Written 15 Dec 2007 3619 meters above sea level Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -23 to -36°C Unfortunately, another technical problem arose the other day. This time it was the transfer box on Chinook that died. A spare one is at Troll and we are expecting a Basler flight within a few days. However, to utilize our valuable time we decided to call this site “Plateau Station B” and go on with the planned science including drilling of a 90 meter ice core and erecting the first out of two Automatic Weather Stations. This weather station is prepared by the “Ice and Climate” group at Univer...

On 14 of December 1911, Roald Amundsen and his four men reached the South Pole. Thus, Amundsen, Bjaaland, Hanssen, Hassel and Wisting became the first persons to set their feet on the geographical South Pole. Written 14 Dec 2007 3619 meters above sea level Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -20 to -37 °C In 1911, it was a race to be first reaching the South Pole. Amundsen’s strategy with using dogs to pull the sledges turned out to be superior to ponies and motor sledges used by Scott. Amundsen used 99 days back and forth from his station Framheim at the ice edge in the Ross Sea. The station was named after the polar vessel Fram owned by Fridtjof Nansen and used during the famous drift across the Arctic Ocean in 1893-1896. ...

On 14 of December 1911, Roald Amundsen and his four men reached the South Pole. Thus, Amundsen, Bjaaland, Hanssen, Hassel and Wisting became the first persons to set their feet on the geographical South Pole. Written 14 Dec 2007 3619 meters above sea level Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -20 to -37 °C In 1911, it was a race to be first reaching the South Pole. Amundsen’s strategy with using dogs to pull the sledges turned out to be superior to ponies and motor sledges used by Scott. Amundsen used 99 days back and forth from his station Framheim at the ice edge in the Ross Sea. The station was named after the polar vessel Fram owned by Fridtjof Nansen and used during the famous drift across the Arctic Ocean in 1893-1896. ...

Over the past month, there has been an unusual abundance of negative environmental news coming from Antarctica. First, at the end of November, a well-tested, ice-strengthened Antarctic cruise ship sank near the Antarctic Peninsula. The 154 people onboard were all safely rescued. The ship sank to the bottom of the ocean, with all the fuel, machinery and furniture that was onboard. The environmental impacts are being closely monitored. However, with today’s technology, there is precious little that one can do to a ship (spilling...

On 23 November, 2007, the M/S Explorer, a well-tested, ice-strengthened Antarctic cruise ship sank in Bransfield Strait near the Antarctic Peninsula. The 154 people onboard were all safely evacuated and rescued. The ship sank in waters 1100 – 1500 m deep, bringing down with it approximately 185000 L of diesel, 24000 L of lubricants, 1200 L of gasoline and all the machinery, equipment and furniture that was onboard. Its environmental impacts are still unknown and are being closely monitored. There are not many options available to clean up oil spills in icy seas. Some of them, such as burning or using chem...

Written 13 December, 2007 3619 meters above sea level Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -21 to -38 °C Having completed our drilling at site 32B yesterday, we began our trip to Plateau Station this morning. With clear skies and a smooth snow surface, we were able to make good time across the ice sheet. Today is the International Polar Year’s “Ice Sheet Day” celebration. As one of the key International Polar Year Antarctic expeditions for Norway and the U.S., we used our satellite telephone to join in the Ice Sheet Day session at the American Geophysical Union meeting in San Fran...

Written December 12 3591 meters above sea level Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -24 °C to -37 °C The core would just not keep together! A number of drill holes were given up before we eventually managed to retrieve the two short ice cores that were planned for this location. The reason for this was most likely that we had stopped in an area with extreme low accumulation with large ice crystals that were very poorly bonded. None of us had experienced such conditions before. To avoid similar situations later on our traverse, we have now studied the Radarsat satellite mosaic for Anta...

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- In a mission of unprecedented scale, scientists are about to cover West Antarctica with a network of sensors to monitor the interactions between the ice and the earth below -- 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The National Science Foundation (NSF) just awarded the collaboration, called POLENET, $4.5 million to plant global positioning system (GPS) trackers and seismic sensors on the bedrock that cradles the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS). Lead institution Ohio State University will receive more than $2.2 million, and the rest will be divided among partners in the United States as part of an International Polar Year project. As scientists have tried to understand how climate change is af...

3591 meters above sea level Maximum & Minimum temperatures: -24 °C to -38 °C We were prepared for temperatures down to -50 degrees C before we left out on the expedition. The minimum temperature that we have recorded so far reached down to -46 degrees C. The lowest wind chill temperature was -64 degrees C. The three first weeks, nighttime temperatures dropped steadily below -40 degrees C. The last week, however, both daytime and nighttime temperatures have increased by about 5 degrees. We think we see the first signs of the summer… This change in temperature is making the conditions much easier for personn...

Written 11 December, 2007 We are at our Science Site 1, at approximately 2400 m elevation along Latitude 75. Just when we reached it, a strong snow blizzard came in from west resulting in both wind-blown precipitation and snowdrift. Due to the weather almost all outdoor activities have been postponed, giving us an opportunity to rest, compile data and do maintenance on vehicles and equipment. The one-day storm has formed 2-metre high snowpiles on the leeside of vehicles and living modules, so instead of being totally flat, the camp is now difficult to cross. Tomorrow we will take off towards the Kohnen station. It is a 300 km drive, and will take some days. The scientific work which we cannot do now will be postponed to the return trip in mid January. This is...