Antarctica v2.0
October 28th, 2008 by Ken Mankoff
I’m going back to Antarctica. This time I’ll be on a boat, around the Peninsula, January and February 2009. We’ll be studying the ocean, the air, and the ice in the region. There will be robots that swim under the ice sheets, and sensors thrown overboard and collected to sample sea water, and meteorological stations deployed, and lots of other stuff that I’ll write about here as I learn more.
Right now I’m going through the physical qualification (PQ) testing again (a thorough health checkup). Last time, each checkbox, EKG, and needle was full of excitement. This time it is just a bunch of forms that need to be completed.
October 29th, 2008 at 05:26
Going South Again, eh? I still remember your first chatter hours after landing on the ice last time – and I hope that this journey will be just as exciting for you, in many new and different ways. Congratulations and best of luck – it’s better than space anyways, right? (not that people live there either though)
October 29th, 2008 at 08:23
I don’t know if Antarctica is better than space, but I think, for now, it is the closest I can get. Crossing the Drake Passage is perhaps a good analogy to a rocket launch, and a small cramped ship might be similar to a big space station…
I’ve been told a lot of people crossing the Drake Passage get sea sick. First you are worried that you are going to die. Then you are concerned that you might not.