ready for the start of the Halley VI build.

More Steel Work
Jim and I back at work on the Laws legs

Going back to the arrival of the first plane, with Ant (our chef) preparing to head off on the last winter trip, I found myself in the kitchen, admittedly cooking for a worryingly large 28 but in amongst the mail was a 10kg box of fresh vegetables. I had the privilege of cracking open the first iceberg lettuce, in preparation for our first salad in a long time, which despite the constituents long journey, was all in good shape.

Refuelling the Polar V

In the UK I find iceberg lettuces bland and disappointing but I hope I never forget the delight at ripping the heart of the lettuce open and smelling its unprocessed core, with the faint suggestion of their origins from a plot of soil somewhere. The texture of crunchy cucumbers and sharpness of fresh oranges also bore a novelty created by their prolonged absence.

Lettuce Worship

The photo above reminds me that the beard is going to have to come off before I return to civilisation, it may provide some warmth in the Antarctic but I think its days are numbered!

Moving the Drewry

With three extra vehicle mechanics, one of the first jobs was to move the Drewry (the summer accommodation building), a 60 tonne structure on skis. During the winter, as with everything else on the snow surface, it had started to disappear with a snow scoop nine foot high around it. Having carefully groomed and compacted the snow with two John Deere tractors and four 'dozers the move was all done in a morning.

Preparing for Field Science
Ryan and Toddy about to set off base

Better weather, meant more successful flights on base for Tom with his UAV experiment, which I have been putting my bulk behind as part of the take-off procedure. With the prerequisite number of flights completed on base, it was time to take off into the field.

Waiting For the UAV to Return
Sno-Cat K24 acts as the specially adapted flight centre for the off-base UAV flights

The goal of the project has always been to fly the plane over sea ice to understand better the transfer of energy between the ice and the lower atmosphere. However, if the UAV were to go down, it would be irretrievable hence the desire to first prove the system works in the Antarctic in the proximity to base.

The UAV Approaching to Land

Tom has had a long and at times frustrating winter overcoming problems with the UAV, that are unique to the Antarctic, mainly related to the limitations the cold places on the whole system. In the process there have been a handful of crashes and lengthy repairs to three of the four UAVs he brought with him. Hence, there was great excitement when it completed its first autonomous flight out over the ice and returned from its 20+ km round trip intact.

The Misfits Photo
L-R: Me (Doc), Dean (Comms), Sune (Field Assistant), Ant (Chef)- photo by Dave Evans

As well as the main Winterer's photo, there is a burgeoning tradition for the science platforms and the technical services team to each take a group photo to hang in their various workplaces. Not to be outdone that left four of us who work off the Laws with no photo to join hence the tongue-in-cheek team photo out by the signpost.

Altocumulus Over the Signpost

Time Runs Short on the Winter

2007-10-31T21:50:00.000Z

Kirsty Launching the Daily Met Balloon

With the first plane bearing a tranche of new people due at the end of October, we soon will not be on our own. The last few weeks as a result have thus been a battle against recurrent bad weather to prepare the place for their arrival and the subsequent flights bringing people in. Nonetheless, with some good weather there is always some excuse to be outside working.

Tom Preparing the UAV for Flight

Unfortunately, the low level cloud and poor weather that has dominated the month, means poor contrast. As a result a lot of photos this month appear in black and white, since they don't look quite as dull as they would in colour!

Digging Out Cabling to the Garage
Photo thanks to Ant

High winds and bad weather have meant there continues to be plenty to dig out, though warmer temperatures means that a bulldozer is rarely far away. The continual digging focus of any winter here is the melt tank; the excitement that existed (at least for those of us spending our first winter here), at the beginning of the year in filling the tank has started to fade, particularly as wrists, shoulders and arms grow weary of the pounding of solid snow and ice.

Kirsty Digging Out the Weather Haven

However, given that the intention is that the Halley VI melt tank, when it is finished in three years time, will not be dug by hand, it seemed fitting that our winterer's photo should be taken atop the melt tank mound.

Halley Winter Photo 2007
Photo by Dave Evans- featuring all 18 of us

There are well over 40 years of winter photos that cover two walls of the dining room, while ancient portraits of a youthful Queen and Prince Phillip watch over our eating from another wall. Typically the photos are in black and white as they were processed on base but despite our digital cameras and printers, the B&W still looks better sitting in a wooden frame that Jim (Z-Carpenter), made especially for it from old Nansen sledge wood.

Emperor Penguin Chick

It is interesting how some winter group portraits are relatively formal, hopefully the relaxed and natural look to our contribution to the dining room decoration reflects the good winter we have had together. The intention is that the photos will move to the new base and hopefully they will as they are one of the few items of continuity that connect us with those who have wintered here, not just in the recent past, about whom stories are still told but also those who were here thirty and more years ago, when living here would have been a lot harsher but nonetheless have experienced the unusual nature of an Antarctic winter.

Tom Watching the Sunset from the Bar Window

Winter already seems a long time ago particularly as the sun has ceased to set come the end of October. The unpolluted atomsphere transmitted beautiful coloured sunsets and sunrises for the over the last few months which have been difficult to reproduce with any chromatic fidelity or the sense of space that accompanies them. But I have seen my last sunset for a while, probably until I arrive in Cape Town on my way home.

Ant Shows Off His Baking Skills

The end of winter also means a celebratory dinner with Ant managing to conjure up a pretty fine meal yet again, including some real potatoes which have been nursed through the winter. Hopefully, the first planes will bear some fresh fruit and even lettuces.

Dave at the Bar

As I continue to write this blog, I realise that I am writing it as much for myself as for friends and family. Not only is it an incentive to sort my photos out but will hopefully be something I can look back on in time to come. To that extent I realise that I am missing photos of what the inside of some of the buildings look like, which by now I have taken for granted.

Board Games in the Lounge

I remember the first striking impressions of the inside of the Laws platform, whose accommodation and living areas reminded me of a well-cared for youth hostel. The lounge is no exception, sharing the same room as the bar, which with pool table takes up just under half of the total space, it also doubles as a cinema twice a week.

Penguin Regurgitating Food for a Chick

However, for most of the time it can feel like a dentist's waiting room with low slung chairs pulled back against the walls and coffee tables heaving under the weight of old magazines; a ambiance that is exaggerated when a majority of base decant into the room after lunch and silently pick through the increasingly out-of-date titles or work on the Halley stare- a well-recognised gentle gaze into the middle distance that descends at the end of the winter. Without a prompt postal service each month the corresponding magazine issues from last year appear, ranging from Q to New Scientist to Cosmopolitan, the latter of which seems more popular with some men on base than for the women.

Me Learning to Weld
MIG welding cable supports, photo thanks to Ant

While, as ever, I have hardly been rushed off my feet medically, along with the usual waste and steel work, some of the science projects always need a hand. Tom, our German meteorologist, with the advent of warmer temperatures has got his UAV (an unmanned aerial vehicle), out flying again. The batteries which it runs on are, unfortunately, not great fans of the cold so flying through the winter has not been as easy as hoped for.

The UAV

Flying the UAV is a ideally a three man job, with Tom flying the plane for take-offs and landing, before it flies an autonomous flight plan, Alex running a laptop communicating via a telemetry system with the UAV in-flight and myself launching the UAV. Though the batteries power two electric motors, the initial power for take-off is supplied by pulling the plane back on an elastic bungee, whose recoil sends the UAV skywards, at which point the motors kick in.

Surveying Under the Laws With Jim

The plan is to gradually to collect data about the low level atmosphere, particularly in respect of turbulence over the snow surface (with and flights on base) and eventually over sea ice. However, before getting to that point the system needs to be as reliable as possible to reduce the risk of losing delicate and expensive probes irretrievably over sea ice.

Alex Heads Into the Simpson

All the lower atmospheric science runs off the Simpson platform, named after Sir George Simpson, who worked on Scott's Terra Nova expedition, (which covered Scott's attempt on the pole) and subsequent director of the Met Office. It also houses the Metbabes, who on top of the all the long term monitoring experiments and observations that they run, are bringing the blimp flying season to a close.

Dave in the Blimp Tent

The blimp is used to study low level (tropospheric) ozone and its depletion during the Antarctic spring on base during ozone depletion events. (This is distinct from the high level (stratospheric) ozone, whose depletion in the Antarctic leads to the ozone hole).

Dave Retrieves the Sondes
Suspended beneath the blimp the sondes collect data during ascent and descent

Ozone depletion events are thought to take place over the Weddell Sea, due to the catalytic effects of halides released from sea water. Sunlight is required to drive the reaction that results in the breakdown of ozone and so the last few months since the return of sun have seen several of these events take place, all of which have precipitated a blimp flight. In parallel a set of instruments were deployed 15km east of base on the coast at Precious Bay studying these events as well.

Sunset Over the Blimp Team

Unfortunately, poor weather took its toll on both sets of kit. The main blimp was destroyed in a storm earlier in the season, which nearly also decimated the weather haven. The reserve blimp has been clocking up the flying hours, while the the Precious Bay instruments also suffered from the extreme winds and cold. Nonetheless, the blimp was still flown more times this winter than previous years, mainly due to the dedication of the trio of Metbabes (Tamsin, Dave and Kirsty).

Climbing Up the Cliffs At Windy
Photo thanks to Dave Evans

Despite the bad weather, there was still a window one weekend for another trip to the penguins. It was also a relief as for the first time a penguin trip that I led actually got down onto the ice- I was starting to worry I was blighted. Though not technically difficult or far from base it is interesting how taxing taking responsibilty for a group of people in the middle of the Antarctic actually is. I have all the more respect for the work of the Field GAs!

Crèche of Young Penguins

The chicks continue to grow and have started to huddle together to form crèches to keep warm as the parents head out to sea to find food. Both the adults and chicks are increasingly inquisitive and will waddle comfortably to within a metre or so. As I finish, I remember that one of the reasons I fell behind in writing the blog is as I wrote the September base diary for the BAS website. Given that very few planes are coming in from the Falklands via Rothera this summer, my postal address (at the bottom of the webpage) has also changed.

More Penguins

Winter Trip

2007-10-24T09:13:00.000+01:00

Emperor Penguins

As winter becomes a fleeting memory, there is plenty to be done outside in respect of both work and play. The impetus to write a regular blog also evaporates as other attractions become more enticing- such as skiing or making the best use of the weather to get work done, whatever time of day.

Chris Walking to Work

The weather had to improve, for the last month or so has been plagued by high winds, particularly unfortunate as the bulk of the post-winter trips have taken place over the course of the month. My trip, taking the exciting name and slightly inappropriate name of Sledge Hotel, was due out in late September but our departure was curtailed for four days by poor contrast and high winds. (Each trip takes a sledge name with a radio call sign, invariably unofficial versions of the call sign are thought up but this year none of them have really stuck).

Nansen Sledge at Windy
A fully laden 'half-unit'

However, we finally got underway though slightly depleted, as a trio rather than the usual four, which precluded any time in tents. So, led by Sune, who as Field GA runs all the trips, Chris and I headed the short 18 km or so to the caboose at Windy Bay, where the main attraction is the penguin colony.

Lots of Penguins

Though we could have camped elsewhere on the Brunt ice shelf if we had tents, the advantage of the caboose, apart from being able to stand up in it, is a powerful Reflex stove in the corner, which keeps the place well above the external -30°C.

Inside Windy Caboose

With four days lost on base to poor weather, the last five were almost a further white-out but were saved by the last day when we had superb weather. That said, on each day the contrast improved enough for us to escape for a few hours and explore the cliffs and the area around the caboose. With the wind rarely below the acceptable 15 knots for venturing onto sea ice, we still managed to watch the sun set from the cliffs overlooking the main colony.

Roped Up as an Alpine Three

The contrast is vital, not only to be able to see the cliff edge but any possible crevasses or other hazards. Poor weather also prevented as from travelling across to the Rumples, where the shelf is grounded on a raised area of the sea bed and is littered with crevasses as the Brunt ice shelf, upon which we live, moves around this fixed point.

