My Space Story

Folks ask me why I am so high on NASA and going into space. The reason is that during the 60’s, I was involved in the man mission to the moon. It was quite a story:

November 1965 I was assigned to White Sands Missile Range as a weather observer E-4. My section chief called me in and told me that I and another GI (Bob Snyder) were being assigned to an important project, the “Little Joe II”.

The little Joe II was the escape rocket on top of the Apollo capsule. If something went wrong, the Astronauts would fire the Little Joe rocket and it would pull the capsule off the Apollo rocket. That was what we were testing. I guess it was important!!!!!

We were to check out surface weather measuring gear and to go up range to the 30 mile area right at the edge of the White Sands National monument. There we were to radio in the weather conditions every 30 minutes until the project fired. We were taking weather measurements in the landing area.

Now this mission was to launch at 0600 and it was very important that we give them a heads up on the landing area conditions. That meant we had to be there at 0230 (or as we referred to it “oh dark 30“).

We had to drag a trailer with a 30 meter tower and an anemometer on the top. And NO, we were not allowed to leave it out there. That meant leaving at midnight so we had time to assemble the tower and start our readings. This tower was pneumatic, where we had to manually pump air into it to make it go up.

Every night in November, including Thanksgiving Bob and I were at the 30 mile area, pumping up the damn tower. Only to have the mission cancel.

Snyder got the idea to connect a helium tank to the tower, so all we had to do was crack the helium valve and the tower would go straight up. We got the stuff together to try this in early December. Real bad idea!!!

Helium tanks have 2000 lbs of pressure, anemometer towers are designed to work with 30 lbs of pressure. We launched the whole damn tower probably 1,000 feet straight up in the air, anemometer, cable and all. Back to pumping the tower up (after we replaced the trailer).

Now we were into December, with the mission still scheduled every day. However, the range shut down 20 December until January 1^st. Even the NASA weenies had families.

Jan 1, hangover and all, Snyder and I were up to the 30 mile area, pumping up our tower. Weather was crappy, cloudy every morning or high winds. I figured I’d retire before “Little Joe II” ever got off the ground.

Jan 20^th: Cold but clear morning, visibility great, we could see the launch pad (LC-33) 30 miles away. Reporting the winds as light and variable, every thing was a GO!!!

5-4-3-2-1 fire, the launch pad area lit up and the rocket was on the way. Bob and I watched as it went directly overhead, AND BLEW UP!!!!

Damn, we were in trouble. We listened as parts of that massive rocket started falling around us. We did the only thing we could do, crawled under the truck, like that would help!

Big chunks were falling around us. How we survived, I have no idea. One of the motors hit less than 100 yards from us.

Things quieted down, and 2 scared troops crawled out from under the truck, looked up and saw the Apollo capsule, under 3 super large parachutes floating down, landing less than ¼ mile from us. I wish I had a camera, but alas, cameras were not allowed on WSMR range.

Bob and I took our last weather observation, let the air out of our tower, folded it all up, and went to see the Apollo capsule.

As we drove up to the capsule, a National Park Ranger stopped us and asked us what the hell we thought we were doing. I told him we were the weather observers and part of the “Little Joe II’ program. He asked how long we had been out there and we told him since Mid November. He had a kitten.

He told me that under no circumstances were we allowed in the National Monument without supervision. Asked who my boss was. I told him to wait a second, and he could talk to my boss on the radio.

I radioed back to main base, asked for my NCOIC. When he came on the radio, I told him “Smoky The Bear” wanted to talk to him. Snyder and I got out of the truck and walked over to the capsule and had a cigarette.

Never did find out what Smoky said to my Sgt.

Here is a reference I found on the net, for the LITTLE JOE II mission that day:

- 1966 Jan 20 - Nation: USA.

Little Joe II A-004 Program: Apollo

. Spacecraft: Apollo CSM.

