Yesterday (12/11/11) closed out a truly amazing experience, both professionally and personally, as we disembarked from McMurdo Station Antarctica for Christchurch NZ. The team's work to test the McMurdo Data Transfer System (MDTS) was almost without drama, the only challenge had been the needed software update to our data analysis system. The Harris and Raytheon systems delivered on every front while meeting all requirements and expectations, at least from the McMurdo site's perspective. I look forward to analysing the matching data that was transferred to Omaha, via the MDTS, for the record. My hope is that Harris/AFWA staff have cordoned off the requisite data. Teaming with the USG and contractor representatives was a real pleasure. Not only did we all work well together but we could also share our meal and recreation time together. With regret we still had to say our goodbyes to some as select Raytheon staff still have other on-ice integration and formal test events to execute in the coming weeks.
Monday morning began very early (0300) for a call to the mission control center (MCC) to see if the Christchurch to McMurdo flight was on schedule, "indeed it is" was the cheerful reply. This was music to our ears as one of our colleagues had been waiting three days for her trip back to NZ. We hoofed it to the MCC and checked in, grabbed a snack box and waited for transport to Pegasus; we hoped for Ivan the Terra bus as the roads to the flight line were quite rough and Ivan's suspension is ideal for these conditions. Our ride on Ivan was excellent and the trip was only one hour in duration despite the possible two hour trek promised for bad road conditions. Shortly after arriving at Pegasus the skies began to clear and we were treated to a beautiful yet final view of Mount Erebus.
The C17 arrived as scheduled (0615) to the great delight of many, namely, Kiwis (New Zealanders), French, Italians and Americans; 63 in all. We learned that the Prime Minister (PM) of Norway was arriving on his way to the South Pole for the centennial celebration of Roald Amundsen's successful trip to the pole in 1912. The first to deplane was the press corps and camera men/women followed by the PM and entourage. After the short lived fanfare they quickly boarded Ivan for tours of Scott Base and McMurdo before another flight down to the pole. The ground crew quickly swapped out the arriving and departing cargo and then we quickly boarded. At 0745 we departed for the 6 hour flight back to Christchurch. My seat on the C17 was at the very back on the RHS, something I was pleased to have as there was open space on one side. Unfortunately the cargo pallet in front of me were ice cores from the South Pole and they needed to remain frozen; the implication for me was minimal heat for the plane ride to the NZ. Fortunately I had my full ECW gear and donned the majority of it to stay warm. I got a short nap in during the ride but it really was not rest. While on-board the C17 I purchased a pint glass souvenir depicting "operation deep freeze" for Antarctica and McChord AFB, WA C17's crew. I also picked up a McMurdo / NY ANG coin for an AFWA colleague as I'm sure he will appreciate adding it to his extensive collection.
Our arrival at Christchurch was uneventful as both customs and bio-screening were easy. Next came the bag drag over the the USAP CDC to turn in our ECW and get our hotel accommodations. The team was ecstatic to learn we were to be housed again at the Copthorne Commodore hotel and their shuttle service arrived soon thereafter to take us to civilization. The team took a few hours to shower and rest before having a nice dinner together at the hotel's Patterson's restaurant. We hoped to extend our stay another night but it was not possible as they were in an oversold condition. The team is off to change hotels and then head downtown by mass transit for some tourist endeavors.
Our stay at the Sudima hotel was uninspiring compared to the Commodore. The meal service was deplorable; it took nearly 60 minutes to get our entrees after the salads had been presented. The waitress stopped by once during the wait indicating we were next in line in the kitchen. The restaurant was not that busy so something must have been wrong. Once the meal arrived we were more satisfied, however, after requesting our check it still took nearly 30 minutes to arrive. We filled out a survey form and was critical of the extensive wait but no so much about the service. We met some very nice and outgoing Australians in the sports lounge after dinner as the recent Cricket win for NZ was replayed over and over. What a pleasant way to cap a very successful trip than to spend the last evening with friendly locals (NZ and Aussies).
Tomorrow morning and afternoon the team embarks for home. I cannot thank the Air Force, Aerospace and DMSP and JPSS programs for a more positive experience and opportunity to travel to Antarctica, it was truly a trip of a lifetime....
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Day 11 - Final Day at McMurdo, Went for an Awesome Hike!
I left out one thing in yesterday's posting as I've completed my souvenir shopping and have filled my bags to capacity, lets hope I'm not over the weight limit for the Air NZ flights!
Today Sunday NZ time, we slept in a little bit then rousted to grab some cereal and a bad cup of coffee before donning our cold weather gear and heading up OB Hill. OB Hill is mostly rock and broken pieces referred to as fines. A good trail existed but it had to switch back and forth to make the climb more manageable but footing was problematic in a few areas. My teammate had a GPS watch that tracked our distance and elevation change during the hike; overall we hiked 1.6 miles with 774' of altitude change in 1.5 hours. This time included a few stops going up to catch our breath and manage our body temps to avoid overheating. The trek up was amazing yet very windy. Both of us put on our balaclava which covers the head, neck and face to avoid freezing our face or receiving wind burn. The downside was that our sunglasses or goggles would routinely fog up and block our vision; something not good when climbing on unsure footing. After a few adjustments I was good to go and on to the summit. While about half way up there appeared a flat spot where someone established a podium to presumably hold talks or lectures. I stood at the site and posed for a photo hoping that I'd come up with something profound to say only to croak out "its too cold and windy here to pontificate, so why is this here?" Onward we trod and finally reached the summit. The view was amazing as we could see significant portions of Ross Island as well as the ice shelf, McMurdo Station, Scott Base, helicopter Ops, and the myriad of antennae surrounding the Station. Too bad the weather was very cloudy and low ceilings so we missed out on the spectacular views normally available.
At the summit is a memorial (established in 1913) to honor Captain Scott and his party who lost their lives returning from the South Pole. How fitting it was that I could climb the hill, survey the landscape and then approach the memorial cross on Sunday morning. I took several minutes to look out over reflect on the trip's work success, teamwork, camaraderie, safety, provision, opportunity, and ultimately God's grace provided by his son at the cross. I was moved to kneel and pray as this was my quiet time and worship service for the week. My colleague was kind to me by allowing me some space and reflection time, he even snapped a few photos of me taking in the view and praying at the cross.