(Un)Dressed For the Field
Fashion shoot on a low contrast day

All our field clothing is supplied, fortunately, as the total cost of it all would be several thousand pounds, however, most of it (except certain items like longjohns for instance!), is reusable. The clothing system works on a layers principle mostly made up of lightweight artificial fibres. The top layer of thick Canada Goose jackets are issued for the depth of winter and are almost too hot to do anything in, apart from a lot of standing around when its very cold or skidooing.

Sastrugi at Windy

Much more useful as an outer layer is the thick cotton Ventile material that makes the 'windy' top as well as the tent fabric. Though it would be less useful in the UK, as the cotton would soak up water, here it forms a superb, wind resistant fabric. Underneath that, when it is very cold in the field, I wear another 3 layers on top plus a long-sleeved thermal top. Walking or any exercise and the layers are rapidly shed. Notably everybody finds some different combination of clothes, particularly headwear and on the hands, works better for them.

Solar Halo over the caboose
Sun Dogs and a faint upper tangent arc are also present

As for feet, it is either thick, artificial mukluks or mountaineering plastic boots. While on the hands I wear a pair of 'thinnies', robust liner gloves for fine work particularly the climbing metal kit which would otherwise freeze to bare hands, over which almost everyone wears 'bear-paws' (large mittens with artificial fur on the back), attached by what looks like a toddler's harness round the neck so that they can be shaken off to use the more precise thinnies.

The Cliffs at Windy

Finally, on top there is a long 'neckie' to cover the gap between the clothes and a balaclava or two along with a hat on top. The greatest problem with this last set-up is preventing goggles misting up, if you wear too much on your face, your breath eventually freezes on the inside of the lens, too little and you risk frostnip on the tip of the nose. However, most of the time you are more than warm enough, even down at -40 with a decent wind. Around base the ubiquitous orange padded overalls take the place of several of the layers and the mukluks are almost all steel-toe capped, which unfortunately means feet get cold very fast.

Lots More Penguins

It has been interesting watching the chicks grow up on various visits to the colony; now able to venture off their parents' feet, they have become quite adventurous. and are often seen tottering around chased by a concerned parent. However, there is plenty of evidence of chicks that did not make it with both eggs and small bodies littering the ice. Moreover, there is the occasional scuffle between chick-less parents and parents with offspring over the latter's free-roaming grey balls of feathers as the former appear to attempt to nab the chicks as their own.

Out Walking On the Cliffs

Sune's title as Field Assistant slightly understates his extensive experience and role on base. On base is also slightly inaccurate, for over the winter he spends as much time in the field as actually on base even taking into consideration that nobody travels off base during the darkness. Most GAs (for General Assistant, even though the full title has changed), have mountaineering experience, Sune is no different and as such is responsible for the safety of everyone travelling off-base.

Sune Illuminated By a Tilley Lamp

Along with leading all the field trips both pre- and post- winter, his time is taken up maintaining the field kit from Pyramid tents and Nansen sledges to Primus stoves and Tilley lamps. The field trips along with a chance to get away from base for a period of time and a change of scenery, is also considered training time in field work, again for which the GAs are responsible for teaching. He will be the first to leave here, probably in mid-November, to take an incoming geologist on a deep-field project in Dronning Maud Land to the east of here.

The Wind Picks Up
A Nansen laden with fuel jerrys

The Antarctic can prove to be a hostile place and difficult to predict. On our final day, having enjoyed the best weather of the trip and spent a few hours with the penguins, we had completed our packing and were within half an hour of leaving for base, when the weather rapidly changed and a gale descended over the course of the subsequent fifteen minutes. It meant another unscheduled night away from base. The shower on our return, however brief, was all the more welcome.

Sastrugi

The end of the winter trip is a reminder that the first plane is not far away, bringing with it new people, fresh food and possibly post. Before that, should the weather hold, there is still plenty of things to be done around base to prepare for them and the busy summer that lies ahead.

A Cornice at the Windy Cliffs

The Last of the Aurora?

2007-09-13T05:26:00.000+01:00

Sunrise Behind the Laws

As sunlight now dominates the day and the temperatures gradually warm, it is hard to remember the last day when it was well below -40°C. However, the nights still remain dark and there is even still the occasional auroral display, though the problem is not their rarity but the cloudy skies obscuring the light.

Aurora Over the Drewry

Difficult to capture with still photography is the activity of the aurora as they flicker across the sky and their dynamic nature. Moreover, there is the increasing temptation, when awoken from deep sleep by a knock on the door, as the night watchman has seen a glimmer of light on the horizon, to turn over and fall back asleep. You do so at your peril and invariably miss 'the best display of the winter' so far when it is discussed at lunch the next day.

Moving Auroral Display

The GIF file above is of 5 shots taken over the course of several minutes, long enough for the stars to appear to move across the sky. Even on cloudless night skies without aurora there is plenty to see as the Milky Way cleaves a bright rift in the sky.

Scorpius and the Milky Way Above the Drewry
Inset: the constellation of stars that make up Scorpius (the brightest 'star' is Jupiter), its tail and sting sit deep in the Milky Way

Halley was built as it lies in the auroral zone, which makes it an ideal place to study the upper atmosphere and the interactions between the sun and the earth as solar particles bombard the ionosphere. Most of this science is run from the Piggott platform, while the other major science platform, the Simpson, runs the experiments studying the lower atmosphere down to the snow surface.

Sunrise With A Sun Pillar and the Simpson

The Simpson houses what has to be the most famous bit of science kit on base and as such one of the most exciting- the Dobson spectrophotometer. It was observations made at Halley over the 50 years the base has been here that led to the realisation in the early 1980s that ozone over the Antarctic was at much lower levels during the period of August to October than would be expected, a phenomenon that has come to be known as the ozone hole.

Dave Works the Dobson

Ozone is measured in Dobson units after an Oxford meteorologist from the early 20th century, who was one of the first to recognise the presence of the ozone layer and design an instrument to measure the level of ozone in the atmosphere. The atmosphere, if considered as a vertical column directly up from any point on earth, contains around 300 Dobson Units (DU) of ozone which would be the same as a layer of ozone 3mm thick if the whole column was brought down to the earth's surface.

Andy On the Laws Windtail

Most of the atmosphere's ozone is high up in the stratosphere peaking about 25kms above the surface. It is considerably less dense in the lower atmosphere but ozone here is the subject of distinct research at Halley. The levels of stratospheric ozone fall to around a third of their background levels at around this time of the year, due to a reaction which requires the sun's energy but is catalysed by the products of chlorofluorocarbons amongst other gases, such as nitrous oxide. It is all localised to the Antarctic due to a combination of cold temperatures, particular weather systems and sunlight.

The Laws In Snow

The most relevant local effect is the increased level of UV exposure. Antarctica is already high-risk for the damaging effects of UV but this is exacerbated with sunburn and snow blindness as particular hazards. They are however fortunately rare as everyone uses liberal amounts of sunscreen and sunglasses.

Sunset Looking North From the Laws

Though satellites now provide much of the information with regard to fluctuations in ozone levels, these still have to be calibrated and this is an important part of the work of this and other spectrophotometers dotted around the world. Though there are a couple of instruments which are rotated between the UK and Halley to allow accurate calibration, it is pretty exciting to be in the presence of an instrument that is part of a continuing experiment and observation which has had such a profound effect on the world we live in.

Manhauling to the Laws From the Containers

For though the Montreal protocol has been highly effective in limiting the release of chlorofluorocarbons, the realisation that the ozone hole is a product of man on the environment was fundamental in our awakening to the damage we are doing to the earth. Interestingly, the US Regan administration strongly supported the efforts to reduce CFC production; given that the BAS paper was published in 1985 the protocol came into force a rapid 4 years later. It has been hailed by Kofi Annan as " Perhaps the single most successful international agreement to date ...". This is in stark contrast to other attempts to deal with our effect on the environment, such as the Kyoto protocol, where such support is lacking.

Wrapped Up Warm
Photo thanks to Dean Evans

The most remarkable part of the last few weeks for me has been my 30th birthday. Unfortunately, not a good enough day to visit the penguins but with some decent weather I found myself hanging off the legs jacking the building again.

Celebrating On the Day

The advantage of reaching a small milestone is that you are allowed to celebrate it at least a couple of times and as such, as well as having the traditional fancy dress party on a Saturday night (in my chosen theme of London tube stations), a few hours of digging resulted in a small ice bar to have a few drinks on the day itself. It seemed a rather cool idea to make glasses out of frozen ice at the time, unfortunately at -35 the ice froze to the lips of anyone who tried it; I am still nursing the wounds.

London Party

I was released from my cake-making duties this time and was treated to a spectacular creation by Ant and Tamsin featuring a large proportion of the base's supply of food colouring. With the first of the post-winter trips already off base, the whole place seems a bit empty particularly at meal times and in the bar. However, it is a glimpse as to how next year's team will feel as there will only be 11 of them compared to the 18 of us on a good day.

Blowing Out the Candles

Around and about, there is plenty of work to be done, particularly as almost all of the science is being put on hold for a couple of years while Halley VI is being built, which means packing up both the science platforms. There is an Augean task of clearing paperwork and instruments that have built up over the lifetime of Halley V. Bad weather has also had its toll on science kit including destroying one of the blimps that was being used to study ozone depletion in the lower atmosphere.

Clearing Out the Simpson
Dave gets to work in the Met lab

It is not only the science platforms that need getting ready for the summer, given the unusually large number of people intended to be on station during the building period that will encompass the whole of the summer (and several summers hence), there is a lot to be done to start getting the whole base ready to deal with housing, feeding and looking after the 120+ people will swamp what has been our home for most of the year.

Sune Getting Field Kit Ready

Nonetheless most of the evening activities which started shortly after the departure of the last ship have continued, with people touting their various expertise in French, Spanish and German to small groups in weekly language lessons. In addition, Thursday and Friday evenings on the platform are dominated either by the samba band or Halley's own rock band rehearsing. Many people take refuge either on in outlying building or nurse a pair of ear defenders, for one of the great flaws with all main platform is the relative absence of sound-proofing in most of the walls. Conversations, let alone loud drumming, can easily be heard through many of the thin partitions.

Samba Drumming to Celebrate the Notting Hill Carnival
6 of us work the drums and the lens- photo thanks to Dave Evans

As the winter dwindles away thoughts turn to plans for returning home. The Halley Doctor usually spends the Halley summer (the period from the first call of the RRS Shackleton at Halley until the last call), as the ship's medical officer while it is in the Southern Ocean, while the incoming Halley Doctor leaves their job on the ship, having provided medical cover all the way from the UK, to cover the base at the earliest opportunity (as I did on January 1st this year).

Learning to Splice
Eye-splicing skidoo link lines for field work

With the increased number of people on station this summer and a large amount of building work, there will instead be two of us on station for the whole of the summer with another doctor covering the ship. As a result, I will either fly or sail out of here sometime in March at the end of the season, arriving in Cape Town in either March or April time, dependant, as ever, on a whole host of factors. Notably, staying on station for the summer has had little effect on when I am likely to return to the UK as compared to working on the Shackleton.

Mourning the Destruction of the Blimp
L to R: Brian, Dave Tom, Alex, Tamsin, Kirsty and Jules

It will be exciting being here over the summer, as not only will the new station start to take shape as it is built here before being towed (in future years) to its eventual home but there will also be considerably more science projects in the field as compared to last year. As ever, it will be busy but I suspect very different from last summer.

Sastrugi At Windy Bay

Escape From Station

2007-09-11T23:50:00.001+01:00

Emperor Penguin and Chick

For at least the last four, if not five, months our lives have been confined to our small part of the Antarctic circumscribed by the perimeter of empty fuel drums. Apart from the seventeen other people on base, none of us have seen another living thing since a pair of Wilson's Storm Petrels were seen fluttering around one of the cabooses six months ago. That has all changed in the last few weeks.

