http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/ Catling Arctic Survey en-gb Copyright 2009 Catlin Arctic Survey http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/rss.xml Tue, 20 Oct 2009 15:53:37 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/images/arctic_logo.png http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/ http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_countdown_begins With the floating sea ice now starting to break up around Ward Hunt Island, it is only a matter of time before the summer melt begins further out into the ocean, including around the Ice Team’s location As such, the countdown to the end of the expedition phase has now begun Fri, 08 May 2009 11:07:04 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_countdown_begins http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Conversations The Catlin Arctic Survey Team of Pen Hadow, Martin Hartley and Ann Daniels are back to a more normal schedule of sledge hauling and drilling, after the long awaited physical and mental boost of the resupply Thu, 07 May 2009 15:10:57 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Conversations http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/WildTrack_-_Polar_Bear_Monitoring Sky Alibhai and Zoë Jewell founded WildTrack wwwwildtrackorg in 2004 to develop and implement noninvasive and costeffective methods of monitoring endangered species Mon, 04 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/WildTrack_-_Polar_Bear_Monitoring http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Weather People living in the UK tend to be obsessed by the weather But thousands of kilometres away from the prospect of decent shelter, let alone a hot bath, what the weather is doing becomes something of an obsession Especially now, as the team await a resupply that’s been delayed for several days Sat, 02 May 2009 11:14:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Weather http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Medical_Update_ Whilst Pen, Ann and Martin enjoy the luxuries of today’s resupply, let’s not forget that this is their 65th day of their expedition Fri, 01 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Medical_Update_ http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Attention_to_detail It’s easy to think that staying focused on the big picture is the primary key to success when it comes to successfully completing an ambitious project like the Catlin Arctic Survey Thu, 30 Apr 2009 13:40:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Attention_to_detail http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Power_of_the_Ice “I never, ever relax here”, says CAS Team Navigator Ann Daniels Standing on what appeared to be a solid ice pan yesterday and waiting for her colleagues to catch her up, she felt her legs moving in different directions Directly beneath her feet a crack was opening up and she had a foot on either side of it Sat, 25 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Power_of_the_Ice http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Ice_Report The results collected in the first month of the Catlin Arctic Survey point to an unexpected lack of thicker Multiyear Ice Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:41:07 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Ice_Report http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/24_Hour_Daylight What are circadian rhythms The term circadian means ‘about a day’ and it is used to describe the activity of the cells in our body that are responsible for functions such as the regulation of temperature, digestion and the secretion of hormones eg cortisol which is a stress hormone, melatonin which among other things promotes sleep, and growth hormone which is released at night Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:07:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/24_Hour_Daylight http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/A_love_of_small_luxuries Luxuries are rare on the ice and when they do come along they take a different form to the sort of treat we might enjoy at home In fact, what counts as a luxury for the Ice Team is more likely to be something one would take for granted in more regular circumstances Mon, 20 Apr 2009 11:32:14 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/A_love_of_small_luxuries http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_Polar_Woodpecker Manual drilling takes CAS expedition leader Pen Hadow approximately four hours a day He’s developed a routine of heading out from the tent in the early evening, as colleague Ann Daniels prepares the supper another time consuming exercise and Martin Hartley builds the camp and sorts out his photographs and equipment Thu, 16 Apr 2009 09:48:52 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_Polar_Woodpecker http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Team_turns_to_traditional_survey_methods_as_technology_battles_force_of_nature The Catlin Arctic Survey has now released its first set of ice and snow thickness measurements, showing the floating sea ice cover it has travelled over in the early stage is predominantly new ice, with an average thickness of 177m The findings were obtained by manual drilling and are currently being analysed by science partners Wed, 15 Apr 2009 12:39:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Team_turns_to_traditional_survey_methods_as_technology_battles_force_of_nature http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Arctic_Colours The Arctic isn’t a place for vibrant colours Day after day, vast expanses of pale light, white snow and icescapes and an endless blue sky stretch ahead of the three explorers as they trudge onwards Expedition leader Pen Hadow is