April 15, 2010
Day 44.
Question of the morning: what would today's ice be like? Answer: good, bad and then medium. We woke to sunny skies and a even a bit less wind than yesterday, and for nearly three hours, we skied on really nice ice. Visibility was poor but not terrible. Our moods soared. During our first couple breaks we joked and laughed - much different from our quiet effort to eat quickly and start moving again before we're frozen.
When the sun came out later we all stopped to marvel at the blueness of the ice and wind blown snow. Then, the ice changed and we were back to the usual grind.
There is a unique phenomenon that we see regularly that I wanted to share - superior mirage. Not really the mirage we are usually hoping to see. You know, the whole oasis thing. Palm trees, a small pond just inviting us to take a warm swim... No our mirages have to do with ice. When we navigate, we usually find a big distinct looking piece of ice and ski towards it. From far away, the ice chunk often looks huge (several stories tall) but when we ski up next to it, the ice is only a few feet tall. Superior mirage are formed as light is reflected off of warmer layers of air.
I somehow managed to melt one side of the lens of my Optic Nerve goggles when I was thawing out my nose beak. I can still see through them but visibility through my left eye is impaired enough to make navigation very difficult. My heart sank when I saw what happened. My whole face and eye protection as well as hood and ruff management is centered around my Optic Nerve goggles. Argh! I spent the day pulling my ruff out of my face and my neck gaiter over my nose to prevent frost bite.
What is that saying... You avoid mistakes with good judgment. Good judgment comes from making mistakes.
Image: One of the many unique features of snow we see every day.
The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by Bing with major support froque m the University of Plymouth, Terramar, Seventh Generation, Goal0, Atlas, Sierra Designs and Optic Nerve.
Remember, it's cool to be cold. Save the Poles. Save the planet.
For more information, please visit www.ericlarsenexplore.com
For information about guided Antarctic expeditions, please visit http://www.antarctic-logistics.com/
For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com
For technical inquires, please contact webexpeditions.net
When the sun came out later we all stopped to marvel at the blueness of the ice and wind blown snow. Then, the ice changed and we were back to the usual grind.
There is a unique phenomenon that we see regularly that I wanted to share - superior mirage. Not really the mirage we are usually hoping to see. You know, the whole oasis thing. Palm trees, a small pond just inviting us to take a warm swim... No our mirages have to do with ice. When we navigate, we usually find a big distinct looking piece of ice and ski towards it. From far away, the ice chunk often looks huge (several stories tall) but when we ski up next to it, the ice is only a few feet tall. Superior mirage are formed as light is reflected off of warmer layers of air.
I somehow managed to melt one side of the lens of my Optic Nerve goggles when I was thawing out my nose beak. I can still see through them but visibility through my left eye is impaired enough to make navigation very difficult. My heart sank when I saw what happened. My whole face and eye protection as well as hood and ruff management is centered around my Optic Nerve goggles. Argh! I spent the day pulling my ruff out of my face and my neck gaiter over my nose to prevent frost bite.
What is that saying... You avoid mistakes with good judgment. Good judgment comes from making mistakes.
Image: One of the many unique features of snow we see every day.
The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by Bing with major support froque m the University of Plymouth, Terramar, Seventh Generation, Goal0, Atlas, Sierra Designs and Optic Nerve.
Remember, it's cool to be cold. Save the Poles. Save the planet.
For more information, please visit www.ericlarsenexplore.com
For information about guided Antarctic expeditions, please visit http://www.antarctic-logistics.com/
For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com
For technical inquires, please contact webexpeditions.net