30 November 2021

This is why we are here:

 https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2021/science-at-the-cusp-nasa-rocket-to-study-mysterious-area-above-the-north-pole

Today, we head back up the mountain for the final practice.  We'll get everything ready to go, establish communications, there will be a practice count at the range, and we will all determine that we are ready to go tomorrow when the launch window opens.  Since tomorrow looks to be the clearest skies for awhile, fingers crossed.  

A very productive practice.  Several issues resolved.  Everyone is ready for a launch tomorrow.  Of course winds are predicted for the launch site.  

Some pretty aurora today.

The moon is still up a little too much.

27-28-29 November 2021

 A pretty windy and snowy Saturday.  Despite that, up toward the grocery store there were a couple speakers set up on the walk path blaring Christmas music, with people dancing around.  

Sunday is cold, dark and very windy.  Should be interesting up on the mountain.... and it was.  Safely back down and looking forward to a good dinner.  Monday is another day off and then a practice day on Tuesday, the day before the launch window opens on December 1.  When I was here in 2014, we launched on the first day of the window.  You never know, it could happen again!

Monday weather is about the same.  Cold, dark, windy.  There seems to be a theme...  They lit the Christmas tree on Sunday and it looks very festive in town.

26 November 2021

Changing of the guard, today, with one person heading to Ny-Ålesund and one returning from Ny-Ålesund.  We are taking the day off to be able to do airport runs.  Really pretty plane that makes the trip.

When you arrive to the airport, you know exactly where you are in the world.

Founded and owned by Kings Bay AS, Ny-Ålesund was originally established as a mining community in 1916.  Coal was extracted from 1916 to 1929 and a fishing station and a hotel were established between 1930 and 1940.  During WWII, everyone on Svalbard was evacuated.  Coal mining operations started again straight after the war, but were hindered by a series of major accidents.  Mining operations ended in 1963 after a major accident on November 5, 1962, where 21 people died.  Since the 1960s, research has been the main activity.

Ny-Ålesund has been the starting point for many famous polar expeditions, including Roald Amundsen's and Umberto Nobile's journey to the North Pole.  The "Amundsen mast" is one of the many cultural heritage remains that can be observed, alongside Svalbard's largest concentration of protected buildings.

With wind gusts expected to be up to 30 mph on Saturday, we've decided to hunker down for the day and head back up on Sunday.  We have a practice count on Tuesday morning so loose ends to finish up and we'll be ready.

With the wind today, it's feeling like -20 so I can't imagine what it will feel like in gale force winds.  Nippy, for sure.  Very grateful for my toasty new parka.

25 November 2021

 Happy Thanksgiving from Longyearbyen!  Fish and chips will probably be the dinner of choice.  

We had another good day up on the mountain.  All the Ethernet and power cables were installed and tested.  Not too windy, today, so it only feels like -10 or so.  Off come the long underwear!  The road up the mountain is good enough to drive all the way in the truck.  That really saves time.

Some pictures of the deck we are set up on.  

The "control room":

The view toward Longyearbyen

Thanksgiving dinner at Barentz Pub.  Shepherds Pie was delicious.

24 November 2021

Busy day on the mountain, today.  Set up the tripods and ran the cables out.  Our trip up was in the BeltWagon.

We're set up on a long deck, so it can get pretty windy.  

Today was very clear with lots of stars and occasional aurora.  

This picture is from the University and you can see why reflective vests are so important.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving.  No family with us and no turkey.  Not the first time.  As long as we're home by Christmas!!

23 November 2021

I'm here as part of the camera support for the Cusp Region EXperiment 2A (C-REX-2A), a NASA sounding rocket mission that will release 20 tracer clouds into the ionosphere above the Greenland Sea.  The launch window is 01-16 December.  We have a camera site here at the Kjell Henricksen Observatory (KHO) and there will be another at Ny-Ålesund, a center for international arctic scientific research and environmental monitoring.  The third camera site will be aboard a NASA Gulfstream jet that has been reconfigured for cameras instead of people.

Yesterday was a productive day at the camera site.  We checked all the settings on our laptops and cameras and assembled the camera box shelves.  Because of the cold, our cameras are housed on shelves in heated boxes.  A few hiccups along the way (we tripped the breaker twice) but overall it went extremely well.  We were not allowed to go outside, since there was no one there to protect us from potential polar bears, so were unable to set up our tripods and run cables.  Our final team member arrives today and we will begin the outside work on Wednesday.  Our first course of action is to climb up onto the deck to shovel it off.  At this point, there is a drift against the door that prevents us from pushing it open.  

The road to the observatory is still clear enough that we were able to drive all the way up, yesterday.  The day before, we used the Hagglund Beltwagon, a tracked vehicle with a personnel carrier attached.  

