Our Introductory Round
Hello, everyone!
The darkest days of the polar night are already behind us! Man, that’s fast – high time that we get in touch here again.
While not seeing the sun takes some getting used to and we all look forward to seeing it rise above the horizon again soon, we also enjoy the unusual light conditions that the polar night brings us. At noon, the sun bathes the station and the icebergs in the distance in the most beautiful dawn and then immediately after afterglow, giving us a few hours of twilight to do all the work that needs to be done outside – as long as the weather cooperates, of course. When there is a storm, we try to do all the work that needs to be done inside, and after work, when the wind shakes the station, we make ourselves comfortable on the couch.
In the meantime, the ten of us have completely taken over the ward and feel completely at home. Everyone has found their favorite places and pastimes and if we could pack again we’d know what you really need down here. Well, it’s probably a bit late for shopping or packing again, fortunately we get along well anyway.
But before we digress again and talk about the magic of the polar night and northern lights, here is a short round of introductions, as we have promised for a long time:
Eva
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
I am responsible for CONJURE up delicious, healthy and varied food
Where I am from:
From Heiligkreuzsteinach in the beautiful Odenwald
Where I still want to go:
Gladly to New Zealand, Sweden and Norway
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
Teulada on the Costa Blanca in Spain
Superpower:
Time travel, because of the infinite possibilities
Favorite place at Neumayer:
My cozy room
Favorite food:
Ham leek with cheese sauce and mashed potatoes (unfortunately not possible at the moment)
Favorite leisure activity at Neumayer:
Jigsaw puzzles, solitaires on the computer, movie nights with my fellow ÜWIs
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
Socks and more socks
What I could have left at home:
My slippers
Bernd
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
Electrical engineer aka wild button pusher
Where I am from:
From the beautiful coastal city of Kiel
Where I still want to go:
Australia, New Zealand, Costa Rica, Baltics and many other countries
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
The island of Madeira
Superpower:
Flying
Favorite place at Neumayer:
Apart from my room, definitely the sauna…
Favorite food:
Spareribs
Favorite leisure activity at Neumayer:
Exercise and watch movies
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
One or more onesies
What I could have left at home:
My extra pair of leisure shoes, I usually run around in socks or barefoot in my free time…
Laser-Martin
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
Additional ÜWI, who observes clouds and aerosols with laser and radar
Where I am from:
Raised in Hof (“Bavarian Siberia”), studied in Leipzig
Where I still want to go:
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
Faro San Isidro (lighthouse a few dozen kilometers south of Punta Arenas)
Superpower:
Wild activism
Favorite place at Neumayer:
Atka 24
Favorite food:
Eva’s dessert
Favorite leisure activity at Neumayer:
Movie nights together, skiing and pulka sailing
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
Double pack everything important
What I could have left at home:
The hammock, not even used once
Markus
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
As an electronics engineer a.k.a. radio operator, I always have an open ear for anyone who calls Neumayer. I also repair the internet, persuade printers to continue printing, radio equipment to continue transmitting, measuring equipment to continue measuring and computers to continue calculating.
Where I am from:
From the beautiful Malmsheim near Stuttgart.
Where I still want to go:
If someone asks me, I wouldn’t say no to the moon or Mars. Otherwise I’ve never been to New Zealand, it’s supposed to be nice there.
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
Cape Town, on the way to Antarctica.
Superpower:
Definitely flying. Super cool and really practical at the same time.
Favorite place at Neumayer:
The balloon hall roof in good weather, the sauna in bad.
Favorite food:
Everything Eva cooks or, of course, Schnitzel with potato salad from Mom.
Favorite leisure activity at Neumayer:
Admiring Antarctica on the roof after the sauna.
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
The bathrobe for the sauna.
What I could have left at home:
I still don’t give up hope that I will assemble my guitar kit. If this hope dies, then it’s probably the guitar kit….
Motor-Martin
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
This is roughly what it says on my room sign: motor screwdriver, melt filler, mud lifter, station leveler, morning lap turner, snow groomer, and more. It’s all about the technology.
Where I am from:
Fischkopp of course! I come from Brandshagen near Stralsund just before the most beautiful island in Germany, Rügen.
Where I still want to go:
After all the cold I could imagine to travel to the warmth. Where exactly it goes, no idea! I will decide then.
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
I think it was Crete, Greece.
Superpower:
Definitely heated hands! Essential when screwing on U2.
Favorite place at Neumayer:
In the summer, the Altmayer corner! Otherwise, I love to be in the gym room, in my chamber and of course in the bully.