Apollo Mission A-004 was successfully accomplished at White Sands Missile Range. This was the first flight test utilizing the Apollo Block I type spacecraft and the sixth and final test of the Apollo CSM development program at WSMR.

Primary test objectives were:

to demonstrate satisfactory launch escape vehicle performance for an abort in the power-on, tumbling boundary region; and

to demonstrate the structural integrity of the launch escape vehicle airframe for an abort in the power-on, tumbling boundary region. The Little Joe II launch vehicle boosted the 4,536-kg 5-ton unmanned spacecraft to a 24-km (15-mi) altitude.

The only significant anomaly recorded was loss of RE telemetry about two seconds after abort.

NASA's 2002 accomplishments:

04.08.03 - Enclosure 2: NASA Accomplishments during 2002 and FY 2004 Budget Request

04.08.03

NASA has made significant progress during 2002 on a number of important research and exploration objectives. During the past year, NASA:

Captured a dramatic new portrait of the infant universe in sharp focus. NASA's Wilkinson Microwave Anistropy Probe revealed the first generation of stars that began shining only 200 million years after the big bang and forecasted the age of the universe at 13.7 billion years old. Most striking though was the probe's discovery that the universe will probably expand forever.

Upgraded the Hubble Space Telescope on Columbia's mission (STS-109) in March 2002. Columbia's astronauts installed new solar panels, a better central power unit and a new camera that increased Hubble's "vision" tenfold, and revived a disabled infrared camera using an experimental cooling system.

Celebrated Riccardo Giacconi's 2002 Nobel Prize in Physics for his pioneering NASA sponsored work in the field of X-Ray astronomy. This work has led to important discoveries about the nature of black holes, the formation of galaxies, and the life cycles of stars.

Demonstrated a prototype device that automatically and continuously monitors the air for the presence of bacterial spores that may be used to detect biohazards, such as anthrax.

Made progress on the development of a radar system for aircraft that detects atmospheric turbulence, thus improving prospects for commercial airliners to avoid the kind of bumpy weather most airline passengers find uncomfortable.

Advanced technology to reduce airliner fuel tank fires or explosions, in our effort to make air travel safer and more secure.

Began tests on a technology effort to develop lighter-weight flexible-wing aircraft.

Measured through the Mars Odyssey spacecraft enough water ice buried deep under the poles of the red planet, that if thawed, could fill Lake Michigan twice over.

Discovered for the first time, a planetary system, circling the nearby star 55 Cancri, with a Jupiter-sized planet at about the same distance for its parent star as our own Jupiter is from our sun. This discovery enhances the possibility that Earth-like planets could exist in such systems throughout the galaxy.

Conducted Earth Science research that may one day allow public health officials to better track and predict the spread of West Nile Virus or similar diseases.

Worked to develop cutting-edge technologies that will increase our weather forecasting capability from the current three-to-five-day accuracy level up to a seven-to-ten-day level within this decade.

Observed the disintegration of the Antarctic Larsen Ice Shelf and the seasonal acceleration of the Greenland ice sheet.

Encouraged thousands of students to learn more about space exploration through a nationwide contest to "Name the Rovers" that will launch toward Mars this year.

Published, "Touch the Universe: A NASA Braille Book of Astronomy," a book that for the first time presents for visually impaired readers color images of planets, nebulae, stars, and galaxies. Each image is embossed with lines, bumps, and other textures. The raised patterns translate colors, shapes, and other intricate details of the cosmic objects, allowing visually impaired people to feel what they cannot see.

Celebrated a second year of continuous human habitation on the International Space Station, the largest and most sophisticated spacecraft ever built, and continued assembly with four Space Shuttle missions.

Reflecting the Agency's increased ISS research tempo, conducted approximately 48 research and technology development experiments aboard Station, including the first materials science research aboard Station, testing medical procedures for controlling the negative effects of space flight and increasing understanding of changes to bone and the central nervous system that occur in space. Astronauts conducted advanced cell culturing research, broke new ground in the study of dynamic systems, made up of tiny particles mixed in a liquid (colloids), and installed three new Station experiment equipment racks.

