The last C-17 flight of mainbody deployment approaches for landing on the sea ice runway. The planewas used routinely this year to bring passengers and cargo to McMurdo. More than 500 people arescheduled to join the station’s current population of about 720. C-17s are expected to eventuallyreplace the older C-141s, some of which were built in the early 1960s. “The aircraft are older than someof the pilots,’’ Air Guard Chief Master Sgt. Charlie Lucia said. Photo by Beth Minneci.

Big ol’ jet airliner

A galley by any other namepage 5

Antarctic forefathersnever forgetpage 6

A life and a death on the Icepage 10

Science seasonrounduppage 9

I N S I D E

TheAntarctic SunOctober 22, 2000www.polar.org/antsun

Published during the austral summer at McMurdo Station, Antarctica, for the United States Antarctic Program

“Lube my ‘dozer.”- Heavy equipment

operator during flight toMcMurdo responding toGA’s question: What do

you think they’ll haveme do down there?

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

with minds of their ownDaring science mission targets giant slabs of ice

Berg

s

By Josh LandisSun staff

A handful of giant icebergs are hangingout right around the corner from RossIsland. As far as icebergs go, they haven’tdone a whole lot since breaking off theRoss Ice Shelf. But a lot of people arekeeping a close eye on them because ofwhat they could teach us about bergs andtheir interactions with the environment –and for the impact they could have on theentire U.S. Antarctic Program.

This summer, a team of researchers willfly by helicopter and attempt to tag two ofthem with weather stations and GPS track-ing devices. They’re hoping the data theyget will help them decipher the slow danceof these and other super-sized icebergs.

It started with B-15.B-15 was a tabular berg that broke off

the ice shelf in March. It measured 180miles long and 25 miles wide – more thantwice the size of Delaware and was proba-

see Iceberg on page 4

2

Compiled from news and wire services

Scott controversy revived by Evans letter

London – Antarcticexploration’s great-est controversy, theScott tragedy, hasbeen refueled by theappearance of a letterfrom his second incommand deploringScott's decision tohaul “150 pounds oftrash” to his party’sdeaths.

The letter, written byLt. Edward Evans,

comments harshly on Capt. Scott’s decisionfor the defeated South Pole party to carrygeological specimens and records with themto the last.

By contrast, Evans, who accompa-nied Scott to within 150 miles (241km) of the pole before turning back,had ordered his group’s specimens beleft behind when they ran into difficul-ty on their return journey.

“It seems to me extraordinarythat...they stuck to all their records andspecimens, we dumped ours at the firstcheck,” wrote Evans. “I must say Iconsidered the safety of my partybefore the value of the records & extrastores – not eatable. Apparently Scottdid not. His sledge contained 150 lbs(68 kg) of trash.”

Evans’s letter was written to friendsa few days before the expedition shipTerra Nova arrived in New Zealandwith the first news of the Scott tragedy.It appeared for auction by Christie’s inLondon on September 21 in a cata-

logue of polar artifacts.Evans claims to be “not criticizing,

but deploring this fact,” but he remarksthat his own records were recovered –as Scott’s would have been.

Christie’s adds that there was rela-tively little value in the specimensthemselves.

“Scott and Wilson’s decision not toleave their specimens behind has moreoften been advanced as evidence of ahigh scientific spirit of the expedition,”the auction’s catalogue notes. “In fact,as Scott's route stayed very close tothat of Shackleton’s 1909 polarattempt, his specimens added very lit-tle to earlier findings.”

This view is not universal though.The party’s geological specimens wereat that time of “immense value to sci-ence and understanding the continent,”wrote Stephen Martin in his 1996book, A History of Antarctica.

In the letter, Evans also speculatesthat scurvy may have influenced the

Southern Party'shealth. This in itselfa departure fromthe orthodoxy ofthe time, in whichScott wrote beforehis death that“every detail (was)worked out to per-fection.”

Says Christie’s: “itis extraordinary to

find any member of the expedition, andparticularly such a senior one, makingany adverse comment on Scott’s deci-sions after his death.” It estimates theletter will bring $2,200 to $2,900 atauction.

