Royal visit at NEEM

Royal visit at NEEM.

A very special day at NEEM. Most of the morning was used by all to prepare the Royal visit of Her Majesty and His Royal Highness from Denmark, Kuupik Kleist from Greenland and Rigsombudsmand Mikaela Engell.

The visitors where meant to stay overnight so the weatherports where prepared, the Dome was cleaned and improved, food was prepared and trenches where prepared.

During the morning the weather turned with low clouds and snowfall and the Royal plans where alternated so the visit would only last 2 hours.

The visit went very well and especially the attention the guests gave our young scientists is appreciated. We are so honoured by the visit and would like to thank our Royal Guests for the visit.

The Norland Twin Otter left with the visitors at 18:00 and the camp celebrated  Saturday Night, the Royal Visit and Bedrock. The food prepared by Cyril was outstanding and the dinner lasted to midnight. What a day!

What we have done today:
1. Lowering the deep borehole camera in the borehole for observation of the bed.
2. Preparing for the Royal visit
3. Setup and start of the drilling of a 30m 3 inch  ice core for BAS
4. Receiving the Danish Queen, the Princegemal, Chair of  Naalakkersuisut Kuupik
  Kleist and ‘Rigsombudsmand’ Mikaela Engell
5. Celebrating Saturday Night and a new Bedrock Party

Ad 1.
The drill liquid has become all murky as the hoisting up and down of the drills in the borehole has mixed the ice chips into the liquid. The camera movie was thus more or less eventless and grey. Only the last 10 seconds as the drill approaches bedrock indicates that we have a water column of basal water in the borehole. Monitoring of the drill liquid level indicates a basal water column of the order 60 cm.

Weather: Blue sky changing to low clouds and snow fall, temp. -8°C to -4°C, wind 8-12 knots turning from E in the morning to W at noon and settling on SW during the afternoon.

FL, Dorthe Dahl-Jensen