I'll get 2003 in a couple of mins.

Nasa's Accomplishments and misfortunes In 2003 (yearly Review)
By nasa
Jan 2, 2004, 16:52 - [ Discuss this story ]

NASA'S Year Of Sorrow, Recovery, Progress And Success

NASA's plans for 2003 were abruptly changed February 1 with the sudden and tragic loss of the Space Shuttle Columbia and the brave crew of STS-107.

Even while mourning the loss of our courageous astronauts, NASA's civil service and contract workforce began the challenging task of finding the problem, fixing the problem, and preparing to return Space Shuttles to safe flight. With the Columbia Accident Investigation Board's report and NASA's Implementation Plan for Space Shuttle Return to Flight and Beyond as guides, the agency is striving to return to safe and efficient human space exploration.

The tragic Columbia accident did not disrupt NASA's quest for discovery. In the pursuit of our mission goals, we will continue to expand the International Space Station's remarkable capabilities, send robotic spacecraft to explore fascinating places throughout the solar system, use telescopes to find Earthlike planets orbiting nearby stars, and use satellites to help us better understand Earth's dynamic climate.

To read more about NASA's year, click here.

"The NASA family faced many tough challenges in 2003," said NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe. "The loss of Columbia's crew, and two pilots involved in debris recovery efforts in East Texas, deeply affected each of us. I can't express how proud and grateful I am for the efforts of NASA employees, our contractors, and the thousands of others involved in helping us recover from the accident. It has been even more impressive to witness the efforts of all involved, as we move forward toward return to flight," he said.

NASA is energetically approaching return to Shuttle flight operations, completion of the International Space Station and scientific exploration in a safe, milestone driven manner. NASA continues to strive to understand and protect the Earth; explore the universe; search for life; and inspire the next generation of explorers, as only NASA can.

"We are facing the most critical and exciting time in NASA's 45 year history. The technical and cultural challenges, and changes the agency makes will guide the organization for the next decade. We will succeed and continue to lead the efforts to explore the universe through space-based research, " Administrator O'Keefe concluded.

HUGE EFFORT FOR COLUMBIA DEBRIS RECOVERY
The search for Columbia debris in East Texas and northwest Louisiana took three arduous months. More than 25,000 searchers combed approximately 1.2 million acres and found more than 84,900 pounds of debris. The effort helped determine the cause of the accident.

NASA SAFETY & ENGINEERING CENTER ESTABLISHED
In the wake of the Columbia accident, the agency created the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC). The NESC will coordinate and conduct robust engineering testing and safety assessments to support critical NASA projects and programs.

NEW AEROSPACE SAFETY ADVISORY PANEL (ASAP)
NASA reorganized ASAP and updated the charter of the independent review panel. ASAP acts as an independent body to advise the NASA Administrator on safety issues regarding operations, missions, and initiatives. The charter calls for recognized safety, management, and engineering experts from industry, academia, and other government agencies.

STAFFORD-COVEY RETURN TO FLIGHT TASK GROUP FORMED
NASA formed the group to ensure independent review of plans and processes for returning to Space Shuttle operations. Experts and industry professionals, from a wide range of disciplines, are reviewing NASA's implementation of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board recommendations.

SAFER INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION MARKS ANNIVERSARIES
In November, the Station observed the third anniversary of continuous human occupation and the fifth anniversary of the start of construction of the largest, most sophisticated spacecraft ever built. Russian Soyuz and Progress spacecraft were used exclusively for the first time to transfer Station crews and for re-supply. The Station program Continuing Flight Team (CFT) unveiled its first Implementation Plan. The CFT examined Columbia findings and recommendations and created a plan to help make the Space Station safer.

EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLES SUCCESSFUL
NASA's Expendable Launch Services successfully completed a busy year. Since January, eight spacecraft were deployed on seven expendable launch vehicles. These included the two Mars Exploration Rovers and the Space InfraRed Telescope Facility.

