AWS Antarctic Field Activities

Personnel from the University of Wisconsin-Madison arrived at McMurdo, Antarctica on 4 January 1994. Plans for an earlier trip to Siple Coast in November and December were rescheduled for the 1994-1995 field season.

A flight was made to Minna Bluff site on 8 January 1994. The aerovane had broken off at the mast and was found on the surface next to the station. The antenna was also damaged. AWS 8915 was removed and the aerovane and antenna were returned to McMurdo for repair.

Willie Field and Pegasus North sites were visited on 10 January 1994. AWS 8927 and the aerovane were removed from Pegasus North, and AWS 8901 was removed from Willie Field. Both stations were returned to McMurdo for repair.

A flight was made to Linda site on 11 January 1994. AWS 8909 was replaced with AWS 8915. A flight was made to Minna Bluff site on 12 January 1994. AWS 8988 was installed with a new antenna and an R.M. Young wind system.

On 13 January 1994, Marilyn and Schwerdtfeger sites were visited using the Twin Otter aircraft. Marilyn site was in good condition. The lower vertical temperature difference sensor was raised to 1 meter above the snow surface, and two boxes of three 40 amp hr batteries were also installed. The malfunctioning aerovane at Schwerdtfeger site was replaced.

AWS 8927 was reinstalled at Pegasus North site on 14 January 1994. The existing 1.8 m boom was replaced with a 0.9 m boom, and an R.M. Young wind system was installed. The solar panel and power junction box were replaced with new components, and the lower vertical temperature difference sensor was raised to a height of 1 meter. One box of three 40 amp hr gel cell batteries was also installed.

A Twin Otter flight was made to Lettau site on 17 January 1994. One 1.5 m tower section was added to the station. A new antenna and another aerovane were also installed. Two new boxes of three 40 amp hr batteries were installed as well.

AWS 8901 was reinstalled at Willie Field on 18 January 1994. A Campbell Scientific CR-10 data logger with an Ultrasonic Depth Gauge was installed in support of S-186. The lower vertical temperature difference sensor was raised to a height of 0.7 m, and an R.M. Young wind system was installed.

An LC-130 flight was taken to Byrd Surface Camp on 21 January 1994. The trip from Byrd Surface Camp to Byrd site was made by snowmobile. The existing 1.8 m boom was replace with a new 0.9 m boom. The existing antenna was unusable, and another antenna was shipped to Byrd Surface Camp and installed by camp personnel on 30 January 1994.

The wind speed sensor was questionable at Marble Point site. On 22 January, a replacement aerovane was installed, and the wind speed sensor output appeared to be fine.

Mount Howe, Kelly, and Lindsay sites were visited on 22 January. The station at Mount Howe had sustained severe damage from wind, and the ice around the anchors and tower base had ablated so that the tower was no longer anchored sufficiently. Mount Howe site was removed, as were Kelly and Lindsay, which had been installed in support of S-203.

Clean Air site was moved from its previous location to one approximately 30 m from the South Pole Meteorological tower on 24 January, and the station was replaced with a new station. A snow temperature profile was also added.

Crew members of the USGS Polar Sea replaced the station at Whitlock site on 23 February.

Near the Adelie Coast, members of Expeditions Polaires Francaises visited D-80 site on 1 February. Two 1.9 m tower sections were added, as were two boxes of three 40 amp hr batteries. A new sensor boom and aerovane were installed. They replaced the existing electronics with a new unit.

On the Antarctic Peninsula, members of the British Antarctic Survey serviced several AWS units during the austral summer. AGO-A81 site was removed on 16 January and installed at Recovery Glacier on 18 January. Ski-Hi site was installed on 21 February. Butler Island was serviced, and two 1.9 m tower sections were added to Uranus Glacier site.

On 9 March the seawater temperature probe at Bonaparte Point was replaced. The removed probe was still working, but the protective conduit was broken. The wire and probe appeared to be in good condition.

G.A. Weidner and R.E. Holmes returned to McMurdo on 13 November. Linda site was visited on 18 November. One 1.8 m tower section was installed and the lower delta-T sensor was raised to a height of 1.0 m. The battery voltage was found to be low. The station elctronics were removed for repair. On 7 December, the station was replaced, and six 40 amp hr gel cell batteries were installed.

On 23 November Marble Point site was visited. The four 100 amp hr lead- acid batteries were replaced by six 40 amp hr gel cell batteries. A new power junction box was also installed.

On 28 November, R.E. Holmes left McMurdo for the Central West Antarctica (CWA) camp to install AWS sites on the Siple Coast in support of Dr. David Bromwich. Upon arrival, the components for seven AWS units were removed from pallets and prepared for deployment. On 29 November, J.C., Erin, Theresa, Harry, and Doug sites were installed. On 30 November, Brianna and Elizabeth sites were installed.

On 2 December, Byrd AWS site was visited. One 1.5 m tower section was installed as were six 40 amp hr gel cell batteries.

Back in the McMurdo area, Willie Field site was visited on 8 December. The data storage module for the Ultrasonic Depth Gauge (UDG) was removed for shipment back to Madison, WI, and a new module was installed. Minna Bluff site was visited on 9 December. The R.M. Young wind sensor had been severely damaged, and only the vertical shaft remained on the tower. The rest of the wind sensor could not be found. A new R.M. Young wind sensor was installed.

G.A. Weidner and R.E. Holmes returned to Madison, and J.J. Cassano and M.W. Seefeldt left to join the icebreaker in Hobart, Tasmania. The next stage of the field season was the repair of stations along the Adelie Coast.

D-10 was visited on 26 December. The top of the tower was approximately 1.8 m above the snow, and the vertical prong of the antenna had been broken off. One 1.8 m tower section was added, and the antenna was replaced. Sutton AWS site was also installed on 26 December. A third flight was made to Port Martin AWS site. The aerovane impeller was broken, and the tachometer was also malfunctioning. The 0.9 m boom was replaced with a 1.2 m boom, and both an aerovane and a Hydro-Tech high wind system were installed. The electronics were modified for use with the new wind system.

Cape Denison site was visited on 27 December. The aerovane impeller had one blade missing, and one of the prongs of the antenna was missing. The 0.9 m boom was replaced with a 1.2 m boom, and both a replacement aerovane and a Hydro-Tech wind system were installed. A new antenna was also installed.

On 28 December a flight was made to Penguin Point AWS site. The antenna was missing one prong, so a new antenna was installed. Moving down the coast, Cape Webb AWS site was installed.

On 10 December AWS 8910 was installed by Tony Amos, assisted by members of the Long Term Ecological Research Program. The location is in the Hugo Island group, and the site name will be Santa Claus Island. The water temperature sensor was not installed.