Day 4: Final Day Evan, Ben, Cole, Cameron

On Friday, we woke up early for a delicious breakfast of bacon and egg sandwiches. Afterward, we went to the nearby rocket range, where from 1957 until 1998, 3,500 sounding rockets were launched to test the upper atmosphere and investigate the mysteries of the Aurora Borealis, more commonly known as the Northern Lights. One of the features of the range was the Aerobee tower,

which is a large building used to prepare and launch rockets.

This building protected the rocket from the harsh Arctic winds. After visiting the rocket range, we went back to the research centre to eat lunch and to clean out our rooms. This was followed by a trip to the Eskimo museum in the town of Churchill.

In the Eskimo museum, there were many soapstone carvings and stuffed animals, such as a polar bear, 3 polar bear cubs, a musk ox, and a walrus. Its gift shop contained many jams, jellies, postcards, and books. After many purchases and putting our coats back on, we clambered onto the bus and headed to the train station. The train station is also a Parks Canada post where they have many artifacts dating back to the time of the fur trade.

These artifacts include a cannon, multiple cannonballs, and a musket. In addition, it has several furs of animals such as the ring seal, both the Arctic fox and the red fox, and the mink.

We then proceeded to do some shopping at a nearby store before heading off to the Northern store. The Northern Stores, previously known as the Hudson Bay Company Stores were renamed in 1990. Northern Stores/Hudson Bay Company Stores have been providing food and general merchandise to people of Churchill and other remote Canadian communities for over 300 years.

The Northern Store Manager in Churchill, Mr. Gary Rea gave us a tour of his store. He was very kind, friendly and eager to talk about his job.

Prices on everyday essentials such as milk, meat, veggies, fruit, bread and canned goods at the Churchill Northern store can be two to four times higher than the price of the same item in a Winnipeg grocery store.

As there are no roads into Churchill, supplies have to be shipped via train or plane. The weight of the items affects the cost of the product. 

We were very surprised to see all the variety of foods available. A big challenge for Gary is to provide yellow bananas to his customers. The bananas arrive green and stay hard and green.

Besides food, you can also purchase clothes, furniture and skidoos at the store.

We walked to a restaurant where we had a scrumptious dinner before going to the airport to take off for Winnipeg. We all enjoyed and learned many new things during our trip to Churchill.

Final day in Churchill, MB

We awoke to another cool day in Churchill...

It was actually so cold later in the afternoon that the K-12 school in town closed. Their threshold is -50 with the wind.

This morning we got a tour of the rocket range on the CNSC grounds. Rockets were sent into space from this range to collect data. It is a protected historic site and tours are offered year round.

It was a windy day for a walk in the tundra, but as in all the other activities we did throughout the week, the students were ready and willing to learn and participate.

After lunch we left for town and stopped along the road to learn about the town of Churchill and surrounding area. But before we left, the program director, Grant MacNeil, gave us a "green" tour of the CNSC. The building meets many of the LEED certification standard categories.

Our first stop in town was the Eskimo museum. Students oooed and awed over the soap stone carvings and the artifacts dating back 2000 years.

We then went to the train station that doubles as a Parks Canada office and interpretive centre. Students enjoyed a talk about the fur bearing animals that are common in the area and that are still used in the fur trade today.

 Here, Cameron is wearing a beaver felt hat common during the fur trade. This hat was the reason why the beaver was such a hot commodity.

Below, Josh tests out how warm fox fur really is.

Following our trip to Parks Canada we headed to the Northern Store to price compare our shopping list. I'll let the students tell you about the price differences in their post. What most were amazed at was the variety of products the Northern Store carried. Here they are pictured on snow machines in front of the cereal.

We had an amazing time together in Churchill. I was so very impressed at the fact that none of the students complained at all about the weather, despite it being so bitterly cold and sometimes downright unbearable with the wind. Things they would never consider attempting at home in those temperatures, they didn't even blink an eye at in Churchill.

Thank you to all who read and followed our posts. Look for one more entry written by students in the coming days.

Downright balmy in Churchill

 Even though there was an extreme cold warning today again, it felt down right balmy compared to yesterday's windchill factor of -49! Nurse MacRae was able to wear a few less layers than she had on yesterday...

