December 13, 2008, South Pole Station -- James Roth
Today, the population at Amundsen- Scott South Pole Station is 271! This is the highest population that I have seen here. Of that population, approximately 150 are here on funded scientific projects (called Grantees). The station currently supports around 21 scientific projects. Our IceCube project accounts for 1/3 of the Grantee population with 50 people working on the project all summer.
The remaining 120 people are here for scientific support. The support is in the form of Power plant management, housing and HR, cooks, station construction and maintenance, fire fighters and medical staff, and the direct support of science with heavy equipment personnel.
Each IceCube day begins with a meeting with Gary Freeman, our Raytheon Polar Services liaison. We discuss what services are needed for the day to complete our mission and we cooperatively manage to get it done.
So what happens when you stick 271 people together in a small station on the coldest, highest (11,000 ft), driest desert on earth? A cooperative spirit emerges where everybody understands what is at stake. Everybody knows the limitations of the weather and the remote environment. A sense of project completeness and success is common from the scientists to the cooking staff. One thing is for sure, the science can not succeed without the support of the station.
The average day is 9 to 10 hours a day six days a week. What happens at the end of the day is almost as amazing. People gather in the lounges or the galley and discuss the day, or tomorrow, or last week. We play pool, Foosball, and Ping Pong. There is no TV coverage down here, but there are hundreds of movies. We will gather to watch a TV series on certain days of the week. I missed it, but I heard there was a huge turnout to watch “Monsters Inc.”!
There are also organized activities. Every Sunday is an 8pm science lecture. A project representative will usually give an overview of their project. It is a good way to learn about the science going on down here and to have your questions answered. One of my favorite activities is James Brown’s (our head chef) version of Bingo complete with prizes. One activity that I have not tried is the South Pole recreational version of Antarctic survival school, or Happy Camper. Campers learn about cold weather survival then spend Saturday night sleeping out away from the station.
A Truly Happy Camper.
Each week we all share chores as well. Whether you are a senior scientist or a first year general assistant (GA), we all have “house mouse” duties in which you have to clean your assigned area. It’s usually the bathrooms on your wing or the common areas.
Andy and Daryl doing “House Mouse." Photo by Hermann Kolanoski
These people, known as Polies, are definitely one of the positive things that keep me coming back to Pole.