The 4Km Marker on Skis

The rapid return of daylight, the quantity of which increases by 20 minutes every day, has meant that it has become feasible again to ski a short way off base to the 4km marker. Its name is confusing since it acts as a marker for the planes navigating a descent onto the skiway and as such it is probably closer to 6km from the Laws. Though not a particularly taxing 45 minute ski each way, the excitement comes from heading off into the Antarctic, with nothing but ice as far as the eye can see, met by a cloudless azure sky. Though it is a featureless trip, punctuated only by sparsely dotted flags to mark the way, the thrill comes from the escape from the station and the steady rhythm of skis cutting across sastrugi.

More Emperors

However, better was yet to come. Halley is fortunate that it lies close to one of the 50-odd Emperor penguin colonies dotted around the continent. There are only two species of penguin found in the Antarctic itself- Adélies and Emperors- with the latter found nowhere else. The colony lies at Windy Bay (see map), some 20Km off station to the north-west and trips out to see them is one of the highlights of the year here following Midwinter.

Penguin Tracks on the Sea Ice
Footprints are often scoured by the wind such that they stand proud of the snow

The penguins have been out at Windy since late April to May, when they mated and subsequently the males have been incubating the eggs through the darkness. It is not hard to imagine the miserable weather that they have endured as we have lived through the same period, but to survive it almost stationary whilst protecting their single precious egg from the icy ground, without the benefit of central heating and regular warm food is all the more remarkable.

Yet More Penguins

Just how poor and fickle the weather can be is demonstrated by attempts to visit the penguins. I was fortunate to be scheduled on the second day trip to see them about 10 days ago on a Sunday. The possibility of a trip requires the combination of warmish temperatures (that is warmer than -35°C-otherwise vehicles will not run), good visibility and low wind. Unfortunately the latter two tend to be associated with poor cloud cover, which in turn is associated with warm temperatures. It requires a special day for all three features to come together successfully.

Attempt No 1- Restarting Very Cold Skidoos
Sune and I attempt to pull-start skidoos at Windy after a rapid drop in temperature (photo thanks to Dave Evans)

On the first attempt, the weather was too cold to take a Sno-Cat, which will refuse to operate below -30°C, so we took skidoos. However, the temperature plummeted beyond an acceptable operating temperature even for the 'doos and we had to turn back at the cliff edge in sight of the colony.

Attempt No 2- Heading Back to the Laws
Loss of contrast puts an end to the second attempt

The second attempt looked like reasonable conditions but a rapid deterioration in contrast meant this time we did not even got off base. Despite having all the kit packed and ready to go, it takes at least a couple of hours to warm vehicles, lash sledges and general faff, so even an aborted trip is not without an investment of time.

A Young Chick

Fortunately, it was third time lucky; given that I have been on nightwatch again, I was roused from my bed after half an hour and despite the lack of sleep it is not easy to turn down such an opportunity. A couple of hours of faff and a ninety minute Sno-Cat ride later, the five of us found ourselves on the cliffs at Windy able to see the colony as a dark line a couple of kilometres out on the sea ice but also could hear the gentle chatter of a couple of thousand penguins.

Dean Prepares to Descend the Sea Cliff

The cliffs stand 20 to 30 metres above the sea ice and the previous trip having an identified a suitable crevasse free area, meant an easy rope-assisted descent onto the ice. Even though the ice extends nearly a thousand miles off the continent at the moment, it is punctuated by leads (open water) and thin pressure ridges, which amongst a multitude of other hazards, make it particularly treacherous. (See here for a glossary of terms associated with sea ice.) The ice at Windy is at least second-year fast ice, a couple of metres thick and so should be as safe as any sea ice but we still carry a variety of safety kit and travel unlinked.

Heading Out On the Sea Ice
Penguins form the thin black line on the horizon

The more adventurous penguins, so unused to seeing any other creatures and sharing a mutual curiosity, started to wander over the moment we were on the ice. Without any predator on the ice, they will quite happily approach to investigate further. As a result, if you remain still, the more inquisitive will come as close as a couple of metres, even though we keep a much greater distance between them and ourselves so as not to disturb them.

The Colony At Windy Bay

In some places the colony can still be seen huddling together for warmth, it may be that some are still incubating eggs. The females meanwhile are out at sea feeding; the leads mean that they do not necessarily have to walk the thousand miles to open water but they head away from the colony for a couple of months through the darkness.

Huddled Together For Warmth

Through the same period the males penguins have guarded the eggs on their feet, which bear large thick pads which protect them from the ice. The eggs are also protected from the cold by a large parental pouch which in turn is inhabited by the chicks once they hatch.

Penguin Feet

In a further contrast to our cosseted existence the male penguins lose almost half their body weight as they have not fed for several months, as opposed to Ant's vigorous attempts to fatten us up with his top notch cooking. The weight disappears as they burn fat to keep themselves warm and they initially feed the chicks with secretions from their oesophagus while waiting for the females to return with stocks of regurgitated fish.

Feeding Chicks

A couple of hours sitting stationary, watching and photographing, means the cold starts to bite into the excitement and it was time to return. Hopefully, there will be further chances to visit them over the next couple of months, particularly on the forthcoming post-winter trips.

Lashing the Sno-Cat
I pack the kit up before heading home

Meanwhile, back on station I am currently nightwatchman for the week but with the first flight due to arrive in less than two months there is a lot of work to be done around base. The start of the Halley VI build (the successor station to Halley V), means that the summer is going to be busy- there is plenty to get straight before then.

Yet Another Penguin Shot

The Return Of The Sun

2007-08-30T12:11:00.000+01:00

Increasing Daylight

The most significant moment of the last few weeks has to be without doubt the return of the sun over the horizon. For while the increasing light and the colourful displays that go with it, preempt its return, the moment that it broaches the horizon for the first time in getting on for four months, is an emotional event.

The Top of the Solar Disc Emerges for the First Time
Watching the sun reappear over the garage catenaries

Like the sun's disappearance, there is great debate around the lunch table as to the actual date, given that a miraging sun may appear a few days earlier and the definition of what the sun being above the horizon really is. The photo above demonstrates beautifully another common sight around base- catenaries. Common, as there is the need for overground cabling in many places to supply power and/or data cables supported on wooden or metal posts that need continuously raising against the incipient accumulation of snow that threatens to bury everything.

Sun Under The Laws

In some places the drifting snow has accumulated to the extent that catenaries that one could walk under with ease in the summer are near buried. The result? A lot of digging. Interestingly, catenaries are named after the mathematical curve they approximate, which is in turn described (almost circularly), as the curve described by a hanging flexible chain supported at both ends. I had assumed naively that they were parabolic curves but at least Galileo made the same mistake. See here for more of the maths.

Jim Raises the Flag

To celebrate the sun's return, the Union Flag is hoisted to fly above base again. Jim as the youngest winterer, as opposed to the lowering of the flag at sun-down by the eldest member of base, had the responsibility this time round. In contrast to the tattered, wind-frayed relic that was taken down in May, a new one is hoisted and will have to last a battering from the occasional storms until next sun-down.

Changing 'Dozers in the Garage

Sunnier days does may mean longer days to work outside but it does not necessarily mean warmer days; there are still plenty of times when even the most hardy 'dozer will refuse to start, usually when its around -40°C. The cold weather takes its toll even on these sturdy machines, which has meant a lot of work in the garage for Mat (Vehicle Mech) along with pressure to get out into the field, particularly for science projects, which involves defrosting and servicing vehicles that have spent the many months of darkness stowed away on the northern end of the container line.

Flying The Blimp

One of the most obvious additions to the science program since the sun has returned is a new building on base. The weather haven is little more than a big tent housing the Metbabe's blimp, a large helium filled mini-airship from which, when launched, dangles an array of measurement kit in Blue Peter fashion.

The Moon Shines on the Ice Cavern

The excitement behind the blimp is that it is used to study an atmospheric phenomenon which occurs here once the sun returns- Ozone Depletion Events. Though Halley has an important place in the discovery of the 'ozone hole', this involves ozone at a high level in the earths stratosphere (15-25 kms above the ground), which is where most of the earth's ozone is found. On the other hand Ozone Depletion Events involve the ozone found in the low troposphere, which in turn is the lowest region of the earth's atmosphere.

Losing Contrast in a Blow

Ozone depletion takes place over the course of a few days at a time and is thought to occur as sea ice forms out on the Weddell Sea and in the presence of sunlight. It is interesting scientifically as the loss of ozone effects the local temperature but also contributes to the larger picture of the physics, chemistry and meteorology of the boundary layer (the lowest part of the atmosphere), which is one of the major areas of research on station. Understanding of what happens in this part of the atmosphere at Halley is applicable not only across the Antarctic but also around the world.

Bringing a Sno-Cat In After the Winter

It is difficult to convey quite how complex it can be living as an isolated community in such a hostile environment, for out of the 18 people on base only 8 are directly involved with running the 24-hour science experiments and data collection. The rest of us are in some way supporting the science, not that this leads to a clear distinction at Halley; everybody is involved in some way in the general work around base that allows us to live here and on the other side, from helping with flying the blimp to doing weather observations overnight, most people participate in the science side of life on base. Though clearly one could not exist without the other.

Hauling Jerry Cans To Be Repaired

Of the other ten people on base, five belong to Technical services and bring the skills to keep the vehicles, generators, plumbing, electrics and building running. That leaves a base commander, communications manager (a successor to a radio operator who looks after both the radios and part of the computing on base), chef, field assistant and myself.

Sune Fixing Nansen Sledges in the Laws Corridor

Though as the base doctor I have a relatively quiet role, apart from running a couple of science projects of my own and dealing with the rubbish that we generate, it means that there are plenty of people who need a hand doing jobs around the place. As a result there is plenty to keep me (relatively) busy.

Jacking the Laws Legs With Jim

One of my monthly jobs has been to help Jim (Steel Erector/ Carpenter) survey the three main platforms. The wind, snow accumulation and weight of the platform all mean that the buildings warp slightly on their legs, particularly the Laws. As a result throughout the year between the two of us we have attempted to try and keep the platform level on its legs. It rapidly gets cold suspended 5 metres off the ground handling cold steel at -40°C, while jacking the building upto 10cm at a time either up or down a leg.

In the Darkroom

Along with helping Sune (Field Assistant), with his maintenance of all the field kit ready for the science projects and second round of winter trips which start in a fortnight, there are other skills to perfect that I would not usually need to carry out anywhere else in the world. One of these is radiography (taking X-rays); along with the various other parts of training before we came away, radiography featured heavily, for as well as taking x-rays , I of course have to process them as well.

Bivvying Outside For Ant's 30th

I had not realised how similar x-ray (radiograph) processing is to black and white film and negative development. Fortunately, one of the smaller rooms on base is turned over to a darkroom from a time when black and white photography and slide films were all the rage. I and a couple of other people occasionally put through a couple of rolls of black and white films but given the ease and availability of digital photography, the darkroom, though still necessary for x-ray development, is used less and less for film and slides.

Kirsty Cuts Into Her Hello Kitty Birthday Cake

Of course August and September means a glut of birthdays and I have made a succession of heavily iced cakes. However, Ant (Chef), keen as ever to go one better and preferring not to go for the traditional Saturday night celebration in the bar, came up with the plan for a surprise ice cavern to celebrate his 30th birthday.

Ant's Ice Cavern
Featuring the digging team (L to R Ant, Dean and myself)

So a crack team of diggers were enlisted and sworn to secrecy, such that over the course of two days the three of us managed to shift enough snow to build a cavern into the wall of the Drewry windscoop, large enough to fit nearly all the base. Its amazing how warm snow caves and similar structures can be especially with a few candles burning to lighten the darkness.

The Inside of the Ice Cavern
Wrapped up warm nonetheless

To celebrate the actual birthday a handful of us agreed to sleep out in bivvy bags within the perimeter. (Bivvy bags are little more than plastic sacs designed to accommodate a sleeping bag and little else- apart from here a sleeping bag means also at least four layers of insulating material including a large sheep-skin rug between the bag and the ground). The idea of sleeping underneath the stars is beautiful but despite the clear view we had that night, I think most of us remember more for how little we slept that anything else!