Yay!  "Black Week" here, so I was able to buy a parka for 15% off.  

21 November 2021

Sunday.  Not much planned.  Hoping to purchase a new parka.  I've had mine for many years and have noticed that the down just isn't doing as well this year.  So, a new puffy coat for me if I can find one small enough.

At least my feet are warm.  Not as cute as the fox socks but at least they have snowflakes on them.

Daytime Aurora!!!  This was taken around 2:45 in the afternoon.

And later, on the way to dinner.

Woke up around 2 am and checked the all-sky image Svalbard aurora-live-camera so put a layer over my pajamas and went outside.

20 November 2021

 A day off.  Here are a few pictures from the walk around town.  

SVALBAR.  A favorite dinner place.

Loved the colors around the moon.

Went to dinner at Kroa.  Saw these reindeer on the way to the restaurant.

Kroa

19 November 2021

Eclipse!  A few of us braved the cold to try to photograph it.  

 This is over our guesthouse:

Couldn't resist these socks.  Here I am, in Longyearbyen, Svalbard, buying socks made in my hometown of Northfield, Vermont. 

The exciting life at a remote camera site.  750 feet of Ethernet, left over from the last launch attempt two years ago.  Yes, it was all sorted and yes it all still works.  Many thanks to Jon, Matt, and Don for their assistance!

We gave up on working outside.  The wind was incredibly strong and we were all at risk of frostbite.  Snow up to your hips.  Me trying to walk in the footsteps of tall men and not succeeding.  I took many a tumble and finally decided to make my own path.  Luckily we have another week to set up and are hoping for more favorable conditions.  I find myself thinking that this will be much easier during the day but of course it's still dark, so that doesn't help.  

A late dinner at the Barentz Gastropub, with pizza and beer, really helped.

No trip up to the the observatory over the weekend, so we will begin again on Monday.  

17-18 November 2021

 I passed my COVID test with flying colors.  This morning we made the trip from Oslo to Longyearbyen and arrived to total dark (2 pm) and blowing snow.  Knock you over type blowing.  My travel companions:

Don will be here at KHO with me and Matt will continue on to Ny-Ålesund.  

I think the view, when you fly into Tromsø, is the prettiest I've seen.  

Once here, Jon and I walked up to the walk street to buy some food for our rooms.  I was absolutely successful.

When we returned to the guesthouse, there were two reindeer outside.  They're really not afraid of you but will walk away if you approach too close.  

Tonight we'll head to our favorite bar/restaurant for dinner.  Svalbar.  

16 November 2021

Day two of quarantine.  The worst thing that has happened so far was not getting my breakfast delivered yesterday morning.  Turns out I didn't have the little table outside my door that indicated a quarantine room.  Now that I have the table, I haven't missed a meal.  It was actually delivered very quickly once I pointed out that I hadn't been fed.  They felt REALLY bad.  I probably need to miss a few, at this point.  The food is TOO tasty and there's a lot of it.  But it IS something to break up the day and I look forward to each meal.  I've heard from a fellow traveler, on his way to the launch site, who chose to go the true quarantine hotel route.  It's cheaper but he's virtually a prisoner.  There's a guard at the end of the hall who has to approve a two hour walk every day.  Here, we're free to come and go as long as we keep our distance from people.

Thank goodness for the Discovery channel.  I'm learning a lot about fishing for crabs, gold mining at the bottom of the ocean, drug sniffing dogs, border patrol, New Zealand customs agents.... The list goes on.  One show I've seem promos for is Naked Attraction.  It's a British dating show where people see a lineup of potential dates whose naked bodies are gradually revealed to them, from the feet up.  The person making the selection has to get naked before they can choose.  Good Grief.  

Had a nice run this afternoon.  It was much needed exercise.  The temperature was in the 40's, so very comfortable.

Tomorrow is test day!  Very exciting.

13-14 November 2021

After a long day, I finally arrived to Oslo. Following an obligatory COVID test at the airport, I was released to my quarantine hotel. Now I have three days before I can retest. Meals will be delivered to my room and I’m supposed to stay away from people. THEN, I can finally continue on to Svalbard. 

A lot of paperwork was required for entry into the country, since US tourists are not allowed in yet. An official invitation, proof of vaccination, proof of negative test prior to coming, and assorted other registrations. After all that, the customs agent just assumed I was visiting family, since I have a Scandinavian surname 🙄 Visiting family, with a home to self-quarantine in, is allowed. It’s all very complicated and the rules change frequently. Not the best time for foreign travel, but I have feet on the ground and after I retest on Wednesday I’m free to go.