Week 16 at the Pole

Close-up under red light of a winterover outside in full cold weather gear.
Wenceslas Marie-Sainte, IceCube/NSF

Last week at the Pole was a quiet one for the IceCube detector. The IceCube winterovers, on the other hand, kept busy with various activities. They continued their inventories at the IceCube Lab (ICL). That’s Moreno above, decked out in his cold weather gear. The walk from the station to the ICL is about a kilometer, and it’s cold outside—you need appropriate outerwear for those trips. Celas gave an online presentation in French about science in Antarctica. Although the internet connection was stable for the presentation, sometimes it’s down—an opportunity to pause and relax a bit (Celas, below). Both winterovers enjoyed the treat of seeing multiple planets aligned in the dark sky—a planetary conjunction—no telescope required. Look, there are auroras, too!

Person sitting at desk in lab space, leaning back in chair to blow bubbles.
Moreno Baricevic, IceCube/NSF
Night sky at the South Pole post sunset, with some light lingering along horizon, a bright planetary conjunction, and light wispy auroras overhead.
Moreno Baricevic, IceCube/NSF