Nacreous Clouds

The crazy cloud invasion (photo by B-nelson).
Over the past couple weeks, we have seen some spectacular cloud formations. They are some of the best I've seen in my life. They are mostly caused by the rising sun illuminating the nacreous clouds against a contrasting sky. Unfortunately, getting a picture is just about impossible. The brightest parts of the clouds require a short exposure, the regular clouds a longer one, and the ground the longest one. The human eye is the best camera ever and none of these pictures truly do the experience justice.


Probably my best picture because it has the blue sky, bright clouds, and a little foreground.
We don't get these clouds in the middle of the day. They mostly appear at 'sunset'. They are supposed to appear at sunrise too, but I haven't seen any yet. I'll keep my eyes open. The rest of this blog is quoted and paraphrased from an explanation by Bec in the WWTP about nacreous clouds. She's knows a lot more about this stuff than I could ever know.


Clouds over McMurdo Sound (there should be blue sky at the top).
The nacreous color of the cloud is a result of diffraction of light through ice crystals in the clouds. In themselves, nacreous clouds are not too uncommon, and can be seen in mid-high latitudes when the atmosphere is cold enough to freeze the droplets of water in the clouds. The nacreous clouds that we see at this time of year in Antarctica though, are a special variety of nacreous cloud – a type 2 polar stratospheric cloud (PSC).


Nacreous clouds over McMurdo Sound.
PSCs are unique to the polar regions. As their name implies, they form in the stratosphere, between 10 and 25 km (6.2 - 15.5 miles). They also only form when stratospheric temperatures get below about -110F. There are several types of PSCs, containing some combination of nitric acid, sulfuric acid and water. The clouds we observed on Monday were type 2 PSCs, which are pure ice – these form in the coldest conditions (-120 F), and are thus the most uncommon. Because they are so high up (Mondays were approximately 20-22 km (13 miles), as determined by the Crary LIDAR), the sunlight is able to hit them before it hits us here on the ground, giving us spectacular light shows. The wavy look of them is due to wave action in the stratosphere, which is often associated with type 2 PSC formation.


Nacreous Clouds over Arrival Heights.
You may have heard that these beautiful clouds are the cause of the ozone hole. This is only partly true – there were PSCs long before there was an ozone hole (sightings are recorded in the diaries of the first winter-over group). However they are a key ingredient because chlorine gases are able to react in the clouds and produce ClO which eventually goes onto react with the ozone. It can destroy thousands of ozone atoms. In November/December, the warmer, ozone rich air will flood into the region and the hole will disappear.


More crazy clouds that are missing the bluer skies.

Hot Tub Tuesday!

Nacreous clouds over McMurdo Base from right outside my office.
Tuesday was the first day that I've seen a lot of nacreous clouds over town. I thought they were always colorful, but apparently they only get their colors if sunlight can reach them. You can see a little bit of color if you click on the picture to zoom in on the upper right clouds. When the sun is closer to or above the horizon, the light should be able to reach the clouds and light them up.


Steam room?
Unfortunately, I didn't get out for a hike on Tuesday to take any pictures, but I did get to spend some time in a hot tub. We've had one all winter, but I just never made it a priority to go. I think it had to do with getting wet and then needing to go back outside to get to my dorm. I was finally talked into it on Tuesday.


Mosquito net or ambiance (yes, there was cheap editing done to this photo)?
The hot tub was much better than I expected. I thought it would just be a small, dark room with a hot tub. It was much more. It had a small hot tub, of course, stereo, table, towel rack, couch, and even a little room to stretch out if you liked your neighbors. It was hotter than hot and I was in there for so long that my toes got raisined for the first time in almost a year. Definitely a good time and the damp scurry back to my room wasn't that bad either.


Happy hot tubber.

Sunday Night Surprise

The brightest aurora I have ever seen.
On Sunday night as I was heading home to bed, I saw the brightest auroras that I have ever seen in my life. I was walking across DJ to my dorm and could see a white cloud moving above me. Normally, a half moon is enough to obscure any auroras. If the full moon doesn't do it, then the street lights in town certainly will so I was astounded when that cloud started moving up and down like an aurora.