After the trip down OB Hill it was time for a shower and then off to the galley for brunch. I've enclosed a picture or two of the galley and eating area for perspective; these pictures were from earlier in the week and NOT reflective of the brunch. I enjoyed FRESH EGGS (3) omelet with bacon bits, onion, olives, mushrooms, tomatoes and jalapeno peppers as well as fresh pineapple and green grapes. I enjoyed some grape and orange juice and something that looked and smelled like coffee, but it did NOT fool me.... ;-(
We have some free time the rest of the afternoon and evening but we must also perform "bag drag" and haul our checked luggage, carry-on(s), boomerang bag and ECW up to the mission management center for final weigh in. Our flight tomorrow leaves Christchurch at ~0100 and arrives at 0630, we expect to be on-board and ready for departure by 0800. This means we transport to Pegasus ice runway at ~0400.
The next blog entry should be from Christchurch NZ late tomorrow....
Today Sunday NZ time, we slept in a little bit then rousted to grab some cereal and a bad cup of coffee before donning our cold weather gear and heading up OB Hill. OB Hill is mostly rock and broken pieces referred to as fines. A good trail existed but it had to switch back and forth to make the climb more manageable but footing was problematic in a few areas. My teammate had a GPS watch that tracked our distance and elevation change during the hike; overall we hiked 1.6 miles with 774' of altitude change in 1.5 hours. This time included a few stops going up to catch our breath and manage our body temps to avoid overheating. The trek up was amazing yet very windy. Both of us put on our balaclava which covers the head, neck and face to avoid freezing our face or receiving wind burn. The downside was that our sunglasses or goggles would routinely fog up and block our vision; something not good when climbing on unsure footing. After a few adjustments I was good to go and on to the summit. While about half way up there appeared a flat spot where someone established a podium to presumably hold talks or lectures. I stood at the site and posed for a photo hoping that I'd come up with something profound to say only to croak out "its too cold and windy here to pontificate, so why is this here?" Onward we trod and finally reached the summit. The view was amazing as we could see significant portions of Ross Island as well as the ice shelf, McMurdo Station, Scott Base, helicopter Ops, and the myriad of antennae surrounding the Station. Too bad the weather was very cloudy and low ceilings so we missed out on the spectacular views normally available.
At the summit is a memorial (established in 1913) to honor Captain Scott and his party who lost their lives returning from the South Pole. How fitting it was that I could climb the hill, survey the landscape and then approach the memorial cross on Sunday morning. I took several minutes to look out over reflect on the trip's work success, teamwork, camaraderie, safety, provision, opportunity, and ultimately God's grace provided by his son at the cross. I was moved to kneel and pray as this was my quiet time and worship service for the week. My colleague was kind to me by allowing me some space and reflection time, he even snapped a few photos of me taking in the view and praying at the cross.
After the trip down OB Hill it was time for a shower and then off to the galley for brunch. I've enclosed a picture or two of the galley and eating area for perspective; these pictures were from earlier in the week and NOT reflective of the brunch. I enjoyed FRESH EGGS (3) omelet with bacon bits, onion, olives, mushrooms, tomatoes and jalapeno peppers as well as fresh pineapple and green grapes. I enjoyed some grape and orange juice and something that looked and smelled like coffee, but it did NOT fool me.... ;-(
We have some free time the rest of the afternoon and evening but we must also perform "bag drag" and haul our checked luggage, carry-on(s), boomerang bag and ECW up to the mission management center for final weigh in. Our flight tomorrow leaves Christchurch at ~0100 and arrives at 0630, we expect to be on-board and ready for departure by 0800. This means we transport to Pegasus ice runway at ~0400.
The next blog entry should be from Christchurch NZ late tomorrow....
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Day 10 - Final Day of Satellite Data Testing
Today the team completed their combined efforts to collect DMSP RTD while physically on-site; another seven passes successfully captured without a hitch. Our JPSS/Raytheon hosts provided all the schedule contacts during the shift and we captured all that we needed. Unfortunately, we were not able to capture a cloud free line of site pass over McMurdo and these passes would have been very early/late in the day when folks were not scheduled to work. Tomorrow is a Station wide down day so no one is scheduled for work so we all said goodbye to the JSOC. I plan to visit the local chapel tonight or very early tomorrow to spend a few reflecting moments as I will not attend tomorrow's mass. My teammates will try, weather and wind permitting, to ascend observation hill; OB Hill for short. The local hill is a steep climb but can provide amazing viewing of the Station, Ross Ice field and Mount Erebus. We'll try to get this done early to make it back for shower and still make the Sunday brunch meal. Tonight the Station will host a movie/celebration/party with the Mad Max theme. Many of the team will either take in this rowdy event or seek something more quiet and relaxing; I'll definitely be doing the later.
We received our confirmation of being on the Monday early AM manifest for a C17 ride home; we'll be joined by 65 other passengers as the last three day's flight have been cancelled for weather. We're praying for clearing skies, firm roadways and runway so that we can remain on schedule for our trip back to the states. Our Auckland to LAX flights are schedule Wednesday NZ time which leaves 1-day of weather contingency.
Tomorrow will be my last blog entry from the Station and will upload more pictures to share as time is short this evening.
We received our confirmation of being on the Monday early AM manifest for a C17 ride home; we'll be joined by 65 other passengers as the last three day's flight have been cancelled for weather. We're praying for clearing skies, firm roadways and runway so that we can remain on schedule for our trip back to the states. Our Auckland to LAX flights are schedule Wednesday NZ time which leaves 1-day of weather contingency.
Tomorrow will be my last blog entry from the Station and will upload more pictures to share as time is short this evening.
