Interesting Sights...

There are lots of interesting things to see in this otherworldly continent. Although the land is mostly devoid of life, the sea is teeming with it. Here are a few examples brought up by some divers recently:

The beastie above is a sponge coral, but unlike all other sponge corals I've seen, this one had numerous glass spikes emanating from its body. The glass is synthesized from minerals in the sea water and the spikes are used as protection from predators.

This next creature is a Sea Spider. It isn't in the same family as spiders or crabs - it's unique. They get quite large here - over two feet. This one has a good-sized parasite on one of its legs.

There are a variety of strange vehicles here. One that we use often is called a Pisten-Bully:

It has two compartments: the driver's compartment with two seats and the passenger/cargo compartment in back, which can seat 6 people or hold a bunch of cargo. Here's the obligatory Jim-driving-a-cool-new-snow-tractor photo:

A friend and I hiked up a nearby 800-foot hill (Observation Hill) which offered great views of the surrounding landscape. Next is a shot of the lovely McMurdo Base:

Next is a shot of the Mt. Erebus volcano puffing away at sundown (not sunset, since there won't be anymore of those until next year):

And finally, a shot of Mt. Discovery with a standing lenticular cloud around its summit. These clouds are caused by high winds and orographic lifting, and appear to be stationary. To a pilot, they indicate nasty turbulence on the lee side of the mountain. To normal people, they just look interesting! :-)