my town

A refresher, for those of you who have been following my blog for a couple years now and an introduction for the rest of you: This is McMurdo Station from the top of Ob Hill. The town is an industrial village that makes the most of antiquated Navy buildings and a couple newer structures including one of the most up-to-date and costly scientific research facilities anywhere.

McMurdo is situated on Ross Island in between a volcanic cone (Ob Hill) and another ridge line. From town, there is a nice view across the Ross Sea of the Royal Society Mountain Range and Mount Discovery, as well as a few other islands and such.

The town can carry 1100 people at capacity during the summer; but right now, during the winter, there are 153 souls occupying this space; meaning a good number of buildings are shut down and winterized until October.

Ross Island is half situated against the largest floating glacier in the world; the Ross Ice Shelf which can be miles thick in places and hovers over the Ross Sea (the only intact, uninterrupted ecosystem left on earth). The other side of the island is enclosed by temporary sea ice that typically thins out each summer to the point that it is unsafe to walk on (unless you're Jesus walking on water).

Ross Island also is residence to Mount Erebus; one of two volcanoes of its kind in the world (the other being Mt. Kenya in Africa). These volcanoes have an open cone with an active magma pool. Erebus has been know to frequently spit out lava bombs which the scientists here like to study.

In terms of being in Antarctica, McMurdo, is what they call the Club Med of The Continent; after all, we're on an island; and while the waves on our beach may be frozen, there are lots of amenities and activities, a few more people, and while we're supposed to be responsible with water usage, we certainly don't have restrictions on time spent in the shower!