Polar ice tongue disintegrates Hobart, Australia – One of eastern

Antarctica's best-known glacial “tongues”of floating ice has disintegrated in a fur-ther dramatic reshaping of the continent.

The Ninnis Glacier Tongue, whichmay once have extended up to 87 miles(140 km) to sea, is no more, according toDr. Rob Massom, of the Antarctic Co-Operative Research Centre at theUniversity of Tasmania.

A progressive retreat of the glacierflowing off the Antarctic coast due southof Tasmania culminated in a major calv-ing event. Almost the entire tongue brokeoff in one iceberg estimated at 386 squaremiles (1,000 square km), which soonafterwards split in two.

The Ninnis event, discovered by newanalysis of U.S. and Canadian satelliteimages recorded in January, is the latest tobe reported in a spectacular series ofsuper iceberg break-offs in 2000.

In March nearly two-thirds of the RossIce Shelf broke away in several pieces, oneof them 182 miles (293 km) long andaround 3,861 square miles (10,000 squarekm) big, according to the U.S. National IceCenter. Then in early May, three massivebergs with a combined length of around 194miles (312 km) broke off the Ronne IceShelf in the Weddell Sea, the center said.

The Ninnis Glacier is named afterBelgrave Ninnis, the Heroic Age polarexplorer who disappeared down a deepcrevasse with his dog team while sledg-ing the area in a party led by Australia'sDouglas Mawson in 1912.

Mawson wrote that the glacier tongue“was seen to extend far out into the icestrewn sea.” It was later estimated by hisparty to be about 87 miles (140 km) inlength. ■

Rodney Marks, anAustralian research-ing astrophysics atthe South Pole, diedFriday, May 12. He was 32.Marks was spend-

ing the austral winterat the Amundsen-

Scott South Pole Station. He worked for the Smithsonian

Astrophysical Observatory, on theAntarctic Submillimeter Telescope andRemote Observatory (ASTRO) – aproject of the University of Chicago'sCenter for Astrophysical Research in

Antarctica (CARA). The telescopedetected radiation emanating fromstar-forming regions in space.

Like everyone who works at Pole,Marks passed a battery of medical andpsychological tests before beingallowed to winter.

After his death, Marks’ coworkersconstructed a wooden casket decorat-ed with a brass inlay of the constella-tion Scorpio. They placed his body ina temporary grave near the geograph-ic South Pole, where he could restunder the stars he came south toobserve.

He previously spent the winter at

Pole during the 1997-98 research sea-son as part of CARA’s South PoleInfrared Explorer (SPIREX) project.

Marks had also been an alternative-rock musician in Australia, and playedwith bands that formed at Pole duringthe summer and winter seasons.

The exact cause of Marks’ deathcannot be determined until his body isremoved from Amundsen-ScottStation and flown off the continent forautopsy.

Marks’ death was the second in theU.S. Antarctic Program this year. JohnG. Biesiada, 43, a Canadian citizen,,died at McMurdo Station on Jan. 8. ■

Australian scientist dies during Pole winter

Capt. Robert F.Scott aboard the

Discovery in New Zealand.

Lt. EdwardEvans

News In BRIEF

3

the week in weather

around Antarctica

McMurdo Station residents have seen firefighters in turnout gear hustling aroundtown several times in the last week. The first call in especially-active Building 155 wason Wednesday night for an electrical fire that caused smoke in the galley, according toFire Chief Dave Turley.

The boiler room’s sprinkler system alarm has been malfunctioning, Turley said,prompting fire crews to rush to the main building’s doors on Thursday and Friday.

“I think that building’s cursed this year,’’Turley said.Turley said people might be startled to see firefighters carrying axes, but that the res-

cue crew is following procedure.“Never get off the rig without an entry tool,” he said.This week, the fire department handled nine false alarms – eight in 155 – four fires and a

medical emergency. It also responded to a fire drill at Scott Base on Tuesday. ■

Firefighters respond to alarms, find fire

The Antarctic Sun , part of the United StatesAntarctic Program, is funded by the National

Science Foundation. Opinions and conclusions

expressed in the Sun are notnecessarily those of the

Foundation.Use: Reproduction and distribution are

encouraged with acknowledgment of sourceand author.