puzzled, therefore, by having witnessed a splash of bright yellow to cheer up the beautiful but unrelentingly pale palate Tue, 14 Apr 2009 09:51:19 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Arctic_Colours http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Polar_bear_hunting The Polar bear is the largest land carnivore and has a reputation as the only animal that actively hunts humans They spend most of their time on Arctic ice floes, feeding on seals Mon, 13 Apr 2009 10:08:01 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Polar_bear_hunting http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Successful_second_resupply Today saw the second successful resupply land on the ice, with Dominic and Charlie now safely back on terra firma The team’s food and fuel stores have been replenished and they have received a number of small gifts and treats to see them through to the next one All treats that is, except the bacon sandwiches that Dom carefully carried out all the way from Resolute, which would have certainly been devoured in a matter of mere seconds of the plane touching down The next leg will bring 24 hours daylight allowing the team further opportunity to progress north whilst surveying increasing amounts of sea ice each day Looking ahead we can see from the satellite imagery that the weather should remain ‘severe clear ‘ for the next couple of days So refreshed, fed and rested, the team continues on to the next leg of their journey Thu, 09 Apr 2009 11:55:59 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Successful_second_resupply http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Training_for_the_Catlin_Arctic_Survey As personal trainer to the ice team what was my main focus Their physical preparation Partly, and I’m sure that at times over recent weeks that they would rather be on their knees literally following one of the many specific circuits that they endured, even though at the time they would have wanted to be anywhere else but far more than this was using their physical training to remind them of their immense mental strength and to add to their already stocked library of coping mechanisms To quote Mark Wilson, psychologist to CAS, “It takes very special individuals to be able to accomplish such a feat and while they may not be as fit or as strong as some high class athletes, their mental strength is peerless” How often do people change their plans of going for a run just because it is raining or take the sofa option as their training partner has just cancelled on the gym session For these three, during their training as it is on the ice, it simply isn’t possible to give up, neither physically through the necessity to get stronger and fitter or mentally as this emotion just doesn’t exist in their mindset For the majority of athletes the movements that their bodies go through and the emotions that they will feel have been mapped out, scrutinised and the training developed for every stage of the race or match to give them that little advantage over their opposition For the CAS team, their opponent is just as much themselves as it is the environment that they are operating in What they are putting their bodies through is only possible through countless sessions of physical training designed to replicate the movements that their bodies are going to move in on the ice and also for their bodies and minds to get used to moving across uneven, sometimes moving terrain Just as much for body and mind conditioning as it is for injury prevention but much more than this is the two major reasons that make it possible for these three individuals to keep going day after day, often with little or no sleep, living on freeze dried food, enduring temperatures that very few things can actually survive let alone operate Firstly, is the fact that they have experienced these conditions before and succeeded there is no better motivator than that, so when the going is particularly tough they can call upon these memories and the emotions felt as they know what it feels like to achieve in this environment Secondly, is the factor that far outweighs the first that is they all have that little special something that very few people have to the scale that Martin, Ann and Pen have it, a sheer bloody mindedness not to fail, not to give up, to just keep going until there is nowhere else to go Thu, 09 Apr 2009 00:20:45 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Training_for_the_Catlin_Arctic_Survey http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Planning_a_Resupply The Catlin Arctic Survey team of Pen Hadow, Martin Hartley and Ann Daniels are patiently, or not so patiently, awaiting a resupply Wed, 08 Apr 2009 12:59:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Planning_a_Resupply http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Drilling_Observations In the Antarctic, an ice bridge linking a shelf of ice the size of Jamaica to two islands snapped, providing scientists with further evidence of rapid change in the region Tue, 07 Apr 2009 20:24:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Drilling_Observations http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Pain_management Over the years the human body has been studied at length to explore our ability to deal with pain and how chemically we have defenses to enable us to tolerate high levels of pain Mon, 06 Apr 2009 22:49:33 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Pain_management http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Hypothermia Extreme cold affects the senses and everyday skills we usually take for granted, like speaking According to CAS medical adviser Doc Martin, the team are constantly battling chronic hypothermia, which was to be expected Pen Hadow has described it