Friday, December 9, 2011
Day 9 - Return to DMSP RTD Testing
Work Related Items
Today the JPSS team completed their reconfiguration by mid AM McMurdo time, this allowed the SPO/Aerospace staff to begin collecting F17/F18 real-time data (RTD). The team is working hard to find a cloud free shot of McMurdo Station but yesterday and today have been cloudy with light to moderate snow showers. Because the two satellites will be approaching their self-conflict period over McMurdo the satellite contacts are back to back or have encroached on one another. Consequently the first pass (F18) is shortened to collect the full duration of the second pass (F17). In fact, a few F18 passes have been only 2-4 minutes long so we've deferred on collecting the RTD instead focusing on the F17 horizon to horizon contacts.
Some of today's passes were taken and fed to the MDTS and Aerospace laptop during the MMCS network outage window. We were pleased to find that the Ground Operations (GO) software continued to schedule the T-Site receptor allowing MDTS to collect but not necessarily transfer data to AFWA. After the brief network outage all the data appeared to be successfully transferred without issue. Lastly, we found a couple of passes where the space to ground link closed at ~4 degrees of antenna elevation; local obscura believed to be the cause. Many of the contacts close the link between the horizon and 1.0 degree of elevation, something that is very encouraging for AFWA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center users as they will have greatly improved Antarctic coverage of OLS fine imagery.
McMurdo Experiences to Share
Today the team broke off to enjoy a local attraction, OK that's an overstatement as it really is a Quonset hut converted into the "coffee hut" where one can enjoy a good cup of Joe. They serve hot tea, mocha, espresso, lattes and regular coffee and provide a venue to escape the daily grind; pun intentional. Some folks choose to fancy up their coffee with an adult elixir, e.g. Bailey's Irish Cream or Kahlua. The other night the team skipped dinner at the galley and headed to the local bar for "burger night." Apparently they offer this service weekly (Thursdays) to help break up the routine of the galley's buffet service. The burgers come as singles, doubles, with/without cheese, bacon and a generous serving of curly fries. All burger combos are the same price, a very affordable $3 but the beer and wine vary in cost but still very reasonable despite being at the bottom of the world. I've included pictures of the coffee hut and also the adjacent movie theater that intersect to share common bathrooms and storage.
Other unique items at McMurdo are the four wheel drive 12-15 passenger vans that provide taxi services around the Station or local areas, e.g. New Zealand's Scott Base, flight line(s), research sites, etc. The vans are amazing and really handle the widely varying terrain and mountain roads well. If that is not enough traction then USAP brings out the big guns with their tracked four wheel drive pickups or the numerous Hagglunds. Enjoy the more recent pictures immediately below, however, the Hagglund was pictured earlier in day 4.
Today the JPSS team completed their reconfiguration by mid AM McMurdo time, this allowed the SPO/Aerospace staff to begin collecting F17/F18 real-time data (RTD). The team is working hard to find a cloud free shot of McMurdo Station but yesterday and today have been cloudy with light to moderate snow showers. Because the two satellites will be approaching their self-conflict period over McMurdo the satellite contacts are back to back or have encroached on one another. Consequently the first pass (F18) is shortened to collect the full duration of the second pass (F17). In fact, a few F18 passes have been only 2-4 minutes long so we've deferred on collecting the RTD instead focusing on the F17 horizon to horizon contacts.
Some of today's passes were taken and fed to the MDTS and Aerospace laptop during the MMCS network outage window. We were pleased to find that the Ground Operations (GO) software continued to schedule the T-Site receptor allowing MDTS to collect but not necessarily transfer data to AFWA. After the brief network outage all the data appeared to be successfully transferred without issue. Lastly, we found a couple of passes where the space to ground link closed at ~4 degrees of antenna elevation; local obscura believed to be the cause. Many of the contacts close the link between the horizon and 1.0 degree of elevation, something that is very encouraging for AFWA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center users as they will have greatly improved Antarctic coverage of OLS fine imagery.
McMurdo Experiences to Share
Today the team broke off to enjoy a local attraction, OK that's an overstatement as it really is a Quonset hut converted into the "coffee hut" where one can enjoy a good cup of Joe. They serve hot tea, mocha, espresso, lattes and regular coffee and provide a venue to escape the daily grind; pun intentional. Some folks choose to fancy up their coffee with an adult elixir, e.g. Bailey's Irish Cream or Kahlua. The other night the team skipped dinner at the galley and headed to the local bar for "burger night." Apparently they offer this service weekly (Thursdays) to help break up the routine of the galley's buffet service. The burgers come as singles, doubles, with/without cheese, bacon and a generous serving of curly fries. All burger combos are the same price, a very affordable $3 but the beer and wine vary in cost but still very reasonable despite being at the bottom of the world. I've included pictures of the coffee hut and also the adjacent movie theater that intersect to share common bathrooms and storage.
Other unique items at McMurdo are the four wheel drive 12-15 passenger vans that provide taxi services around the Station or local areas, e.g. New Zealand's Scott Base, flight line(s), research sites, etc. The vans are amazing and really handle the widely varying terrain and mountain roads well. If that is not enough traction then USAP brings out the big guns with their tracked four wheel drive pickups or the numerous Hagglunds. Enjoy the more recent pictures immediately below, however, the Hagglund was pictured earlier in day 4.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Day 8 - No Satellite Testing Today
Today began a bit later than normal as the JPSS team had indicated a need to reconfigure their systems to get ready for System Acceptance Test (Jan12) and test an overnight deployment of their Ground Ops software. JPSS will switch back to their T-Site receptor for the remaining period we are on station giving us a chance to test with both of their antennas.
For this blog entry I'll shift my focus to more of the McMurdo experience; the good the bad and the ugly. First the good. The Station is quite concentrated and everything is easily accessible, the one problem is that things have been haphazardly developed and it seems that no master plan exists. I'm sure that when funding comes available that it leads to "just get it done" this build season as the funds are expiring. However, what they've done here is still quite amazing and productive. The Station houses a maximum of 1100-1200 folks by using multi-story dormitories all with common area restrooms, showers and lounge areas. Some of the dorms are better than others and offer differing "creature comforts." Our three story dorm is relatively new/modern and we even have Internet network drops in the rooms. Our room is ~10x16' and is home to three men. The room holds one bunk bed and a standalone twin bed, two wardrobe closets, one desk and small fridge; our fridge does not work. The room's window is covered heavily to block the ever present sunlight as it is full daylight 24 hours a day given that the Station is above the Antarctic circle. The floor's restroom has two showers, two stools and three sinks. We also have a laundry room with three washers and dryers.
