Polar Logistics

Airplane Recovery in Antarctica: Part 2

Nora Sawyer — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 04:34:58 +0000

As promised, here is the video footage of the airplane recovery operation in Queen Maude Land, Antarctica that Arctic Kingdom collaborated on with Katabatic Consulting and Kenn Borek Air. I love this video, because it really gives a sense of the scope of the operation, which involved rescuing, repairing and flying a downed plane from its location on a remote Antarctic plateau 3,300 meters above sea level.

Arctic Kingdom provided the camp infrastructure, facilitating Katabatic’s onsite repair and salvage operation and providing the necessary equipment for a successful outcome.

AK Outfits Antarctic Airplane Recovery

Nora Sawyer — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 04:32:00 +0000

We recently collaborated with Katabatic Medical Consulting and Kenn Borek Air Ltd. on the salvage of a crash-landed DC-3. Located at a site over 3,300 meters above sea level in Queen Maud Land, Antarctica, the remote crash site presented a number of challenges, including the logistical puzzle of supplying an operation at such a remote and location.

Mike Tayloe of Katabatic called upon Arctic Kingdom to outfit the mission. “We had very specific needs and very tight schedule,” Tayloe notes. “Arctic Kingdom was able to facilitate any and everything we asked for, supplying the appropriate equipment to support Katabatic Constulting’s needs for a successful project outcome.”

Based on Katabatic’s specifications Arctic Kingdom was able to procure, pack and ship the necessary equipment — including tents from the High Arctic — in under three weeks. This sort of world-wide logistical management is what we specialize in, ensuring that every one of our expeditions is outfitted on time and on budget, without compromising safety or quality.

Tune in tomorrow for video footage of the recovery operation!

A Solution for Wet Weather

Nora Sawyer — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 04:30:10 +0000

It has been an extremely wet and rainy summer for most of Canadians this year. Most are wondering when summer is actually going to show up and when they are going to be able to get outside. Not wanting to stay indoors for any length of time, I dug into my arctic kit and pulled out my NEOS overshoes…Read More

The Arctic Kingdom Ice Diving Experience

Nora Sawyer — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 04:36:39 +0000

Following up on Brian’s post on ice diving, I thought I’d talk a little bit about what distinguishes Arctic Kingdom’s ice dive training and expeditions from all the other diving services out there. I’ve mentioned this before (in the context of this video), but it bears repeating: on the ice, the Airboat changes everything… Read more

Where’s Arctic Kingdom Today?

Nora Sawyer — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 04:48:40 +0000

View Larger Map

This morning, Graham sent me coordinates for the team members Thomas Lennartz and Michael Robertson’s current location. The two are working on the ice near Baffin Island with a Spanish filmaking crew and a private photographer, respectively.

This sort of piggybacking (two separate expeditions sharing one location in or around the same time frame) is one of the strategies Arctic Kingdom employs to minimize expedition costs while keeping the highest standards for safety and comfort in the field… Read more

Using Satellite Imagery to Track the Floe Edge

Nora Sawyer — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 04:31:02 +0000

A satellite image generated by Noetix showing the location of the pack ice in Navy Board

Last week,

I mentioned Arctic Kingdom’s collaboration with Noetix, a company that provides real-time maps of the Arctic’s ever-shifting floe edge. Expedition manager Thomas Lennartz was on the ice, following Noetix-generated maps and reporting back with conditions in the field. The purpose of this collaboration was to provide Noetix with feedback on the information their satellite images provide, allowing them to provide more nuanced information about conditions on the ice…Read more.

Using Technology to Optimize the Diving Experience

Nora Sawyer — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 04:50:59 +0000

As I type, Arctic Kingdom Expedition Manager Thomas Lennartz is on the ice, providing the Canadian company Noetix with up-to-the-minute reports on ice conditions in collaboration with Noetix’s satellite imaging service, which tracks the movement of the ice floe edge. Because Noetix’s radar can show the extent of the ice, but not the conditions on the ground, this collaboration provides information that will better enable Noetix to interpret their radar images and provide more comprehensive information to users in the future… Read More

Arctic Kingdom Aids Cutting-Edge Polar Science

admin — Thu, 28 May 2009 01:53:59 +0000

In April 2009, scientists from many nations and disciplines embarked on the world’s most ambitious climate change project. The aim of expedition PAM-ARCMIP – which stands for Pan-Arctic Measurements and Arctic Climate Model Intercomparison Project – was to try and close gaps in our knowledge of how climate change will affect the Arctic in future. Climate models have highlighted the region as particularly vulnerable to climate change but existing models are not sufficiently accurate to tell us exactly what changes will take place. In total, 30 people from four nations – six research institutes and logistic institutions, including Arctic Kingdom, were involved in the project.

Central to the research was the Polar 5, a specially designed DC-3 airplane equipped with state-of-the-art equipment to measure components of the atmospheric, record the thickness of sea-ice and investigate weather processes. Over four weeks, the plane flew east to west across the Arctic, conducting experiments along the way from various bases. The project is unprecedented in terms of its size, scope and breadth of research.

New Equipment Catalogues Now Available

admin — Thu, 28 May 2009 01:35:23 +0000

Clothing, Tents & Technology (satellite phones, internet, tracking, navigation and more) – if you need it, chances are you’ll find it in Arctic Kingdom’s new Equipment Catalogue. Outfitting needs can vary significantly year to year with different group sizes, seasons and logistical requirements. From large dining tents to folding polar bear proof cabins and from expedition parkas to drysuits, we’ve got it all, available from a single source. Equipment is in stock year round, so those hard to find winter items are still available after March when they are long since off the shelves in most of the world.

The equipment catalogues can be mailed upon request (888-737-6818) and are also available in electronic format (pdf) for immediate download online at: http://www.arctickingdom.com/catalogues/

Face to Face: Polar Portraits

admin — Sat, 23 May 2009 02:23:48 +0000

A lavish account of pioneering polar photography and modern portraiture, Face to Face brings together in a single volume both rare, unpublished treasures from the historic collections of the Scott Polar Research Institute (SPRI), University of Cambridge, alongside cutting-edge modern imagery.

The first book to examine the history and role of polar exploration photography, Face to Face is a unique project of unsurpassed quality. Face to Face features the very first polar photographs, the first portraits of explorers, some of the earliest photographs of the Inuit, and other rare images never before published.

Alongside fifty of the world’s finest historic polar portraits from the SPRI collections are fifty modern-day images by leading expedition photographer Martin Hartley, who has captured men and women of many nations, exploring, working, and living in the Polar Regions today, including Arctic Kingdom’s founder and CEO (that’s Chief Expedition Officer), Graham Dickson.

Click here to order a copy of your own.