The essence of Antarctic night

Posted on 07/06/2013 by julien

Antonio Litterio. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Litterio

Antonio Litterio sends us a haunting blog entry. Read the introductory note and turn the music up for the best experience:

INTRODUCTORY NOTE: Dear readers, here are some tips to intensify the reading experience. My letter is composed in three parts, just as Roberto Cacciapaglia’s wonderful music Fiamme. I recommend you read the first part listening to the most intense section of the music. If you are a fast reader, wait for the start of the slower, more emotional part of the before you continue reading. Wait for the pause in the music before reading the last few lines.

I recommend you follow this advice as I wrote it with this in mind.

Part one
By chance I came across our group photograph that was taken during the summer. I felt an emotion that inspired me to write this letter about my experience here.

Concordia group photo 2012. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Litterio 

What follows is very delicate. Seeing that photo again lots became quite clear to me, our change and the difference between a 'South Pole adventure' and 'experiencing an Antarctic winter'. In the eyes of those who are not with us it can be difficult to understand.
Much has changed since December, when Concordia was invaded by a myriad of people with whom we shared contact. Different times have crossed my eyes since then. December is depicted in that picture, our faces are charged with joy. Summer is the period of a thousand smiles, of amazement and frenzy. The novelties of seeing a first circular rainbow or of  the midnight Sun add to the excitement. But already at that time, as a future winter crewmember, I could see the difference between the faces of the new arrivals and those who had already spent the winter here.

I looked at their faces, so different from mine and I wondered ... why? ... but I did not ask questions, perhaps out of fear, but also because I knew I would find out by myself.

Days have passed since our arrival and we convinced ourselves that it would always stay like it was in December and that our winter would also be a period of a thousand smiles. But slowly, as the months go by, this changed. With the departure of each plane that took people back, sadness descended on my face while the curiosity of the unknown increased as the last plane left... What would winter bring? What will it lead me to discover about Antarctica and about myself? Slowly time is providing me answers to these questions ... but because I have not yet reached the end of this experience they are incomplete, guidelines, opaque images that form a bigger picture that will only become clear  in November.

Time passes quickly when it is not contained by clocks or calendars. What is time in this place? I do not know... I have a feeling that it does not exist as it is not even being recorded by the presence of  light. There is no night and day here. But even if time does not exists it still passes by.

Part two
The expression of wonder  on my face that accompanied me during the summer is now dormant under the weight of what winter is loading on my shoulders. Just as the wind sculpts the snow around us I am being sculpted by the winter. It is changing who I am, just as the absence of light plays with one’s perception of the infinite horizon.

We are slowly but surely becoming different people to what we were at the beginning of this adventure. But we have to be careful because even the perception of change is amplified. We change, but in the eyes of each one of us, these changes are like night and day. Can we be sure that we have actually changed or are we simply exposing what we really are?
Concordia is amazing, it awakens many questions within me, it is eager for answers, and it is granting me a way to find these answers.

Part three
Excuse me if I failed to convey what I would like to, but, believe me, even if everyone experiences Concordia in their own way, only those who experience the long Antarctic night can get a closer understanding. Maybe this letter will only serve as a memo to remind myself of this incredible experience when I return.

Concordia at night. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Litterio

Posted in Antonio Litterio, Concordia | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Into the darkness

Posted on 17/05/2013 by julien

Moonlight. Credits: ESA/IPEV/PNRA. E. Kaimakamis

ESA sponsored medical doctor Vangelis Kaimakamis on the end of festivities and the darkness to come:

Finally the sun has left us and the long, dark period of our Antarctic experience has begun! We still see a dim light for two or three hours every day but it will not be long before we live in complete darkness for a couple of months. We are  trying to adapt to these conditions we have never experienced before, while enjoying the extraordinary night sky over our heads.

On 5 May we saluted the Sun from the astronomy shelter. We drank hot wine, made sandwiches and broke red eggs. In my country, Greece, it is customary to paint eggs and then crack them during Eastertime. It was a very nice day with a lot of fun that broke the monotony of our everyday chores and assignments.

Last sunset. Credits: ESA/IPEV/PNRA. E. Kaimakamis

A few days earlier, on 1 May I went to the roof of the base to enjoy one of the last sunsets. In Greece we traditionally pick flowers and make wishes on the first of May but here the nearest flowers are as far as 3500 km away so I had to make do with a plastic one for the pictures, I was able to make my wishes nonetheless!

The festivities had already kicked off with my birthday on 27 April, as chef Luigi cooked a special meal with candles to blow out. My crewmates made me a unique gift: a carved piece of wood in the shape of Antarctica with signatures of all the crew on the back. I value it very much and it will decorate my wall for years to come, reminding me of my great Antarctic adventure and the fantastic people I met here.