Auroras over the Hut Ridge Trail.
I rubbed my eyes to make sure they weren't playing tricks. When they weren't, I ran the rest of the way home, put on my ECW, and then grabbed a bicycle to head down to Hut Point. I could see the auroras from town so I figured they would be even better from a darker spot. They faded quickly, but didn't disappoint one bit. The aurora over the ice runway was so bright it lit up the ice a little bit. I thought I imagined it, but I was told by someone who has seen brighter auroras in Anchorage that they can do that. Apparently, Anchorage is right in an auroral oval so they regularly get fantastic displays that dwarf what we get here.


Menacing fog . . .
I was out less than an hour before the auroras faded and a fog moved into town. I'm not sure why, but we've had a bunch of fog this week. It might be the colder temperatures. Today, we are down to -32F/-76F wind chill. It is a good day to be an indoor PC Tech. The fleet ops are working hard.

This post is for Nancy who can't seem to get enough aurora pictures.

Recently Expired Everything

A box outside our retail store.
As most of you know, the expiration dates on many goods are flexible. You can usually eek a few more days out of milk and even more out of other goods. It all depends how far you are willing to go. Down here, the frozen dry climate lets us go much farther. Consequently, most of the food we eat is expired.

The bulk of our supplies are shipped to us once a year in February via container vessel. The supplies that fill those containers arrive in Port Hueneme, CA year round. If an order gets there in March, we won't see it on ice until the following February. Then, the winter crew will unpack it for use. However, it could be used anytime up to and including the next February after that - almost a full TWO YEARS after the item was purchased. People often talk about ‘The Winter of Flank Steak’ or some other time period where they were trying to get rid of stockpiled food that was even older than two years.

I've heard all types of stories that go along with our expired goods. One day, the store was stocking tortilla chips and decided what they were stocking couldn't go on the shelves. Why? It wasn't expired yet and they had a lot of other expired things that they had to get on the shelves and out the door. The box at the top of this blog is from the store. I can't even guess how old Ramen noodles have to be before they are put in that box. Just last night, they were giving out free packages of Lay's Stax. When I asked someone how old they were, they said they weren't too bad, only September 2007. Eleven months past expiration isn’t too bad? Back home, I think that would raise a few eyebrows. Down here, it’s normal.

Over the summer, I heard that since we were serving up expired and cheap quality fish, a cook was tasked with seeing if they cook it and make it edible. I heard it passed. The flip side to all of these expired goods is that unless someone told me what we had was expired, I wouldn’t have known. That might be because I eat so many preservative filled meals at home or that I'm just clueless. Maybe a little of both.


A view that will also soon expire. Am I going to miss the dark skies?

It is Getting Windy!

Looking back towards town, the Pegasus airfield, and Mt. Discovery from Castle Rock.
I have tried writing this blog about five times now and I never seem to finish. The basic theme is that the weather is getting nasty. Last week, four out of seven days had a low temperature below -30F. The worst was -41.5F around 4pm last Friday. If the temperature isn't cold enough, then the wind is blowing to make sure we feel it.


B-Nelson after our Castle Rock hike in a balmy -20F. (Yes, that has begun to feel warm)
The sun comes up in just seven days and it will bring the worst weather of the year. This is the coldest part of the year because the sun has been gone the longest. Even after we start to see the sun, there is a lag before it really warms up. It is the same thing back home. The coldest day of the year isn't the shortest day. It is usually sometime after that in January or February. We get more wind this time of year because the sun will be bringing in more warm air. When that warm air meets the cold air, we can get breezes and storms. I'm sure someone more meteorologically minded, like Sheetal, can give you a better explanation.


McMurdo Base from Observation Hill.
Last week, as we approach this nasty weather, my Big Red finally quit. The zipper just refused to stay shut. If it zipped up at all, the bottom usually opened up. Not pleasant and since it was one of the coldest weeks for me yet, really not pleasant. Luckily, the BFC has some extras. My new jacket is more of a medium red, but it is working for me so far. One of the first days that my Big Red stopped working was on my last Ob Hill hike. The wind was blowing down to -51F and was so strong it actually pushed me down the hill at some points. I don't know the last time that wind actually moved me. I think that may have only happened because I was on a downhill though. Either way, pretty neat. I was glad to be off the hill.


