Not a normal vacation
The days-long journey to our icy research site continued with an Air Greenland flight north from Kangerlussuaq to Ilulissat. Jaw-dropping Arctic views punctuated the 45-minute trip: to the west, an iceberg-studded sea, and to the east, the ice sheet we are traveling to study. After landing, we spent most of the day inside a hangar at the Ilulissat airport, swatting fat mosquitoes (common along coastal Greenland) and sorting camping equipment that we'll need for our deployment via helicopters to the ice sheet. By day’s end, we had 600 pounds of gear inventoried, weighed, and scheduled for our leave. With preparations complete, we’ll rest tomorrow, explore the town of Ilulissat, and take one last hot shower. In two days, it will be the five of us, a pile of camping gear, and Earth’s second largest ice cap.
Read on about our adventure in the slideshow below. Can't see the slideshow? Get the Flash plug in »