as an ‘occupational hazard’ Mon, 06 Apr 2009 15:58:16 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Hypothermia http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Croissants_in_Paris I have this picture in my head and I just can’t shake it As I sledgehauled NNE towards what will hopefully be a suitable landing strip for the next resupply, all I can think about is sitting in a café in Paris in the morning sun, eating warm croissants Sun, 05 Apr 2009 12:18:14 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Croissants_in_Paris http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Isolation “I’ve never been lonely in the Arctic, not for 2 minutes”, CAS Expedition leader Pen Hadow remarked during a recent interview Fri, 03 Apr 2009 10:58:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Isolation http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Motivation Men wanted for Hazardous Journey Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful Honour and recognition in case of success Thu, 02 Apr 2009 10:04:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Motivation http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/WWF_Earth_Hour With an estimated 50 million global participants in the WWF Earth Hour in 2008, this year is set to rise above last year’s figures with a billion people projected to take part as the amount of people showing interest in climate change and the need to make a stand increases Sat, 28 Mar 2009 18:55:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/WWF_Earth_Hour http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Psychological_stressors The iceteam prepared mentally for the fact that conditions were going to be very hard for the first few weeks freezing temperatures and tough terrain As Pen comments in ‘rubblefield’ March 6th, “We are resigned to several weeks of daily discomfort and general misery, safe in the knowledge that conditions, progress and general wellbeing will improve over the coming months” Fri, 27 Mar 2009 11:27:32 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Psychological_stressors http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Progress_on_the_ice A slight rise in temperature 38 degrees C at the moment has been a positive development on the whole It means I can spend longer outside, carrying out the experiments that are the purpose of us being here I made 48 snow measurements after we’d stopped walking today – the best yet Fri, 27 Mar 2009 11:01:40 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Progress_on_the_ice http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Mind_games In these kind of temperatures, your mental field of vision can become very narrow Constantly running through a mental checklist of how your extremities are doing, attempting to keep the creeping cold at bay, and trying to find little ways to minimise the discomfort soak up a lot of your time and energy Wed, 25 Mar 2009 22:08:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Mind_games http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Maintaining_energy_levels It is very important for the team to adopt the healthiest diet possible to support optimum health and fitness throughout the journey Providing the best balance of nutrients to maintain energy and peak body condition is essential Wed, 25 Mar 2009 21:41:28 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Maintaining_energy_levels http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Like_being_in_a_milk_bottle When we set off this morning the visibility was appalling, which makes life pretty uncomfortable Martin summed it up by saying it’s like being in a milk bottle, looking out Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:03:54 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Like_being_in_a_milk_bottle http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Frostbite_(N.B_Graphic_Images) On my last note on the body’s response to extreme cold I looked at the concept of “core” and “periphery”, and how the body will sacrifice the periphery if the vital core organs are compromised This is what Pen, Ann and Martin are using all their experience to avoid, but what happens if things go wrong What happens when these peripheral bits are sacrificed Wed, 25 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Frostbite_(N.B_Graphic_Images) http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Spring_in_our_step It’s hard to believe I’m feeling so much better because temperatures here have risen to 24 degrees C By any normal standard that’s not exactly warm, but it feels like a new world compared to the 40 degrees C we’ve battled through so far With wind chill, that’s been more like 70 The significant improvement has really put a spring in our step “Life is bearable again”, is how I put it when I phoned through to Ops HQ this morning Martin has been able to do a lot more filming outside and we’ve been able to make some repairs to bits of kit that just weren’t possible in the extreme cold Tue, 24 Mar 2009 17:14:59 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Spring_in_our_step http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Stabbing_pain We’re pleased with ourselves today – having covered six nautical miles and got back to our schedule of six sessions of one hour and five minutes walking between each pause Sun, 22 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Stabbing_pain http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Muscle_Immobilisation The effects of lying on your back inside a frozen tent for 5 days awaiting resupply has grave effects on mental and physical wellbeing Sat, 21 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Muscle_Immobilisation http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Perran_on_Power_Supplies_for_the_expedition