Posted October 16, 2009 - 4:11am by Robert Harris
Have your classes follow PolarTREC Expeditions in the Arctic and Antarctic by creating posters.
Track ships' locations around the world with this fun website!
Do you want to see when the sun will set and rise at any location in the world? If so, this site is for you.
I did make it back to Austin, Texas safe and sound. I had 3 excellent flights back to Austin that were all on time and ran smoothly. My students were very anxious to see me again after being gone for over a month and a half, so I went back to teach the very next day. That first morning back I was greeted with a huge banner, flowers, and many posters welcoming me back to Zilker Elementary. It was very sweet and I was very grateful! The local news came to my classroom later that day for interviews with both the kids and me. We were all very excited to share our experience with the Austin community. School just finished yesterday, so I finally found some time to sit down and write my final journal. I have really enjoyed this awesome experience and am truly grateful to everyone involved! Have a fun and safe summer!
Thanks,
Mrs. Pena
I did make it back to Austin, Texas safe and sound.
Click the icon below to listen to an audio journal by Katie Pena, from Punta Arenas, Chile.
Yay! We're Back in Punta Arenas
I started my day a little later than most because I slept until 11:30 a.m.! I was in bed for close to 11 hours, but that is good because for the past couple of nights I had only gotten maybe a total of 5 hours of sleep. The boat was swaying more than normal due to higher waves, which had made sleeping more difficult. Although, we have had unusually excellent weather and seas, and the Palmer is very steady-so I am grateful.
At 1:00 in the afternoon we had our final fire/ safety drill. So, for the last time I took my lifejacket and immersion suit to the conference room on the 03 deck for the drill. Jenny, the Marine Project Coordinator, used this time for a small meeting where we all filled out our customs paperwork that is needed before returning to Chile.
10 minutes after the drill, we all met on the bridge for a group photo. Here we are, the Geo Group. Dann Blackwood took the picture from a small platform above us.
The rest of the day was spent cleaning and packing. I am looking forward to taking my first step on land in over a month; it will probably feel a little weird!
What had to get completed on the last day at sea?
Today we had an opportunity to take a tour of the engine room. The tour was led by 3 of the 4 engineers, Dave (chief engineer), Richard (2nd assistant engineer), and Jerry (3rd assistant engineer).
The engine room is located in the very bottom of the ship. We were first taken down the stairs and into their office where we had a quick overview of the equipment and safety. Then we all put on protective headphones and headed into the very loud and colorful engine room.
Check out all of these cool photos of the different equipment!
Richard shared some really interesting facts about the engine room.
4 Engine Room WOW Facts:
• It has 14 miles of pipe, 500 miles of wire, 3,200 light bulbs, and 1,200 circuit breakers!
• It has a total of 4 engines. When traveling through water only 2 are used at a time, but when traveling through ice all 4 engines are needed for more power. The engineers do switch engines for regular maintenance like oil and filer changes.
• It has 4 generators but only 2 are used at a time for supplying the energy for the entire ship.
• 7,000 gallons of diesel fuel are used a day during this trip.
AWESOME! – Thanks so much to the engineers for the great tour!
How many gallons of gas does the NBPalmer use a day?
