2 December, 1996

Today we got all of our equipment up to the instrument building and started work on the instrument. The first thing was to check the voltages on all of the different components using a voltmeter. I

guess you could say that this is the equivalent on "checking to be sure it is plugged in" when you are troubleshooting something, only taken to a much more extensive level. John takes extensive notes on everything he does. The instrument was built by John. Some parts he built himself and other parts were bought and modified for use in

this instrument. The notes he takes are very important in troubleshooting problems with the instrument because they will allow him to analyze trends in the behavior of the instrument, keep track

of important settings, and list procedures taken to correct certain problems. There is no owner's manual for this instrument, John's

notes are what will become the owner's manual and also much more. After checking all the voltages, we took the top off the interferometer and then checked voltages and used an oscilloscope to check signal outputs from various components.

It was much colder today, with blowing snow. Not much snow actually falls here...less than 5 mm, but alot is blown in from elsewhere on the plateau. The temperatures dropped to -65F with the windchill. It was cold even in the Jamesway where my sleeping

quarters are. It was also a cold walk back and forth from the dome to the instrument building. The blowing snow reduced visibility a great deal.