Traditional polar expeditions have a modest power requirement that is usually met using a combination of primary non rechargeable Lithium batteries and seconday batteries recharged using flexible large area solar arrays for charging The intense scientific nature of the Catlin Arctic Survey results in a much higher power requirement than traditional expeditions Under normal conditions, the iceradar Sprite runs for 8 hours a day followed by 2 hours of data reduction At night this data, together with SEACAT readings, Pens stored memos and photographs and video clips are transmitted back to the UK using up to six Iridium satellite modems in parallel The average power consumption of this equipment is about 30 watts In practice, the electrical load has to be varied to match the available electrical power The first casuality if power has to be limited would be some or all of the overnight data transmission as running the ice radar is always the highest priority Fri, 20 Mar 2009 13:35:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Perran_on_Power_Supplies_for_the_expedition http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_difficulties_of_filming_in_such_extreme_environments Using a video camera in these conditions brings with it a whole host of new issues on top of that of stills cameras Modern video cameras actually do an amazing job of dealing with the cold and Martins Sony Z5 is no exception, chosen for its amazing picture quality, shooting at HDV1080ip and weighs in at less than 3kgs with the battery which is very light in case you were wondering Fri, 20 Mar 2009 09:52:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_difficulties_of_filming_in_such_extreme_environments http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Chivalry_on_the_ice Before the resupply, all I could think of was The ReSupply Now that it’s been and gone of course, my mind is onto the next thing Fri, 20 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Chivalry_on_the_ice http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_Quitter I would say this poem is a pretty accurate description of the way I feel iIf I am totally honest it is pretty horrid out here and not very nice but you just have to keep on going If you keep on going then there is always hope and the end of the day Thu, 19 Mar 2009 14:53:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_Quitter http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Good_things_come_to_those_who_wait We always expected that conditions out here would be tough and throughout the expedition so far that expectation has not fallen short This is a trip of extremes in every sense extreme temperatures and physical challenges coupled more recently with high levels of suspense and anticipation as we waited for the resupply plane to land Thu, 19 Mar 2009 13:52:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Good_things_come_to_those_who_wait http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/First_Resupply Having spent a frustrating 5 days holed up in the tent, awaiting the arrival of the resupply plane, we were mighty relieved to hear the engines of the Twin Otter approach yesterday Thu, 19 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/First_Resupply http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Physiological_effects_of_delay From a physiological point of view, the current postponement of the resupply is not such a bad thing After 10 days in some pretty heavy going conditions, the time spent waiting for the resupply potentially allows for some rest and recovery Wed, 18 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Physiological_effects_of_delay http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Two_steps_forward,_one_step_back This was never going to be an easy journey, but it’s clear now that some of the conditions that could have favoured our progress are not going to oblige Wed, 18 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Two_steps_forward,_one_step_back http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Difficult_decisions_ Sunday’s resupply got off the ground but had to turn back after low cloud covered the airstrip at Isachsen The last two days however we have had to make some difficult decisions before any of the flights had set off Tue, 17 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Difficult_decisions_ http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_effects_of_the_cold When faced with an extremely cold external temperature the body is ruthless in wanting to maintain the temperature of the parts it considers most important for survival the brain, the heart, the lungs and the kidneys It will do this at the expense of those bits it considers less important – the parts furthest from the core, the hands and the feet, and especially the fingers and toes Mon, 16 Mar 2009 13:10:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/The_effects_of_the_cold http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/No_Go Up at the crack of an Arctic dawn today Today is the day that I am going to see the ice team – or so I thought Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:22:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/No_Go http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Utterly_utterly_miserable Given the recent light hearted website entries highlighting Pen’s talk to DfID and the use of underwear for navigational purposes, it is easy for us here in civilisation to assume that life on the ice is comfortable, or at least bearable In fact, nothing could be further from the truth Mon, 16 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Utterly_utterly_miserable http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Disappointment