Looking north from the Hut Point.
My final hike two weeks ago was on Sunday. Raja, B-Nelson, and I went out on the Ridge. I was hoping to do more, but the blowing wind took away my motivation. The colors on the horizon were great as always, but we are starting to lose them at noon. The best colors are getting pushed back later and later in the day. That is kind of unfortunate for my lunch time hikes. In about a week, I should be able to go after work and catch those same colors.


Looking north from the Hut Ridge Loop trail.
On our hike, I learned something new about the trail. Raja informed B-Nelson and I about the make out spot. She said people like to hang out there because there isn't that much wind. I think we sat there for about five minutes trying to get warm. There was plenty of wind and we moved on quickly, but I'm keeping that spot in mind for next time I want to help someone get that Dentyne Icy Fresh breath without the gum.


Raja and B-Nelson are at the 'make out' spot, but not making out. Huh?

When I finally leave . . . .

I just read this interesting post by Keri that mentions life when you get back home. It makes me a little anxious. I've known something like this was coming as I've watched some of my relationships fade while others have blossomed. Reintegrating to home is never easy after being away for so long. Life has moved on even though we've left.

---

Here is the part that interested me about Keri's post:
It is this sense of displacement, post-Antarctica. The feeling that you have one foot in two worlds, so different from each other that functioning well in one takes a completely different skill set than functioning well in the other. I've been lucky enough to see many Antarctica friends, and touch base with even more over the summer, and I think we all feel this way to some degree. For some, it hits us with deep, inexplicable sadness. Depression. Inertia. We emerge from the ice completely changed as people, and our relationships with the people in the "real world" have changed profoundly -- some in very positive ways, and some in very negative ways. If you are a first-time Antarctican reading this blog to find out what life's all about, be prepared for this. Maybe it will make it easier to not be taken so by surprise. But maybe not -- it's a feeling shared by many of my second and third season friends as well.

I realized today that in the last couple of weeks, I've finally, FINALLY, felt like I am a complete, functioning person in the "real world" again.

---

An Example of Not Thinking

I thought it would be fun to put up some e-mails that I received last week to illustrate the point that we can't think and continue to make fun of it. The best part is that we still manage to understand what each other means even when the wrong words come out - though I have to admit this e-mails took a couple readings.

From: R in response to this.
That was lovely. Loved the pics. In fact I was easily distracted by them and kept forgetting to read everything else. It is crazy how many times I chuckle in agreement or sit here shaking my head yes because it all makes so much sense. I immediately start thinking of my own instances and then realize I have stopped reading again which makes me think....here is another good example of getting off track....it is a visicous cycle. Have you also changed at all how you write because the spelling of a word just doesn't come to you? Like just now with visicous....I know that is spelled wrong but I am obviously so far from it that the spell check cannot even figure out what I am trying to say. Normally I would just change completely what I am saying but you get my point, right? Maybe it is too far off for even you to understand what I am trying to say but the word means something like mean.
Ok I just read this and I don't know that it will make sense to you, but oh well. I could delete it all and just write That was lovely, but no one will know that this just took me 10 minutes to write this. No joke. Maybe this is, at least for me, another good point to bring up when e-mailing. How are we supposed to get good information and an informative e-mail out when it takes 10 minutes just to realize you wrote about nothing.
I should stop now....
R


From: R
I have dedcided to not delete anything that I write but instead go back and put it in red, unless it is for business. I really wonder how much time I am spending deleting things because of misspellingas or just becuase the thought went nowhere. It is my new study and challenge to you all. Maybe this is more my downfall than others but I find myself trying to write something, sometimes three or four times. Of course now I seem to be doing it quite eloquently, but yea. You should all do this to your friends and everyone. Perfect example...I would have erased that whole last sentence. I plan to do it to all my e-mails so people can see how often I either change my mind or just spell stuff wrong. Maybe then I can visualize why it takes so long to put things oin papere-mail. Ok this could be a bad idea. To go bak and highlight takes MUCH longer in fact this is a stupid e-mail.
Alright I am not erasing it (please imagine the whole paragraph above in red)....instead I will send it onto you all but please don't be scared. I swear I am not as mentally crazy as I may appear. Kinda like the mirror...Objects are closer than they appear. Although maybe it should be the other way around...People here (aka me) are crazier than they appear. This is almost creppy creepy because although I am telling you all nothing, at the same time I feel like I am opening you all to my mind sharing too much.
Please do not respond back. I feel I might try to respond sanely (I KNOW, that is a relative term) back and then another masterpiece from [R] herself might end up in all of your Inboxes.
Make it all stop...
I WANT TO GO HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You know who it is...its me the psycho chick

Why Can’t We think? Why Are We Grumpy?

