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- Written by: Chuck Amsler
I suppose that anyone who has once been with a hero would always want to be with one again. From 1968 until 1984, Palmer Station and US Antarctic research on the Antarctic Peninsula was supported by a beautiful 125 ft. in length, wooden research vessel called the Hero. Maggie sailed on the Hero during her first two seasons at Palmer in the early 80s and I was at the ship's decommissioning ceremony in California in 1984. You can see more about the Hero at the Hero page on PalmerStation.com.
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- Written by: Kevin Scriber
In Punta Arenas, Chile on Tuesday February 12th, the members of UAB 2013 Antarctic field team awaited departure to our final destination: Palmer Station, Antarctica. The ship taking us was the 250 foot long, ASRV (Antarctic Survey and Resupply Vessel) Laurence M. Gould, designed to traverse the cold southern ocean and Antarctic ice. We walked around the ship’s deck taking pictures of our surroundings. The other members of the team reminisced about field seasons prior and their wonderful experiences. I looked around at their faces and was filled with an eager anticipation of things to come.
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- Written by: Kate Schoenrock
Our dive season in Antarctica has officially begun!
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- Written by: Jim McClintock
I am anchoring from home base this field season, remaining at UAB while the field team digs in at Palmer Station. I will be busy assisting Chuck submit an NSF grant proposal that will keep our Antarctic program moving forward, assisting Julie submit a manuscript on the impacts of ocean acidification on marine invertebrates from work she did last year, and giving presentations and book signings for my recently released Lost Antarctica – Adventures in a Disappearing Land (www.lostantarctica.com).
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- Written by: Julie Schram
After spending a couple of days of figuring out what I will need for the next four and a half months and how to make it fit into two duffle bags, I found myself excitedly sitting inside my screen door with all my gear when Chuck and Maggie showed up to start the caravan to the airport.
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- Written by: Maggie Amsler
Ever get a song stuck in your head that you had not thought about or even heard for years?? That is what happened to me the other day as I was sitting on a wood planked dock at Alabama Blue Water. My black finned feet were dangling in the quarry waters as the twangy tones of Gene Autry, the singing cowboy, drifted into my head. “I’m back in the saddle again” is how the legendary vocalist sang it but the little singer between my ears substituted drysuit for saddle. That little singer must not have known all the lyrics as broken record-like just that line was sung over and over again….
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In some ways it feels like we just got here. In others, it is as if we’ve been away from home for very long. I always look forward to coming to Palmer. And when the team’s season is coming to a close, I always look forward to getting home. Next week, we’ll be on our way home to summer from a station becoming more and more wintery as each day proceeds.
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I have heard it several times: “the most important person on station is the cook.” Although in a station as small as ours, everyone is pretty important to making the station run smoothly, there is truth to this statement. Food is important- we need to eat every day. The chefs are very central to the morale of a community like ours.
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17-22 May is Bike to Work week in the US. Were I at home I would be commuting to UAB on my bicycle. It is a great way to start the day! In keeping with that spirit, this week my normal early morning gym visit has in principle been my bike to work. I saddle up for a long ride on the stationary spin bike in Palmer Station's small gym. Tailored tunes on an I-pod help recreate the long flat stretches on Highway 31 and the endless long climb up and over Shades Mountain on Columbiana Road.