Publisher: Valerie Carroll,Communications manager, Raytheon PolarServices

Senior Editor: Josh LandisEditors: Beth Minneci

Jeff InglisContributions are welcome. Contact the

Sun at AntSun@polar.org. In McMurdo, visitour office in Building 155 or dial 2407.

Web address: www.polar.org/antsun

• http://users4.50megs.com/kuwona/isindex.htmlGW Krauss's site for musicians in Antarctica.

• http://www.home.pon.net/quin/antarctica/Doug Quin’s page on his sound art work inAntarctica.

• http://www.afp.zip.com.au/bgspole.htmlTom Carlson’s bluegrass at the South Pole.

Music in Antarctica

Beth Minnecihas worked as areporter, photog-rapher andgraphic designerfor newspapersin Florida, Maine,Massachusettsand Colorado.

This is her first season in Antarctica.

Josh Landisis back for his second season at the Sun.After leaving theIce in February, hetraveled throughSoutheast Asiaand worked at

CNNfn and Good Morning America.His career in news started 10 yearsago at a paper called the Hullabaloo.

Jeff Inglis livesin AddisonCounty, Vermont.He has a mas-ter’s degree injournalism andhas worked insmall communi-ties in the U.S.

and New Zealand. He is glad to beback for his second season at theAntarctic Sun!

Tues., Thurs., Sat: 7:30-8:30 a.m.; 11 a.m.-1 p.m. 5:30-7:30 p.m.Wed., Fri: 11:30 a.m.-1p.m.; 5:30-7:30 p.m.Sun.: 11 a.m.-4 p.m.:THE STORE IS OPEN

McMurdo StationHigh: 5F/-15CLow: -25F/-32CWindchill: -83F/-64CWind: 40 mph/65 kph

Palmer StationHigh: 33F/1CLow: 24F/-4CWindchill: 1F/-17CWind: 17 mph/27 kph

South Pole StationHigh: -52F/-47CLow: -75F/-60CWindchill: -142F/-96CWind: 36 mph/58 kph

around the world

Christchurch, New ZealandHigh: 83F/28CLow: 44F/6CUlan Bator, MongoliaHigh: 36F/2CLow: 16F/-9CFairbanks, AlaskaHigh: 20F/-7CLow: 11F/-12C

Nadi, FijiHigh: 83F/28CLow: 69F/21CCairo, EgyptHigh: 81F/27CLow: 66F/19CRichland, MontanaHigh: 54F/12CLow: 31F/0C

Saturday’s numbers

4 Iceberg

A recent satellite image shows the icebergs near Ross Island. All names starting with "B-15"were originally part of one berg. B-20 is the youngest berg. It was knocked off the ice shelfby B-15A. Image courtesy of Matthew Lazzara, Antarctic Meteorological Research Center,University of Wisconsin.

• Before it broke apart, B-15 was about the size of Jamaica and weighed an estimated 4 trillion tons.

• If melted over all the arable land in the world, the water frozen in B-15 (now B-15A and B-15B) would measure more than6 inches.

• Most icebergs that calve off the Ross Ice Shelf arethought to be a thousand feet thick or more, only 10 percent of which floatsabove the surface.

• A giant berg that broke off the Ross Ice Shelf in 1987 still survives after running aground south ofAustralia.

• For the latest pictures see:http://uwamrc.ssec.wisc.edu/amrc/iceberg.html

Big bergs

bly the largest iceberg ever seen. Theonly other contender was spied in 1956,but its size could not be confirmed.

“B-15 is simply the largest floatingobject we’ve ever witnessed,” saidDoug MacAyeal, Professor ofGeophysical Sciences at the Universityof Chicago and lead investigator on thetagging mission. “It’s like an aircraftcarrier that could take the entire airforce. It’s hard to imagine the size ofit.”

Instead of drifting north through theRoss Sea like most pieces that come offthe shelf, B-15 stayed close to homeand eventually broke into severalpieces, now called B-15A, B-15B, etc.(see map).

MacAyeal’s project will look at thedifferent ways in which large and smallbergs behave – and give clues as to howthe continent would react to a warmerworld.

