Last week, winterovers Erik and Stephan arrived, and this week Dag and Ian are leaving. Here they are, all four together out on the ice for the last time. […]
Week 45 at the Pole
Life at the Pole
Week 44 at the Pole
Another summer season at the South Pole station means another changing of the guard for IceCube’s winterovers. This year’s Erik Beiser and Stephan Richter have arrived, two fresh faces ready to embark on their yearlong adventure, while Dag Larsen and Ian Rees, last year’s winterovers, made their final preparations for leaving the ice. […]
Week 43 at the Pole
There’s a bit of prep work involved in getting the station ready for its summer opening. IceCube winterovers Ian and Dag used this time to perform an IceTop snow survey and to finish up snow removal around the ICL. […]
Week 42 at the Pole
For a place that receives so little precipitation, there’s an awful lot of snow around. So much snow that bulldozers are sometimes enlisted to move it out of the way, as shown here in front of this parked Basler aircraft. Planes can get stuck at the South Pole for days on end due to bad weather. And if high winds are part of that bad weather, then snow accumulation can be a problem. […]
Week 41 at the Pole
After the sun’s arrival come the planes. The first of the season to reach the South Pole were a pair of Twin Otters, one of which appears parked in the accompanying image. Behind it is a Basler plane—a somewhat larger ski aircraft—shown just as it was landing, a few days later. […]
Week 40 at the Pole
Water restrictions prompt innovation. When already limited showers get rationed even further, as they have been recently at the South Pole station, you start thinking of ways to work around the problem. […]
Week 39 at the Pole
Ah, the things we take for granted. Sunshine might be one of them. Running water might be another. At the Pole, sometimes you have to do without. […]
Week 38 at the Pole
Now that the sun is back at the South Pole, there’s nowhere to hide. You can walk outside and see everything—everything that was there in the darkness all winter long, like buildings and fixed structures, as well as other things that weren’t there but have recently reappeared, like the flags at the ceremonial pole. […]
Week 37 at the Pole
After months and months of darkness, it’s no wonder that the sun’s return to the South Pole is anxiously awaited. Finally, thanks to sufficient ambient light levels, the current winterovers can get a nice group photo outside. […]
Week 36 at the Pole
As dawn approaches, the sky is cast in a glow that reflects off the sides of the South Pole station. Inside the station, they’ve begun to remove the window covers that remain in place all winter, there to minimize light pollution for sensitive experiments at the Pole. […]