Today the team traveled the short distance to their final resupply at S 87.23.825, W 83.28.792. There they came across the black flag that marks the depot and the remaining food for the expedition including a celebratory dinner, which Oskar and BB cooked up for all.
Lisa and Oskar would like to share that their mother's birthday is tomorrow or today depending on when you read this (January 8). They send their best wishes and lots of love from Antarctica. They took a couple special photos as a birthday present! Happy Birthday!!
Two crazy Swedes singing Happy Birthday to their mother!
Lisa and Oskar. "Love to Momma Strom!"
And this photo was taken a couple nights ago, when they still had warmer weather and could eat outside. This photo was simply titled "Dinner".
A good looking team. They appear so warm and relaxed!
Listen to Dennis' audio update and check back again tomorrow for another update from the team!
Today the team reports that they are almost at the next resupply and they expect to reach it tomorrow. This will be their final resupply. They traveled more uphill today, though not as steep as recent days, and they passed more sastrugi, though these are only in the 1 foot range. The plan tomorrow is to get to the resupply in the morning and spend the afternoon reorganizing.
Their current position is S 87.21.0441, W83.42.751 (the .42 may be off a little... the connection was a little jumbly)
It's a vast ocean of snow and ice!
Make sure to listen to BB's audio update and check back in again tomorrow for another update from the team!
Today the team reports colder weather (finally!) and uphill travel. The temperature was around -20 C without wind and -30 C with wind. Now that's more like it! We were beginning to think that they weren't actually in Antarctica! In addition to some uphill skiing the team encountered more sastrugi. They were expecting this, but it doesn't make it any more fun. Luckily their sleds are light because they are nearing the end of their third ration. In a couple days they will be resupplying with their final rations of the expedition.
Sastrugi. Imagine running into this in a white-out!
BB gives a wonderful audio report about their day as well as some introductory thoughts on the last weeks of the expedition. They still have many miles to go, but the light is at the end of the tunnel. With almost three degrees left to ski it is a small light, but with each step it gets a little brighter.
The team ended at S 87.10.397, W 84.32.789. Make sure to listen to BB's audio report and check back again tomorrow for another update from the team!
Today the team reports more climbing but otherwise good traveling conditions. Blue sky, no wind and -20 C. The team covered 24 kilometers in 10 hours of travel. Their current position is S 86.58.093, W85.26.086
They climbed to approximately 6900 feet, which means the have a little under 2500 feet left to ascend. The South Pole lies at 9300 feet but due to the atmospheric conditions the physiological effect of the altitude is closer to 12,000 feet.
With the increase in altitude the team can expect a small but steady decrease in temperature. In general the temperature decreases approximately 3.5 degrees C with every 1000 feet gained in elevation in a dry climate (it's less for a a climate with more moisture).
Listen to today's audio report from Bob and check back again tomorrow for another update from the team.
Today the team reports nice weather and 15 kilometers of progress. They slept in to get a little extra rest and were off in the afternoon. Their current location is S 86.45.336, W 86.4.226.
Dennis, in his audio update, gives us a lesson in latitude and longitude. He reminds us that each degree of latitude is 60 nautical miles, or 69 statute miles, or 111 kilometers. When they phone in their report every day the most important item we listen for is their latitude. We can tell a lot about their day depending on what number we hear. The lines of longitude, which converge at the South Pole, provide far less information, if any at all. When very close to the South Pole they will be able to cross all the lines of longitude in a few steps. Of course the two coordinates combined give us their position.
Lunch break with Thiel Mountains in background.
This was taken a few days ago.
Parallels of latitude are not always precisely the same distance apart. For instance, near the equator each parallel of latitude is approximately 110.57 kilometers apart. Near sixty degrees north or south each degree of latitude is 111.42 km apart. Near 75 degrees each degree of latitude is close to 111.61 km apart, and near the poles each degree of latitude is close to 111.69 km apart.
Of course longitude is much different. At the equator each meridian is separated by 1 degree, or 60 nautical miles, or 111.3 km. At sixty degrees each meridian is separated by half that distance (30 nautical miles, or 55.8 km). At seventy five degrees north or south each meridian is 28.9 km apart, and at the poles, where they all converge, there is no distance between them.
All that matters to our team is that they keep taking steps forward, one at a time, and whenever those steps add up to a degree there is reason to celebrate!
Make sure to listen to Dennis' audio update and check back again tomorrow for another update from the team!
Today the team reports more beautiful weather and lots of uphill travel. The sleds are getting lighter which helps with the ascent, but it still made for a long day. They are happy they did not have large sastrugi to deal with, but they are told to expect more sastrugi in the coming days. The team skied 24 kilometers and ended at S 86.37.434, W86.29.884. The temperature was -21 C with a light wind.
We know from BB's audio report that there is a lot of good banter back and forth amongst the team members. In her description of the day she jokes about Oskar skiing in circles and needing a confirmation that the 24 kilometers were in fact South. Having a sense of humor on an expedition like this can be a great release of stress. A good laugh reminds everyone that it's important to have fun, even on the toughest days. We love to hear their private jokes, even if we don't get them, because it assures us that the team is still having fun! (BTW, the 24 kilometers were in fact south)
Dennis enjoying the good weather.
Make sure to listen to BB's audio report, and check back again tomorrow for another update from the team!
Today the team traveled 23.1 kilometers in white-out conditions, but the day ended with sun and an opportunity for Bob to reflect on the simplicity of expedition life. The temperature was around -17 C with a 10 knot wind that added a bit of chill.
Bob, in his audio update below, mentions a precaution the team takes in white-out conditions to help ensure they don't lose sight of each other. It is amazing how quickly the blowing snow can reduce visibility to nothing. Even a couple meters between people can make it very difficult, if not impossible to see one another. Skiing with the tips of one person's skis just off the back end of the next person's sled helps ensure that everyone sticks together.
Speaking of sticking together, it looks like our crew is bound together by party streamers! We love this picture as well as the enthusiasm and spirit of the team. If we all take even a little bit of their determination, courage, and love of life into the new year with us, we will all be better off as a result!
Today at the South Pole a special ceremony took place. The annual moving of the Geographical South Pole marker. Every New Year's day a team of surveyors from the United States Geological Survey locate ninety degrees South with precision. They fix the spot with a metal pole topped with a special sculpted marker, roughly 8 inches in diameter. Each marker is... "designed, selected and machined by the handful of hardy souls who keep the scientific enterprise operating during the six months of cold, darkness and total isolation that are the hallmarks of a polar winter."
This year's marker, a bronze sextant, commemorates Amundsen's historic expedition and the "Heroic Age" of Antarctic exploration. On the side and bottom of the marker there are 47 individual degree marks representing the number of people who wintered-over at the South Pole in 2010.
On New Year's Day next year, this marker will be roughly 10 meters from the "new" South Pole marker freshly placed at 90 degrees South. That's how fast the ice is moving north towards the ocean.
The team's current position is S.86.24.550, W 86.58.935. We hope you listen to Bob's audio update below. It cuts off at the end, but this seems to be a problem related to embedding the audio file into the blog, and not the call itself. We are trying to get the full call up soon! Check back again tomorrow for another update from the team!
