06: GSAR Training

Palmer Station is tiny, and with such a small population we all have to participate in different roles within the community outside of our normal job. A lot of that is galley help and radio watch that happens every week, but we were also divvied up into teams for the Fire Department, Ocean Search and Rescue (OSAR), and Glacier Search and Rescue (GSAR).

I was put on the Seawater Pumps Team for the Fire Department and GSAR! Whenever there is a fire (drill or real), I immediately go down to Boathouse and help get the pumps and hoses and nozzles going in case we need to douse a raging fire with seawater (because we don't have excess fresh water available). And if there ever were someone who needs rescued from a dangerous situation out on the glacier, they call in the GSAR Team! Once a month we get together for training, and this was our first get-out-into-the-field session.

We headed out into the backyard with a quick pit stop at the Rec Hut.

We put eyes on the ELF (Extremely Low Frequency) Dome, a project that detects and analyzes lightning-generated signals (sferics) and monitors ionospheric disturbances. Apparently the long term goal is to better understand the energetic coupling between the Earth's atmosphere and the magnetosphere. Wacky stuff.

Then we posted up at the base of the glacier to practice placing ice screws and setting an anchor. It was our first introduction to the gear and the ropes and the knots and the basics of glacier rescue. Good times!

It was a perfectly gorgeous and moody day for it.