Well, it's fall 2011, and I am heading back to McMurdo Station in Antarctica for the third time. Previously I visited there in 2005 and 2008. You can view a blog about those trips at http://antarctic-scott.blogspot.com.
The first time (December 2005) I went as a team member on the CREAM experiment (http://cosmicray.umd.edu/cream/cream.html), which is designed to detect cosmic ray elements (hydrogen through iron) at high energies. CREAM has flown 6 times now - or is it 7? Lots. My duties were to help prepare the instrument for flight. I got to see it launched on the high altitude balloon by a NASA team.
In January 2008 I went back to participate in recovery of the instrument after it came back to earth, at the end of the flight. I was there and saw a different part of the summer season in McMurdo.
Now I am going to prepare the CREST instrument for launch. I'll be with the early crew - arriving in Antarctica about November 1, 2011. This is springtime in Antarctica. Days are very close to 24 hours long already at McMurdo (78 degrees south latitude, above the Antarctic Circle, which starts at 67 degrees latitude).
Going to Antarctica is a once in a lifetime experience I am getting to do for the third time now. I never thought my physics PhD would take me to such a place. Each time I go I think it is my last time, but hope it is not.
In this blog, I'll share living conditions, progress on CREST, and any other random thoughts I deem worth sharing. I plan to provide lots of pictures. Sit back and enjoy!
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