Christchurch to McMurdo
The first stop on one's journey to McMurdo Station, Antarctica is
Christchurch, New Zealand, where the US Antarctic Program has its
staging facilities.
In Christchurch, we usually do a few things: rest from the long flight
from the United States (12 hours from LA to Auckland), buy fresh foods
to take with us to Antarctica, meet up with fellow scientists and
support personnel, and eat a few good meals (trying to find types of
food we know we won't be getting on the Ice). But really, the main
reason we spend a day or two in New Zealand is to receive our special
clothing, called ECW (Extreme Cold Weather) gear. For the support
personnel, this is a time they also spend on training and orientation
activities.
When you arrive at the Clothing Distribution Center (CDC) in
Christchurch, you find two orange duffle bags with your name on them
waiting for you. The first order of business is to empty them and try
on everything
(click on picture for larger size)
And
just what IS "everything" you might ask? So
as not to bore you with thirty pictures of clothing articles, here
instead is the infamous CDC clothing wall displaying the types of
clothing issued. Note that we don't get all of these things; in
particular, the tan and black Carhartts typically are reserved for the
tradespeople. Scientists (and most others, actually) get the
characteristic red park on the left, plus an assortment of thermal
underwear, fleece layers, head coverings, and gloves.
The clothing is designed to keep us warm and safe in the extreme
environment in which we live and work while in Antarctica. It is most
definitely not about fashion, as Jen demonstrates below (she ditched
the issued hat in favor of her own - me, too):
Clothing issues taken care of, we
prepared for the flight south. This involves getting up at 2 am (why go
to bed?), driving back out to the CDC, and getting into some 25 pounds
of that ECW gear. The rest of the issued gear and our own personal
clothing is packed and checked-in for the flight south (weight limit 75
lbs). We boarded the plane around 5 am (sorry, too dark for a picture
outside, but it was a US Air Force C17 Globemaster)
for the 5-hour trip to McMurdo.
Left: folks getting
settled for the flight south. Note the presence of REAL seats - this is
only the second year for this treat!
Right: Alan and Lou,
two members of the Winfly atmospheric sciences contingent
And
just what IS "everything" you might ask? So
as not to bore you with thirty pictures of clothing articles, here
instead is the infamous CDC clothing wall displaying the types of
clothing issued. Note that we don't get all of these things; in
particular, the tan and black Carhartts typically are reserved for the
tradespeople. Scientists (and most others, actually) get the
characteristic red park on the left, plus an assortment of thermal
underwear, fleece layers, head coverings, and gloves. 