I can’t think as clearly as I did six months ago. This is common around base. Being in a good mood is often a choice, as opposed to an instinct. Forgetfulness, mental and physical fatigue, irrational behavior, moodiness, and trying to talk to someone who is only returning a 1,000 yard stare are common occurrences. When encountered, these occurrences are excused and even laughed at. They are just a fact of wintering over in Antarctica. We call it going toasty and it is often chalked up to Polar T3 syndrome, but I think there might be more causes.

Polar T3 syndrome – Triiodothyronine (T3) is a thyroid hormone. Polar T3 syndrome is caused when the body tries to warm itself by consuming its reserves of T3 in the muscles, which leaves a deficiency for the brain. This hoarding reaction is similar to hypothermia when the body shifts its resources to the core and ‘lizard brain’ sets in. In one study of people living in Antarctica for an extended amount of time, their energy intake was increased by approximately 40% without a change in body weight. Almost everyone’s body temperature runs a little low while they are here, so I’d expect the body would be trying to warm itself.

Seasonal Affective Disorder - Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is well known to those who live in an area that has a dark season. It causes seasonal mood swings, specifically depression in the winter. In the TV show Northern Exposure, Dr. Joel Fleishman actually gets Reverse SAD. The extended day in Alaska makes him so up and gives him so much energy that he never sleeps. With SAD in the Northern hemisphere, you’d be down in the winter and up in the summer. The cause is believed to be a lack of sunlight, but the data is inconclusive so far. A common form of therapy is to spend thirty minutes a day in a light room.

Circadian Rhythm - As every parent tells their children, a good night’s sleep will allow you to perform better on a test. If you aren’t sleeping well, you aren’t going to be thinking well. Everyone has their own natural rhythm whether they are a morning lark or a night owl and they tend to stick to that. To maintain that rhythm, we use environmental time cues like sunrise and sunset. Unfortunately, we don’t have those here and a lot of people do have trouble sleeping.

Monotony - The idea of Antarctica is very exciting. The reality doesn’t always match it. Don’t get me wrong, this place is beautiful and I am constantly awed by it. However, our day to day time here is often very reminiscent of the movie Groundhog Day. We do the same things day after day, week after week. For a further elaboration on this, please check out B-Neslon’s brilliant post about day to day life here.

Overworked - This is pretty much an extension of monotony, but slightly different. We work ten hour days with a one hour lunch break every day, six days a week. We get a single two day weekend per month. We might not be overwhelmed with stuff to do, but always having to be at work takes a certain toll. We all knew exactly what we signed up for, but I think the lack of a true chance to recuperate is a contributing cause to our mental fatigue. I know that I don’t plan to ever do a full year contract again because the cumulative fatigue takes away from my appreciation of the experience.

Confinement and Isolation – Simply put, solitary confinement is considered punishment in jail. While we have nothing even remotely as severe as that going on, we are cut off from our existing support networks and the physical world. It can be emotionally tough and likely to contribute to moodiness. On the other hand, some people prefer the winter because they love the isolation. Some days, I enjoy it. Lots of days, I think of good people back home.

Crowding – This last one is on here for moodiness as well. When you spend time with the same group of people long enough, certain quirks might start to bother you more. I believe most of have experienced some form of this with our families, who we’ve probably spent more time with than anyone else. A couple weeks ago, human resources told people to be careful what they say because things that might have been funny at the beginning of the season aren’t necessarily funny anymore.

