As the ice continues to thin and creep closer to McMurdo, more and more visitors are showing themselves around town. The first sighting was the killer skua, then the sleepy Adelie down by the transition, and just a few days ago a whole flock (are penguins considered a flock?) of emperors was spotted out on the runway.


If weather cooperates, I should be heading out to Taylor Dome tomorrow. A few things on my to-do list for the crew are: build some boxes, a few tables, rig up some sleds for pulling instruments and construct a ski-mounted shower. It should be pretty luxurious, with a cedar floor and a nice little bench to sit on. Hopefully they'll get plenty of sun to heat the water... I think that's about the last place on earth I'd want a cold shower.

The photo above is from an earlier ITASE voyage.

~G