why i'm here part 5

the air drop ground crew:
Marco Tortonese, Ben Burke, Kevin Schriner,
Jens Dreyer, Christy Schultz and me
photo by Christy Schultz



unpacking the bundles




the following amazing shots are by Robert Schwarz
the photos are of the C-17
if you look in the background you will see orange glows -
those are the fires we placed to mark the drop zone





it was wonderful to get to deliver mail in august!
phot by Steffen Richter



oranges!!



covered in soot after our day of test burning




the twilight just a few days ago




full moon and the SPTR II satellite shelter

 greetings from the heart warming glow of twilight,

the official first phase of twilight beagan on august 1st, but the twinkle of light was weeks later.  each day brings more light and next week we will actually see the top of the sun as it makes it's way back to the south for summer fun.  the end of august brought an air drop to the south pole, it was the 1st winter drop in 10 years and the 1st time that a C-17 was used.  the whole station came together to make it happen, and some of us were a part of the ground crew.  we trained this last summer, thankfully setting flags at the GPS coordinates of the drop zone which made finding these points much easier in the dark!  we filled 9 barrels with jet fuel and used a torch to light them to mark the drop zone for the massive C-17 as it flew over at 500ft!! it was amazing.  they dropped 2 bundles which contained necessary medical supplies, mail, generator parts and ORANGES!!!!  here is a link to a great article about the drop:

http://antarcticsun.usap.gov/features/contenthandler.cfm?id=2504

otherwise we have been gearing up for station opening activities, the first planes are do to arrive on October 15th, 1 month from now.... this week has been in the -90F's so we are not able to operate the necessary machines to begin grooming the skiway and other tasks that require the use of heavy equipment, it's a harsh continent.  i have been making travel plans for the south island of new zealand beacause my mom and dad are coming to visit when i get off the ice, it's going to be an epic trip, in times when i find myself exhausted, i just think about the trip and i am filled with cheer! we are making english tea sandwiches this sunday and brazilian food next weekend after our last fancy meal of the season to celebrate sunrise.  our last international meal was ethiopian and surprisingly many people enjoyed it, it's been wonderful to introduce many people to international cuisine this winter, especially with our limited supplies!!  i hope this finds you all well and enjoying a splendid september day!
take care,
karengrace