QUESTION:  
How long did the training last in California for the Antarctica 
project?

                        Jessica D., Taylor Road Middle School
                        Alpharetta, Georgia


ANSWER from Ray Smith, Palmer Station, Antarctica
Mon, 03 Feb 97 08:56:03 -0800

Dear Jessica,
I'm not totally sure what you mean by "training".  

If you mean how much education & past experience do we need to do our work 
in the Antarctic then the answer is - years.  Most of us have spent much of
our life, since college, doing related research and continuning to learn.   

If you mean how much time do we spend getting ready for each field season
then the answer is - about 6 months.  We typically spend about 6 months in 
the field (Sept thru Feb/March) at Palmer Station and much of the time 
not in the field is spent getting ready for the next season.

If you mean how much time did we spend practicing for the Live from Antarctic
TV program then the answer is - several days.  We spent a day with Dean
Rink several months ago discussing various elements of the program and he
took video of a number of our "non-field" activities here at University of
California Santa Barbara (UCSB).  In the classroom, prior to the live 
broadcast, we spent a few hours discussing with the local producer how the
program would be filmed and another few hours doing a "practice" without
the camera.

Hope this answers your question,
Ray Smith (UCSB)