Entering the Ice Cavern

Et lux in tenebris lucet

2007-08-07T22:41:00.000+01:00

The Light Shines in Darkness
(Click on photo to enlarge)

As the bad weather finally cleared, all of a sudden it became clear how close we are to seeing the sun again. The winds settled and the thick layer of low cloud peeled back to reveal the beautiful 'mackerel skin' rippled appearance of altocumulus that makes the most beautiful skies; with it came light that has been so lacking for the last few months.

Celebrating the Return of Daylight

The northerly glow in the top picture is about as bright it got but the quality of the light is almost impossible to capture photographically. What is also difficult to convey is the appreciable excitement and burst of energy, on a personal level and around base that accompanies the gradual exit from persistent darkness. If nothing else it makes working outside a lot easier, since there is no need for torches in the middle of the day.

Sune Manhauling Jerry Cans

It also means that when kite-skiing large sastrugi are spotted quicker as you approach. Kite-skiing or boarding is one of the most popular sports on base, with at least half of base owning a kite. Unfortunately, my enthusiasm exceeds my technical ability but it makes a change from cross-country skiing. Either on skis or a snowboard, you attach yourself to a large kite- usually around 7-10 sqm in surface area much larger than a typical stunt kite- via a body harness and then by moving the kite, like a sail through the wind, generate lift to power you along.

Kite-Skiing On the Edge of the Perimeter

Regardless of the weather, one of the jobs of the Met (Meterological) team- the Metbabes- on the Simpson is the launch of a weather balloon, seven days a week. The balloon is filled with helium from the warmed stillages in the BART caboose, which is one of the blips on the horizon between the Laws and the Simpson. Hydrogen was formerly used and is still used in some parts of the world but its highly flammable nature means that helium, though more expensive, is a LOT safer! Officially BART stands for Balloon And Radiosonde Terminal but as it belongs to the Simpson, well...

Kirsty Filling the Balloon Inside BART

Attached to the balloon is a radiosonde, which continually sends back data as it rises high into the atmosphere including temperature, pressure and humidity, along with GPS data which allow calculation of wind speed and direction. Some reach as high as 25km (15 miles) in the atmosphere before bursting, at that height they reach the size of a double-decker bus as the helium expands. The data is logged on the Simpson before being sent off to the Met Office in Exeter, where it is fed into the models that provide daily weather forecasts for around the world including the UK, as well as providing data for the long-term monitoring projects that form part of the research here.

Launching the Weather Balloon from BART
The Simpson is in the background- look how light it already is at 11am!

The balloon is released at 11am daily, so that it is in the atmospheric area of interest for midday. They disappear fast, rapidly becoming small specks in a large sky and though visibility can be fantastic, within a few seconds they are lost to the naked eye. Round the world there are almost a thousand balloon launches at close to midday, all of which collect information which is then shared globally for both forecasting and climate research.

Pulling An Empty Pulk

The return of the daylight also means the end of the light box study, most people who were involved are only to glad to not have to be woken to an hour of bright light early in the morning nor to have to collect every drop of urine for 48 hours, as I have asked on a fortnightly basis during the darkness. While questions such as 'A does not precede B - BA: True or False' will not be missed. The return of the light means plenty of digging and for me the start to sorting out the study data.

The Tractors On the Old Drewry Windtail

Digging

2007-07-30T14:28:00.000+01:00

The light will be back soon enough but the last few weeks since Midwinter have been plagued by poor weather, I wrote the piece below to remind myself of one of the less good days within the last fortnight.

Venturing Outside in Bad Weather

"It is my week as part of the melt tank triumvirate. Darkness still has its grip over this part of the Antarctic, the appearance of the sun is still many weeks away and there has been no light seen creeping over the horizon for days given the cloud cover. Despite the appointed hour for digging the tank being nominally 0900 every morning, given the use of lightboxes this week at that time, two of us have been going out at 0730 to break the back of it, whilst topping it up later in the day. When we went out this morning the wind was picking up and AMPS (the model that provides our local weather forecast) was predicting a large blow, though the reality is rarely of the magnitude predicted.

Vivid Colours Illuminate the Melt Tank on a Better Day

It has however, underestimated it this time. The wind has built rapidly over the day to nearly Beaufort Force 10- an official storm. The building rattles and sways on it stilts, water in toilet bowls splashes over the sides and one of my predecessor’s wind chimes in the surgery clank irritatingly away as the building moves. Regardless of the weather the melt tank still needs filling, though having topped it up once already it could be left until tomorrow but the blow is forecast to continue for several days. We decide to get on with it.

Alex's Hot Air Balloon
The first Montgolfian effort flew a few metres downwind before bursting into flames

Doing it just before dinner, the three of us along with a couple of eager volunteers garb up in the boot room. Putting on the reliable padded orange overalls, despite it being merely -25°C (partly as a result of the cloud cover that comes with the bad weather), I opt to put on a ‘windy’ jacket and subsequently spend 5 minutes trying to secure the crotch strap that secures the back to the front to prevent it being blown over my head. Balaclava, goggles, ‘neckie’, hat and bear paws- mittens on an overhead harness- finish it off, along with a VHF radio. Fortunately, everyone else is ready to go within a few minutes off each other- too long inside and heat stress sets in.

The Laws From a Depression on the Perimeter

The first one opens the heavy door that separates us from the hostile external world. Scuttling across the open platform in its bright lights, it is clear that it is windy but its not until we reach the bottom that it is clear how windy. Like a tsunami of snow, the 50mph winds churn up the surface of the ice shelf, such that there is a rippling wall of white coming from due east. As I turn to head towards the melt tank, less than a hundred metres away into the wind, I realise I do not know where it is; the bright sodium lamp that illuminates the hole in the ground and its surrounding mound of snow has vanished into the swirling snow-filled darkness.

Tamsin and Mark During Fire Training in the Main Corridor
With no local fire brigade, everyone has learnt to use the breathing apparatus to search for any missing casualties in the event of a fire

I remember to reach for the hand-line, moving to its upwind side I head towards the signpost. There automatically turning left, I take the line heading towards the Simpson platform; I cannot even make out the form of the man who is no more than a couple of metres before me. A way down the line there is a gap with a pole leading to the melt tank on my left; I grasp onto it and move rapidly towards where there is now a faint light. However, before I can reach it, I stumble and swear, tripping on a knee-high sastrugi. Regaining my feet I make it into the pool of light next to the A-frame that marks the site of the tank’s jaws and acts in itself as the opening to the tunnel system below.

Aurora Over the Piggott and CASLab

Grabbing a shovel off the frame, I throw myself into the crater of the snow mound, I am instantly hit by the drop in wind and the reduction in noise. The first job is to dig out the steel plate that protects the opening of the long subterranean neck of the tank, a job made significantly harder by the layer of snow that has accumulated from the spindrift off the windward lip of the crater. A couple of minutes of digging and a good heave and the top comes off. In the interim the rest of the digging team have spaced themselves around the rim of the caldera about a metre above me and start trying to shovel snow down into the void. That would work but for the wind- at least half of the snow is blown off the shovel before it starts to fall into the hole. We are going to be out here for a while.

North From the Perimeter Over the Container Line

I start digging, my main role is to keep the top of the shaft clear, large chunks of ice block the neck of the hole and snow builds up behind, so I need to keep the hole patent. In between this I try and shovel what I can from around where I am standing. I gradually realise that I can now hardly see my hands- it dawns on me that the insides of goggles have fogged up. There is no choice but to take them off, knowing that as I do so the condensation will freeze over, rendering them unusable. As I lift them off, facing the east, my eyes are blasted by the fine granules of snow and ice, while my skin starts rapidly to chill. I turn my back into the wind and struggle to resume what I was doing, rendered temporarily blind.

The Compactor Room
One of my jobs is to compact most of our waste prior to shipping it out

Given that we are shovelling a lot of soft snow that has accumulated around the pit in the wind, there is a risk that it will stick somewhere down the 35+ metre chute that leads into the melt tank. I radio the main platform to check that the level on the tank is still rising. There is a pause while the person on the other end scurries off to look at the meter cocooned in the warmth of the main corridor.

Refuelling the Flubbers Supporting the Laws

The reply of ‘Two point one four’ is barely audible over the howl of the wind. There is still a fair bit of digging to hit the required 2.24, another ten minutes probably, given that despite the number of people out, most of the shovelled snow is disappearing off towards the Laws.

The Last Apple- 17th July
A few of the apples were kept back for a while but nonetheless the last ones still have a welcome crunch

Digging away, I feel a shooting ‘pins and needles’ sensation down my left arm and into my hand. It persists and like a hypochondriac, I wonder if I have managed to acquire an ulnar neuropathy (nerve damage) at the elbow from the repeated digging. My mind is distracted for a few moments, mainly by self ridicule, until I am conscious of the same happening in the right hand after swapping the shovel over to rest my left arm.

The Laws

Stupidly, I realise that it is not a pathological process but static electricity. The dry atmosphere along with the strong wind must have built up a substantial static charge. Given that I am wearing rubber-soled mukluks, the charge is earthing through the metallic spade hence the continuing sensation. It is a not uncommon problem inside in the Antarctic but I have never experienced it outside, nor as persistently, as it occurs every time I strike the ice with my shovel.

Digging Out Frozen Cables
During the summer, we were able to walk beneath these cables comfortably but each blow brings a new dump of snow

Suddenly a shout goes up, for like a festive decoration the red and white lights on the frame have lit up, signifying that the tank is adequately full. I scramble out of the caldera searching for the plate and its marker pole. Finding their long leash, I heave them towards me, toppling as I do so over the top of the tunnel and collapsing in an awkward heap on the bar guarding the entrance to the chute. There follows a few moments of flailing limbs, as like a wading hippo, I try to extricate myself from the depth of the hole and replace myself with the plate. After several more moments of floundering I succeed in satisfactorily positioning the plate so that there is no risk of snow freezing the top of the lid shut. I wedge the marker pole on top and head back the few metres to the hand-line, where I meet the rearguard of the party concernedly but I sense impatiently waiting for me.

Venus and the Moon Off the End of the Garage

It is fortunate that the reverse journey is heading out of the wind, for regardless of the non-existent visibility, in my goggle-denuded state, I can barely open my eyes if I turn into the wind. After a short while the lights on the Laws emerge overhead like a Spielberg UFO. As I turn to walk up the open stairs, I am hit again by the force of the storm as it squeezes through the steel grating. Beyond our front door, emblazoned with the EIIR Post Office sign, the warmth rapidly defrosts the snow that has drifted down backs and into boots leaving, even once the outer layers have been shed, a damp feeling that mingles with the light sweat raised by the exertion of digging.

Descending the Laws Stairs in a Blow

However, rapidly over dinner the experience of the previous half an hour is forgotten and I wonder what all the fuss was about."

The Weekly 'Dozer Work on the Melt Tank

Ant (Z Chef), filmed one of the days that week, a short clip can be see here on YouTube. As we pass through the third quarter of our time down here, it is reputedly not the weather but living in a small community of people that is perceived to pose the greatest personal challenges while South. This is partly why Antarctic stations have provided a model for long-distance space travel, as discussed in a recent magazine article. Certainly, I have been very lucky to pass my winter with a great team of people and as for the weather, though it can challenging at times it occasionally produces spectacular phenomenon such as the one below.

A Lunar Halo
Identical to solar phenomena but in this case involving moon light through diamond dust

Sastrugi In Colour

2007-07-08T11:00:00.000+01:00

The depth of winter and there is still a warm glow on the horizon on cloudless days, with bright oranges and reds, it not only temporarily lights the northern sky but its warmth suffuses across the ice and sastrugi.