The Station's galley serves three meals per day each having an early, mid and late window to phase the residents through the food service. All meals are buffet style and the food is more than adequate (hot, plentiful and palatable). The galley's "good stuff" is rationed by limiting a guest to X of an item, e.g. egg rolls, fried cheese sticks, etc. As one can imagine the food is based on frozen, canned or dried goods as not too much comes in truly fresh other than select fruit, salad greens and sometimes eggs/milk. We've really had decent meals, e.g. meatloaf, chicken fried rice, fajitas and spicy curry chicken or beef stews. Each meal offers three main course choices, fruit, salad, vegetables and desserts; Major Gaber's favorite has been the soft serve ice cream machine... ;-)
The people of the Station comes from all backgrounds, walks of life, education level and belief systems. There is a consistent and genuine focus on care for the environment, respect of the wildlife and the pristine nature of the Antarctic continent. Everyone is very friendly, generally outgoing and approachable, after all there's not to many folks here and they all need to work, live and survive together. I have a new sense of respect and appreciation for the sacrifices the Station dwellers make for the USAP's research work and support of others' programs/projects. Folks here really have a love for the mission, the Station's people and the work they support all over the continent. Many of us went to the post office and mail room so that we could get our passports officially stamped "to prove we really were here." Some folks are boxing up clothing to ship back via USPS to make room for souvenirs or equipment returning to the states.
The weather has been quite mild by the Station's standards. The temperature drops later in the day into the mid teens and may hit 30 degrees for a high. However, the cloud cover and winds change very rapidly here so extreme cold weather (ECW) gear goes with everyone that leaves the station. Today the winds picked up putting a real bite in the "feels like" temperature; we've had off and on snow showers and overcast skies. The Station's vehicles and equipment are either antiques (WWII and Vietnam vintage trucks) or quite new passenger vehicles. All the heavy construction equipment is very new and reliable as so much is at stake if they do not perform.
Tonight's social event included a ride (~20 minutes drive) over to New Zealand's Scott Base because the Kiwi's extend an open invitation to the McMurdo inhabitants; invitations are required to enter their installation. The group shopped in their gift store and then took in a beverage at the pub while shooting the breeze and playing pool.
For this blog entry I'll shift my focus to more of the McMurdo experience; the good the bad and the ugly. First the good. The Station is quite concentrated and everything is easily accessible, the one problem is that things have been haphazardly developed and it seems that no master plan exists. I'm sure that when funding comes available that it leads to "just get it done" this build season as the funds are expiring. However, what they've done here is still quite amazing and productive. The Station houses a maximum of 1100-1200 folks by using multi-story dormitories all with common area restrooms, showers and lounge areas. Some of the dorms are better than others and offer differing "creature comforts." Our three story dorm is relatively new/modern and we even have Internet network drops in the rooms. Our room is ~10x16' and is home to three men. The room holds one bunk bed and a standalone twin bed, two wardrobe closets, one desk and small fridge; our fridge does not work. The room's window is covered heavily to block the ever present sunlight as it is full daylight 24 hours a day given that the Station is above the Antarctic circle. The floor's restroom has two showers, two stools and three sinks. We also have a laundry room with three washers and dryers.
The Station's galley serves three meals per day each having an early, mid and late window to phase the residents through the food service. All meals are buffet style and the food is more than adequate (hot, plentiful and palatable). The galley's "good stuff" is rationed by limiting a guest to X of an item, e.g. egg rolls, fried cheese sticks, etc. As one can imagine the food is based on frozen, canned or dried goods as not too much comes in truly fresh other than select fruit, salad greens and sometimes eggs/milk. We've really had decent meals, e.g. meatloaf, chicken fried rice, fajitas and spicy curry chicken or beef stews. Each meal offers three main course choices, fruit, salad, vegetables and desserts; Major Gaber's favorite has been the soft serve ice cream machine... ;-)
The people of the Station comes from all backgrounds, walks of life, education level and belief systems. There is a consistent and genuine focus on care for the environment, respect of the wildlife and the pristine nature of the Antarctic continent. Everyone is very friendly, generally outgoing and approachable, after all there's not to many folks here and they all need to work, live and survive together. I have a new sense of respect and appreciation for the sacrifices the Station dwellers make for the USAP's research work and support of others' programs/projects. Folks here really have a love for the mission, the Station's people and the work they support all over the continent. Many of us went to the post office and mail room so that we could get our passports officially stamped "to prove we really were here." Some folks are boxing up clothing to ship back via USPS to make room for souvenirs or equipment returning to the states.
The weather has been quite mild by the Station's standards. The temperature drops later in the day into the mid teens and may hit 30 degrees for a high. However, the cloud cover and winds change very rapidly here so extreme cold weather (ECW) gear goes with everyone that leaves the station. Today the winds picked up putting a real bite in the "feels like" temperature; we've had off and on snow showers and overcast skies. The Station's vehicles and equipment are either antiques (WWII and Vietnam vintage trucks) or quite new passenger vehicles. All the heavy construction equipment is very new and reliable as so much is at stake if they do not perform.
Tonight's social event included a ride (~20 minutes drive) over to New Zealand's Scott Base because the Kiwi's extend an open invitation to the McMurdo inhabitants; invitations are required to enter their installation. The group shopped in their gift store and then took in a beverage at the pub while shooting the breeze and playing pool.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Day 7 - Another Day of Satellite Data Testing, Antenna Tours, etc.
