Week 30 at the Pole

Twas the night before Christmas, well, Christmas in July, with cookies out for Santa, and a drift of white pillows piled high. Hey, who doesn’t like an extra reason to celebrate something? At the South Pole, they are experts at this, as they love their traditions and continue to add new ones to the list. […]

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Week 25 at the Pole

Midwinter has finally arrived at the Pole, and along with it the usual flurry of activity. This year, celebrations were given a medieval theme. Decorations and dress code followed suit for the traditional dinner. Before the meal, they had some fun with a festive disco bowling event in the gym. And check out their midwinter […]

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Week 26 at the Pole

Not everyone celebrates Christmas in July, but they do at the South Pole station, where traditions prevail. Last week started off the festivities with the appearance of a tree and presents in the galley. More activities and decorations are planned for upcoming weeks. The weather was nice and cold as a fitting complement to the […]

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Week 25 at the Pole

For those who spend a year living at the South Pole, they are treated to glorious night skies in the winter season. Last week was a case in point, with displays of bright auroras, lots of stars, and glimpses of the Milky Way. Winterovers also get to experience a multitude of South Pole station traditions […]

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Week 1 at the Pole

At the South Pole, they have their traditions…and their training. Last week, training included station-wide emergency response drills. And training can involve some fun. Lobbing balls around in the gym (or doing anything), though, in full firefighting gear is strenuous and thus good practice. PolarTREC educator Elaine Krebs arrived at the Pole as part of […]

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Week 51 at the Pole

There was lots of activity at the Pole last week. Some IceCube summer crew members are now there working alongside the winterovers. The early part of the week was dedicated to hardware repairs and upgrades at the IceCube Lab. They also packed up cargo, including hard drives destined for long-term storage in Madison, which they […]

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Week 24 at the Pole

Even though they recently had a fancy dinner at the South Pole, last week supplied a reason for another one. It was the celebratory feast for midwinter, which included cocktails and appetizers followed by a several-course meal. Guests were invited to attend dressed for a masquerade ball. The South Pole station has a long history […]

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Week 50 at the Pole

Last week was generally busy at the South Pole. The first LC-130 of the season arrived, staying long enough to offload its contents and then reload with cargo to take back to McMurdo. You can see the IceCube Lab off in the distance below, between the snow tractor and the plane. Last week also happened […]

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Week 47 at the Pole

Thanksgiving is a national holiday in the US and as such is celebrated at the South Pole, too (where traditions abound in celebrating many holidays along with all kinds of other things). For Thanksgiving, festivities always include a nice meal in the galley, with tables decked out in formal dinnerware and decorations around the room, […]

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