A demanding time

Despite all the festivities, the long night arrives with the thought that it will be the most demanding period of our stay as our biological clock, our mood and motivation are influenced by the lack of natural light and other external stimuli. We are trying to measure and study some of these changes with our experiments, so for me it is interesting to observe any changes in behavior. With good team spirit and by concentrating on our duties we feel positive that everything will be OK and we are preparing ourselves for an exciting phase living in Concordia.

Medevac. Credits: ESA/IPEV/PNRA. E. Kaimakamis

We held a number of safety exercises in the previous weeks: fire drills, emergency exit drills, first-aid lectures and retrieving an injured person outside. Concordia has to be totally self-dependent in cases of emergency and constant training is mandatory. Of course, these exercises are a way to escape routine and so are always welcome!

Apart from the purely scientific and technical duties on the base, we have many teleconferences with schools and universities. These are interesting, as we can spread our knowledge and experience to young people all over the world and show them how unique  and fragile this continent is. It is pleasant to see how interested people are in the way of life on an Antarctic base and the details of the research we conduct here.

Marvelous dawn. Credits: ESA/IPEV/PNRA. E. Kaimakamis

We certainly miss our countries and our friends and family back home. But when we stare at the wonderful night sky with a magnificent view of our galaxy, and when we walk on the ice, the only sound being the sound of our steps and breaths, we cannot help but feel thankful for these moments! We discuss the shape of the Earth as it is reflected over the horizon during the few hours that the Sun sheds some of its light over the white scenery, at other times we observe the long shadows of the base and watch as they disappear after a couple of hours, our gaze diverted upwards by the dominance of stellar formations above…

One can only be inspired by this struggle between the light and the dark silence. I can do nothing more than try to express the feeling on paper:

Shadows on Ice

Shadows,

shadows trying to form some shape

underneath the light of an alien moon

shapes on the ice blurry and abstract

right underneath the milk of the milky way

so distant in the twilight

so soulless and full of life together

scratching inside some lost loves

- distant shadows inside my boiling soul -

as if they want to define again

their end and their final tears,

to mirror them to the distant dome of sky

- to purify them maybe -

but it’s always too late for these old habits

and the ice will bury them deep somewhere out there

under the alien moonlight and the haunted stars.

And then, the shadows will be their only hope…

Posted in Evangelos Kaimakamis | Leave a comment

My winter house

Posted on 12/05/2013 by julien

Concordia station. Credits: IPEV/PNRA A. Barbero

Join glaciologist Albane Barbero as she takes us on a guided tour of Concordia research station in the heart of Antarctica on a mountain plateau called Dome C. Loosely translated from her original in French.

I realised that I have not written about my new house. To start with it is very large: 1500m2 for 15 people or 100 m2 per person. Pretty roomy don’t you think? Concordia has a special design based on two towers built on large hydraulic pylons to avoid sinking into the snow and snowdrifts. A couple of containers are connected to the noisy tower. Ah yes, as you might have understood, each tower is layout with specific activities in mind, divided into a ‘noisy’ and ‘quiet’ tower.

Credits: IPEV/PNRA A. Barbero

We start our tour in the containers. They are the beating heart of the complex. No, not the kitchen, but the generators, motors and boilers that keep our house liveable. The containers also contain the sewage treatment for ‘grey water’ from the showers and sinks, and the ‘black water’ from the toilets. We separate our rubbish very carefully (paper, plastic, steel, aluminium, glass, and non-recyclables). Organic waste is treated in a special composter. Lastly this area has two urinals. Suffice to say it doesn’t always smell very nice but only the technical team spend much time here. Our plumber, Olivier, has the hardest deal: he has to deal with the sewage…

Concordia kitchen. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Barbero

Our tour continues with the noisy tower that is connected to the containers by a sealed passage. On the second floor we enter the second heart of our house, the kitchen. Our cook Luigi uses this fully-equipped, large space to cook us his lovely food.

The second floor also contains our games room that used to be the self-service restaurant during the summer. The games room has a table-tennis table, an Italian table football, a French table football (I now know the difference!), a billiard table and a dart board. Next to all this we have our living room with a dining table, sofas, a reading table, the (graphic novel) library, all our board-games as well as a computer for playing music (with speakers of course). It is very luxurious!

Games room. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Barbero

Below, on the first floor, is where we keep our food supplies in an immense fridge, freezer and cupboard. Our television room or cinema is also on the first floor. The area can be changed into the bar/disco in the Dome C area. We call it the Antarctic Tower Club or ATC for the regulars. This multifunctional room has very comfortable sofas as they are made out of mattresses by the DC9 crew (that is us). On this floor, we have also a fully furnished sport room!