It was a beautiful cold, clear day – ideal flying conditions – and there was a great sense of anticipation amongst the three of us at the imminent arrival of our resupply flight Sun, 15 Mar 2009 22:24:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Disappointment http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Utterly_bombproof I once described Martin during a press conference as “utterly bombproof in a polar environment”, a remark that I stand by to this day Not only does he capture the very essence of the moment in his images, be it action, emotion or event, he does so in the most inhospitable of conditions Where others fade and head to warmer climates, Martin comes to the fore, delivering aweinspiring images despite the bitter cold and cutting winds Sat, 14 Mar 2009 19:36:41 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Utterly_bombproof http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/We_are_not_alone! Today was tough Mostly for Martin who’s been walking with an awful blister on his foot It burst today and every step has been agony He has to stop and dress it every few hours, which isn’t easy in 34 degrees, though we’re all well briefed in foot care Fri, 13 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/We_are_not_alone! http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Expert_Commentator_-_Sleep_Analyst There is nothing like a good nights sleep in a warm, cosy bed This is a luxury that Pen, Ann and Martin will not experience for sometime Indeed, they have recently been describing their difficulties in sleeping So let’s try and examine why sleep is so important Wed, 11 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Expert_Commentator_-_Sleep_Analyst http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Hotline_from_a_cold_climate Interesting phone call yesterday On one end of the line me, huddled in the tent, 40 outside, wind howling, shouting into the sat phone which my big, gloved hands always struggle to grip Tue, 10 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Hotline_from_a_cold_climate http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Department_for_International_Development_Conference The unique perspective of being on the ice and the work the team are doing allowed Pen to make the point that the people of the world are interconnected by climate change, and that the developing nations are more likely to feel the effects, and less likely to be able to defend against them The conference was concluded later in the afternoon by Prime Minister Gordon Brown who launched his global New Deal Policy Mon, 09 Mar 2009 20:25:54 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Department_for_International_Development_Conference http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Knickers Support for the ice team has come from many quarters over the last few months, most recently in the form of a pair of knickers These were kindly donated by a supporter of the Survey prior to departure, and have now been shredded and attached to one of my ski poles This then allows me to navigate using the wind Due to our proximity to the Magnetic North Pole, our compasses are currently going haywire The earth’s strong magnetic field on this part of the ocean means that the compass needle simply spins uselessly in its housing As such, we’re currently relying on more traditional methods for daytoday navigation, using the sun for those few precious hours each day when it graces us with its presence, and using wind direction, as indicated by the panties… Sat, 07 Mar 2009 20:48:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Knickers http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/RubbleField The temperature has remained at a bitterly cold 40 deg C all day We’ve been trying to navigate a way through, around and over huge boulders of smashed up ice, some as big as a car Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/RubbleField http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/ExpertCommentator I’m Dr Craig McLean, a Chiropractor with 15 years experience I specialize in helping athletesadventurers to enhance their performance by using specialist techniques that improve spinal function, strength and flexibility Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/ExpertCommentator http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/GoodDayBadDay Each day presents its highs and lows and I’m not just talking about the weather Today we enjoyed a really exciting ski across some newly frozen ice Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/GoodDayBadDay http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Bedfellows Sleep is a rare and treasured luxury at the moment My sleeping bag is lined with cables, cameras, batteries and other technological gadgetry, which are all benefiting from my body heat as I try and slip into slumber each night Wed, 04 Mar 2009 19:43:14 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Bedfellows http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Fractures At around 2200 local time, Pen, Ann and Martin felt the ice vibrating dramatically underneath them as they lay in their tent, and heard the all too familiar screeching sound of ice floe grating against ice floe It rapidly became apparent that they had camped in an area of very dynamic ice Tue, 03 Mar 2009 16:16:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Fractures http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Restless It was a pretty dramatic night last night but all is well Tue, 03 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Restless http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Dental The call came into the Ops Room this evening as planned, with the Ice Team ringing in via their satphone All