Alaska. “North to the Future”. Sheared from the ‘lower 48′ it stood in my mind shrouded in vagueness. There are the stereotypes sure: bitter, freezing cold. Grizzly men and grizzly bears. Vast expanses of land. The Northern Lights.
When I applied for the PARS program, I spent little time considering what I might see and do. I knew it would be a school on polar aeronomy and radio science, with seminars on key topics and demonstrations of key instruments. I knew I had to do an experiment. I knew Nader would be there with a few colleagues from his research group at Stanford (the VLF Group). I knew there was a day cruise involved, because we had signed up for it before leaving.
Even before returning to the ‘lower 48′, it was blindingly clear to me that Alaska was a surprise, a different kind of gift that one only appreciates after it digests.
The weather was the best one could ask for. Highs in the mid 70s, lows in the high 50s. Bright shining sun that scattered through a myriad of clouds, often providing skyscapes that rivaled the vast, rugged, untamed landscapes below. Having grown up in central Texas and North Carolina, I have a strong affinity to rugged mountains, peaks that both humble and inspire. Alaska did not disappoint. Who can not pause at clear skies that expose the 16,000+ ft. cap of Mt. Drum, a massive volcano that towers over the landscape despite being virtually on the horizon. Between you and the volcano is an expanse of forests and rivers. What about the quiet cool of Valdez in the morning, before the wispy trails of clouds are burned away from the high peaks that completely surround you? You turn around and see the harbor against a background of towering mountains, and your mind moves slowly in believing that the Pacific ocean is truly next door. What about the ice-blue thrill of slowly approaching one of the world’s largest glaciers as it negotiates the sound? Icebergs big and small drift by, with their hues of blue and white reflecting off the blue water in front of mountains under an azure sky. Hundreds of sea lions, schools of otter, puffins, and two whales dot the Prince William Sound.
Alaska was –and is– a thrill to explore, and all credit is due to the PARS program for showing us the beauty of this oft-forgotten state.
The first four days was spent at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks (UAF), with daily seminars between 8:30am and 5pm that covered a wide range of topics concerning aeronomy and radio science. Catered lunches, ample breaks, and distinguished speakers made this interesting. Every day at 5pm we’d have dinner at a restaurant in Fairbanks, then after that it was free time. It never got truly dark when we were there. Local ‘midnight’ was 2:30am. I took the time to hang out with the Stanford group and plan the field trips that needed to be made. One day we visited the Poker Flat Rocket Range, where they launch rockets to study the ionosphere. They also have a slew of other instruments there, including the highly regarded PFISR (Poker Flat Incoherent Scatter Radar). This ISR was designed and built by SRI, and its PI is Craig Heinselman, who joined us for our time in Fairbanks. We also visited the HIPAS facility (the precursor to HAARP), Chena Hot Springs resort, and a derelict gold mining facility. One evening I joined the Stanford group to the hardware store, where over the course of 2.5 hours we worked out how to transport and construct a 15 foot antenna that had to be assembled at the Dot Lake site. Nader and I drew on our past hands-on experiences in Science Olympiad and other projects and it proved valuable. We also bought parts to create a ‘hum-sniffer’, which is a small handheld antenna used for ’sniffing’ out low frequency noise due to power lines. We got some looks from the other PARS students as we were putting the humsniffer together back at the dorms, but they thought it was cool.
On Friday we piled into vans after lunch and headed down to Valdez. The Stanford group followed in their rented car — due to their field excursions, they needed their own set of wheels. I gave Nader a hard time for renting the Ford Explorer with the power seats, leather, and wood trim. On the way down to Valdez, we stopped at the Copper Center for dinner and walked along the Copper River, where we encountered strangely enough several abandoned cars, one half in the river. Alaskans can be odd. We limited our further stops because the weather got cold and rainy. We reached Valdez at around 9, and the room assignments at the Downtown Bed and Breakfast were given out. I lucked out and got a single room, which was surprisingly comfortable. We were restless after spending the whole day in the vans, so we decided to walk the town as a group. Dr. Sheerin joined us and broke off from the group as we passed the harbor. He mentioned an otter that would frequent this part, and so Robert and I followed him. We ultimately spotted this ’stochastic otter’, as Robert called him, and spent 10 minutes watching him eat and swim around. It was dark so I didn’t get many good shots. It was a thrill to see such a cute animal up close. Nader came by and found us, and we bid Dr. Sheerin a good night. The three of us walked down to the bar where the others had gone, but we didn’t care much for the atmosphere and smoke. We said our hellos and walked around the town in the dark, enjoying a meaningful conversation about life at Stanford and what the big picture was. Before heading back to the hotel, we snapped photos of the green light of a harbor buoy, with Robert recalling the iconic element in The Great Gatsby.
Valdez is a stunningly beautiful place. In the morning, swirls of clouds wrap their arms around the mountain peaks, which tower over the harbor. It’s hard to imagine the sea is so close. We had a long breakfast then made our way to the harbor where we waited for our cruise to start. World War II was the topic that morning for some reason. The day cruise was by Stan Stevens and involved a six hour trip around the Prince William Sound to the Columbia glacier and back. Myself, the Stanford boys and others found our way to the back deck and stayed there for nearly the whole trip. We had a great view. The day was perfect – clear blue skies, sun shining, and warm with a breeze. We headed out of the harbor and in the sound. A lot of wildlife was promised, and over the course of the cruise we saw sea lions, otters, whales, puffins, etc. As we approached the glacier area, small icebergs and ice littered the water, hues of cerulean blue streaking throughout. Beyond, we could see the massive ice sheets and walls of the glacier as it meets the ocean. When the whales were spotted, the whole crowd moved from one side of the boat to the other. At one point we moved close to an island, where hundreds of sea lions lived loudly on a small rocky beach. Puffins flew around and otters floated in schools in the water. One of the crewmembers fished out some glacial ice from the water. When Nader got his hands on it, he promptly took a bite out of it. His encouragement led me and the others to similarly partake. Dr. Sheerin was again a wonderful guide. People came and went from the deck, and our conversations were varied and long. After dinner that evening at No Name Pizza, the Stanford group and I again went down to the harbor to try to see our stochastic otter again. Sure enough, there he was and we spent a good 20 minutes watching him eat and swim and roll about. Simply adorable.
The next morning we headed out of Valdez for Gakona, where the HAARP facility is. The memorable stops were the Worthington Glacier, were we got to go right up next to the actual glacier, and a lookout point to see the Rangel range with Mt. Drum on a clear day. Such an impressive view to see this massive volcanos on the horizon. We checked into this beautiful bed and breakfast with lush green lawns with a view of the river running behind it and off in the distance Mt. Drum towering behind. I was going to share a room with Robert, and Nader/Brant were next door. 10 minutes down the road is the HAARP facility, where we went for lunch. Compared to the other facilites we visited, this is very well maintained. No windows, but it is well kept and relatively spacious. We had lunch in the large conference room that is in the center and got an introduction to the HAARP. Over the next three days, the PARS students would be doing experiments with the HAARP facility.
– cutting it short here for now, sorry –
