Author Archives: polarchriz

As you might know already – I seriously love rock climbing. And many other scientists that come to Antarctica share this passion. But a dead-flat ice shelf is probably the worst place to be a climber… so how do we … Continue reading →

What is the coolest thing in Antarctica? Hot-water drilling ! Because once the hole is finished, there is time to celebrate with style. But let me tell you more about it. Bruce and I share a common love for digging … Continue reading →

  Today we explore the unknown lands of Antarctica. While we can map Antarctica’s surface with satellites, our knowledge of what lies beneath the ice is very limited. Radar can be used to estimate what Antarctica’s bedrock looks like and … Continue reading →

Today we say goodbye to Cavity Camp on the Thwaites Glacier and move onto the Dotson Ice Shelf. We are very interested in this particular area, because several ‘ice rises’ have here become ungrounded in the last decade. Ice rises … Continue reading →

What lies beneath our feet? Measuring the ice thickness and quantifying the amount of accumulation is essential for glaciological research. But how do we do that? A common method consists of pulling a radar behind a skidoo on the ice … Continue reading →

After snowfall bound us to our tents for the last three days, clear blue skies and crisp conditions allowed the first field measurements on the Thwaites Glacier today. The ice is generally thinner than we have estimated from satellite data … Continue reading →

Hello World from the Thwaites Glacier. We, the TARSAN team, have made it to our first study site in the Amundsen Sea. We have now established Cavity Camp and will finally start to acquire field measurements in the coming days. … Continue reading →

“Hello party people! This is Dr. Wild speaking. Welcome aboard Venga Airways.  After take off we’ll pump up the sound system ‘Cause we’re going to WAIS Divide!” Today we leave the comfort of McMurdo Station behind us (we have been … Continue reading →

There is a lot to discover in Antarctica – lakes underneath the ice sheets, meteorites on their surface, or historic artifacts from the polar heroes. And while I would love to tell you all about these, today we discover something … Continue reading →

Antarctica is the most hostile environment on the Earth and safety is our number one priority when working on the ice. The danger of hypothermia, frostbite and crevasses are obvious – a scientific measurement is not worth to risk our … Continue reading →