is going well at present, with a distance of 1111km covered over the last two days The weather is very overcast, but temperatures are a reasonably mild 26ºC and there is a light southeasterly wind of approximately 20kph Mon, 02 Mar 2009 20:07:04 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Dental http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Cold We received a call in the Ops Room this evening from both the Ice Team and the Floating Support Base FSB staff Despite being on the ice for less than 24 hours, both had plenty to report After landing on a suitably thick piece of multi year ice, approximately 1km by 2km in size, the FSB team set up Sun, 01 Mar 2009 23:49:20 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Cold http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Thankyou After leaving the Ice Team to begin their surveying, Chip headed back to Resolute Bay yesterday evening via the Floating Support Base, arriving back at Resolute late at night Sun, 01 Mar 2009 14:37:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Thankyou http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/2215GMT Sat 28th February has now become the official start date of the expedition Sun, 01 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/2215GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Recognition The physical and mental challenge that lies ahead of the explorers is enormous, and even the most experienced Polar adventurers feel apprehensive before embarking on such a mission Sun, 01 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Recognition http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Departure We have just received confirmation that the Ice Team have reached the dropoff point around 815N 130W After boarding their separate Twin Otter flights early this morning, complete with heavy expedition loads, the Ice Team and Floating Support Base staff flew up to the abandoned High Arctic weather station of Isachsen, where they refuelled and then went their separate ways Sat, 28 Feb 2009 22:48:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Departure http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/ops_room.aspx?postId=88 Arctic, Ocean, team, setoff Sat, 28 Feb 2009 22:19:08 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/ops_room.aspx?postId=88 http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Today The hope is that the Ice Team will head out to the drop off point in their Twin Otter light aircraft some time today There is always a degree of uncertainty until the team are physically dropped onto the ice, as weather conditions can change en route, but the indications last night were that the weather was looking quite reasonable for flying Sat, 28 Feb 2009 10:31:20 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Today http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Delay In the final days prior to departure, whilst packing their sledges and making last minute checks of their equipment, the team have stumbled across two separate minor issues with their kit One issue concerns the technology which has taken this long to discover due to the late arrival of all of the freighted equipment and the other concerns about the teams’ survival equipment Fri, 27 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Delay http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Brutal Setting off at the end of winter and travelling through the spring, an expedition of this duration is going to witness an extremely broad spectrum of conditions, which in turn will have a direct impact on how the Ice Team operates at various stages of the journey Wed, 25 Feb 2009 00:39:28 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Brutal http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Packing Our days are currently filled with the sorting and packing of group equipment and the fine tuning of personal kit Mon, 23 Feb 2009 13:52:43 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Packing http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Considerations For most expeditions, deciding on the start point, end point, length of route and duration of journey is usually quite easy For this particular project, however, there are a whole host of factors to consider, since the aim is not to simply reach the North Geographic Pole, but to gather the maximum amount of data possible across a scientifically interesting stretch of ice Mon, 23 Feb 2009 13:36:47 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Considerations http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Focused All the remaining gear arrived last night by plane The working hours are now even longer each daynight, prepping every item that goes out onto the ice Sun, 22 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Focused http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Briefing FINAL MEDIA BRIEFING BY EXPLORERS BEFORE THEY START JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY TO THE NORTH POLE Sun, 22 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Briefing http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Isachsen With input from Troy and Steve at Kenn Borek and through a separate meeting between Pen, Charlie and myself, the Drop Off of both the Ice Team and the Floating Support Base will be undertaken through Isachsen, a landing strip on the western side of Ellef Ringes Island Sat, 21 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Isachsen http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/LatestUpdate All three members of the Ice Team, the three Floating Support Base staff, and both Chip and Ian from the Operations Team are all now based at Resolute Bay, in the Canadian High Arctic Fri, 20 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/LatestUpdate