Week 8 at the Pole

Person in red parka seen from behind as they walk along flag line to the South Pole station.
Martin Wolf, IceCube/NSF

Last week was relatively quiet at the Pole, offering a good opportunity to get out and reflag the flag line between the IceCube Lab (ICL) and the station.  They drill new holes and replace flags as needed to keep the line well maintained.  The flags are easy to see now while the sun is still out, but as the days darken into winter or even if the weather is just bad, the importance of the flag line is more apparent.  Also last week, there was the rare sight of two airplanes on the ground at the same time.  It doesn’t happen often; these two planes stopped at the Pole for refueling before leaving the continent. While they were out photographing the planes, IceCube winterover Martin captured Josh waving, with the ICL in the distance.

Two planes on the ground at the same time at the South Pole.
Martin Wolf, IceCube/NSF
Person in red parka waving, with the IceCube Lab in the distance.
Martin Wolf, IceCube/NSF