Man on the Perimeter

Sastrugi are sharp long ridges of snow that form in the direction of the blowing wind, generally found on polar plains, they can grow upto at least a metre high. Starting as small imperfections in the ice, as the windward side is eroded and ice deposited on the leeward side, they grow long and thin, lying generally parallel to the direction of the wind and each other.

A Surface of Ice Shortly After a Blow
A photo from March

However, Halley for various reasons does not experience the unrelenting katabatic winds experienced elsewhere on the continent, the wind frequently changes direction and it may well be because of this that the sastrugi fail to achieve particularly large sizes. Nonetheless, they are still hard on the ankles when running and will catch a ski-tip if not vigilant.

Sastrugi and the Laws

Sastrugi, as an English word derives from the Russian zastruga, variably translated as a furrow or a small ridge. Scott frequently mentions them as obstacles ('The hard surface gave place to regular sastrugi...'), in his final journal, hinting there at the common frustration as moving across smooth firm ice is hindered by the appearance of these undulating ripples of ice. As for the blog's titular sausages I have to admit I am not quite sure why, apart from the alliteration, they appear!

More Melt Tank Fun
Digging the melt tank in a small blow

With the Midwinter celebration behind us there is still at least another six weeks until the sun makes its appearance and any considerable amount of outdoor work becomes feasible. The average temperature of June was -31°C with a monthly minimum of -47.5°C; regardless of the wind, most machines refuse to even think about working at these temperatures, so what has to be done is done by hand or postponed until the temperature improves. However, though one is not able to adapt physiologically to cold environments (as opposed to tropical climates where humans do tolerate heat better), for reasons that are not terribly clear, -30°C no longer seems in the least bit cold on a windless day.

More Sastrugi in the Dark

Midwinter marks an important time for me on base- the Midwinter Dental check. All the Docs coming South spend some time on a dental first aid course at RAF Halton in the UK prior to our deployment. I supplemented my time by sitting in with the BAS dentists both in the UK and on the annual visit to Halley from the Ernest Shackleton. Since it will be six months before a dentist comes here again, a check-up, even if it is being done by me, should be of some benefit.

Dave Does Dentistry
Dave (ZMet) gets to grip with a dental probe and mirror on me

There is an increased risk of dental problems while South for various reasons, including that the water being melt-water is almost entirely free of fluorine, along with the change in diet that most people experience while they are here. Interestingly, supposedly a third of all military medevacs from Afghanistan are for dental related problems, even accounting for trauma and injuries. It is easy to forget, particularly as doctors unused to dentistry, the morbidity associated with dental problems, hence the need for surveillance and good dental hygiene while South, as is also needed in the Armed Forces.

My Dental Check-Up
Clockwise from Ant (wearing safety glasses), Brian, Mark, Tamsin & Dave

As the only Doc on base, when it comes to my turn for a check-up it turns to the rest of the base to have a go; seven or eight took the opportunity to extract revenge by playing around with dental tools and a polishing brush in my mouth.

Dave Successfully Practising Intravenous Cannulation
From before my before my Midwinter shave (Photo by Pete)

Part of my time during the winter is spent preparing for a weekly DocSchool session on a Thursday afternoon. The rationale is to train a number of people up to cover me in my absence from base, be in a position to help me should I need assistance with a procedure or sick individual, as well as consolidating their knowledge of first aid for time in the field or elsewhere. The latest session, covering blood grouping and transfusion, given that everbody is a potential donor should the need arise, also reassured everyone that most of the participants are not form-shifting aliens. The concern about this possible infiltration by different life-froms arises from the infamous Antarctic horror B-movie 'The Thing' (prescribed Midwinter viewing), where the only way to identify the true alien is from blood-letting each base member into a petri dish.

DocSchool in the Dining Room
The TV screen in the corner displays the current weather data outside

Post-Midwinter also means more medical science projects and the collection of other bodily fluids from base personnel ready to volunteer. Apart from the continuing lightbox project, which requires a fortnightly urine collection for 48 hours to quantify the levels of the hormone melatonin, most people are also participating in a collaborative project related to cortisol levels (a human hormone produced in response to stress), over the course of the period we are alone down here. This requires intermittently a three-day saliva collection, a process involving cotton wool balls to absorb the saliva at several points during the day, not unlike leaving a Jacob's water biscuit in the mouth for five minutes. I am as ever grateful for everybodys willing participation in all the projects, even if the novelty starts to wear off rapidly.

The Laws In Orange

In the eastern area of the base, which is nominally a recreational area, free from buildings and windtails, there stands a small memorial. It remembers those few people who lost their lives while working at Halley, the most recent being over twenty years ago. Made from a small sledge and no more than a metre high, it cuts a clear shape against the northerly glow.

The Memorial in the Eastern Perimeter

Midwinter

2007-06-24T23:43:00.000+01:00

Midday Over the Garage

The winter solstice takes on a special significance for all of those in the Antarctic as it is supposedly the depth of the winter and a reminder that the sun and eventually fresh faces and fruit will return sooner than expected. In reality, we are yet to reach the halfway point until the influx of the summer team, which is still a few weeks away.

'Dozing the Melt Tank
On a weekly basis, when it is warm enough to run a 'dozer, the snow around the melt tank is 'dozed into a pile to make the digging over the week easier

However, across the continent the week of Midwinter (the 21st June), is a time for celebration and on the BAS stations a week off to relax and party- as much as anyone can take time off, when there are still generators to be cared for, food to be cooked, met obs to be carried out and repairs on both science and domestic kit requiring immediate attention.

Sune and the Pyramid Tents in the Garage

Prior to the Midwinter week, nonetheless, there is still work to be done. For Sune (Field Assistant), that means ensuring all the field kit is in good repair, as understandably nobody is keen on catastrophic tent failure in the middle of a storm on a summer field project, let alone the forthcoming winter trips when it frequently hits below -40°C, regardless of the rigorous contingency plans. Finding myself, fortunately, still short on medical work, I spent a few days taking apart and re-lashing these huge shelters, which would be impractical anywhere else in the world but are finely suited to the Antarctic climate.

Pete Celebrates His 50th Birthday
Photo thanks to Sune Tamm-Buckle

Notably, the run up to Midwinter, also marked Pete's (Z-Winter Base Commander), 50th birthday; the oldest member of the wintering team. An excuse for another cake making session for myself, as well as another party in the theme of Explorer's and Mountaineer's; all four members of the Met Team appeared roped up in Alpine Mountaineering style, causing them increasing problems as the evening progressed.

Before My Beard Was Tamed
A consequence of running around the perimeter in the cold- photo by Sune

A week off did not mean a week in bed (for most at least), for from table-tennis to a competitive cross-country running there was plenty going on. I have always been fascinated by Nordic Biathlon (a punishing combination of cross-country skiing and shooting), so substituting snowballs for high-powered rifles, half the base turned out for a race, which not unsurprisingly given his Scandinavian roots and superior fitness, resulted in Sune trouncing the field.

Crazy Golf
Sune and Dean play a hole down the main Laws corridor

One of the traditions of Midwinter is the plethora of messages of goodwill between the various teams wintering across the Antarctic. Though there are significantly less than a thousand people in the Antarctic at the moment (a majority of them are at the American McMurdo base on the other side of the continent), our notice board is covered with photos and greetings from most of the bases scattered across the ice. Representing various nationalities from Ukrainian to Indian to French to Argentinian, they invariably include an invitation to dinner on the 21st June with the reassurance that a response is not expected.

Before the Midwinter's Day Meal
Photo by Dave Evans

The highlight of the week, is of course Midwinter's Day, though plenty were served breakfast in bed by the Base Commander, Ant (our outstanding chef) had been up since 6 as he had been for several days in a row, preparing the Midwinter dinner. Despite the lack of any fresh vegetables apart from onions, the multiple courses of stunning food meant that by the time we sat down for the Midwinter broadcast, everybody had eaten enough to last until the ship comes in.

Ant Preparing the Midwinter Meal
(Click on menu to enlarge) Photo courtesy of Tom Spiess

The BBC World Service transmits a Midwinter Broadcast each year destined for the four BAS bases composed mainly of messages from home. Despite the relative ease of communication now, as compared to even a few years ago, sitting as a group after dinner listening to the broadcast over our High Frequency (HF) radio is still a poignant experience, even if the message is, as mine was from my mother, a reassurance that if I fail to fit back into medicine in the UK, I can always do a bakery course instead- she has clearly not eaten any of my bread! The broadcast can be heard here.

Sastrugi Illuminated By The Sun

Each base chooses a song to accompany their messages, our choice of 'Echo Beach' by Martha and the Muffins (the song of the moment on base- even if it is from 1980), was definitely usurped by the team at KEP in South Georgia with The Muppet Song, while we all had visions of the four-member team on Bird Island dancing round their small base to their chosen 'YMCA'.

Celebrating Midwinter
Photo courtesy of Sune

The other highlight of Midwinter is the exchange of presents; at dinner the night the last summerer left, we each drew the name of a base member from a hat, with the intention of making a gift for them for midwinter, with the recipients identity undisclosed until the day. Several months on and many furtive hours in the workshops, including some frenetic activity over the last few days, resulted in some spectacular pieces of work.

The Collected Midwinter Presents

From a miniature brass model Primus stove correct to every detail, to pictures painted and framed on base, to a zoetrope, the range of presents produced, with the limited resources and large workshops can only reflect on everyones ingenuity. Andy Mac (Generator Mechanic), however, had an advisory role in a large number given his capacity to make or repair anything around base. I meanwhile received a stunning sculpture of a figure manhauling on skis around base, made for me by Mat (Vehicle Mech), from welding rods, a great reminder of one of the ways I particularly enjoy working around base.

Opening My Present

If you want to see the deserving overall winning entry in the base winter photo competition, follow this link. Dave's blog has some outstanding photos throughout.

As such, a week's holiday rapidly disappeared through the fingers. Halley is a spectacular place to be at this time of the year and I have to keep pinching myself to realise how beautiful a place it is and a great group of people to be here with.

The John Deere Tractors Stowed for the Winter

Lightboxes and Circadian Rhythms

2007-06-10T19:00:00.000+01:00

Looking Back Towards Base
From right to left: Laws, Piggott, BART caboose and Simpson platforms

The above view is taken from just below my favourite spot on base. The Laws platform lies at the centre of a large oval that describes the perimeter with a diameter of upto a couple of miles; it is this oval that effectively defines the extent of our world for most of the periods of darkness. Hence ski-ing, walking or even running (a sport reserved for super-fit Field Assistants), around the perimeter is an attempt to explore the very edges of this world and an important diversion from the necessary and mostly enjoyable proximity of the 17 other inhabitants of this isolated microcosm.

Aurora Over the Piggott

As one heads back towards the Laws from the Optical caboose (one of the science cabooses housing important new radar equipment), on the southern edge of the perimeter, the SHARE windtail- the mound of snow that accumulates behind any object on the snow surface- creates a rolling hill that shields the south from the bright lights that spill off the platforms. As you crest the brow of the windtail it feels as if it were a meadow with the bright lights of a village laid out below. This sense of delight is heightened by an absence of vehicles in the southern sector of the base at any time of the year (given the delicate science equipment), which means that the snow, bar the low-lying sastrugi, is a pleasure to ski across.

Drums
Moving fuel round base with a 'dozer

A majority of my work through the darkness is spent in running one of the biomedical science projects on base. Halley provides an ideal location for the study of the role of light in the regulation of human circadian rhythm. Circadian ('around a day') rhythms manifest themselves most obviously in our sleep-wake cycles, yet many other physiological and biochemical processes vary over this time frame. This rhythm is generated endogenously (that is from within ourselves) and probably by every cell in the body, though it is regulated from a part of the brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus. If we were left in a dark room with minimal external stimuli we would revert to our own internal circadian rhythm. The exact length of the cycle, however, varies significantly between individuals; some people have an innate cycle length of 23.5 hours while some may be as long as 27 hours, though the majority lie at around 24.5 hours.