It was time to be scientist today. After all, we are staying at the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, where scientist from all over the world come to conduct research.

We began our day once again in the classroom learning about the data that we would be collecting in the field today. Here, students are getting familiar with the tools they will be using in two locations; first in a small forested area, then in a fen (a type of wetland or bog - the difference between a bog and a fen is that a bog is fed by water that flows into it and they tend to be more acidic, whereas a fen is fed from water below the surface and is less acidic)

After gearing up and taking a short walk to our first test site, students began by digging rectangular pit all the way down to the earth. They then had to measure the depth of the snow in their pit.

Next, they had to place thermometers at ground level and then every five centimeters for the depth of the pit.

While a few students were measuring temperature and depth of the pit, the other two were taking 11 depth samples around the pit using the tool Ian is holding below to excavate the snow. Once they had the depth of snow in the tube, the recorder wrote it down. Then they pulled the tube out and dumped the snow into a bag and weighed it, this information too was recorded.

Students diligently worked together to ensure data was recorded accurately as they knew the information they were gathering was going to contribute to a schools research on permafrost in Baltimore. Students in Baltimore are studying permafrost and can't get to Churchill in the winter. Our students were gathering this data about the snow so they can use that information to see the effect snow pack has on the permafrost.

Along with temperature and depth, students were looking at the different layers of snow that were revealed in their pit, along with that, they had to analyze the snow crystals in each layer, identifying them with a chart and then measuring the largest crystal in their identification sample.

Lastly they took a density measurement of each layer they unveiled.

All the above pictures are from the first site in a small forested area.

It really was a pleasant day today. While I was admiring the scientists at work I was appreciating the sound of the snow crunching under foot. You can sure hear the difference in the type of snow I am walking on; from hard packed to crystalized and loose.

The following pictures are from on the way to, and the fen testing area:

Mrs. Russell

Day 3 - Ian, Rekai, Ryan, Noah and Josh : Snow Sampling

February 5 2015

Snow Sampling 

Morning

We started the day with a breakfast. For breakfast we had: eggs, sausage and hash browns. Once we finished breakfast, we had a 20 minute break. After this break we had a briefing for the snow sampling activity that we did today.

The anow sampling briefing was held in a classroom on the second floor. During the lesson, we leaned what snow sampling was, and the many different techniques that were necessary in order to complete the exercises. 

Why are we doing snow sampling? During the summer, there is a different group of students that come and visit the CNSC research centre to do several tests during the summer. However, they can not visit the research centre during the summer. To help out, we were tasked with collecting snow samples for that group.

There are several main components to snow sampling. These are: measuring the depth of snow, measuring layers of snow, measuring densities of snow, identifying snow crystal types and testing the hardness. 

For measuring the depth and height of the snow, we used a method called core sampling. In this method, we sticked a hollow fibre glass tube into the snow. The tube had markings every 2 centimeters. Multiples of 10 were also marked with numbers. The snow was be trapped by the fibre optic glass and we measured the mass of the snow by putting the snow into a bag and using a scale to record the mass of the snow.

During the harsh winds of the north, the snow is blown far from where it falls. Once the strong winds stop, compressed blankets of snow stick together. This forms layers of hard snow. To find out how many layers there are in a area of snow, we dug a hole. The cross section of the snow can have several layers. These can range from 2-5 layers, from what we've seen.

Identifying snow crystals is a hard task when you are bundled up. To identify snow crystals, we were given a small metal 10 by 10 board that had a convex lens attached. There are 4 different levels of crystals, and the level of the crystals all depend on the amount of vapour that froze into ice. The main difference between the ice crystal levels was the amount of lines that were present on the ice crystal. III A-1 being the lowest and III A-4 being the highest.

The final component of snow sampling was testing the hardness of the snow. We used a "SM" and a "HM"spring to do this. The S standing for Soft and the H standing for Hard.  The main purpose of the SM and HM was to find out how much force was needed to break each individual layer of snow. The HM requred less pressure to break snow and the SM needed more pressure to break the same amount of snow. Both of them have their merits in different situations.