“If we want to know how Antarcticawill respond to climate warming, whynot ride along when a piece ofAntarctica goes north to where it is nat-urally warmer,” he asked.

“This is nature’s experimentalopportunity to see how a chunk of iceresponds to changed environmentalconditions.”

The lumbering giants, named B-

15A, -B, -C, and -D (see above picture),have meandered along with a few otherbergs near the edge of the ice shelf ascurrents, tides and winds compete forcontrol over their fate. Recently, B-15Acollided with part of the shelf and cre-ated a new iceberg, B-20.

Currents have had the biggest effect

on their movement, according to StanJacobs, of Columbia University'sLamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. Hesays the bergs are slowly making theirway north, but could be around for along time.

“If they go aground on the continen-tal shelf, they could last many years,”said Jacobs. It all depends on theircourse. “Once they get out into the cir-cumpolar current, most icebergs proba-

bly do not last more than a year.”There’s one place nobody wants to

see a large iceberg go: McMurdoSound. One of the smallest in thegroup, B-20, is within sight of the northside of Ross Island.

If B-20 – or the larger B-15A – endsup in the path of the icebreaker and re-supply vessels, the impact on opera-tions at McMurdo and South Pole sta-tions would be major. It would preventthe annual arrival of millions of gallonsof heating, power and airplane fuel, andmillions of pounds of cargo.

“We’d have to make significantadjustments to our planned programactivities,” National ScienceFoundation representative DaveBresnahan said.

Fortunately, the experts watching B-15A and nearby icebergs don’t thinkthere’s much chance of a worst-casescenario.

“The chances of B-20 or B-15Ablocking the sound are getting slimmerand slimmer,” said MacAyeal. “Oncethe Ross Sea (is clear of winter ice),everyone expects the icebergs to makemore progress to the north.”

When asked how concerned he wasthat one of the bergs might enterMcMurdo’s shipping lanes, Jacobs sim-ply replied, “Not very.” ■

From page 1

“It’s like an aircraft carrier thatcould take the entire Air Force. It’s

hard to imagine the size of it."

- Doug MacAyeal, University of Chicago

How can we make Antarctica a safer continent?Highw y1oonnee“Provide better condoms.”

Logan “Bear” Borlandgalley worker

“Send everyone home.”Lee Carpenter

heavy shop

“Sipe the bunny boots, orturn the heat up."

Joe Harriganinformation technology and

communications

“Send the crevasses home.”(they’re home)

“Oh. Buy everyone big shoes withfront-mounted radar so they

won’t fall in.”Steven “Beaver” Cohen

cook

GalleyÕs gone...It’s now called the

“dining facility.” More than the name

has changed.

Dining workers are experimenting onMcMurdo Station residents. Withthe opening of the new dining facil-ity in Building 155, food servicestaff have been trying out new configurationsof equipment and different traffic flows.

The new space opened in mid-August,just before Winfly, and eaters and servershave both shared confusion at its use, saidfood services manager Lester Bracey.

“Initially we didn’t know what everythingwas supposed to do,” he said.

Some of the kiosks on which food isserved can be rearranged, which allows forflexibility. The new structure, though, isdesigned to be less of a cafeteria line andmore like a food court.

“It’s supposed to scatter people around,”Bracey said. “You’re just supposed to movein and out.”

With fewer bays, the kitchen staff canspend more time preparing food.

“They’re actually able to focus on a bet-ter-quality product for fewer slots,” Braceysaid.

Not all of the food-serving areas are openyet. With new staff and a new facility, they’removing slowly to be sure things run smooth-ly, said Bracey. “Over Winfly we moved

things around a lot.”But some things are not working out so

well, such as the dish-return area.“We’ve got a bit of a traffic jam,” he said.

However, people are responding to that bystaggering their arrival times for meals andleaving earlier to get to work on time.

There was no logjam when it came to con-struction. Things went very well, said winterconstruction and maintenance manager MikeKelly.

