McMurdo at night, with Discovery Hut in the foreground. The large rise behind the station is Observation Hill.
Last night after dinner Shelly and I took a walk out to Discovery Hut, a famous landmark just a few hundred meters north of McMurdo Station. Discovery Hut is a relic of the 1901-1904 British expedition led by Robert Scott, one of the earliest land explorations of the Antarctic continent. The interior of the hut (and of several other historic huts on Ross Island) is designated as a Specially Protected Area so were weren’t able to enter, though we may have an opportunity later in the season. Because of the cold, dry climate and stout construction the hut has weathered the 100+ years well.
Visiting the hut provides a nice touchstone to the long history of science on Ross Island. Some of the early expeditions, in particular the British expeditions, were extremely dedicated to science. Robert Scott and his polar party refused to jettison heavy geologic samples during their long and ill-fated return from the south pole in 1911. An even more extreme example of scientific dedication from the same expedition occurred several months earlier. In the middle of the Antarctic winter three of Scott’s men undertook one of the most spectacular polar journeys on record, all in the name of science (and maybe a little bit for the adventure). They journeyed from the relative comfort of the expedition’s base camp at Cape Evans, south around Ross Island, to the wintering ground of the Emperor Penguins at Cape Crozier for the sole purpose of collecting penguin eggs. At the time it was thought that penguin eggs might yield interesting information on the process of speciation, a concept only recent introduced by Darwin. In an incredible display of endurance the party survived the weeks of storms, darkness, and temperatures to -77 F (without wind chill) and succeeded in collecting a handful of eggs (to learn more check out the phenomenal autobiographical account by Apsley Cherry-Garrard titled The Worst Journey in the World). The abandoned Discovery Hut was the first refuge the party reached on their return from the Cape, and their first night of safety and comfort in many weeks.
Those of us who choose to study the polar regions today have things a lot easier, but there are still many frustrations and discomforts. The logistics are complicated, fingers and toes freeze, we get tired after long days of sampling. Visiting Discovery Hut and other monuments to scientific history are a great way to put these things in perspective and make them seem a lot more tolerable. With that in mind we waited out another canceled cargo flight and spent a relaxing day today sorting out the field gear that we will need in the coming weeks. The weather has been calm and clear all day, so the rest of our supplies should make it in in just a few hours…