Consumption – Just before I sent this blog out the door, a couple people suggested some things that I hadn't thought of. The first one was that the consumption of alcohol tends to happen at higher levels down here. Recovering from drinking can definitely fatigue the body. The other suggestion was the quality of food. I think the galley does a great job with what they are given, but there is only so much they can do without fresh ingredients. The things that are sent down here to be cooked are probably sent because they last and are cheap, not because they taste good.

“People on [polar] expeditions generally undergo psychological changes resulting from exposure to long periods of isolation and confinement, and the extreme physical environment. Symptoms include disturbed sleep, impaired cognitive ability negative affect, and interpersonal tension and conflict. . . . Numerous explorers will enjoy the entire experience and enjoy positive reactions to the challenges of the environment. They thrive on the feeling of having successfully overcome these challenges. They quote such expressions as "the beauty and grandeur of the land, ice, and sea, the camaraderie and mutual support of the team, the admirable qualities of their leader, and the thrill of facing and overcoming the challenges of the environment." – LA Palinkas and P Suedfeld

Is this short list of hardships, that past winterovers say will take a month off ice to overcome, worth it? You can bet on it.

Medicine at McMurdo

McMurdo General waiting room.
I've never fancied the idea of needing a hospital. I prefer to avoid them if I can, especially down here in Antarctica. In such a harsh environment, I just couldn't imagine them having everything they needed. However, after numerous visits throughout the year for physical therapy or to fix computers, I've slowly discovered that they do have what they need and more. I'd speculate the only place they come up short is with specialty cases and they probably have a lot them covered too.


Supply closet of stuff.


The good stuff is in the locked pharmacy.


The two bed emergency room and operating room if need be.
Professionally, this next room has been interesting. They use a lot of electronic equipment in the lab. When it isn't working, they have me come take a look at it. I feel confident with computers, but a lot less so with electronic medical equipment. So far, I think we have straightened everything out. However, I'm not so sure I'd want to rely on it either . . . .


Lab.
My favorite fix in the lab was on the E-Chem(?) machine. I only had to change the battery, but I had no idea where it was, how to do it, and was scared of breaking the machine by exploring. I found the instruction manual, which, of course, had no useful information in it. I called their tech support hot line and told them I needed to change the battery. They informed me that only their technicians were qualified or allowed to do it. I informed them that I was in the middle of an Antarctic winter and they couldn't visit if they wanted to. He acquiesced and told me how to make the simple swap. That line has gotten me what I needed a few times while I've been down here. I think the only ones who stood firm were Canon on the firmware for their copiers.


Radiology.
After taking x-rays the old fashioned way, we do all of our X-ray processing on a computer using a special scanner and software. It is a great system that also allows us to easily send x-rays off continent to have a specialist look at them. We can also process films the old fashioned way if the computer system were to fail. Luckily, that hasn't happened. Because the system relies on a computer, I've been able to get a lot closer look at the process than normal. It is just another way that my job is great down here. I get to see so many different things, that even if they frustrate me, I don't get bored.


The ward with the video teleconference machine in the back.


Dental.


Ophthalmology and private exam room.
My most active role in medical is making sure that their computers, printers, and copiers work, which can often be a chore because I'm not trained as a printer or copier technician. However, my most important role at medical is probably making sure the video teleconferencing (VTC) machine is working. They can use the VTC to let doctors in Denver or at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) see a patient for themselves. This might let them get a better look at a rash. We can also hook up different equipment, scopes and ultrasound, to the machine so specialists can guide us through a diagnosis or get a closer look at something.


The doc performs an ultrasound on a patient's leg with UTMB staff using the VTC.


Hyperbaric chamber
I was a little confused when I saw that we had a hyperbaric chamber. I guess the Navy brought it down. We still have divers in the Sound over the summer so it is possible that we'd need it.

The final room in medical is the physical therapy clinic. I probably spend more time there as a patient that anywhere else. Our current PT, Lisa, is fantastic. I think she is the best PT I've ever worked with. It isn't just the methodology she uses, but she keeps working until she finds an angle to motivate you. She's great.


Physical Therapy


Perk of the continent - free ambulance rides.