The first task was to open up the space.“The first month was almost completely

tearing things out,” Kelly said.He said new features of the dining area

include ventilation equipment that exchangesthe entire volume of the room 42 times eachhour, skylights with motorized shades thatcan allow light in or seal it out, and radiant,under-floor heating, which uses the same gly-col-based waste-heat recovery system as therest of the building.

The construction crew numbered any-where between 15 and 25 people, Kelly said.But even with all the demands of the job,Kelly said they only had to work one Sunday

of overtime to finish the work on schedule.Several people, Kelly said, were truly

crucial to the success of the construction,which is the first major winter project com-pleted on time in several years. Kelly credit-ed electrician Dale Role, plumber PaulRogers, metal-worker Fred Cunningham,and Ken Robinson and his crew of sheet-rockers.

“We were lucky to get people who can dothis quality of work,” he said.

Kelly also gave credit to Vince Scopa,who coordinated the project. Scopa, Kellysaid, became known as a hard-drivingboss, but one the crew wanted to workwith.

“They jokingly called this (building)‘Cellblock 155.’ But they all wanted to workin Cellblock 155,” Kelly said.

With 358 seats, the new facility holds 60more seats than the old galley.

Some things have been left to be finishedthis summer season. For example, there willbe clear glass blocks placed in the railings tobetter separate the sections of the diningspace. ■

Left: John Harris sets down tile in what will be the new serving area. Right: Dylan Roan workson the sub-floor heating system which keeps the new room warm. Photos courtesy of Mike Kelly.

By Jeff InglisSun staff

5

6Through the American Polar Society, Antarctica’s forefathers rebuild the

“A lot of us didn’t stay in touch until we had retired

and could focus on things other thanday-to-day life.”

- Dick Bowers, South Pole construction chief

Far right; Bowers examines themirrored globe later set atop thestriped “South Pole.” Right: Thatglobe was broken but replaced.

Today, a mirrored globe is one ofthe hallmarks of the South Pole.

“I felt I had a responsibility to let other young people know aboutAntarctica. Just to remember was not enough.’’

-Richard Chappell, professor and scientist, on his 1959 book “Antarctic Scout”'

At 18, Richard Chappell was chosen to represent the Boy Scouts of America in Antarctica. Histrip was 14 months in 1957 and 1958. At 20, Chappell wrote a book about his experience.Above: Chappell, far left, plays piano with “Cumbie’s Combo,” home-spun entertainment on aSaturday night.

By Beth MinneciSun Staff

A ntarctica’s old-timers weren’tmuch different from currentstation residents.They had a desire to be a part

of something great, to work hardand to have a good time.

But what separates us from thefolks who built the stations inwhich we live is – of course – themore primitive living conditionsthey endured day-to-day.

So now, like trench soldiers,the forefathers of the UnitedStates’ Antarctic stations gettogether once in a while to relivethe old days. They also like tolearn about what’s new in science.

Every other year, veterans ofOperation Deep Freeze – whichprovided support for theInternational Geophysical Year, aglobal dedication to studying theearth that started in 1957 – comefrom points across the nation for areunion and lecture series. Theyare members of the AmericanPolar Society, a club that’s sort offraternal and academic thatincludes them and others. Themost recent gathering was inBoulder earlier this month.

“A lot of us didn’t stay in touchuntil we had retired and could focuson things other than day-to-daylife,” said Dick Bowers, a man nowin his early 70s, who led construc-tion of the first permanent SouthPole station. Bowers was one of 18to first winter-over there in 1957.“It’s like going back to see yourcollege roommates, you know?"

These men paved the way forscientific expeditions in severalspots on Antarctica. Survival wastough; living facilities were oftenspartan. Progress was painstaking.But it wasn’t all that bad.

Richard Chappell, 62, spent14 months exploring Antarctica,starting in 1957. He remembershow the isolation tore down inhi-bitions. That winter, six men wholifted weights together gave eachother Mohawk haircuts.

National Geographic Society photo

File photo

Photo courtesy of Richard Chappell

Bonds they built on the IceBonds they built on the Ice

continued on next page

“Since the age of eight I haddreamed of someday going toAntarctica. This was a dreamcome true.”