NEW NASA FACILITY HELPS PROTECT SPACE CREWS FROM RADIATION
To ensure the safety of spacecraft crews, scientists will perform key research at the new $34 million NASA Space Radiation Laboratory. Built in cooperation with the Department of Energy, it is one of the few labs that can simulate harsh space radiation environments.

SPACE INFRARED TELESCOPE FACILITY (SIRTF) OBTAINS STRIKING IMAGES
Images showed celestial objects viewed by ground-based telescopes and even the Hubble Space Telescope look quite different when viewed in infrared light. SIRTF, renamed the Lyman Spitzer Space Telescope, has a five-year mission to reveal previously hidden, dusty regions as well as cold and distant objects in the universe.

SPIRIT, OPPORTUNITY & STARDUST MEMORIES
NASA successfully launched the two largest, most sophisticated Mars Exploration Rovers last summer. The first rover, Spirit, is preparing to land on the mysterious and dangerous Martian surface on Jan. 3, 2004. Its twin, Opportunity, is schedule to land January 24. The Stardust spacecraft is on track for its rendezvous with comet Wild 2. Stardust will gather comet dust and debris and bring it back to Earth in January 2006.

BEST "BABY PICTURE OF THE UNIVERSE"
In one of the most important scientific discoveries of recent years, NASA released the best "baby picture" of the universe ever taken. The image contains stunning detail of the universe just after the big bang. Scientists using NASA's Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe, captured the afterglow of the big bang, called the cosmic microwave background. One of the biggest surprises revealed is the first generation of stars to shine in the universe ignited only 200 million years after the big bang, much earlier than many scientists expected.

NASA HELPS CELEBRATE 100 YEARS OF POWERED FLIGHT
NASA exhibits toured American cities creating an awareness of the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers historic flight on Dec. 17, 1903 near Kitty Hawk, N.C. Exhibits traced the history of powered flight, and the evolution of aircraft.

VOYAGER APPROACHING SOLAR SYSTEM FINAL FRONTIER
NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft is about to make history again. It is the first spacecraft to enter the solar system's final frontier, a wide boundary region, where wind from the sun blows hot against thin gas between the stars: interstellar space.

VALUABLE SCIENCE DATA GAINED DURING COLUMBIA'S FINAL MISSION
Approximately 30 percent of the data collected during Columbia's last mission was recovered and have already yielded exciting and novel findings. While nothing can compensate for the tragic loss of the crew, the devotion of the teams of investigators, students, and researchers to obtain the maximum amount of knowledge from their experiments serves as an enduring tribute to the research and crew of STS-107.

BLACK HOLES REVEAL SURPRISES
NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory detected sound waves, for the first time, from a super-massive black hole. The note was the deepest ever detected from an object in the universe. Using satellite and other observatories, scientists viewing the scene of a gamma ray burst, just after the explosion, witnessed the death of a gigantic star and the birth of something monstrous in its place, quite possibly a brand-new, spinning black hole. The burst was the most detailed ever observed.

MARS ODYSSEY POINTS TO CAUSE OF GULLIES
Images from the visible light camera on NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft, combined with images from the Mars Global Surveyor, suggest melting snow is the likely cause of the numerous eroded Martian gullies. The findings suggest the gullies may have been created by trickling water from melting snow packs, not underground springs or pressurized flows.

EDUCATOR ASTRONAUT PROGRAM DEBUTS
NASA created a unique program for teachers to join the agency's Educator Astronaut (EA) Program. EAs will serve as Mission Specialists on Space Shuttle and Space Station missions. They will also provide a direct connection between educators and students. The first EA class will be announced in February 2004.