Favorite food:
Beef rolls! Although I have to be honest, everything Eva cooks is just awesome!
Favorite leisure activity at Neumayer:
Exercising, taking photos and getting into mischief with colleagues, and not to be forgotten, naps.
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
Beautiful memories of family and friends at home.
What I could have left at home:
The swimming trunks…
Nora
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
I’m one of the two geophysicists, together we build earthquake stations and maintain existing stations, we pick earthquakes, measure the Earth’s magnetic field and do a lot more
Where I am from:
Born in Schleswig-Holstein, adopted home Kölle
Where I still want to go:
Alaska, lots of hiking!
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
Sri Lanka, but it’s too warm for me there
Superpower:
I can always eat, even when I’m not hungry
Favorite place at Neumayer:
The library in the ice
Favorite food:
Spinach gnocchi from Eva
Favorite leisure activity at Neumayer:
Playing board games, lifting heavy things
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
I didn’t bring enough socks!
What I could have left at home:
A few warm sweaters less (it’s normal room temperature in here)
Lukas
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
The weather
Where I am from:
From the foot of the Swabian Alb
Where I still want to go:
Where to doesn’t matter, as long as you can get there by bike.
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Superpower:
Pop balloons
Favorite place at Neumayer:
Station roof during midnight sun
Favorite food:
Eva’s homemade cinnamon ice cream
Favorite leisure activity at Neumayer:
Ski touring with cross-country skis, and also any other joint activities with my fellow ÜWIs.
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
Headphones and good music
What I could have left at home:
Socks
Peter
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
I make sure that everyone stays healthy and no one gets hurt. And for the case of emergency, I keep the necessary things ready so that everything will be all right again. In addition, I plan, organize, carry out medical studies and work with science and technology.
Where I am from:
I grew up in a small village in the Rhineland, and recently emigrated to Westphalia.
Where I still want to go:
Since I’ve gotten so used to snow and ice here, I guess I’ll have to go to Lapland again.
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
Invercargill, New Zealand
Superpower:
Don’t have one, but get by with my modest means
Favorite place at Neumayer:
The windows in the gallery, the line for food, and the stool behind the drum kit.
Favorite food:
Curry
Favorite leisure activity at Neumayer:
Anything you can do outside
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
Decent hat, headlamp, favorite music
What I could have left at home:
Towels
Nellie
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
Watching over the sometimes arbitrary trace element observatory – while, above all, deter anyone and everyone from driving south in a motorized vehicle, if possible, to keep the measurements contamination-free.
Where I am from:
Hamburg
Where I still want to go:
After the polar night and the year on flat ice shelf probably towards the sun and the mountains first of all, but otherwise always towards the next adventure.
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
Ushuaia, Argentina
Superpower:
Doing one-armed yoga
Favorite place at Neumayer:
A snow bank under the big wide colorful sky
Favorite food:
Eva’s vegan chocolate cream – preferably straight off the spoon
Favorite leisure activity on Neumayer:
Any sporting activity we can think of: Acrobatics, workouts, competing to shovel snow, and Bollywood dance tutorials.
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
Colorful clothes, disguises and handicraft materials.
What I could have left at home:
Knitting kit
Felix
What I do at the Neumayer Station:
I’m the other geophysicist. Nora has already written the first half, so here’s more: We take care of infrasound array that can detect nuclear bomb tests, tinker with improving the power supply for mobile measuring stations, and solder broken plugs back together.
And we dig quite a few holes in the snow in almost everything we have to do outside.
Where I am from:
Penzberg/Munich. The mountains are missing here.
Where I still want to go:
To the Watzmann. I mean the mountain, not the seismometer station 40 km southeast of Neumayer. And then maybe to Africa and South America.
Southernmost place before I came to Antarctica:
Stewart Island, New Zealand.
Superpower:
De-icing my glasses with nothing but an annoyed look.
Favorite place at Neumayer:
The doorstep to the outside, when I start sweating fully dressed on the way down.
And the doorstep to the inside, when I can pull my icy mask and goggles off my head.
Favorite food:
Butter, garlic, and oatmeal. Not (always) all at the same time.
Favorite leisure activity on Neumayer:
Watching penguins do some … uh … measuring … with … um … research … on the sea ice. THERE ARE PINGUINS!
What should not be missing in the luggage for the Antarctic:
A few fabrics so that you can still tinker something together, since you can’t go shopping here.
What I could have left at home:
Long pants. It’s too warm inside and you need completely different clothes outside anyway.