- Dave Bakerdog sled driver in Antarctica,

7

Far right: The chapel wasonce a Quonset hut with

a steeple. Men leave afterattending a memorial for

a service member who losthis life after falling through

the ice off Ross Island.Right: The Chapel of the

Snows today.

Besides, traveling and working inAntarctica was a dream come true. Manyof the Deep Freeze men were militaryconstruction workers or pilots who hadwanted since they were children to visitthe bottom of the earth.

Retired Navy Capt. Dave Baker wasone of them. Antarctica turned out to be ahighlight of his career.

Forget about the time when snowburied metal boxes full of their gear, butthe metal detectors they had were uselessbecause the batteries were at another base.

So what if they’d at times have ham-mers but no nails or nails but no ham-mers?

And if the only time you could talk toyour family was on ham radio atChristmas while the whole world listenedin – so be it.

“Since the age of eight I had dreamedof someday going to Antarctica,’’ Bakersaid. “This was a dream come true.”

Their mission was to build seven sta-tions and infrastructure for them. Fromthe United States they came across theoceans in big boats. On the Ice theydodged crevasses while moving overuncharted ice fields on foot and in trac-tors.

The pilots stared ahead through windstorms while their feet nearly froze inthe cockpits. In the thin, dry air theypushed, pulled and carried equipmentand building supplies to remote spots ofthe cold, often wet, white, windy conti-nent.

Charlie Bevilacqua was senior builderat McMurdo and a builder of the first per-manent South Pole station. In 1957, he

wintered-over with Bowers at the SouthPole.

Of the historic implications of theirwork, Bevilacqua said, "We had no con-ception of it, whatsoever. It was likedoing another job, doing what you wereassigned to do. We had no conception wewere the first ones to set foot there andstay at the South Pole.”

Bowers was Bevilacqua’s boss. Themen were close, but after the stationswere built they were given new assign-ments. Many then lost touch for decades.

The American Polar Society hasbrought them back together.

“We have meetings and get togeth-er to renew our friendship, that’s thefellowship part of it,’’ Bowers said.“We also like to keep abreast of thescience.” ■

Left: South Pole 40 years agolooked a lot like parts of the station today, far left, except therewas no dome. In the early 1970s,the dome was built to providewind shelter. This South Pole landmark, however, will soon be gone. Construction plans call for its demise.

Crevasses have always been a threat to Antarctic

travelers. The ice chasms wereespecially dangerous then,because large areas of the continent were uncharted.

Far right: A crevasse detector in the 1950s compared to a

modern adaptation, right.

National Geographic Society photo

Photo courtesy of Paul W. Frazier

Photo courtesy of Paul W. Frazier

File photo

File photo

from previous page

8 OUR ANTARCTIC WEEK

Sunday Oct. 22• “Diving Under Antarctic Ice” by Norbert

Wu, 8:15 p.m., Galley

Monday Oct. 23• Movie Night – “Swingers,” 8:15 p.m.,

Galley

Wednesday Oct. 25• October Birthday Bingo, 8 p.m.,

Gallagher’s

Thursday Oct. 26• Film: Encore presentation of “A Short

White Season” by Tom Piwowarski, 7:30p.m., Coffee House

Friday Oct. 27• Karaoke night, 8 p.m., Gallagher’s

Saturday Oct. 28• Halloween Party, 8 p.m., Gym; costume

judging at 10:30 p.m.

WaterWinter averageUse: 25,000-30,000gallons per dayDaily usage onOctober 17, 2000:53,000 gallonsPeak summer usage:60,000-70,000 gallonsper dayProduction capacity: 80,000gallons per day

FoodSummer coffee usage: 70 gallons per day

FuelSummer average building fuel use (JP-5):10,000 gallons per daySummer average aircraft fuel use (AN-8): 22,500gallons per day

Liquidsat McMurdo

We just saw aplane. Looks likesummer is here.

Great!!! Gather everyonetogether and letÕs go greetthe people. Maybe this year

we can get a fewmicrowaves and TVs

Ross Island Chronicles By ChicO

By Jeff InglisSun staff

As summer returns to Antarctica, scien-tists and science support staff around thecontinent gear up for the prime researchseason. On the U.S. research vesselsLaurence M. Gouldand Nathaniel B.Palmerand at McMurdo, South Pole andPalmer stations, over 600 researchers willwork on over 130 separate science pro-jects. Here are some of the highlights ofthe upcoming science season:

ITASEThe International Trans-Antarctic

Scientific Expedition will continue itsjourneys in East Antarctica, looking atshallow ice cores, showing climatic datafrom the past 200 years or so.