Aurora Over the Halley Signpost

Given that our body would prefer to work off a cycle that is not exactly 24 hours long, it is clear there needs to be a mechanism that resets (entrains) the internal clock so that it synchronises with the world around us. Light is one of the most important cues in this synchronising with the external world. Given the disappearance of the sun here, for 3 months of the winter, those wintering tend to develop problems associated with the inability to synchronise their internal clock with the 24 hour day, the most obvious being sleep disturbance.

Lightbox Exposure

Work over the previous 20 years here has had benefits not only for subsequent winterers, in modification of ambient lighting on the main platform but is also applicable to all environments where there are extended periods of low ambient light. However, as worldwide we move to living 24 hour days, it is in the understanding of shift work and the health problems associated with it, that the work at Halley has had a wider impact. If you want to read more then try this link to pages at the University of Surrey. For more in depth reading the following review is a good place to start: Arendt J. Melatonin, Circadian Rhythms and Sleep. New England Journal of Medicine 343: 1114-1116.

Die Feuerzangenbowle
Tom introduces us all to a German pre-Christmas tradition as we head towards the mid-winter celebrations

The emphasis of the study this year in brief, is to see whether an exposure to a high intensity bright light for an hour in the morning, improves sleep-wake cycles, activity and cognitive performance. The study runs over the period of sundown and is dependent upon the willing and enthusiastic participation of many of those on base. As sociable as it may seem sitting in a room together for an hour in front of bright lights, the whole hour seems to pass in polite silence in order not to disturb the sensibilities of some of those on base who are not at their best in the mornings.

Moving Rubbish off the Laws

When it comes to waste regardless of each operator's international obligations (the Antarctic Treaty obliges all of its signatories to remove nearly all the waste that they produce from the continent), there is a strong ethical case for doing so and minimising the effect that we have on this near-pristine environment. During the winter the base doctor at Halley traditionally takes responsibility for the waste management role that is important as part of keeping the base running; it is the same this year and takes on average a day a week of my time. It does not mean that I go round emptying every bin or sorting it but like a glorified Antarctic bin-man, I ensure it is correctly packaged, compressed and ready to ship out come the first call of the Shackleton.

Manhauling the Food Waste
(Thanks to Ant Dubber for the photo)

We send back to the UK and Falkland Islands a phenomenal amount of the waste that is produced here for recycling, from the everyday plastics and cardboard to waste oil and photo processing chemicals, there is very little either on the industrial or domestic side that cannot be recycled and as a result the sled on the outgoing cargo line part-filled with waste destined for landfill, is far outnumbered by those labelled for recycling.

Sune Overhauling Primus Stoves
Winter gives the opportunity to clean and maintain all the field kit before next season

Again, in a situation not dissimilar to our water use, it is an eye-opener to quite how profligate we are at home with our waste and how much could be recycled saving energy and raw materials, not so for Tom, our German colleague on, for him this is not unusual- reflecting quite how far we lag behind Germany in minimising the amount of rubbish we simply bury.

More Aurora
Demonstrating some of the more transient colours seen in the displays

The picture below illustrates nicely our standard outdoor kit around base for mild weather or when out digging- as in the melt tank in this case. Depending on how cold it is, people wear trousers or shorts and a t-shirt or warmer top underneath the ubiquitous padded boiler suit.

Dean Modelling at the Melt Tank

These orange all-in-ones start off the colour of the jacket in the photo but rapidly fade from daily wear and the harsh UV when the sun is around. The jackets, known as a 'windy', made from the same cotton Ventile material as the pyramid tents but thinner, are great windproof pieces of kit. On the feet, we wear mukluks, boots with a separate warm liner and given the industrial work around the place all have steel toe-caps. Goggles, hat, padded gloves and a 'neckie', a hoop-like piece of material that covers the face and neck completes the ensemble. As it gets colder (anything below -25), the priority is to ensure that all exposed skin is well covered to prevent it getting frostnipped (the early, reversible stage of frostbite).

The Laws Platform

The Sky By Night... & By Day

2007-05-25T09:53:00.000+01:00

The Lunchtime Glow

The disappearance of the sun does not mean the complete absence of any light, the few hours around the middle of the day are illuminated by a faint glow to the North. That is, if there is not heavy cloud cover as has dominated the last fortnight including some significant winds. However, bad weather invariably means warmer temperatures as the albedo of the clouds, as well as their insulating effect means that heat is trapped close to the ice surface. As a result the temperature rockets up, rising to an uncomfortably sticky -5°C for part of a day.

The Laws During A Storm

The contrasting cold temperatures of April were a result of the persistent clear skies. Without clouds the high albedo of the snow surface means that a large proportion of radiant heat is reflected back into the atmosphere. Though I realise I write a lot about the weather, it reflects how it predominates all activity here and how dependent we are upon good weather for outside work.

The Moon Over The Piggott and SHARE
One of the half-buried Nansen field sledges waits to be put away

However, it hasn't been all bad weather and heavy cloud cover, when they disappear the pollution-free atmosphere (in terms of both light and exhaust fumes), means that the darkness both at night and in the day makes it a great place for astronomy.

Jupiter and The Milky Way
The Drewry, shuttered up for the winter, sits under an open sky

One recent night meant an opportunity to view unaided: a beautifully lit half moon, Jupiter, the Milky Way and an auroral display simultaneously. Fortunately, there is a small telescope and Tamsin, as the keenest (and most knowledgeable) astronomer on base had it out so we could all take in Jupiter and the spectacular detail on the moon's surface, we are fortunate to be able to complain that an auroral haze occasionally interfered.

Looking for Jupiter's Moons
Dean, Tamsin and Dave out with a telescope out during an auroral event

Auroral events occur about 50 miles or so above the earth's surface, where charged particles collide with with atoms present in the upper atmosphere. The green colour that predominates results from the collision with oxygen but there are occasionally other colours that relate both to oxygen and nitrogen, though they fail to persist as long. These charged particles emanate from the sun as solar wind, a stream of hot ionised gas emitted in all directions from the Sun's corona and by the magnetosphere, that area of space affected by the earth's magnetic field. The nature of the magnetic field means that these particles are drawn towards the poles, hence auroral events are rarely seen outside the polar regions.

SHARE Radar

The SHARE radar (Southern Hemisphere Auroral Radar Experiment), is a collaborative project with various radars across Antarctica, capturing information continuously about the earth's magnetosphere and ionosphere. Ours dominates the South side of the base sending out pules of radio frequency energy into the atmosphere over the continent south of here and as part of a worldwide network helps give information about space weather and particularly geomagnetic storms.

Aurora Over the SHARE

These storms, of which aurora can be the visible vanguard, result from strong solar winds buffeting the earth's magnetosphere and can be damaging to a large range of electromagnetic systems on earth but particularly to satellites and space missions. In strong storms, power supplies, communications and navigation systems can all be threatened prediction and better understanding of these storms allows steps to be taken to avoid these damaging effects.

Walking Back from the Piggott
The rope is a handline- essential for route-finding in a blow

Furthermore, from a BAS perspective these experiments also form part of a bigger program to understand whether the Sun's energy, in form of solar winds and high-energy radiations, effects the earth's climate and if it does, how it does so. On station, the team on the Piggott's (Chris, Jules and Alex), role is to keep these experiments running 24 hours a day, the data then heads back to Cambridge for analysis.

Tamsin's Birthday Cake
A cheese-free cheeseboard

Our satellite connection with to Cambridge also supports our communication with the outside world in the form of email and the internet. Recent additions to life down here (within the last two years), unimaginable when the first Halley was built and the ship called in but once a year.

The Radio Room
Dean in his lair

Since most of the communication is now over satellite and requires considerable computer support, the radio room may seem an anachronistic title but HF (high frequency) radio is still used to keep in contact with the field parties and planes in the summer, while everybody carries a VHF radio with them once they leave the main platform. Keeping all of this running, as well as acting as radio operator, is part of the Comms Manager's job on base, though Deano's more visible and trying daily job is the printing of an emailed newspaper with a relevant and appropriate witty local headline.

The HF Antennae Covered In Rime

Darkness does not preclude outside work particularly as a decent blow means that there is snow to be shifted before things disappear forever.

A Disappearing Field Skidoo

We are fortunate in some respects that we do not have any fuel depots to raise by hand this winter, previous year's winterers must think we have it easy but it does mean that generally people are keen for some outside work when the opportunity comes along. It is all too easy not to shift far from the main platform, a blessing in bad weather but the base is a beautiful place at this time of year and would be a shame not to witness it.

Digging Out Skidoos by the Garage

There are less than a thousand people on the continent at this time scattered across the various bases around the Antarctic and our nearest wintering neighbours at Neumayer (German base- 800km) and Belgrano (Argentinian base- 350km) could be on another planet given the difficulty that would be entailed in travelling to them at this time of year.

Moon Over The Laws

Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me...

2007-05-06T23:04:00.000+01:00

Digging The Melt Tank

As April disappears, the encroaching darkness ushers May in. While the UK celebrated one of its warmest Aprils on record, we enjoyed, if that is the appropriate phrase, the coldest April ever recorded at Halley in the 50-odd years that there has been a research station here. With a mean temperature of -29.1°C, it was frequently below -40, the point at which the Fahrenheit and Celsius scales intersect.

The Sun Rising to its Zenith
Photos taken every 30mins on 22nd April

While the rising temperatures in the UK can be understood amidst concerns over global warming, it is predicted that any rise in global temperatures may lead to a paradoxical cooling at Halley. The concerns over climate change are supported by data collected by BAS and other scientists across the Antarctic peninsula (where the station at Rothera is situated), over the last 50 years, which has demonstrated a clear 2.5°C increase in temperatures, a rate 5 times faster than the global mean, with an associated loss of coastal ice and retreat of glaciers. Meanwhile at Halley, the collection of meteorological data as part of long term monitoring projects is one of the tasks of the Met Observing team on the Simpson platform.

Aurora Over the Simpson

There is one word that has almost the same effect as the fire alarm in rousing people and, unlike a fire alarm, clearing the platform into the cold, dark outdoors. Mainly uttered by the nightwatchman 'Aurora...!', usually preceded by a knock on the pit room door to waken the occupant, who has indicated he wishes to be woken should one occur, results in a rush-hour like squeeze in the boot room as people try to clothe themselves in order not to miss any part of the display. The outside safety light is doused and some take up positions on the platform, while others scuttle to the bottom of the stairs to enjoy a more uninterrupted horizon. The first out, however, are rarely the photographers, as they struggle to ensure that everything is set perfectly so that there is minimal handling of the cold metal bodies of the camera and tripod, which sap heat from exposed, fiddling fingers.

Aurora Over the Science Platforms
The aurora invariably appears in the southern sky centred towards the magnetic pole

Despite all the photographic preparations, as can be seen it is difficult to capture all the colours and movement associated with the appearance of an auroral display. Aurora, named after the Roman goddess of the dawn, aptly reflects the ability of the display at times to almost completely illuminate the sky as if the sun where returning, yet each appearance has a unique nature. The science dealt with by the Piggott platform concentrates on the nature of the upper atmosphere and sun-earth interactions. More of this another time but aurora are the most visible manifestation of some of the areas studied through work at Halley.

Renovating the Signpost

A fair bit of my spare time over the last month has been turned over to renovating the heavily photographed signpost. As with all things here, it needed digging out and raising from the advancing snow level, so it seemed an appropriate time to repaint some of the more battered areas, the sort of task that always takes longer than expected but it is back up again, with its obliterated destinations and distances now legible again.

The Union Flag Over The Laws

Despite being surrounded and living on fresh water, its frozen state means that its use remains at a premium. Water saving alterations have been made on every device and showering becomes an infrequent and cursory ritual, with the shower heads turned on as little as possible. That being said, we don't find ourselves deprived of water in the least, it merely makes one realise how profligate we are with it as a commodity in the UK.

