Thread: Antarctica and Tractors

There's a traverse going on at the moment that left from the French base at Dumont d'Urville (almost due south of Tassie) up the plateau then westbound to a point around 550 kms inland from Casey.

They are after the million year old ice core. It's been identified as the place in Antarctica with the oldest ice (but not necessarily the deepest).

Have a read here of the blog of one of the scientists Tas's Aurora Basin North Ice Coring Blog

I've flown over the area at low level looking for landing sites. It's pretty bleak and rough.

This project will get some coverage in Fairfax media over the next few weeks as this week a couple of journos arrived who are heading out to report on it. I was down at Casey this week and took a few more pics of tractors and other things for you Wrinklearthur. Give me a couple of days to get them online.

Ref; Walking With The Wounded – South Pole 2013

After four weeks and 200km, the Virgin Money South Pole Allied Challenge teams arrived at the South Pole at 12:48pm GMT on Friday 13 December – a day considered unlucky for some, but a monumental day for all the team members involved.
“We’re here I am about 10 meters away from the Pole. Everyone is sort of scattered now, we’ve been here for about 20 minutes maybe half an hour. It’s an amazing feeling, it really is.
Every single one of these twelve deserves it. I mean they have dug out blind to get here, Duncan you know, it’s just remarkable the fact that someone with no legs has made it here, and to have done it in record breaking time, no doubt.
And Ivan as well, when I look across I see him being guided around you know, totally blind, from America, and absolutely hates the cold, and you know he’s not doing it for himself, he’s doing it for his buddies back home, and that goes for everybody, every single one here.
All 12 of them have different reasons for being here and I don’t think it’s necessarily something that for all of them that it will, either tonight or tomorrow or when they get back home, but what an amazing journey for every single one of them and this charity really does do amazing things. It’s not just for the small minority that are here but hopefully in time to come through the documentary, and all the stories back home. It will just prove to everybody that there’s so much that can be made possible when you think that nothing is left.
But I’m so proud, I’m so chuffed and I’m so privileged to be here with all these guys and girls, and well done to Ed and Dags and everyone who’s organised this, what an amazing accomplishment. I think we’ll be having a few whiskies tonight and then everyone’s looking forward to getting home.
Mission success.”
- Prince Harry, Expedition Patron

Originally Posted by stallie

There's a traverse going on at the moment that left from the French base at Dumont d'Urville (almost due south of Tassie) up the plateau then westbound to a point around 550 kms inland from Casey.

Ref; Tas's Aurora Basin North Ice Coring Blog

apart from a false start which bogged one tractor at the start of the day, and which was rectified pretty smartly with some rehitching and towing. It did underscore to me the skill involved in synchronised starts to get a couple of hundred tons sliding in unison.

Sun Dogs

This picture is a nice illustration of parhelia (sun dogs) around midnight during the traverse to ABN

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[QUOTE=1950landy;1971330]In 1924 /25 the Citroe'n Ke'gresse Half - tracks were the 1st vehicles to cross the Sahara from Alger in the North to Tombouctou in the south. then continued on south through the central jungle to Le Cap at the bottom of Africa. They were then shiped to Southern Madagascar & driven north . Back on a ship to the main land to explore other parts of Africa

Hello 1950 Landy,

I was intrigued to find out what the Citroën Ke'gresse Half - tracks looked like so I did a bit of search on the internet and found what some photographs of what they say are 1930 models. One version must have been the "deluxe". Notice some things of interest in the background of the deluxe version.


Kind Regards
Lionel

Originally Posted by stallie

And there was a Korean chopper that crashed last week at Terra Nova Bay - not far from McMurdo. Three or four burnt and medivaced to CHCH. Three choppers in eight days. Not a good week on the ice

Thanks Stallie for pointing this one out, I was looking for this news report but because it didn't involve people that speak 'American English' the media coverage here was very poor.

I had an inkling that something had happened but was thrown by a 2 year old report of a similar accident.

Ref; Antarctica chopper crash victims flown to NZ - One News | TVNZ

Four people have been injured in a helicopter crash in Antarctica.
The cause of the South Korean chopper accident is not yet known.
The four South Koreans injured are reported to have burns and are being flown to Christchurch.

They are due to arrive in Christchurch at 5.40pm (NZT) and will be taken to Christchurch Hospital by ambulance.
No New Zealanders are reported to be involved in the crash.

Earlier Antarctica New Zealand confirmed the incident on the ice at Terra Nova Bay.
The Italian and United States Antarctic Programme assisted with evacuating the injured.

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Merry Christmas and best wishes for the New Year to Craig Hayhow and the rest of the mob at Mawson Station.

My Antarctic Adventure: About Mawson Station


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Ref; Expeditions 7 Completes Bid on South Pole - News - ExPo: Adventure and Overland Travel Enthusiasts

The Expeditions 7 team, having already traversed five continents, just completed their most ambitious leg with a successful bid on the South Pole. Leaving from the Russian Novo Station, the team not only made it to the Pole in good time, they were able to push on to the far edge of the continent––and back again. Crossing Antarctica twice required 6,000 km of driving in what is undeniably, the most remote and inhospitable sector of the planet.

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Click on this link and see how far it is for Ben and Tarka to get to the pole.
Tracking | The Scott Expedition
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