Most global climatic data shows gener-al trends of warming and cooling throughEarth’s history, according to BernieLettau, the NSF science representative atMcMurdo Station. But climate alsoincludes smaller areas. Global fluctuationis punctuated by more localized changes.“There still have to be regional differ-ences,” Lettau said. ITASE will continueto look at the actual data for the recent his-tory of Antarctica.

SOARThe Support Office for Aerogeophysical

Research will fly over the area of LakeVostok and Russia’s Vostok Station to studythe area more closely. The information will

be used in preparations for further study ofLake Vostok.

“It’s so they can make some educateddecisions about what to do,” said CraryLab supervisor Robbie Score.

The CrudJohn Lyle is studying the McMurdo

Crud, the illness that can strike McMurdoresidents each season. The viruses survivein the air as well as in the sewage outfallinto McMurdo Sound. They are not nativeto the area, and so they affect the waterquality and the wildlife around the station.“What they’re trying to do is see how ourviruses influence the indigenous popula-tions,” Score said.

Sea iceJohn Dempsey of Clarkson University

is studying the structure of sea ice, includ-ing how it forms and how it breaks up. Thegroup is based near the edge of the fast iceof McMurdo Sound.

“They’re cutting a floe out and they’regoing to start a crack and put weights oneither side,” Score said.

Decoding ice coresAteam at South Pole Station is looking

at how atmospheric particles end up in ice-core sediments. Interpreting ice cores,Lettau said, requires an understanding ofhow the layers form. The team, led byDoug Davis of the Georgia Institute ofTechnology, is specifically targeting sulfurchemistry because of the significance of

sulfur deposits in ice.“Sulfates in ice are a primary proxy for

reconstructing the climatic history fromthe core,” Lettau said.

GLOBECThe Southern Ocean Global Ocean

Ecosystems Dynamics study group willspend their first summer looking at krill aspart of a summer-winter-summer set ofcruises to look at the basic element of theAntarctic food chain.

“It is intended to look at the health ofthese various niches in the ocean ecosys-tem,” Lettau said. “What do krill eat whenthey’re under the ice in winter? Are theyhappy there?”

Scott BaseAntarctica New Zealand are supporting

several projects this summer season,including a study of methods of preservingthe historic huts on Hut Point, Cape Evansand Cape Royds. Also this season, ScottBase will see a series of interviewsdesigned to compare people’s expecta-tions about Antarctica and their actual per-ceptions upon arrival, several ecologicaland environmental studies and a study ofAdélie penguin populations at capesCrozier, Royds and Bird, which is one ofseveral collaborative efforts between U.S.and New Zealand scientists. The equip-ment used in the Cape Roberts drillingproject, which was stored on Cape Robertsover the winter, will be returned to ScottBase this season. ■

science ROUNDUP

Esther Song is the station’s psycholo-gist. The position is new this year.

She works for Nicoletti-FlaterAssociates of Denver, the company thatconducts debriefs and evaluations forRaytheon Polar Services. She has adoctorate in psychology from theUniversity of Denver.

Song offers counseling, consultationand workshops on stress management,conflict resolution, trauma debriefingand communication.

Her hours are flexible during work-days in addition to evening office hoursTuesday and Thursday and on Sundays.She will be in Antarctica until February.

To make an appointment, callMedical at x2551, or page Esther at 471,or send her an e-mail atsonghe@mcmurdo.gov.

Cast your vote now by federal absentee ballot

or it will be too late.

Visit the Post Office for forms and details.

Who do youwant for

president?

9

10

When Charlie Bevilacquavolunteered to help theU.S. build its firstAntarctic work stations,

his heart was set on adventureand career advancement.

He got both. But he alsowatched a comrade die andalmost lost his own life.

