After 10 months at the South Pole it is finally time to head home. The new medical team (finally!) arrived, turnover completed, and bags packed. Weather and aircraft mechanical issues delayed our departure for several days…but eventually our LC-130 arrived and approximately 30 “Polies” boarded this wonderful flying machine that would transport us back to friends and family. It all … More Departure
The (austral) winter season at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station ended around noon on Saturday, 27 October, with the landing of the first New York Air National Guard LC-130 in almost 10 months. In some ways it seems as though the last flight we saw in February just left; in other ways it seems an eternity. … More Winter’s End
The cleanest air in the world is at the South Pole. As the “emptiest” continent, there are few manmade sources of pollution in Antarctica. Air samples collected here are considered to be indicative of uncontaminated background air, which is why the atmosphere has been studied at the South Pole since establishment of the first permanent … More Cleanest Air On Earth
Shortly after attainment of the South Pole…first by Roald Amundsen in December of 1911, then by Captain Robert Scott in January of 1912…Rear Admiral Robert Peary inquired of Professor Edwin Frost at the University of Chicago as to the suitability of the South Pole for astronomical observation, given its high-altitude, low humidity, and long winter … More Astronomy On Ice
I can never see a beautiful sunrise without thinking of a girl I never met. By all accounts Lucy was one the sweetest humans ever to walk the face of the Earth; a daughter that would make any parent proud. The one thing I know for sure about Lucy was that she loved sunrises, especially … More A Sunrise For Lucy
Last week’s blog about Neil Armstrong brought back many childhood memories of the early days of space travel, amateur and model rocketry, and space related science fiction movies. So what does this have to do with Antarctica? I suspect my early interest in space exploration started me on a path which decades later would have … More Antarctica & Outer Space
Childhood heroes frequently have a profound influence upon the course of our lives. As one who grew up in the space age, astronauts and explorers have always seemed somewhat larger than life. Tenacious, goal-oriented dreamers enduring hardships and overcoming obstacles hold a special fascination. Most died long ago, often in what some might consider heroic … More Memories of Neil Armstrong
Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station sits at an elevation of almost 2 miles or 3.2 kilometers. The altitude, as well as the cold, dry air often makes it difficult to breathe when exercising or performing manual labor. But these same conditions make the South Pole the best spot in the world to observe microwaves from outer … More The South Pole Telescope
As a physician, taking temperatures is something very familiar to me. Temperature has long been considered one of the “vital signs” used in conjunction with a constellation of other pieces of information to determine patient’s state of health. At Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station much effort is directed to taking the temperature of the universe. This … More Taking The Temperature Of The Universe
The month of August marks an interesting period in the Antarctic winter season, at least at the South Pole. We are still three months away from the arrival of new faces, fresh food, mail, and those wonderful (special) people who have been identified as our reliefs. For the past six months we have endured isolation … More Angry August
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