Today the DMSP team focused on testing additional passes and resolving the small "challenge" with our Aerospace analysis terminal. The team began with breakfast at 0700 and then made it to the JSOC by 0745 to catch the first pass of the day shift. Testing proceeded smoothly after we re-installed the latest software baseline of the common user terminal (CUT) and the associated device drivers. We are grateful to our Aerospace ETG partners, especially Mr. Jerry Michaelson, for his remote support and guidance to resolve our issue. This afternoon we tracked four successive passes and never lost sync with any of the data.
We also had to say goodbye and well wishes to our Harris teammates (Dave Miller and Tim Sloan) as they were scheduled on a late morning C17 flight back to Christchurch NZ. I cannot say enough positive things about these guys as they really can accomplish miracles and deliver on there agreed upon schedule. Kudos to their peers in Omaha and Suitland for stellar support at AFWA and the SOCC. The outcomes of the group's testing show very low data latency on both the stored mission data as well as the new real-time data; the data transfers complete within seconds of the file closeout. Tomorrow we also say goodbye to Raytheon's command control and communications segment (C3S) lead, Ms. Colleen Higgins, a she's spent 10+ weeks here; essentially since the McMurdo build season began. Colleen has been a tremendous engineer spearheading the cross program issues from the Raytheon side and primary interface to Harris and the DMSP SPO. She gave the NASA JPSS and SPO/Aerospace group a nice tour of the two JPSS receptor sites and antennas as well as the supporting infrastructure (power, fiber optic cabling, roads, etc.) that makes the McMurdo C3S function. The nickel tour was great and the team was able to capture much of it via digital photographs. Ms. Valerie Mickelsen will assume Colleen's duties, something she's fully prepared to do as has been demonstrated during our visit. One issue for JPSS to work is the possible MG2 antenna installation as their site is ~100 yards from the JPSS FINES site and MG2 will uplink/command in S-band which is our mission data recovery frequency range.
Tonight the team will meet for a farewell dinner at the local "burger bar" for a greasy hamburger, fries and an adult beverage as this food always tastes better because it is NOT the station's "galley" and the venue offers music and camaraderie.
We also had to say goodbye and well wishes to our Harris teammates (Dave Miller and Tim Sloan) as they were scheduled on a late morning C17 flight back to Christchurch NZ. I cannot say enough positive things about these guys as they really can accomplish miracles and deliver on there agreed upon schedule. Kudos to their peers in Omaha and Suitland for stellar support at AFWA and the SOCC. The outcomes of the group's testing show very low data latency on both the stored mission data as well as the new real-time data; the data transfers complete within seconds of the file closeout. Tomorrow we also say goodbye to Raytheon's command control and communications segment (C3S) lead, Ms. Colleen Higgins, a she's spent 10+ weeks here; essentially since the McMurdo build season began. Colleen has been a tremendous engineer spearheading the cross program issues from the Raytheon side and primary interface to Harris and the DMSP SPO. She gave the NASA JPSS and SPO/Aerospace group a nice tour of the two JPSS receptor sites and antennas as well as the supporting infrastructure (power, fiber optic cabling, roads, etc.) that makes the McMurdo C3S function. The nickel tour was great and the team was able to capture much of it via digital photographs. Ms. Valerie Mickelsen will assume Colleen's duties, something she's fully prepared to do as has been demonstrated during our visit. One issue for JPSS to work is the possible MG2 antenna installation as their site is ~100 yards from the JPSS FINES site and MG2 will uplink/command in S-band which is our mission data recovery frequency range.
Tonight the team will meet for a farewell dinner at the local "burger bar" for a greasy hamburger, fries and an adult beverage as this food always tastes better because it is NOT the station's "galley" and the venue offers music and camaraderie.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Day 6 - DMSP Mission Data Recovery Testing - Deconflicted with NASA's MG1 Commanding
Today and yesterday were major test activities with JPSS and the FINE site receptor/antenna. This was a major milestone as this particular receptor/antenna was considered an "objective" capability as it was the newest unit installed. JPSS staff configured their system to track many of the day and early evening contacts and we captured most of the automatically using the Harris provided automated data recorders (ADRs). Harris personnel noted that the NOAA satellite operations and control center (SOCC) OPS51/F17 configuration of the SGLS channels was incorrect and has not yet been changed. Consequently, Harris engineers corrected the rest of the week's ADR schedules to reflect the proper configuration so we should be OK going forward unless the SOCC pushes out an updated schedule. Major Gaber and Ms. Madden were able to visit the JPSS T-Site receptor/antenna today while I remained at the JSOC to collect RTD imagery.
We were surprised by a Blue Ribbon Panel of distinguished visitors (DVs) who visited the JSOC and what kinds of activities the facility supports. JPSS/Raytheon staff provided an impromptu synopsis of their integration and testing work as well as the real-time DMSP data reception. In fact, the Aerospace CUT application took in live data while the DVs were present and they asked lots of good questions. The panel included representatives from NSF, NASA and White House OSTP.
The Aerospace common user terminal (CUT) application captured data from approximately half of the contacts thus far as it appears that the software properly syncs with standard data "frame sync bit pattern" but may not support "inverted data pattern." This condition can occur given the "phase ambiguity" condition associated with satellite data receivers. I will consult with our engineering technology group (ETG) partners to see if they handle this condition or if we have some other issue to resovle. Folks are thrilled with the data we've successfully taken but I was hopefull for 100% coverage. If at all possible we'll work with ETG to see if a software patch is needed or possible before our time on the ice concludes. Tomorrow we'll say goodbye to our Harris teammates as they depart for New Zealand and then to US as they've completed all of their objectives.
The bulk of the team met for a final dinner and then gathered for a group photo around the McMurdo Station, Antarctica sign with the continental mountain chain and the Ross Ice Shelf in the back drop. Tomorrow the SPO/Aerospace/JPSS staff will go on a major shuttle tour in the AM and then do additional testing with JPSS infrastructure. I've posted photos highlighting the day for your viewing pleasure.
Things have progress so well that our team may move up our departure date to 12 December vs. the planned 16 December but time will tell if the request can be supported but we've flagged it early.