It was 1955. First Class PettyOfficer Bevilacqua, then 25, wasin the South Pacific working as aU.S. Navy Seabee, which is essen-tially a military construction work-er. After seven years of that, hewas ready for a change of scenery.

When the Navy asked for vol-unteers to work in Antarctica,Bevilacqua threw his hand in theair. No Americans had been tothe South Pole yet; Bevilacquacould be among the first.

“I was so intrigued,’’ he said.“Antarctica wasn’t even fullymapped at this time. I startedreading anything I could. Themore I read, the more I wanted togo down. I didn’t think I’d have achance of going.’’

But in what became known asOperation Deep Freeze, theUnited States was embarking tobuild stations at the South Poleand on Ross Island. Bevilacquawas chosen for his building expe-rience in the South Pacific.

They left in the fall fromRhode Island, passing throughthe Panama Canal and spendinga few days in New Zealand.

Soon they were movingamong icebergs. About 40miles from McMurdo the shipbecame stuck in the thick sea ice.

Ice breakers paved shortpaths, but the ships weren’t aspowerful as today’s. The menbegan to worry.

“ Now we’re going intoJanuary and nothing had beenbuilt at McMurdo,” he said. “Theonly thing that was there wasScott’s hut and 93 of us were sup-posed to winter-over.”

On foot and in tractors theystarted moving on the bay ice.The tractors pulled the sleds thatcarried the building supplies.

The day was cold, but calm.“The ice was far too danger-

ous and cracked and rotten andnot able to handle the weight ofthe tractors,’’ Bevilacqua said.“We really didn’t know what we

were doing.”Soon they were standing in

front of a water-filled crackabout three-feet wide.

The men built a bridge withheavy timber. Bevilacquawalked next to a tractor andstarted to cross.

In an instant the tractor brokethrough the ice, and Bevilacquaand the driver went down. Thedriver and Bevilacqua hollered toeach other: “Jump.”

“I ended up under the ice.Somehow, I clawed my way up

to the surface.”But there was no site of the

driver, U.S. Navy Petty OfficerRichard Williams.

Bevilacqua scanned frantical-ly through the water beneathhim. He was sinking when hiscrewmates pulled him out.

Once on the ice, Bevilacquatore off his boots and clothing and

dove back into the freezing water.“Willy had to be there. I was

there and surfaced and pushed out.But Williams was gone.“I went in and yelled, ‘Here

he is, here he is,’ but it was anempty seat I found. I dove downa few times and wasn’t able tofind Williams.”

Meanwhile, Bevilacqua wasshocked and slipping intohypothermia. His mates pulledhim out a second time.

Eventually, a helicopter tookhim back to the ship. While in

sick bay he felt sorrow and fear.“I was afraid they were not

going to let me winter-over,’’ hesaid. “That was my big fear.”

To protect the crew’s chiefbuilder from criticism forWilliams’ death, the Navy sentthe chief home. “It was absolute-ly not his fault,” Bevilacqua said.

Now he was in charge. Hegot the promotion for which hewas scheduled. During the nextyear he led building crews atMcMurdo and was a builder atthe South Pole.

In honor of Williams,Bevilacqua and the rest of thecrew placed a memorial for himat McMurdo Station. Since thena larger monument has beenbuilt, Our Lady of the Snowsabove Hut Point, overlookingMcMurdo Sound.

“It looks out towards wherewe lost Williams,’’ he said.

Williams Field runway isnamed for him.

Bevilacqua, 70, retired after30 years active military duty. Helives in New Hampshire andMassachusetts. He talks ofgoing back to Antarctica.

“My heart is still there. Tobe with Williams when hewent through the ice – I sur-vived, he didn’t. I still havethat memory.” ■

“The ice was far too dangerous and cracked and rotten and not able to handle the weight of thetractors. We really didn’t know what we were doing.”

Profile

a life on the ice“Roll Cage Mary” near Hut Point is officially named Our Lady of the Snows andwas built in the memory of Richard Williams, who drowned in McMurdo Sound.Photo by Jeff Inglis.

- Charlie Bevilacqua

Memories still solid in polar trailblazer’s mind

By Beth MinneciSun Staff

Charlie Bevilacqua