13 July, 2000

July 13, 2000

Camp life. Andrew Fountain emerges from his tent at about 7:00 AM to make coffee. I am usually the next to appear, and quickly indulge in what is typically a great cup of coffee. The remaining campers (Malm, Cunico, Lindsay) arrive by 8:00 AM. We usually languish for an hour or more over breakfast, with conversations following a huge number of topics. Sometimes we discuss the thermodynamics of coffee, and its thermal conductivity. Or we talk about the effect of temperature on electrochemical reactions, trying to understand why our batteries do not last as long in cold weather. Of course, we argue all aspects of how glaciers move, crack, melt, freeze, crevasse, etc. Occasionally we discuss why the drilling equipment, or the ice radar equipment, or the data sensors are not working. Sounds pretty exciting, huh?

Work usually begins by 9:00 AM. Once the drilling commences, it is usually a long haul. We each take a turn to lunch so that the drill can continue to do its work. At the former drill site (when drilling was very slow), we often drilled until 10:00 of 11:00 PM. At about 5:00 PM, Andrew Fountain usually asks me about dinner (I planned, purchased, and packaged all the food for the expedition). I typically take an hour to prepare a dinner, and we commonly reconvene at about 7:00 or 8:00 PM for another mealtime gathering. Like earlier in the day, we take our time, share lots of stories and spin many a tale. PSU grad student has been given the nickname "Donocchio" because sometimes his stories become a bit extreme. We have been working and living together for a couple of weeks now - we have gotten to know each other pretty well.

The hot water drill occasionally provides us with a chance to clean up - the heater can extrude a relatively high volume of hot water over a short period of time. It is also a great place to get warm on a cold, and slow working day. It is amazing how an object that cranks heat in a cold environment can take on new applications. We even discussed how the hot water drill might be able to make espresso and steam some milk for a latte. We have not pursued this yet………..

A picture of our camp tent at our second camp site. Don Lindsay, Andrew Malm, Andrew Fountain and Michelle Cunico enjoy conversation before dinner.