We were surprised by a Blue Ribbon Panel of distinguished visitors (DVs) who visited the JSOC and what kinds of activities the facility supports. JPSS/Raytheon staff provided an impromptu synopsis of their integration and testing work as well as the real-time DMSP data reception. In fact, the Aerospace CUT application took in live data while the DVs were present and they asked lots of good questions. The panel included representatives from NSF, NASA and White House OSTP.
The Aerospace common user terminal (CUT) application captured data from approximately half of the contacts thus far as it appears that the software properly syncs with standard data "frame sync bit pattern" but may not support "inverted data pattern." This condition can occur given the "phase ambiguity" condition associated with satellite data receivers. I will consult with our engineering technology group (ETG) partners to see if they handle this condition or if we have some other issue to resovle. Folks are thrilled with the data we've successfully taken but I was hopefull for 100% coverage. If at all possible we'll work with ETG to see if a software patch is needed or possible before our time on the ice concludes. Tomorrow we'll say goodbye to our Harris teammates as they depart for New Zealand and then to US as they've completed all of their objectives.
The bulk of the team met for a final dinner and then gathered for a group photo around the McMurdo Station, Antarctica sign with the continental mountain chain and the Ross Ice Shelf in the back drop. Tomorrow the SPO/Aerospace/JPSS staff will go on a major shuttle tour in the AM and then do additional testing with JPSS infrastructure. I've posted photos highlighting the day for your viewing pleasure.
Things have progress so well that our team may move up our departure date to 12 December vs. the planned 16 December but time will tell if the request can be supported but we've flagged it early.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Day 5 - USAF C17 Flight to McMurdo - 5 December
Today the wake up call came at 0125 to make a 0200 bus the the flight terminal and loading, security, flight safety briefing, etc. All was on schedule but we had to sit and wait for about a hour or so before loading ourselves, handy carry on items and a boomerang bag. The C17 crew came from McChord AFB (Tacoma WA) as part of operation deep freeze; this was my commissioning base when I went active duty in 1986. Another curious item came up today as we waited for our flight as the Today Show ran a special on Antarctica and emphasized McMurdo; this special rallied the troops and hastened our excitement for the day's adventure. Next came wheels up at 0445 Christchurch time with an expected 5.5 hour flight. The flight crew was fantastic; led by a LtCol and Captain but the guts of the team were the load masters and flight engineers who made the whole team effective and efficient. Our in flight brunch was a very good bag lunch with fruit and a larger water bottle; everyone enjoyed their meal and we have no rough air so no air sick passengers.
We landed very smoothly at Pegasus runway; a snow packed runway more than 12 miles off the continent and away from McMurdo Station. After offloading and snapping a few context pictures we boarded Ivan the Terra Bus; a fabulous machine built in Canada from the 1940s. This machine was our cross ice field transportion to New Zealand's Scott Station and the USA's McMurdo Station. The weather was generally good with occasionally broken skies but the winds were up and flurries swirled the air. After arriving at McMurdo we received a number of briefings about Station's community, safety and getting settled in the dorms. Next came the dreaded bag drag to haul all our personal and ECW gear to our rooms. Our Raytheon peers met us and assisted with getting where we needed to go and then off for a late lunch. Our first experience with the chow hall was a good one!
Next came a quick change our of the heavy ECW clothing and a walk to the Joint Satellite Operations and Control (JSOC) where our satellite data capture equipment was housed and operated. Engineers from Harris and Raytheon had been monitoring the new system's automation as DMSP began testing fully automated data recovery and routing to Offutt AFB. The testing was proceeding quite smoothly but the team had noted a couple of bugs in the system. It was apparent that the NOAA SOCC's configuration of the DMSP transmitter SGLS channel configuration was not correct. Harris staff rectified this issue by manually editing the SOCC's automated data recorder schedule and republishing it to Raytheon. Once corrected several passes were ingested without issue. Harris and Aerospace teamed up to connect our test laptop and RTD capture box to the Harris data distribution chassis. We patiently waited for the next for the next available F18 DMSP pass scheduled for Julian day 339 at 0257Z. The data began arriving on schedule and the OLS raster imagery appeared in our application's GUI like clockwork. We tracked several passes and all but one was nominal. I will be checking with our ETG partners as to whether the RTD capture box handles both nominal and inverted signal for the datastream; the latter is our hypothesis for the one dropped pass.
Enjoy the photos of the day's events; more to come over time as the Internet upload speed is limited and shared by 1,100+ users.
We landed very smoothly at Pegasus runway; a snow packed runway more than 12 miles off the continent and away from McMurdo Station. After offloading and snapping a few context pictures we boarded Ivan the Terra Bus; a fabulous machine built in Canada from the 1940s. This machine was our cross ice field transportion to New Zealand's Scott Station and the USA's McMurdo Station. The weather was generally good with occasionally broken skies but the winds were up and flurries swirled the air. After arriving at McMurdo we received a number of briefings about Station's community, safety and getting settled in the dorms. Next came the dreaded bag drag to haul all our personal and ECW gear to our rooms. Our Raytheon peers met us and assisted with getting where we needed to go and then off for a late lunch. Our first experience with the chow hall was a good one!
Next came a quick change our of the heavy ECW clothing and a walk to the Joint Satellite Operations and Control (JSOC) where our satellite data capture equipment was housed and operated. Engineers from Harris and Raytheon had been monitoring the new system's automation as DMSP began testing fully automated data recovery and routing to Offutt AFB. The testing was proceeding quite smoothly but the team had noted a couple of bugs in the system. It was apparent that the NOAA SOCC's configuration of the DMSP transmitter SGLS channel configuration was not correct. Harris staff rectified this issue by manually editing the SOCC's automated data recorder schedule and republishing it to Raytheon. Once corrected several passes were ingested without issue. Harris and Aerospace teamed up to connect our test laptop and RTD capture box to the Harris data distribution chassis. We patiently waited for the next for the next available F18 DMSP pass scheduled for Julian day 339 at 0257Z. The data began arriving on schedule and the OLS raster imagery appeared in our application's GUI like clockwork. We tracked several passes and all but one was nominal. I will be checking with our ETG partners as to whether the RTD capture box handles both nominal and inverted signal for the datastream; the latter is our hypothesis for the one dropped pass.
