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GOLF 4-3-9 Antarctica Expedition 2012


Reports   

Location

McMurdo Station
Antarctica
Elevation: 
15 m above sea level

The weather in McMurdo will go through some major changes as we spend our three months on the ice. We are now still pretty early in the season and temperatures are generally below freezing, whereby temperatures below - 40°C/°F are not uncommon, in particular at "night" (when the sun is low on the horizon or casts a shadow on town). The temperature alone, however is not your enemy, the wind is the one that makes all the difference. When you have to work outside, two issues bother you the most. Your goggles or eyeglasses fog up very easily making it impossible to see anything and anything that requires any dexterity is difficult. Depending on the wind you can work with bare hands for as little as 20-30 seconds, and you may extend that a little by wearing glove liners. This all can be done, but you have to go slow and deliberate. Here are some pictures I took during a blustery day in McMurdo, click on "image details" to read the figure captions in the photo gallery.