Another Hut Point hike

Mt. Discovery
On Saturday, I was hoping to go for a lunch time hike so I went to get my gear and on the way, I saw a bunch of people just staring across the sea and into the distance. The horizon looked wonderful, but there was something different about it. For the first time since the sun went down, you could see the Royal Society Range across the sea lit up by the horizon light. The light had been catching Mt. Discovery for a few days, but the whole range was something new. Oddly enough, as I am going back through my pictures I don't have any of the range.


Tent and Inaccessible Islands under nacreous clouds, I think.
I'm curious if all these posts about the horizon, the sun, and our reaction to it are getting old. I feel like I'm posting about it a lot, but I'd lying if I didn't say it strikes us every day as beautiful. Many of us are looking forward to and thinking about it all the time. Missing it has defined this experience for some of us. Every time, I see the horizon lit up at the point, I get as excited as a kid going to the carnival. This day was particularly cool because the mountains were lit up and the horizon was a great orange, but you couldn't see the brightest spot until you got to the tip of the point.


Hut Point lit up by the horizon light.
I think this might have been the first day that I felt like it was daytime out. The light kicking up over the Discovery Ridge was more white than not. I even overheard someone joking at lunch that they didn't know what all the blue stuff in the sky was and that they were scared. The end is coming and as excited as I am to keep seeing the night, I'm ready for the day.


Inaccessible Island under some great colors, maybe nacreous clouds.

More pictures

Just after I got back from the A-Frame
It's a slow day at work so far which is a good thing. I managed to put a good crick in my neck while doing some strength training on Monday morning. I can barely turn my head to the left or right. I'm not a fan. It should heal up in a few days though. I think I just strained a muscle.

Anyway, these are two fun pictures that I didn't put up from last week. The first one is from Chandler driving up the transition road that I hated so much after running it during the Turkey Trot race. The second picture I really liked because the sky was really dark, but these bright nacreous clouds were floating by breaking up the darkness. They were amazing. I think they might be the same clouds from my tucker ride, but different colors because I was seeing them later in the day.


Nacreous clouds just after I got back from my tucker ride.

Tucker Ride!

A Tucker!
Boondoggles are the old Navy term that we use for recreational trips during work time. Sometimes you need to work while you do them. Sometimes you just need to accompany other people who are working. I lucked into a boondoggle on Thursday. I'd be riding along while the MEC mechanics put hours on the new Tuckers that they'll be using for a traverse this coming summer. To put hours on them, they just go driving. My trip with them would be out to the A-Frame and then we'd return home via the Castle Rock loop.


Tucker see, Tucker do.
The south side of the peninsula on the way out to the A-Frame was uneventful. The light from the horizon couldn't get through Erebus and it was foggy. We took a new way out to the A-Frame that I hadn't been on before, but since it was so dark I couldn't truly appreciate it. We stopped for a while to take pictures and look around, but there really wasn't too much to see in those conditions. It was still great to be out of town though. Don't make any mistake about that.


Nacreous or mother-of-pearl clouds seen from Castle Rock.
As we headed up the Castle Rock trail, I started to get excited. You could see that there were bright colors in the sky. We parked at the base of Castle Rock and hiked up to where we could see the horizon. Bright reds and oranges filled the lower part of the sky. Nacreous clouds were in the higher dark part of the sky. This was the best horizon I've see since the sun started coming back up.


Daylight? Not quite. Some day light. Some Tucker headlights. Some photography tricks.
It was so bright that I could capture the horizon light illuminating the ground with my camera. The left of the picture above is lit by the light from the horizon and the right of the picture is lit by the Tucker headlights. It wasn't that bright, but I overexposed the image a little so you could clearly see what was going on. I love how excited I am getting as the sun comes back just a little more each day.


Castle Rock.
As we turned back to return to the Tuckers, I saw that Castle Rock was lit up. I haven't seen Castle Rock close up since early March. It was weird because I hadn't been there in so long and didn't expect it to be that bright from the headlights. On the south side of the peninsula, the headlights didn't seem to light up too much, but that might have been the weather. After taking that picture, we tromped back down the hill and hopped in the Tuckers. I made the mistake of handling my metal camera equipment with my bare hands once we were inside. I almost got a cold burn. Not smart. The ride home was uneventful. The Tucker side windows continued to freeze up so we couldn't see anything, but the snow and Tucker in front of us.


Sean looking north.