Enjoy the photos of the day's events; more to come over time as the Internet upload speed is limited and shared by 1,100+ users.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Day 4 - Cold Weather Gear Issued 4 December
Day 4 began at 0600 local as I had adjusted to the new time zone adequately. Harvey elected to get in an AM workout by running in the local area while I enjoyed many cups of java on the patio. We met for a leisurely breakfast and then I worked on building the trip's blog site initialization, upload of text/photos and announced the site to family, friends and colleagues. The hotel's food appears to be some of the best in the local area and easily tops the airport's food court which generally caim highly recommended.
Shortly after lunch, Harvey and I walked to the USAP clothing distribution center (CDC) for our predeployment extreme cold weather (ECW) gear issue, try on for sizing and repacking of the carry-on bag as well as the larger check-in ECW bag. At the CDC we met up with our teammate and colleague from NASA's JPSS ground system's division and we teamed up for the afternoon when finished at the CDC. USAP and RPSC staff made ECW process very smooth and painless adventure for the ~40 folks heading to McMurdo on tomorrow's 0500 flight on the USAF C17 plane. We were instructed to pack a "boomarang" bag; a separate carry-on bag with our "overnight needs," e.g. clothing and toiletries in case the plane has to return to Christchurch for equipment or weather reasons. When we were done with the clothing issue, briefings and RPSC computer scans we took in some site seeing at the International Antarctic Centre. The center provided considerable background on the international studies/research on climate, atmospheric and terrestrial science conducted on the continent. The Centre featured a raft of blue penguins and we got to see the afternoon feeding. We enjoyed a few short films on the flora/fauna, glaciers and science outposts on the Antarctic continent. Lastly enjoyed a ride on the Centre's Hagglund snow/ice tracked vehicle; examples of what is used outside of the Scott/McMurdo Stations.
Our group of three joined for dinner at the Copthorne Commodore's restaurant for dinner and beverages. We discussed what lies ahead for our on-ice experience, engineering tasks and the 0200 hotel checkout and departure to the USAP hanger. We wrapped up early and saw our NASA colleague off to her hotel as she stayed near the downtown area hotel.
Shortly after lunch, Harvey and I walked to the USAP clothing distribution center (CDC) for our predeployment extreme cold weather (ECW) gear issue, try on for sizing and repacking of the carry-on bag as well as the larger check-in ECW bag. At the CDC we met up with our teammate and colleague from NASA's JPSS ground system's division and we teamed up for the afternoon when finished at the CDC. USAP and RPSC staff made ECW process very smooth and painless adventure for the ~40 folks heading to McMurdo on tomorrow's 0500 flight on the USAF C17 plane. We were instructed to pack a "boomarang" bag; a separate carry-on bag with our "overnight needs," e.g. clothing and toiletries in case the plane has to return to Christchurch for equipment or weather reasons. When we were done with the clothing issue, briefings and RPSC computer scans we took in some site seeing at the International Antarctic Centre. The center provided considerable background on the international studies/research on climate, atmospheric and terrestrial science conducted on the continent. The Centre featured a raft of blue penguins and we got to see the afternoon feeding. We enjoyed a few short films on the flora/fauna, glaciers and science outposts on the Antarctic continent. Lastly enjoyed a ride on the Centre's Hagglund snow/ice tracked vehicle; examples of what is used outside of the Scott/McMurdo Stations.
Our group of three joined for dinner at the Copthorne Commodore's restaurant for dinner and beverages. We discussed what lies ahead for our on-ice experience, engineering tasks and the 0200 hotel checkout and departure to the USAP hanger. We wrapped up early and saw our NASA colleague off to her hotel as she stayed near the downtown area hotel.
Day 2&3 - New Zealand Travel 2-3 December (Lose a day!)
Day 2 and 3 of the trip occurred somewhere during this flight and I also lost a day by crossing the "date line." I am truly grateful to Aerospace line management for approving the premium economy ticket. During this flight I chatted with my seatmate to learn that he was a Vietnam vet; he flew close air support for the Army and retired after a long and successful carrier. He was on a 3-week vacation to celebrate his 65th birthday by both fresh and salt water fishing all around New Zealand. I did not get any long haul flight pictures to share as the flight was all nighttime; including the Auckland arrival. My flight arrived at Auckland International Airport about 40 minutes late due to very slow boarding at SFO. This fact pushed me back from my scheduled 0650 AM flight to Christchurch; I caught the 0710 flight instead. I found the Auckland airport to very small by US standards; something similar to Eppley in Omaha. This airport had 22 gates, 16 of which were dedicated to international travel.
The Auckland to Christchurch flight on Air New Zealand was on an Airbus A319, I was able to snap a silly photo of the seating to show it is very much like flying in the USA. Now that the sun was up I was able to capture some departing pictures of the bay off of Auckland as well as a view of the airport on departure. The island looked lush and green and appeared to be rural farming and ranching outside of the urban and industrial areas. The flight again headed out over open water until we approached the south island; the terrain was snow covered mountains and high desert until we crossed the mountain range. I include a few in flight digital photos as well as some on arrival at Christchurch and their regional airport.
Overall my travels were smooth, uneventful and positive experience. Air New Zealand treated all of us like gold, the service put the US carriers to shame. I appreciated Kathie Hoke's hard work to arrange my travel and her wisdom to keep my layovers to at least 90 minutes. This plan made sure that with any small flight delays (weather or other) kept me on schedule and assured I did not get separated from my baggage.