HUBBLE CONTINUES AMAZING CAREER
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope measured the mass of the oldest known planet and closed a decade of speculation about the nature of this ancient world, which is 2.5 times the mass of Jupiter. Hubble snapped a stunning portrait of Mars within minutes of the planet's closest approach to Earth in nearly 60,000 years. The sharp, natural-color view revealed several prominent features, including the largest volcano in the solar system, a system of canyons and the southern polar ice cap. Hubble is seeing the conclusion of the cosmic epoch called the "Dark Ages," which occurred about a billion years after the big bang. Scientists can see back to when stars in young galaxies began to shine in significant numbers, concluding the cosmic "dark ages" about 13 billion years ago.

ICESAT & SORCE SATELLITES SUCCESSFUL
Among NASA successes this year were the launches of ICESat and SORCE, two new Earth-observing satellites. ICESat has revolutionary lasers that measure ice, clouds and land elevations. SORCE is studying the sun's influence on the Earth, measuring how it affects the ozone layer, atmospheric circulation, clouds, and oceans.

NASA'S VIEW FROM SPACE IMPROVES EARTH OBSERVATION
NASA joined other agencies at the first Earth Observation Summit to establish plans for an integrated Earth observing satellite system. NASA satellites offered unparalleled insight, only possible from space. Aqua satellite data helped improve weather forecasting models, and NASA data are helping researchers observe activities, which may have worldwide climactic impact. NASA satellites helped agencies track, fight and prevent wild fires, and provided important hurricane data and pictures to improve storm forecasting and tracking.

NASA WEB PORTAL A WINNER
The agency deployed the NASA Web Portal. More than a redesign, the portal restructured the way NASA communicates directly with the public. The portal was honored with a "Webby", the online equivalent of an Oscar, for the best government site of 2003. Users gave the portal the second-highest customer satisfaction rating of any government Web site.

NASA MAKES EDUCATION A PRIORITY...AND FUN!
NASA launched the Explorer Schools Program to bring science and math teachers "back to school" at NASA Centers to acquire new resources and technology tools to increase interest in science, math and technology related courses. NASA is hosting six national educational webcasts with the NASA Earth Crew, more than 50,000 students and family members. The Crew participates in fun, science based webcasts. NASA and education partners launched "Marsapalooza," an innovative, educational national tour. The tour is an effort to inform students, teachers and parents about Mars exploration and agency education programs.

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Greenland:

Enlisted in the Army in Aug. 1960, basic training in Ft. Ord, Calif. (it's a long story, I enlisted in Taiwan, had been there for 2 years, just bumming around), and went to Ft. Monmouth, NJ for meteorological observation school.

After training, I was assigned to Evans Laboratory, near Ft. Monmouth. There were 7 single guys living in the barracks that summer (1961) and the First Sergeant showed up one fateful day and said " I need 7 volunteers, 4 to go to Alaska (18 month tour), and 3 to go to Greenland (2 six month Temporary Duty (TDY) tours)”. Having good math skills (the Army tested me on that), I quickly added up 12 months vs. 18 months, and said "GREENLAND". If I had only known!!!!!

In Aug. 61, 2 buddies and me were headed to Arizona (believe this or not)for "ARCTIC TRAINING". ARIZONA! Only the Army could come up with this!!!! It turned out to be a refresher course in Meteorology, but 30 days only 60 miles from Nogales, Mexico (a border town with all the normal border town thrills) was a benefit. Having sowed my wild oats for 30 days, I found myself on a plane to Thule AFB.

Oct. 61, we got off the plane in Thule, and they put us in the back of a 2-½ ton truck and drove us to Camp Tuto. Three very frozen GI's got out of the truck (we had not received Arctic gear yet) and reported for 6 months of hell, cold hell, but hell never the less.

They asked us where we wanted to go, Tuto East, West, Camp Tuto, or Camp Century. Having made all the stupid decisions I could possibly make (I thought), I said "CENTURY" with great pride. (Remember, I was young then)

I was put on a Caribou (an airplane made in Canada) so fast that my head spun. This plane had skis instead of wheels. "What the hell?" I remember thinking planes need wheels!!! What have I done?

