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Wednesday 21 February Wow! Am I behind on keeping in touch! So much has happened yesterday and today that I have not had time to transfer it from my field notes. I will send a more complete update tomorrow. What have I been up to? Between yesterday and today I have: • been to the Ukpeagvik Inupiat Corporation Science Center to see the display of some of the artifacts recovered from the Nuvuk archaeological site. It will be housed in the new Barrow Global Climate Change Research Facility. • been to Barrow (downtown) to the Inupiat Heritage Center to see the new whaling exhibit. • gone on a snowmobile out on the sea ice to see research data collecting towers, arctic fox, and polar bear tracks (did not spot the bear, but the tracks were HUGE) • met the new Captain of the USCG Healy and discussed the science cruises for summer and fall (and whether he would take a teacher on board (hint, hint!)) • went with Dr. Smith, Herman Ahsoak, and Winona out to the end of the road in Barrow to send Dr. Smith off on his 100 mile tundra expedition . I will have more information and pictures tomorrow. My camera was so cold out on the ice that I could not take pictures, but Winona was able to use her camera and she is willing to share photos. I will post these later. It was -22F, up from -26F from this morning when Dr. Smith left. I hope to go out on the ice one more time before I leave, but there has been new snow and the ice is moving around, so it may not be safe. Today there were only 2 seal hunters out at the ice edge. Herman Ahsoak and Lewis Brower, BASC employees and life-long whalers and seal hunters, said that it was not safe, and that only the most experienced hunters would venture out. It would be difficult for them to worry about our safety and keep an eye out for polar bears and ice cracks at the same time. Herman was very careful about checking our gear and making sure that hands, face, and feet were covered and warm at all times. I was very appreciative of his knowledge and experience, and I felt safe and comfortable at all times. It is supposed to get to -30F to -35F tonight and tomorrow night. Winona and I are going out to see if we can spot the aurora borealis again. There is a crescent moon – it looks like liquid silver up there – and a sky absolutely full of stars. Herman told us today, “Sometimes I have a bad day. Then I go out and look up at the stars and the bad day goes away.” I can't think of a better cure. There was an interview on NPR this morning with Sheila Watt-Coultier , an Inuit from northern Canada who has been nominated for a 2007 Nobel Peace Prize. I heard her speak at an Arctic conference two years ago and I was very moved by what she had to say about the changing start of the Arctic and how the people are being affected. I think that it is significant that more than one person has been nominated based on their work on environmental issues (the other person is Al Gore). Search the NPR website for her interview. To find out more, click here . Winona and I have to get up bright and early tomorrow to go do our interview at the local NPR station. While we may not be as impressive as Ms. Watt-Coultier, our hearts are certainly in the right place! Tomorrow, after the interview, I am going to NOAA's CMDL station and then to the “fur shop”. This is one place I have not been in Barrow, and I am looking forward to seeing it. I will send the ice pictures another time, after I get them from Winona.
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