From the Christchurch airport I called the United States Antarctic Program (USAP) office to notify them of my slightly delayed arrival. They provided me a brief synopsis of what I was to do over the next day and a half and then routed me to my hotel; The Copthorne Commodore hotel (http://www.hotelsone.com/christchurch-hotels-nz/copthorne-hotel-commodore.html?label=ggehoeu-bh43205_commodore+christchurch+airport&gclid=CJGB3uTy5qwCFQYBQAodNBzHIQ). Their shuttle van picked me up promptly and the driver was aware that I was heading to McMurdo and he pointed out the USAP hanger, USAF C17 transport and Extreme Cold Weather (ECW) Clothing Distribution Center (CDC) along our route. After checking in at the hotel counter I learned that no rooms would be available for several hours so I got on-line from the hotel bar/restaurant. I was served coffee and soft drinks until my room came available; the hotel staff took all my bags and set me up nicely in the room. I tried to tip the staff but they did not accept my offer. I made a mental note to research this topic as I wanted to better understand the local customs. After two days of travel I took a two hour nap until my colleague was to arrive by mid afternoon. We met for a beverage and then took a local walk to find dinner. Along the way I took a number of digital photos to share with the audience.
The Auckland to Christchurch flight on Air New Zealand was on an Airbus A319, I was able to snap a silly photo of the seating to show it is very much like flying in the USA. Now that the sun was up I was able to capture some departing pictures of the bay off of Auckland as well as a view of the airport on departure. The island looked lush and green and appeared to be rural farming and ranching outside of the urban and industrial areas. The flight again headed out over open water until we approached the south island; the terrain was snow covered mountains and high desert until we crossed the mountain range. I include a few in flight digital photos as well as some on arrival at Christchurch and their regional airport.
Overall my travels were smooth, uneventful and positive experience. Air New Zealand treated all of us like gold, the service put the US carriers to shame. I appreciated Kathie Hoke's hard work to arrange my travel and her wisdom to keep my layovers to at least 90 minutes. This plan made sure that with any small flight delays (weather or other) kept me on schedule and assured I did not get separated from my baggage.
From the Christchurch airport I called the United States Antarctic Program (USAP) office to notify them of my slightly delayed arrival. They provided me a brief synopsis of what I was to do over the next day and a half and then routed me to my hotel; The Copthorne Commodore hotel (http://www.hotelsone.com/christchurch-hotels-nz/copthorne-hotel-commodore.html?label=ggehoeu-bh43205_commodore+christchurch+airport&gclid=CJGB3uTy5qwCFQYBQAodNBzHIQ). Their shuttle van picked me up promptly and the driver was aware that I was heading to McMurdo and he pointed out the USAP hanger, USAF C17 transport and Extreme Cold Weather (ECW) Clothing Distribution Center (CDC) along our route. After checking in at the hotel counter I learned that no rooms would be available for several hours so I got on-line from the hotel bar/restaurant. I was served coffee and soft drinks until my room came available; the hotel staff took all my bags and set me up nicely in the room. I tried to tip the staff but they did not accept my offer. I made a mental note to research this topic as I wanted to better understand the local customs. After two days of travel I took a two hour nap until my colleague was to arrive by mid afternoon. We met for a beverage and then took a local walk to find dinner. Along the way I took a number of digital photos to share with the audience.
Day 1 - Travel (Omaha-Denver-LAX-SFO-NZ), 01 Dec 11
The trip started off wonderfully with a fabulous homemade family breakfast and a heartfelt sendoff by my wife (Jody) and kids (Michaela [13] and Jonathan [8]). We arrived promptly at Epply Airfield at 0730 CST well ahead of my 0835 departure time. Check in with United and TSA security was a breeze and all flights were on-time. Thankfully my secretary arranged my flights with a minimum of 90 minutes layovers; something very important as I'll share later.
My arrival at Denver International Airport (DIA) was as scheduled but they were experiencing moderate snow showers with two inches on the ground but melting fast; see the associate photo at DIA. Departure to Los Angeles (LAX) was as scheduled and I enjoyed an economy plus exit row isle opposite the airplane door; this gave me the ultimate legroom... ;-) From LAX I caught another flight to San Francisco (SFO) to catch my international Air New Zealand flight to Auckland. The LAX to SFO flight was delayed 35 minutes due to the high Santa Anna winds which shortened the connection at SFO. Upon arrival at SFO I made a beeline to my Air NZ gate and got in line to verify my check in status. Thankfully I did that as when boarding was called everyone without a Air NZ boarding pass was sent back to the gate counter.
The Air NZ flight was via a Boeing 747-400 and I was ticketed for "premium economy" which as on the upper deck behind the Business Class seats. My seat was essentially the same thing as United's economy plus seating but the in-flight entertainment systems were the same as First and Business Class seating. The night flight out of SFO was amazing as I was able to view the disappearing city lights as they fell below the horizon. The climbout and early cruise was very smooth and comfortable. I was able to watch Contagion after dinner and The Rise of the Planet of the Apes after 5-6 hours sleep. The flight was long, almost 13 hours, but the seating and service made it quite manageable.
My arrival at Denver International Airport (DIA) was as scheduled but they were experiencing moderate snow showers with two inches on the ground but melting fast; see the associate photo at DIA. Departure to Los Angeles (LAX) was as scheduled and I enjoyed an economy plus exit row isle opposite the airplane door; this gave me the ultimate legroom... ;-) From LAX I caught another flight to San Francisco (SFO) to catch my international Air New Zealand flight to Auckland. The LAX to SFO flight was delayed 35 minutes due to the high Santa Anna winds which shortened the connection at SFO. Upon arrival at SFO I made a beeline to my Air NZ gate and got in line to verify my check in status. Thankfully I did that as when boarding was called everyone without a Air NZ boarding pass was sent back to the gate counter.
The Air NZ flight was via a Boeing 747-400 and I was ticketed for "premium economy" which as on the upper deck behind the Business Class seats. My seat was essentially the same thing as United's economy plus seating but the in-flight entertainment systems were the same as First and Business Class seating. The night flight out of SFO was amazing as I was able to view the disappearing city lights as they fell below the horizon. The climbout and early cruise was very smooth and comfortable. I was able to watch Contagion after dinner and The Rise of the Planet of the Apes after 5-6 hours sleep. The flight was long, almost 13 hours, but the seating and service made it quite manageable.
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