Antarctica!: The Little Piece of the World Called McMurdo

Not much new to tell you all about... we launched another ozonesonde (Sally Sonde) but no big ones yet. We are still waiting for the conditions to be right. Just doing my thing, I guess. There hasn't been anything fun in the weather lately either, just cold and windy.

Many of you have been wondering about McMurdo and how it is to live here so I'm going to take you to where I spend my days. It was finally nice enough that I could go outside for a walk around town. We stay in a dorm, just like college with tiny beds, a place to put our clothes and a desk. Thats about it in there... Here is where I sleep, my little piece of bliss:

The gang is all there, they keep me company at night. Our dorm is building 203c, it has a place to wash clothes and a lounge where we can watch TV, movies and play ping pong. This is what the outside looks like:

Another very important place is building 155 because that is where the galley is located. It is just like any other cafeteria. The building also has some dorms, the store and a hallway called Hwy 1 because its the most important building and everyone travels that hall. I'll get some pictures of the inside but this is the building.

This is Crary Lab, its the other building where I spend most of my time. It has three "phases" that are attached together. Our lab is in Phase 2 and I'll show you the inside later.

Next is the Chalet, this is the National Science Foundation building.

They have a medical center and the firehouse is right behind it.

Another place that I visit a fair amount is the "Gerbil Gym", its a little gym with treadmills and bikes. Its a great place to burn some energy.

Leslie introduced me to the coffee house the other day, it is a great place to go. It has wine, coffee of course and lots of board games to play. They also have a movie screen where they show different movies. Great atmosphere to read, visit and just relax.