We landed in the middle of the Greenland Icecap. Nothing visible objects for a hundred miles in either direction. And I mean nothing (except for a small shack)(6' by 6')(orange in color).

We walked down this long sloping gash in the snow, mouth agape, for there were lights, 14' wide, with a frost-covered roof over our head. This main trench (as they called it) was (I'm guessing) 1000 to 1100 feet long. Off each side of the main trench were other trenches, all covered with corrugated steel.

Inside each of these trenches were up to three prefabricated buildings. What a culture shock.

This SP-4 (Richard Charles, I think) ran up to me, drooling, wanting to carry my bag, and shaking my hand, thrilled to death that I was there. Little did I know but I WAS HIS REPLACEMENT! He was to train me, and then he could leave. This was at 1500 hrs.

At 1800 hrs, after supper, he said that we would go to the office. He took me through a maze of tunnels, then started to climb a 30' ladder, expecting me to follow. Yes, I followed!

We opened this metal hatch, slogged through some knee-deep snow and got to the weather station. It was dark, pitch black, (OCT. in Greenland, remember) and Richard relieved another drooling, absolutely insane GI. I took 2 surface observations (1 per hour) and Richard declared me fully trained, went down to the barracks and started to pack.

The phone rings about 2200 hrs, and I answer it. It is Sgt. Frost (I'm not kidding, Jack Frost was his name) wanting me to clean the thermocouples. I asked where they were, and he said on the tower 75' north of the office. I went outside, not having any idea which way was north and walked in a 75' circle around the office. When I stumbled onto the tower, I cleaned the thermocouples and went back in.(later I learned that all I had to do was kick the tower, and the snow fell right off) By the way, I never met Sgt. Frost, he never came up to the surface, he stayed in the micro met room, and left 2 months after I got there.

The next morning at 0630, the same disheveled, drooling GI from the previous night shows up and replaces me. I never did find out his name, he was known as " THE DAY GUY".

Down the ladder, I wandered around till I found the Mess Hall. Here is a positive statement about Camp Century. They fed us good!!!! I'm serious!!!! All the food we wanted, double rations, excellent cooks, and excellent food. Had steak and eggs before going to bed. Found out that they had a mid-night chow too. Good thing I found that out too, I was on night shift for the entire tour.

CAMP CENTURY: A lot went on there. There was the Nuclear reactor. Lights, heat, and a warm, green glow all winter. We had to wear lead jockey shorts if we didn't want kids with 3 eyes.

For water, they pumped live steam down in the ice, melting it, and pumped the water up to use. I had the opportunity to go down in a parachute harness hooked to a winch into the wells, as we called it. They lowered me through a small hole into a Cavern about 70' round. They continued to lower me, through another hole into another cavern, and into a third cavern. This was the one we were getting water from. They, the water Guys told me that we were drinking water that fell as snow 2000 years ago. I had no reason to disbelieve them. This was an exciting moment in my tour (REMEMBER, Greenland icecap).(GIs are easily amused!!!!)

We got our last mail in November and the next mail in March! No kidding, the weather was so terrible that not even a plane could get through. "THE DAY GUY" and Sgt. Frost left on the last plane out and we got some new replacements, but I don't remember their names. I found out that they referred to me as "THE NIGHT GUY". I was drooling by now.

For Christmas, we went out into the Greenland forest and cut a tree. Kidding, there were no trees.

This isn't funny, I think it was that Christmas that the Army sent a helicopter up with a Chaplain on board, and it crashed somewhere on the ice cap. All 8 on board killed. That is probably why we didn't get any airlift support until March.

The month of Dec. we never saw the sun (not that "THE NIGHT GUY" could ever see the sun. Not even a lightning of the sky at noon. But the Aurora was fantastic. It was impossible to describe. And the start of one of the best practical jokes I ever pulled off.