Filling the Melt Tank at 9am
A weekly rota ensures a team of three keep the tank topped up

Water, unsurprisingly, is obtained by melting ice in a large melt tank, situated 35 metres under the ice in the Laws tunnel system. This requires a daily detail (regardless of the weather) of 3-4 people to dig and shovel snow into the long neck of the tank situated on the surface. This is made easier by weekly using a bulldozer to fashion a large volcano of ice around the tank opening. Starting a bulldozer at our current temperatures requires about three hours of pre-heating the engine (hence it cannot be used daily) and should it spend prolonged periods below -40° C/F then even the weekly fashioning of a mound of snow becomes impractical as the 'dozer will not start. Nonetheless it is still a good half an hours work on a good day and considerably longer if the gashman has done several loads of washing and the snow is heavily frozen.

Jim and Sune Next to the Melt Tank

There are two tunnel systems, one near the Piggott and the larger system that runs between the Laws and the Simpson. While the latter contains the main melt tank, both systems contain flubbers, large rubber fuel double walled bags filled with Avtur, to supply the generator sets on the respective platforms.

The Laws Flubbers
Avtur, unlike diesel, will not freeze at the temperatures in the tunnels

Tunnels as confined spaces, pose a hazard anywhere in the world, no less so here and with various people needing to work in them on a frequent basis, there is always a risk of injury. Therefore, before the darkness descended, we spent an afternoon running through a scenario involving rescuing an injured casualty on a stretcher using the various bits of specialist kit on station.

Tunnel Rescue Team
Including our headless dummy- photo by Tom Spieß

Thinking about how to remove a casualty from a confined space safely and learning to assemble stretchers and winching gear is one of the very different skills I have had to learn as a doctor down here. Things that may seem obvious such as stretchers, you rarely come across in hospitals but have become very familiar from pre-deployment training and teaching first-aiders while South.

Ascending the Fuel Shaft
The stretcher with dummy is winched out, while I follow, roped up for safety

The sun has finally disappeared, in a fashion that it has been threatening to do for several weeks, the exact date was a matter of great debate around the dinner table, as each science group uses slightly different definitions and calculations to ascertain 'sun-down'. Regardless, we celebrated its last appearance on the 2nd May with the lowering of the base flag.

1340Hrs 2nd May
The sun makes its last appearance for 14 week, though local time is GMT, the sun's zenith given our longitude occurs at 1340

Traditionally the base Union Flag is replaced at sun-up and flies over the base until sun-down, when it is lowered and 'retired' by being raffled off between the winterers. At times it appeared doubtful if this flag would make it all the way through to sun-down given the battering it receives from the wind. As such, Pete (Z-Base Commander), as the oldest member of base, with a short speech, lowered the tattered remains of the flag.

Pete Lowers the Base Flag
Photos courtesy of Ant Dubber

Never needing much of an excuse for a party, the evening disappeared into a barbecue and Hawaiian cocktail night. Sun-down also means the start of one of my research projects associated with the effect of the loss of light on the winterers.

Full Moon Over the Laws

Some Real Survey Work

2007-04-25T21:14:00.000+01:00

The last few weeks have focused on ensuring the base is ready for the disappearance of the sun. With the last pre-darkness winter trip back on base, there have been a few last pieces of off-base science work to complete.

Sunset Over the Drewry

One of these meant an opportunity for me to escape with Sune (Field Assistant) for a day, to carry out some survey work to provide data for the glaciologists working on the Halley long term survival project, attempting to predict when the next calving event of the Brunt Ice Shelf is likely to occur. By collecting highly accurate GPS (Global Positioning System) data on a 3-monthly basis from a network of stations around the ice shelf, any unusual change from the baseline measurements, could indicate the presence of a crack and would provide warning of a potential calving event.

Collecting GPS Data

The yellow briefcases hold highly accurate GPS equipment, which supposedly allows the resolution of the position on a point on the globe down to less than a centimetre using multiple satellites. They do come, however, come with a disclaimer that they cease to function when travelling of speeds greater than 1000 knots per hour, ensuring that they would be of little use on an intercontinental ballistic missile! Fortunately, they are also fairly robust as travelling around on the back of a ski-doo for the 60 kilometre round trip is enough to destroy quite a lot of things particularly at -35°C.

Sunset On The Brunt
Sune finishes off the survey work

It is batteries, however, that are the limitation to work at this temperature, be that powering the GPS units, in the UAV, starting a bulldozer or in the ubiquitous digital cameras. All types of battery have a particularly limited life but can be temporarily resuscitated by warming them up. Digital photography and field work therefore require either a heat pack to keep the battery as warm as possible or in the case of the former, a succession of batteries being rotated from pockets to camera and back again. Moreover, the ski-doos, which have a pull-cord to supplement the battery in starting them, will not tolerate temperatures much colder than -35°C either, meaning that field work late in the season is hampered by temperature as well as darkness.

Fog Comes In Off The Weddell Sea

Even for the day's travelling around the Brunt between Halley, the Rumples (see map) and the survey points, though we were never further than 30 kilometres from base (20 miles), between the two ski-doos it is obligatory to carry a standard half unit sledge, effectively an emergency pack in case the weather changes rapidly or a ski-doo breaks down. No different from the sledges taken on the winter trips, they carry enough food, in the shape of Man-food boxes (as opposed to the now non-existent Dog-food boxes), along with fuel, tents, radios and spares to survive six weeks in the field. Amongst boxes carried on the sledge is the Field Medical Box.

Contents of a Field Medical Box

Packing and checking the several field medical boxes forms one of my more tedious jobs. They supplement the Immediate Aid Packs (First Aid packs) carried out in the field. The boxes contain an enormous range of drugs and medical supplies to deal with a wide range of eventualities that could occur not only 20 kilometres off base but also on the summer deep field projects, when immediate evacuation to a base may be infeasible due to huge distances and poor weather. The 106 different types of items carried range from Plaster of Paris kits to dental instruments, various antibiotics to injectable painkillers and spare sunscreen to airway adjuncts.

The Simpson at Sunrise

Given the absence of ambulances, all of those BAS personnel who go into the field undergo an extended first aid course, focusing on likely problems while South, moreover a few wintering personnel spent the best part of a week covering some more advanced topics with the BAS Medical Unit in Plymouth before coming away. Also in each of the boxes is a copy of Kurafid (as in Cure-A-Fid...) the BAS medical handbook now in its fifth edition, backed up by radio advice available from the base doctors on HF (High Frequency) radio should the need arise.

The Container Line
Shipping containers from a long line north of the base providing extra storage

The Field Medical Boxes end up weighing about 20kg (45lbs) and are of the standard Man-food box size such that they fit snugly on the sledges. Not only do the contents spend most of their time at below freezing temperatures, they are at risk should the lid fit loosely as fine snow has an ability to rapidly find any hole and fill the dead space, freezing rapidly to a solid block.

In The Piggott Tunnel

As sunlight is rapidly becoming a precious commodity, there is a slight pressure to ensure that the base is ready for the ensuing darkness and dropping temperatures. It has already hit -45°C and now lies frequently below -40°C (-40°F). Part of the work of the carpenter is to monitor the temperatures in the two tunnel systems that lie under the base. That meant a rare opportunity to see inside the smaller tunnel that lies underneath the Piggott platform, acting as a store for fuel and carrying cabling to scientific cabooses, too warm and the ice around starts to melt and buckle the shape of the tunnel, too cold and the contents freeze.

Ice Crystals in the Tunnel

The constant sub-zero temperatures in the tunnel has meant that some spectacular ice crystals have had the opportunity to form over years, illuminated by the pale orange lights. The previous two incarnations of the Halley base (Halley III and IV), were both underground installations but the pressure of the accumulated ice meant that they had to be abandoned. (The current German Antarctic base at Neumayer some 500 miles away is almost completely underground).

Moving Petrol Drums

The full complement of 18 people back on base has meant an opportunity to get us all in front of a camera for the first time. The dining room is lined with a photo of each of the wintering teams, classically in black and white and processed on base with a frame produced in-house, we have yet to claim our place on the wall but in the interim here we all are...

Halley 2007

1- David Evans – Meteorologist; 2- Andy McConnachie – Generator Mechanic; 3- Alex Gough – Data Manager; 4- Thomas Spieß – UAV Meteorologist; 5- Pete Milner – Base Commander; 6- Neil Brough – Air Chemist; 7- Richard Corbett – Doctor; 8- Sune Tamm-Buckle – Field Assistant; 9- Anton Dubber – Chef; 10- Dean Evans – Communications Manager; 11- Matt Richardson – Vehicle Mechanic; 12- Brian Hunter – Plumber; 13- Julius Rix – Electronic Engineer; 14- Mark Wales – Electrician; 15- Kirsty Stead – Meteorologist; 16- Tamsin Gray – Meteorologist; 17- James Morrison – Carpenter; 18- Chris Oakley – Electronic Engineer

The encroaching darkness has also meant some sleepless nights watching aurora- more next time.

The Aurora Australis and Jupiter Over The Laws

Sun Dogs and Englishmen Go Out in the Midday Sun

2007-04-07T18:09:00.000+01:00

Sun Rise Against Stratocumulus Clouds

Time runs away; now back from my winter trip and with the last trip due to return at any moment, the sun is disappearing rapidly. At the moment we are losing an hour of daylight every three days. That though, has not stopped the appearance of some spectacular atmospheric phenomena. The first are Sun Dogs or parhelia, which though they can be seen anywhere in the world, are more prevalent here at the moment as the sun runs a low arc across the horizon.

Sun Dogs

The shot above was taken at midday (note how low the sun is), over our satellite dome and HF (High Frequency) radio masts, which form our channel of communication with the outside world. There are a variety of phenomena related to the refraction of light through ice crystals (in this case fine crystals called 'diamond dust'), the photo below illustrates those we could identify on this occasion, though the nature of the lateral arcs, despite consulting all our textbooks is unclear. The parhelia given that they refract light have a similar appearance to a rainbow. For more information see Atmospheric Optics.

Halo, Arcs and Parhelia

Though, fortunately, there are significant periods of time when there is little for me to do medically, there is always plenty of need for an extra hand around base. The platforms (Laws, Simpson and Piggott) themselves need continual monitoring, due mainly not to the movement of the ice sheet as such, but the accumulation of snow around each of the legs.

Out Surveying With Jim

The responsibility for the surveying and maintenance falls on the base Carpenter, Jim, who celebrated his 21st birthday on the voyage South from Signy and is the youngest person on base. He, like everybody else, has had to learn new skills to cover all the jobs around base, so along with building shelves and refitting offices as accommodation for the increased number of people expected for the building work in the summer, has to learn the skills of a steel erector. This has meant a couple of cold afternoons hanging off the building in a harness, raising part of the platform, admittedly by fractions of millimetres at a time, to keep the whole thing level.

Jacking the Laws Platform
Jim and I raise the platform on one of its legs

A further expectation is that the base doctor bears some responsibility for baking birthday cakes, at least the previous two docs convinced me of this and so with Ant- our chef- away I had a go at my first one of the season, having found good reasons not to make any others to date.

Tom's Birthday Cake

Tom, our German UAV pilot and meteorologist, ended up with a frog due to a German connection between weather forecasting and frogs. Birthdays acquire a special significance here as they from a suitable focus to throw a party. Dave (one of the meteorologists), chose an 80's theme for his a fortnight or so ago resulting in attendees from striking miners, through Miami Vice and Button Moon characters to Crocodile Dundee and a Wall Street yuppie.

Dave's 80s Party

The Easter Bank Holiday weekend started with the first winter barbecue of the season. Though it took a good couple of hours to get going in the -30°C weather, Ant's (Z-Chef) skill with everything food related, meant that all was edible, rather than reverting to its previously frozen state that has thwarted barbecues in the past.

The Barbie Gets Going
Ant modeling a BAS-issue warm Canada Goose jacket

The greatest danger at these barbies is of a can of beer freezing to your tongue, for at this temperature metal conducts any heat away from exposed skin, so rapidly that they freeze solid together, to the point where pulling the metal away will simultaneously remove a large chunk of the dermis. Admittedly, it is usually more of a problem when climbing and fiddling with kit without gloves on but fortunately it did not claim any lingual casualties on this occasion, as the recommended remedy when climbing is for a partner to urinate on the affected metal to warm it up.