http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Logistical It’s all systems go here in Resolute what with the last of the freight arriving With this as the primary focus of the Ice Team and those of the Floating Support Base, my attention has been on the intricacies of our logistical air support with Kenn Borek Air Fri, 20 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Logistical http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Ozzie With only a few days to go before we get flown out onto the ice I should probably be telling you about all things Arctic Thu, 19 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Ozzie http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Distance It’s Not The Distance That Was Being Counted… Thu, 19 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Distance http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Jogging Jogging in Jeans at 40 degrees Wed, 18 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Jogging http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Update After a mammoth four flights, in planes that got smaller and smaller as we headed north, our last being a 12 seater prop, we have finally made it to Resolute Bay Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Update http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Unrelenting All are abed now All is quiet save, for Coldplay’s ‘Swallowed in the Sea’ drifting out from my laptop Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Unrelenting http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Northbound You know you’re making progress North when … Sun, 15 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Northbound http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Metamorphosis I know I must be travelling somewhere because suddenly I don’t even know how to extract water from a tap Sat, 14 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Metamorphosis http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Send-Off_Party The Ops Room here at Leadenhall Street played host to about 140 guests last night for the Catlin Arctic Survey sendoff party Mon, 09 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Send-Off_Party http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Royal_Reception Today has been a very special day for the team and many of our special guests as we gathered for a Royal reception at Clarence House, hosted by our patron, HRH The Prince of Wales Thu, 05 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Royal_Reception http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Mission_driven Of a bewildering array of thoughts swimming around in my head today, one has struck for the surface, indicative of the gel that holds us together Mon, 02 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Mission_driven http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Doc_Martin The office is a hive of activity today Thu, 29 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Doc_Martin http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Countdown The clock keeps ticking and with every strike we draw closer to the date when Pen Hadow, Ann Daniels and Martin Hartley will leave us Mon, 26 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Countdown http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Travelling_back As I travel back from Qikiqtarjuaq I reflect on another adventure in the magnificent Arctic A memory to treasure when I can no longer travel to the ends of the earth Wed, 21 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Travelling_back http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/6_weeks_to_go With under 6 weeks to go, operationally this is probably the busiest time for us It’s a case of pulling all the strands together, having all the questions answered and making sure all the I’s are dotted and T’s crossed Mind you, this will go on until Pen, Ann and Martin are on the ice Tue, 20 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/6_weeks_to_go http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/A_Frozen_Ocean Back in the tent for the first time in ages, I am once again reminded why lack of total recall is a blessingsnow, ice, frozen water, it is the reason we are all here It is one of the most beautiful things Mother Nature has given us Mon, 19 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/A_Frozen_Ocean http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/And_they_are_off A big day today and spirits were high After a prolonged packing session the Ice Team are out on the ice for their first mini expedition together They left with sleds packed high and bristling with antennas Fri, 16 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/And_they_are_off http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Polar_Packing On the surface of it, nothing much seemed to happen today, although a lot did get done nothing of any note nor anything particularly memorable actually happened Thu, 15 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Polar_Packing http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Transformation_of_texture Even with our warm home nearby and easy access to plenty of restorative tea and coffee, working outdoors here in this cold environment is challenging Wed, 14 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Transformation_of_texture http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Clam_Divers_Reach_Parts_Where_Others_Fear_to_Go Well, I’ve witnessed some things in my time – haven’t we all – but today was an ‘out there experience’ Wed, 14 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Clam_Divers_Reach_Parts_Where_Others_Fear_to_Go http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Training_in_the_Canadian_High_Arctic