Arrival at Jang Bogo station

By Christine Dow

We made it to Antarctica in one piece! After a delightful 3 am start, we boarded the Safair plane that was to take us to the Antarctic along with Korean, Italian and French scientists. What followed was a somewhat chilly, noisy, cramped 7-hour flight. However, the views out our tiny window as we approached and then flew over Antarctica made it all worthwhile. We landed on a sea ice runway in front of the Italian Zucchelli station, with an impressively long run in, and then stepped out into bright sunshine and a “refreshing” breeze. The Antarctic! What a spectacular place. We were surrounded by mountains and ice and sea ice as far as you can see. Ryan traveled the 7 kilometers to Jang Bogo in a “Piston Bully” tractor, but I was lucky enough to get driven over in a specially adapted Kia SUV with heated seats. What luxury! On the way over, we drove past some basking Weddell seals and seal pups enjoying the sunshine.

Jang Bogo from the outside looks like a space ship and the inside does not dispel this imagery. It was only built in the last couple of years and has all the mod cons. There’s a greenhouse, hospital area, small gym with climbing wall, espresso machine, wi-fi throughout, and even humidifiers in each room. An intercom announces meals with cheery music (including breakfast at 6:50 am, which is a slightly disconcerting way to wake up if you’re not expecting it). The best thing by far is the view from the window. I can see an impressive iceberg, some more seals and the terminus of Campbell glacier. Flags from the countries representing the people staying at the base are flying outside including Korea, Japan, New Zealand, the US and the UK.

We were only able to bring one GPS and one tiltmeter with us because of weight restrictions on the plane. The rest of our equipment will arrive next week. In the mean time, we are going to have to examine the planned field sites so we are expecting a helicopter flight soon. More on it later!