I started the rumor that if you hollered at the aurora, it would intensify. It seemed that way because it was a dynamic situation, always changing, brightening and dimming quickly, just streaming across the sky. I started hearing people outside, screaming "hey, hey, hey" at night. Even one guy yodeling!

This was so great I had to take it one step further. My buddy and I organized a mass scream out at midnight sometime in Jan. Picture this, 100 GIs, standing on the ice cap at midnight, -50 deg F., screaming at the sky. What a hoot! They fell for it. That's why my buddy and I called them "doafats".

What is a "doafat"? One of the expressions very common in Century was somebody asking a question like, "are you going to the club tonight?" and the answer was "DO A FAT woman sweat?" or "DO A FAT dog eat a bone?" or "DO A FAT whatever". The operative phrase was always "DO A FAT".

Outside of each building was a 55-gallon drum with the top cut off, buried at an angle in the snow. This was our urinal. Since we only had 1 latrine and it could be a quarter of a mile away, and knowing GI's, rather than messing up the trenches, they installed these barrels. I thought my job was bad, but can you imagine the guy who was assigned to exchange these barrels. Did he brag about his Greenland saga?

On one very cold night in Jan., I was walking out to the shelter that had the thermometers in it (Yuma Shelter) and noticed that I could not see my feet below the ankles. There was a very shallow fog about 6" deep. I could kick my foot, and the fog would rise up and then settle back down, rippling out about 18", like a rock thrown into a calm lake. It was cold -50 or so, and not a breath of wind stirring. I later found out that there was a temperature inversion that night of over 120 deg f. between the ½ meter level and the 4-meter level.

I also saw a level of clouds come in at about 30' above my head. I know it was 30' because I could see the 25' anemometer on the tower, but not the 50' one. But, here was what was strange, we had 7 miles visibility at the time, it was like a tunnel through the fog. Didn't last long, but Greenland weather is a strange place.

About the middle of Jan., the steam generator broke, and they announced that there would be no more clean clothes until they could get parts. Early Feb. no more clean sheets till they could get parts for the steam generator. What's next? Mid Feb. navy showers, get wet, turn it off, soap down, rinse for 1 minute. Get the hell out! That lasted for a week, then no more showers. They had finally stripped me of all dignity I ever had, tired, dirty, smelling, and now, no showers. Actually, we weren't really dirty. We were 6000' from dirt, and that was straight down through the ice.

We were running out of food, but the cooks did the best they could. By mid Feb. we had hamburger, chicken and powdered eggs left. We would have eggs for breakfast, hamburger for lunch, and chicken for dinner, followed by eggs at midnight, chicken for breakfast, hamburger for lunch…

15 cents bought everything. A beer was 15 cents, pack of cigarettes, 15 cents, bar of soap, 15 cents. But now we were running out of everything. The only beer was San Miguel, whiskey, Old Overholt (over coat). Even for free, nobody wanted Old Over Coat or San Miguel.

Read this in the readers digest "Humor In Uniform" section. In Mar. the relief plane was in flight. The pilot radioed to Camp Century "How deep is the snow on the runway?" The radio operator said, "6000 feet deep, but come in anyway" That radio operator was Sp4 Radminsky, my buddy.

Speaking of Razz, another story. I was on the surface and Razz was operating the radio downstairs. I picked up the radio and said "XPN2, this is XPN2 Charlie, stand by for a spot announcement, “ARF, ARF“, thank you spot". Thought it was funny! I thought that the only one that could hear me was Razz, everybody else sleeping. The next voice I heard was the Camp Commander asking me to repeat my transmission. I gulped, and asked hi if Razz was there? He said that Razz was out shoveling snow, where I soon was going to be. I hide from him for 3 days, but he found me and gave me another nickname, "SPOT".

The first relief plane was in the air when the Camp Commander asked the pilot what he had on board. The pilot radioed back that he had parts for the steam generator and other repair parts. The Century Camp Commander radioed back to the pilot that he was to turn around and go back to Thule. The first plane to land a Camp Century that day had better have mail for his troops and some chow. The plane circled while the second plane with the mail flew up. The Camp Commander was my hero that day.