No Burnt Sausages Here

The concept of a Bank Holiday seems incongruous when the only banking required in this cash poor economy, is for buying beer and wine at the bar, even at that time the transaction is reduced to an honesty tick sheet which produces a (usually) small bill at the end of the month, particularly given that the British Antarctic Territory does not charge duty on alcohol! There can be few other jobs that provide all lodging, toiletries, clothes and food with someone even to cook it. However, a couple of extra days off and some good weather has meant plenty of time outdoors, kiting and cross-country ski-ing.

Kiting By Moonlight
Dean returns home from a kite-boarding session

A Few Days Off Base & Some Local Geography

2007-03-25T10:57:00.000+01:00

Having intended to write an entry every fortnight, I can feel the resolution slipping from my grasp already. The highlight since last writing has been the pre-Winter trip. Everybody has the opportunity to spend a week away this side of the winter and a longer period of time once the sun reappears.

Second Chasm, The Hinge Zone
In the foreground are laden Nansen sledges, in the distance the Antarctic plateau

Ostensibly the trips are part of a modular field training course, led by the Field GA (General Assistant- though the title is misleading in that they are without exception highly skilled mountaineers), so that we could undertake fieldwork or in my case Search and Rescue (SAR) operations competently. The other role of the trip is the chance for everybody to get off base and spend some time out in the middle of nowhere. We are fortunate however, since apart from possibly one other National Antarctic program, BAS is the only organisation which undertakes such trips during the winter.

Sledge Charlie Prepping in the Laws Corridor
From L to R Sune, Chris, Brian

The intention is that everybody spends six nights away before the winter and then have a second longer trip after sun-up. Traditionally the first trip is to the Hinge Zone, which lies about 30 miles south of the base. Halley lies on the Brunt Ice Shelf, a large sheet of ice 250 metres thick that sits on about 150 metres of water. The continent itself starts the other side of the Hinge Zone, where the Antarctic Plateau rises out of the sea underneath the ice sheet. The major dynamic force near the Shelf is the Stancomb-Wills Glacier, a huge ice stream named by Shackleton after one of the major sponsors of his 1915 expedition and shares its name with one of the lifeboats in which he crossed the Southern Ocean to South Georgia. It lies a distance west of Halley and runs in a northerly directions off the continent into the sea, however it creates a pressure of ice that generates a slow westerly flow of ice across the Brunt.

The Brunt Ice Shelf
The large Stancomb-Wills Glacier lies to the west of the map

Though the Brunt is effectively floating free upon a layer of sea-water, it is grounded in one place, the McDonald Ice Rumples, where an undersea rocky promontory, though only a couple of miles across in either direction rises up to stabilise the shelf; these are traditionally the venue for the second trip. Given the continual flow of ice there is a constant loss of ice into the Weddell sea, forming a front towards which the base moves between half- and a full mile a year (which explains the varying GPS positions of Halley V).

Abseiling Off Stony Berg
Chris (L) prepares to descend under Sune's (R) supervision

Though several of the previous bases were abandoned due to their increasing proximity to the sea, there is an expectation that despite the stability provided by the Rumples, the Brunt will calve at some point in the near future. Calving involves a large part of the shelf breaking off and was last thought to have happened in around 1949. It is predicted to happen again in the near future though nobody is able to predict when, when it does go, however, it is likely that it will take the current base with it, hence the need to build a new station, Halley VI, which will start life about 10 miles east and slightly south from here.

Sledge Charlie Camp Site in Second Chasm

The Hinge Zone meanwhile is a large area where the shelf slopes down and attaches to the continent and from where the plateau gradually rises up, an area known as the Caird Coast, again named after one of Shackleton's patrons. The area is heavily crevassed and undulating but is dominated by several large depressions, First, Second and Baby Chasm; it was in the second of these that we camped for the duration of the trip. Each Sledge party takes a call sign for the twice daily radio contact, taking the moniker Sledge Charlie, a distinct lack of imagination on our part meant that we (myself, Sune- Field GA, Brian- Plumber and Chris- SHARE Electrical Engineer), failed to corrupt it to anything more exciting.

Ski-doo Travel Roped Up
Sastrugi cover the ice surface catching the link rope

Undertaking a field trip, particularly a winter one, is not a lightweight expedition. The whole set-up revolves around travelling in pairs, an extension of travelling roped-up in Alpine pairs as when on foot in any crevassed area. When travelling on ski-doo the lead 'doo is connected by a short rope to the first sledge, which then has a longer link rope running to the front of the following 'doo. A third rope runs to the final sledge, so a linked pair extends over at least 30 metres; each driver is then attached separately by rope to their own 'doo. The idea is that should any part of the chain fall into un-anticipated crevasse, the sledges would brace the fall and the driver would still be roped in.

Linked Ski-dooing Across 'The Superbowl'

Within each pair only one sledge is really needed, while the second sledge along with a large proportion of the first, carries spares and emergency kit; each field party could quite comfortably live in the field for six weeks longer than intended, even then on full rations. The sledges themselves have a long heritage, as they are still built to the design of Nansen, the father of Polar sledge exploration who adapted a traditional Norwegian design. Sleds like these were used by Scott and are still used since they out-perform any modern development. Made of ash wood and lashed together without nails, they are able to flex with ease across the difficult terrain, they remain an awesome and beautiful piece of design.

'I Can See the Sea'
The shelf thins in the Hinge Zone to the point that sea water seeps in to the bottom of crevasses

Travel in each direction and striking camp takes up a whole day, given that travel, including leaving the tents is only feasible when there is good weather, meant that we had one good day out and about, which we made the most of, particularly since this is more time than most of the other groups have had. Good weather doesn't just mean not blowing a gale, any cloud cover destroys the contrast to a point where it is unsafe to do anything apart from around the campsite. Furthermore, due to a problem we headed back to base a few days earlier than planned.

Brian Ice-Climbing

What a day, however! The opportunity to abseil off large ice cliffs and then ice-climb back up in an area where few people have been before is particularly special. However, for me, travelling across the Brunt for hours surrounded by flat ice has to be the highlight, you rapidly realise your insignificance on the surface of this continent.

Walking in 'Desperation Gulch'

An unusual sight was that of rocks as we abseiled off Stony Berg. This is a large berg which in the movement of the ice stream been turned upside down, scouring the bottom of the sea bed and bringing with it a large collection of rocks; in the absence of vegetation, rocks can be particularly exciting. The other unusual sight was a pair of Antarctic Skuas over camp, though there were the occasional pairs of birds during the summer, there haven't been any over base for at least the last month.

Second Chasm Scrabble
Self-portrait with Sune- I lost badly...

March draws to a close, it has been a relatively warm month, hitting -3°C at one point with a low of -33°C, not surprising given that the sun is still around. The end of March also marks Captain Scott's poignant last diary entry on the 29th- the scrawled '...for God's sake look after our people', plagued by bad weather and a shortage of food and fuel, he died soon after.

The View Off Stony Berg Across Second Chasm

A Fortnight of Two Halves

2007-03-11T23:32:00.000Z

The last fortnight has been composed of two very distinct weeks. During the first, very little was achieved outside around base as a near constant gale blew for most of it. The latter of the two weeks, meanwhile, has been spent on night duty on the platform.

The Laws Platform in a Gale

However, prior to the onset of the prolonged poor weather, there was the annual Drewry melt tank party. The Drewry (accommodation for summer staff) is effectively a self contained building on skis, including its own melt tank for producing water from snow. (The Laws, the main platform, has its own large underground tank.) As part of the process of shutting the building down for the winter, the heat trace that is used to melt snow is turned up to produce a large warm bath and the tank hosts its annual party.

The Drewry Melt Tank Party
photos by Dave Evans

The general idea is to squeeze as many people into a small container of water as possible. The luxury of sitting in a heated pool of water cannot be underestimated particularly given that water is a limited commodity on base since it has to be dug by hand and then melted. Thirteen of us, despite the small size, managed to make it in at one time. Though, given that it was at least -15°C outside, there was more than enough reason not to get out.

Not Quite 13...
R to L: top- Tom, Me, Jules, Neil, Mark, Ant; bottom- Tamsin, Alex, Kirsty and Jim

Part of the shift to winter is the gradual disappearance of the specialised vehicles that are required for the maintenance and building work throughout the summer and are now redundant. The extensive range live on a single line that extends over 100 metres north of the garage, including large tractors, portable cranes, a cherry-picker, Sno-Cats and bulldozers, not counting the innumerable ski-doos that populate the base.

The Vehicle Line At the End of Summer

Furthermore, as the temperatures drop so more and more of the vehicles become inoperable, as a result the Vehicle Mechanic, Mat, has his hands full servicing and putting all but a bulldozer, a Sno-Cat and the field ski-doos into hibernation for the winter. However, the removal of the noisy engines (particularly the two-stroke ski-doos) means that the base reverts on a windless day to a peaceful stillness punctuated only occasionally by the gentle hum of a generator.

A D5 Bulldozer in Action
The emergency food container is moved as part of a disaster response scenario

The arrival of a blow renders impossible a lot of outdoor work as the visibility deteriorates and the contrast disappears. Though it was a benign if prolonged period of persistent 40 mph plus winds, the consequences of even this relatively mild weather is that snow not only forms extended windtails behind every object standing proud of the surface but also covers and rapidly buries objects as well. Furthermore, the snow is so fine that it will find even the smallest hole in any box or container and rapidly fill it; this can be further complicated by it freezing solid into a block of ice if it is not shifted promptly.

Working In Bad Weather
Clearing snow from the tunnel access shaft

The poor weather, however, meant a chance for me to set the surgery straight and go through the emergency medical kit, which is legion, as well as familiarising myself with the base Search and Rescue (SAR) equipment, since the pre-winter field trips have started. I leave for six days in the field in a few days time and hope to fair better than the first group, who ended up spending six days pinned in their tents by the foul weather.

Fog Over BART
The daily meteorological balloon is released from the BART platform

The second week found me doing the easiest week of night duty I have ever done. I have to admit that it struck me, particularly at about 2 in the morning on most nights, how much I do occasionally long for the bustle and pace of a busy hospital, whilst being in the thick of the action. I have no regrets about temporarily leaving it behind for a year or so but it is also reassuring to realise that I do miss it and know that that is what I want to return to. However, I am fortunate in some ways to not be involved this year in the foreseeable disaster that is currently unfolding as a result of the Government's meddling in junior doctors training.

What? No Ward Round?
Making croissant for Sunday breakfast

A night watchman is needed as there are multiple alarms that need somebody to respond to, ranging from science experiments to technical services (such as the generators and fridges) and of course the fire alarm. Given the dry atmosphere and the inflammable nature of the building, this presents a real risk hence the need for somebody to be at least half awake to deal with a problem quickly. Evacuating a building when the temperature outside is -30 and dark would be less than ideal.

Sunset Through the Platform Legs

Night duty also means a few hours of cleaning as well as three and six o'clock meteorological observations. A large amount of the data (temperature, wind speed, direction and pressure) is collated automatically but added to this is information on current weather, visibility, cloud type and coverage. This is all sent off electronically within ten minutes of the observation to the Met Office in Exeter, where along with data from around the world it is used to model weather on a global scale. My knowledge of clouds has had to improve rapidly, as has my baking given that night watch traditionally bakes all the bread fresh for breakfast.

Not Quite The Genuine Article
But not bad given that the nearest boulangerie is a decent walk in the morning

The lunar eclipse was unfortunately obscured by the single okta of cloud in the sky, however the feeling of watching the increasingly colourful sunrises over a cloudless Antarctic, knowing that there is nobody else awake for thousands of miles to disturb that quiet, is inexpressible. Hopefully the next entry will have plenty of exciting photos from a decent trip off base, as long as the weather holds.

Full Moon the Day After the Eclipse