In Reina Maruyama’s line of work, you can’t call yourself a real scientist until you’ve flirted with frostbite while scouting for subatomic particles at the South Pole.
Bone-chilling cold is almost a rite of passage for certain areas of research, from forestry and geology to environmental biology and Maruyama’s discipline, physics. First come the parka and gloves and then, the researchers hope, come publication and glory.
“I was there during the ‘summer’ in Antarctica. The temperature hovers around -20 degrees,” explained Maruyama, an assistant professor of physics and scientific spokesperson for the DM-Ice experiment. “The South Pole has two environmental factors that make it challenging to work there: temperature and altitude. We used extreme cold-weather clothing issued by the National Science Foundation, which operates the South Pole Station. Boots have very thick soles with room for extra footbeds for added insulation from the ice. It’s more difficult to deal with altitude. At 10,000 feet, one has to be very careful not to overexert oneself, especially the first few days of being there. We walk slowly, with no physical exertion for the first couple of days.”