Credit

Workshop Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Barbero

On the ground floor you will find the workshop with just about everything you would find in a do-it-yourself shop and more. On Friday nights the workshop is often used as a poker room (I won last time, so at last I can trade in my kitchen cleaning duties!). Aside from that you will find the washing corner with two washing machines and three dryers. We don’t have to queue to do our washing here! The Technical Office is also on this floor. Yannick, the chief technician, has a shower for himself as he sleeps in a room on the ground floor in the quiet tower to be close to the generators and boilers in case they need quick servicing.

A large walkway that doubles up as our entrance connects the noisy and quiet towers. Here we hang up our coats and store our shoes and other outside gear.

Medical room. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Barbero

Over to the quiet tower, on the ground floor is the hospital with the doctors room (in our case the doctor is also the station leader), the pharmacy, the operating theatre with a dentist’s chair (we hope we never have to use it!) and the rest of the equipment we need if someone gets hurt. Next to all this is the mail room with two computers for Skype and so on, and a telephone cabin which is hidden under the stairs.

Albane's room. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Barbero

On the first floor we have the crew quarters with 16 rooms. Three rooms are unoccupied this season so we installed a computer with Skype in one of the empty rooms. The bathrooms, toilets and a washing room are here as well. The washing room is full of sheets, an ironing board and suitcases and so on.

Lastly the second floor holds our laboratories (astronomy, glaciology, seismology, atmosphere physics, geomagnetism, biomedical etc.) and the radio room where we can talk to the other Antarctic bases.

Laboratory. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A.Barbero

Each tower has an access hatch to the roof. The noisy tower flies the Italian, French and Greek flags (ESA researcher Evangelos is from Greece, the rest of us are French or Italian). The roof of the quiet tower is more crowded as I store my hydrogen bottles up there for safety. I climb up to the roof often to open the bottles for my research. Up here you will also find antennas, satellite dishes and sometimes, Yann and Christophe install cameras for their astronomy photos.

Each tower has an emergency stairway and special emergency exits that looks like socks that fold out of the base. We jump into them to escape quickly in an emergency.

That concludes the tour of my house. Next time I will show you our ‘garden’…

Recycle! Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A.Barbero

Posted in Albane Barbero, Concordia, Food | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The kingdom of light is about to end

Posted on 07/05/2013 by julien

Last Sunday the Sun disappeared below the Antarctic horizon not to return for over three months. The crew at Concordia research station will live and work under artificial light in complete isolation.

Last Concordia sunset. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Litterio

Antonio Litterio describes the feelings of fear and amazement and suggests you listen to "Wild Side" by Italian musician Roberto Cacciapaglia as you read this entry. This unofficial video of the song was suggested by Roberto himself as a suitable version to play while reading:

Antarctica continues to change as it enters a new phase and the kingdoms that make up this immense territory will follow. The kingdom of light is about to end. The midday sun is now  afraid to show herself on the horizon. She looks shyly at us for a few minutes each day, peering from a distance as if to make sure that we are well before she leaves.

The light offers security, but in a few hours this caring mother will leave us to face the biggest challenge for both the group and individuals during three months of the longest night on the face of the earth.

Anyone who says that Antarctica is devoid of colours has never lived here. It is true that during the Summer the predominant colour is the white of snow in the blinding light of day. But even when the Sun shines high above its kingdom, those who look further than the end of their nose will see many shades of colour reflected in the personalities of the people who are living this experience. The wonder they experience at arrival in the Antarctic dessert and the sadness of departure.

Then there are the colours reserved for those who face the Antarctic winter, the first sunset clouds on the horizon are tinged by incredible hot colours. Then comes the night, the darkness, promising a blackness to put fear in us, but also supplying a great spectacle, the stars, the Milky Way and something even more amazing, that my eyes had never seen before.

Concordia in the dark. Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Litterio

It is night, the few people around me on the base are in the office, the new kingdom is ruled by the King and Queen of silence. An incredible event is waiting for me out there. I finish writing some e-mails and decide to go to sleep, but before I do I look out of the window and in the midst of the clear black sky, dotted with a myriad of stars, I see a strange light. A strange cloud that seems to be coloured green, but no... that is not a cloud.

There is no time to lose, I run like the wind to prepare. Adrenaline is rushing through my body, my desire to see this show is overwhelming. I catapult through the entrance as I put on my outdoor clothes, my only light is a headlamp I have with me. I turn it off and I look up to the sky and there, suspended over my head, is an incredible display, a long and winding trail that extends from the horizon. A green, living, moving thing. My visor clouds up and I take it off. My eyes do not hurt as they get burned by the cold, but even if you do not feel pain in Antarctica, at -65°C, you know it does not mean that the eyes are not suffering.

