Getting to the South Pole!

On Tuesday, I was able to slip away from McMurdo to head to South Pole. The LC-130 taking me was supposed to take off at 8:30am, but we were a few hours delayed for mechanical issues. Here’s one of the LC’s in the background as I waited.

I had never flown on an LC-130 before so did not know what to expect when I climbed into the plane. There were bags and cargo everywhere! The seats were along the sides and just basically a canvas material that moved every time anyone in your row moved. Not as comfy as a C-17, and those aren’t comfortable either.

I was onboard with a technician going out to work on a science experiment called IceCube. Ase (pronounced Oo-say) is from Sweden. We were the lone two civilian passengers in a sea of military on board.

My position does have some perks, like being allowed to sit in the cockpit. I went up there a bit during the flight. The navigator is showing me that we are ½ way there. We normally would have had nice views out the window, but the weather wasn’t cooperating. Just lots of white.

Here is a video of us landing on skis at South Pole runway. It was a bit bumpy and shaky as we skidded down the runway.  

 

And a final view while the plane is getting serviced. It turned around a few hours later, just long enough for me not to be able to catch it back to McMurdo. So.... I stayed overnight.... and as of this morning, it doesn't look like a plane can come to Pole for another day or two. Guess I need to put the sheets back on my bed.