Rest of the Day

The remainder of the day was doing the work. 20 minutes after the lesson, we were sent out into a nearby forest to begin collecting research data. The snow was quite deep and the task took an hour since we were beginners. After lunch, we all loaded into the back of a couple ski-doos and went 8 kilometers from the research centre to collect more information. This time, we were collecting snow information on a lake. The snow was shallow and collecting information was a lot easier now that we had a little experience behind our back.

The most important part the sampling was the core samples. In total, we collected around 165 core samples.

Our snow sampling experience was lots of fun and we learned what goes on at the CNSC.

(PS: We saw the Aurora Borealis on the 4th)

- Rekai Musuka

Day 2

We awoke from our sleep to go to breakfast at 7:00. Pancakes and sausages were our breakfast today. After, we got a lecture on building igloos and outdoor safety.
 Then, we suited up, and headed to the tundra. We were cutting blocks of snow for the igloo we were building. It was -49 degrees Celsius this morning! Not a snow day yet...

The bus that they have here was running and had heating for those who were freezing. After two layers, we went inside, and later we went for dog sledding. There, we were met by Gerald and his wife Jennifer. They told us a little bit about the dogs.

Since it was Evan and Sascha's birthday today, they got to go first. It was fun and interesting. After, we warmed up in the heated tent that they had a blue sky adventures. We got to interact with the dogs that they brought into the tent.

Three hours later, we boarded the bus back to the CNSC. Dinner was Chile with cornbread. There was also a cake for the birthday boys! After dinner, we unwind-ed with some billiards, and Chamomile tea, or as James said, "sharmomelle." He thought the birthday card for Sascha's said "Thank you" instead of "to you". Then we went to sleep. It was a fun day in the snow and we are now hoping to see a aurora tonight in all of its glory.

No Indoor Recess

Extreme Cold Warning didn't stop us today. After receiving instruction in the classroom, we were out shortly after 9:30 a.m. to build an igloo with centre scientist, Lee Anne. Igloo building is quite an art form. You have to first find a wind blown drift of snow. Well, that's not terribly hard to find on the tundra.

 Then from that drift you need to use a saw to cut out a large rectangle. Then gently pry that block away, pick it up and pass it someone standing outside the trench to carry over to the igloo site.

Place that block in the circle...

 Then shave it to make the correct angles so they fit nicely together. All the blocks need to be angled in so you can make your dome-like shape.

All students worked very hard taking turns at each of the stations to get this igloo built. Because it was bitterly cold we only stayed out for about an hour and a half before walking back to the centre. We couldn't get back fast enough. I know I felt like my feet were ice blocks and could barely grip the shovel I was carrying because of my frozen fingers. It was worth every minute though.

After warming up we headed out to Blue Sky Adventures for our experience dogsledding with Gerald and Jennifer Azure. We were very happy to be welcomed into a small cottage with a wood burning stove roaring away.

We were also welcomed with freshly baked wild cranberry bannock. So good.

After learning a little about Gerald's background living off the land and making a living by trapping we headed out to see the dogs. It was incredibly enjoyable to hear them get excited as they saw us approach. They are well socialized dogs and were eager to take us for a ride.

Two at a time we took turns riding in the sleigh on the trails. Gerald gave everyone a chance to "drive" the dog team around.

The birthday boys, Sasha and Scott got the first ride. What a birthday present!!

Mrs. Russell

Day 1

Early to rise, early to .... fly to Churchill!

We were welcomed by the CNSC staff and whisked away along the coast of the Hudson Bay to the Research Center. 

After a debriefing from the staff on polar bear safety and a tour of this lovely facility we settled in and then went down for a wonderful lunch. 

The wind is howling but that did not stop us from venturing out to build a quinzhee. Doesn't take long for 17 students and 4 adults to make a giant hill!

After waiting for the snow to settle for an hour (inside), we headed back out to dig out the quinzhee. 

Here's Ryan and I taking a selfie in the quinzhee.

This is our leader, Lee Anne, checking out our work.

Students heard about some of the research taking place at the center from scientist pictured above, Dr. Lee Anne Fishback. 

Students are currently anxiously watching the night skies hoping for a glimpse of the Aurora Borealis before lights out at 10:30.

Mrs. Russell