I stay there watching that light high-in-the-sky for a bit longer. Once back inside and tucked in under the blankets, all sleep leaves the room and the insomnia of astonishment takes over. I cannot relax after the most incredible view my eyes have ever witnessed, my first Aurora.

Aurora Australis Credits: IPEV/PNRA-A. Litterio

Posted in Antonio Litterio, Weather | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments

Atmospheric science in Antarctica

Posted on 26/04/2013 by julien

Credits: IPEV/PNRA-Christophe

Glaciologist Albane Barbero gives a run-down of what she does at Concordia. While we live in more comfortable environments, Albane works seven-day weeks in sub-zero conditions to understand how humankind is changing our planet. She is extremely busy as the list below is only an excerpt from full blog in French.

I work for the Glaciology and environment geophysics laboratory in Grenoble, France, on many scientific projects. Continue reading →

Posted in Albane Barbero, Science, Weather | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Call for doctors

Posted on 25/04/2013 by julien

This year's Concordia crew are settling in and getting ready for the long night. In two weeks time the Sun will dissapear for four months.

ESA announced they are looking for next year's research doctor to work in Antarctica. Think you have what it takes, and have a medical degree? Apply here and tell your doctor friends. More information on the ESA website.

Posted in Concordia, Science | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Antarctica wants to reclaim its space

Posted on 09/04/2013 by julien

Credits: IPEV/PNRA A. Litterio

This blog entry is written by this year's electronics technician at Concordia, Antonio Litterio. Antonio suggests listening to music by Italian pianist Roberto Cacciapaglia as you read to set the mood. Today is Antonio's birthday and Roberto Cacciapaglia allowed us to post his music and even wrote this birthday message for Antonio: 

"I have read with great emotion your words on the blog. I'm happy that music can be a way to feel closer to unknown people that are doing so many different things.
I have a great admiration for what you are doing and I would like to tell you my joy and to do my best wishes, Antonio, for this birthday full of wonders.

A big hug

Roberto Cacciapaglia"

Hit play, and listen to Meraviglia as you read Antonio's blog entry (music starts at 1:30): 

Continue reading →

Posted in Antonio Litterio, Concordia, Weather | 16 Comments

Concordia Wonders

Posted on 05/04/2013 by julien

ESA-sponsored medical doctor Vangelis Kaimakamis continues his blog entry on science and celebrations and answers some reader comments:

Aurora Australis. Credits: ESA/IPEV/PNRA Y. Reinert & E. Kaimakamis

I would like to begin this post by  thanking you all for the continuous support to our mission either by reading or liking this blog or by leaving your comments to posts. Your encouraging words are an inspiration for us all! To answer some questions from previous comments, we use the refrigerators to keep products inside the main building frozen, as the temperature in the base is usually between +21 and +23 degrees Celsius, so there is a need keep some food cool! When we need to store material such as biological samples or ice samples, we put them in special containers outside and the ambient temperatures do the job cost-free!

Continue reading →

Posted in Evangelos Kaimakamis, Food, Science, Weather | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Yukimarimo

Posted on 22/03/2013 by julien

First sunset. Credits: ESA/IPEV/PNRA - A. Barbero

Translated excerpts from Albane Barbero's blog in French on snow formations and taking out the rubbish:

Tuesday, February 12: first day of winter. It is very quiet upstairs in the labs, later I understand why: the boys installed a games room and refurbished the dining room. the summer dining room has become the games room (with billiards, table football, ping-pong and darts) and the living room has been turned into a dining room with one large table for the winter crew, just like home! It’s great! In the evening, we experience our first sunset and we all stay up to watch the sun disappear below the horizon. Continue reading →

Posted in Albane Barbero, Concordia, Logistics, Medical, Weather | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Recycling water in Concordia

Posted on 15/03/2013 by julien

During their months in isolation the Concordia crew will be using recycled water processed from a unit developed with the polar institutes IPEV and PNRA and based on knowledge gained by ESA’s MELiSSA project. The project is a great of example of cooperation between Concordia and ESA. ESA’s Brigitte Lamaze explains all:

Installation. Credits: ESA

MELiSSA has been working for over 20 years to create self-sustaining eco-systems to support life indefinitely in a closed environment. Water processing, whereby all water is captured and purified to be consumed again, is part of the technologies needed to achieve this goal.

In an average day a human being or astronaut will, metabolically, consume about 1 kg of oxygen, 1 kg of food and 3 kg of water, so water recycling is an important aspect for planning long-term expeditions. The more we recycle, less consumables are need to be transported on a mission, be it to the International Space Station or Concordia, cutting costs and freeing transport for scientific experiments and equipment. Continue reading →

Posted in Concordia | 1 Comment