Midnight Sun

My previous experiences with the midnight sun was near the arctic circle or just north.  And then only for a day or so.  The perpetual sunshine is different than the perpetual daylight of Fairbanks, where at least you get a sunset and twilight to represent times of the day.  After just two weeks, it seems like the sun has taken on a relentless persona even though it is far from hot, nominal temps are -20F.  Worse yet, is that 3AM is when the sun shines into my berth window and onto my bed.  I have an opaque shade that is easily opened and closed and a eye shade to sleep with but I am going to try the cardboard to see if I can get better sleep early on in the night.

8AM photo from my office window, ceremonial pole and flag

Getting a photo (or set of photos) that is indisputably taken from the pole is challenging.  The best I have done so far is a set of "flag shadow" photos outside my office window.  I look out at the ceremonial pole surrounded by international flags.  They are far enough out that the shadows are distorted so that didn't work very well.  In the first photo in the album (click here) was taken at 8AM and includes the ceremonial pole (also seen to the right).  The Noon shot has the shadow almost directly away from the building.  You have to look closely at the 6PM shot the flag shadow falls along the snowmobile track and all the way to the left in the photo.  This one also probably best represents the altitude of the sun from the horizon.  While the shadow lengths appear different it is only the perspective because the flag is a distance away.  And the "Midnight" (was up at 11PM) photo shows the sun shining toward the building.  The 5th photo is the sun shining in the window of the lab at 11PM.  The two windows (reflections on the cabinet at left to be excluded) surround my desk.  The right most window (middle glow) is the one in which the pictures were taken.  I just looked out and they have doubled the number of blue flags along the snowmobile path.  Actually, they mark a fuel hose running along the building, around to where the ski-planes land.  Julie tells me that there is a project to bury it this year so they no longer have to worry about it getting damaged by say, snow machines driving over it.

Also in the album are photos of me at the pole.  It is called "Hero Shot".

Ceremonial Pole with flags and me.  My office is to the right of the Antarctica banner on the building.