With Pen, Ann and Martin currently on Broughton Island in Canada, ably supported by Rebecca and Ian, one would think that work would let up slightly Tue, 13 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Training_in_the_Canadian_High_Arctic http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/2363_Miles_from_home Sat inside a small wooden house on the Island of Qikiqtarjuat, 2363 miles from my home in London only 4 or 5 inches separate me and my laptop from the outside where the environment is definitely Arctic Tue, 13 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/2363_Miles_from_home http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Travelling_up_North_in_style After two years preparing for this expedition the day had arrived at last to leave for Pre Expedition Training on Broughton Island, Nunavut Sun, 11 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Travelling_up_North_in_style http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Scoping_route_for_mini-expedition Today we took a couple of skidoos out to Cape Broughton to explore a possible route for the 5 day mini expedition that the Ice Team will do in about a week’s time Sat, 10 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Scoping_route_for_mini-expedition http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/First_foray_onto_the_ice I’m up in Broughton Island in the PreExpedition Training Tue, 06 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/First_foray_onto_the_ice http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Ann_Daniels_on_Radio_4 Ann did a cracking interview this morning on Radio 4 Sat, 13 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Ann_Daniels_on_Radio_4 http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Rab_jackets_arrive The RAB down Expedition Jackets, from Cotswold Outdoor have arrived and are now being labeled with all the sponsors’ logos Thu, 11 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Rab_jackets_arrive http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Sponsors_and_Support_Evening The day started with a briefing, given by the PR team, for the representatives from each of our sponsors Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Sponsors_and_Support_Evening http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Resolute_Trials Pen and Martin are now in the Arctic, for two weeks worth of equipment testing Fri, 28 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Resolute_Trials http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/SPRITE_data_discussion I attended a very useful conference call today with our Scientific Advisor, Professor Wieslaw Maslowski Sun, 09 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/SPRITE_data_discussion http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Google_Earth_Meeting Great meeting with the guys at Google today We’re creating a CAS Google Earth layer which will enable the viewer to track, live in Google Earth, the progress of the team Mon, 20 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Google_Earth_Meeting http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Pre_Expedition_Operations Logistics, accommodation and transportation for the Pre Expedition Training on Broughton Island are all currently being researched and considered Sun, 19 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Pre_Expedition_Operations http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Expert_commentators We now have four more expert commentators onboard – a nutritionist, a biomechanics expert, a sleep analyst and an endurance physiologist Our aim is to offer expert analysis, via the website, on every aspect of the expedition Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Expert_commentators http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Physiological_Testing I spent several days at Exeter University this week, filming and photographing Ann, Pen and Martin undergoing their physiological testing Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Physiological_Testing http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Training_Day_1 Day One of Iceteam Training on Dartmoor We covered all manner of activities and training objectives Day One included a fullday trekking session across Dartmoor discussion on photography composition practice of recording a verbal ground survey refresher of navigation techniques discussion on individuals’ primary and secondary rolesspecialties discussion of daily routines, immediate action drills and contingency plans Sat, 27 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Training_Day_1 http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Operations_Meeting We had our first detailed Operations meeting today Wed, 17 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Operations_Meeting http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Psychologist_Dr_Mark_Wilson_joins_team Dr Mark Wilson Exeter University is now officially onboard as team psychologist We want to ensure that every aspect of the team’s training is covered off Mon, 15 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Psychologist_Dr_Mark_Wilson_joins_team http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Fitness_Training Unlike Ann, I have not been training as hard as I would have liked over the past 8 months Sat, 13 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Fitness_Training http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Personal_Training_Session_1 I’ve been training hard for the past 8 months but I’m very aware that we will have to be in peak physical condition when we get to the ice in February next year Tue, 09 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/Personal_Training_Session_1