My turn to leave! My replacement was in, fully trained (2 observations), my bags were packed and the Caribou was waiting. This was the only time I had seen sunlight in 5 months. I walked out to the plane, found a seat, and looked back on the place I had called home for the last 6 months. I then noticed that building, (6' by 6'), (orange in color) (the only one on the surface), and realized that it was the WEATHER STATION.

I left Greenland in the spring and went back to Ft. Monmouth. I was a total stranger there, having been gone all winter. I remember the CO asking the First Sergeant who I was. Out of sight, out of mind.

My 2 other friends who went up to Greenland had returned near Christmas, and had shipped back to Greenland even before I got there.

short leave, a few weeks back to Ft. Monmouth and I was back on the plane to Greenland. I remember crying as the plane set down in Thule. They didn't ask me this time where I wanted to go, just put me on a Caribou back to… guess where CENTURY.

This was mid summer. The sun was up 24-hours a day. How did they dig those large tunnels? I watched one being dug. I was walking to the weather station when all of a sudden the visibility dropped to zip, zero, nothing. Snow falling all around me, when 2 seconds earlier it was clear and sunny. I could hear this loud noise of machinery running.

I had on my sunglasses, which was probably lucky for me, and followed the sound. About 50' I stopped short of a 30' deep hole that had been dug in just a few hours.

It was a new trench! Down in the trench was a wonder. This machine (A Peter Snow miller) was a railroad engine, mounted on tracks (not railroad tracks, tracks like on a bull dozer), with the largest snow blower you can imagine on the front end. This thing was monstrous! It was throwing snow 100' into the air.

That was my loss of visibility. Somebody told me that it was designed to keep the railroad high in the mountains of Switzerland free of snow. I don't know that to be true, but hey, I don't argue.

Within a day, they had covered the weather station with snow (Remember the orange building?) And the troops (me) were outside shoveling.

In civilian life, it takes you 4 years of college before they call you an engineer, in the Army, they hand you a shovel and call you one. We now had to climb down through the roof to get into the weather station.

There was a rope (lifeline) strung between the emergency exit we used to get to the surface, and the weather station. One day I left the mess hall to go to the surface during a white out. I climbed the ladder up to the surface, grabbed the rope and went hand over hand to the station.

It was empty and I frantically looked for the observer I was to relieve. It turned out that he had left the station to go down stairs the same time I was coming up, and we had passed on either side of the rope without seeing each other.

I'm sure Don Moore will describe the SWING far better that me, but I had the opportunity to look over one that summer. Basically, the swing was 100-ton sleds with pre-fabricated buildings mounted on them. D-8 cats pulled them. There were barracks, mess hall, club, and library. Drove about 3 miles an hour, about 5 sleds behind a couple of Cats.

And of course, a couple of trains slowly moving over the Ice Cap with supplies for the next winter (and hopefully I'd not be there to need them.)

I only spent 4 months there that time. I left Greenland vowing that the next time I went to Greenland, there would be three of us going, me and 2 MP's, cause I wasn't going again.

Back to Ft. Monmouth, reporting to the First Sergeant, who promptly put me on a plane to Alaska for a three month TDY. So I had come a full circle, volunteering for Greenland to avoid Alaska, and then going to Alaska. Some thoughts:

· If the Environmental Protection Agency were in existence then, all of this could not have taken place.

· Looking back on this after 40 years, it was a hoot.

· Each time I got off the Ice Cap, my sense of smell was incredible. I could smell things a long way away. I guess it is true, that your senses increase with out stimulation. There were no smells on the Ice Cap.

· I never had a cold, or the flu or knew anybody who did up there. Germs just didn't live in that environment.

· I was hungry all the time. You could shovel in the food, and the calories you burned just keeping warm kept you hungry.

· I wouldn't have traded this experience for anything (he says in 1999).

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