Word of the day is SIP
I know it sounds like a long time from now but we have to start preparing for our trip to Antarctica next October!
Yes, we are going back to the volcano, the desert, under sea and the mountains of Antarctica collect our microbe traps. Here is a little map of the area with the sites we will be visiting.
But before we can go we need to have all of our logistics in place and that means we need food, fuel and shelter. All these things are provided for us by the Antarctic support contractor working for the National Science Foundation (NSF).
This is the time of year we begin dealing with lots of acronyms!
And that brings us to our word of the day, SIP.
Our SIP is the Support Information Package. This is an online form that describes support logistics, equipment and supplies requested by science groups.
Planning is very important- we want to make sure we have enough sleeping bags and tents for everyone. It would be a bummer if you got to your field camp only to discover you didn’t have a tent.
The support service has to plan for how many people will be in Antarctica and how they will move from place to place. That means they need to have fuel on hand and helicopters and snowmobiles and airplanes and tracked vehicles… The list goes on.
We need to put each and every trip we will take into the SIP, how many people, where we will go and on what days 7 or 8 months from now!
Good planning is critical for a successful field season.
So, its back to the computer to begin filling out our SIP.
No comments:
Post a Comment