Morning Session

Click on a name to get to the person's audio.

 

Click on a section number to listen to the person's audio

Al Belon Al began working for the Geophysical Institute in 1949. He retired in the mid 1980s. He was the Assistant Director of the Geophysical Institute.

Section1:  introduction\ baking cake\ inflated balloon\ Roederer, Juan|

 Back to top

Roger Smith Dr. Smith is the current Director of the Geophysical Institute and has been working at the G.I. since 1984, when he came to study upper-atmospheric dynamics and auroral dynamics at high latitudes by optical methods. After 15 years of diligent research, he was appointed Director in 2000.

Section 1:  Roederer, Juan\ Geophysical Institute\ graduate student\ International Geophysical Year\ Chapman, Sydney\ Spitzbergen\ equipment -- installing\ tundra\ wind chill\ Osborne, Dan\ Deerh, Chuck\ Romick, Jerry\ stories|

Section 2:  heater\ equipment\ frost -- clearing\ Merritt, Helfferich\ weather\ taxi\ tundra\ spectrometers\ Spitsbergen\ spectrograph\ old barracks\ entertainment\ application|

 Back to top

Eugene Wescott Eugene is currently employed at the Geophysical Institute as a Professor Emeritus of Geophysics. He came to work at the G.I. in 1958 and, 43 years later, continues to study Solid Earth Geophysics and Space Physics.

Section 1:  application\ mountain climbing\ McKinley Park\ International Geophysical Year\ Geophysical Institute\ working hard\ jokes\ Elvey, Chris\ Valentine's Day|

Section 2:  jokes\ Hume, Jean\ information\ University of Alaska Fairbanks -- change date of founding\ letter -- phony\ director of information\ stationary -- new\ letter -- copies sent to everyone\ Mather, Keith\ Ballaine Lake\ Merritt, Helfferich\ St. Patrick's Day\ sock\ fluoresceine\ green|

 Back to top

Kristina Ahlnäes Kristina was employed for 26 years at the Geophysical Institute, from 1973-1999. Kristina was a Remote Sensing Specialist who studied Physical Oceanography and Marine Geology.

Section 1:  getting hired\ Mather, Keith\ Geophysical Institute\ job -- full-time\ Turner, Don\ Stone, David\ Benson, Carl\ volcanology\ backwoods -- two encounters\ cloud free\ ski -- home\ hazy blue cloud\ moon\ colors expanding|

Section 2:  locked door\ morning\ Poker Flat -- launched rocket\ Geophysical Institute\ gentleman -- elderly\ Swedish greeting\ attended lecture\ parking ticket\ VW Beetle\ changed oil\ Geophysical Institute -- drove back\ garage\ policeman\ contest ticket|

Section 3:  perfect iceflow\ Garrison, Gerald\ Seattle\ Arctic Ocean\ iceflow project\ North Pole\ Pearl Harbor\ Air Force\ penguins\ ice breaker\ charts\ satellite pictures\ coordinates|

 Back to top

Bill Sackinger Bill was employed at the Geophysical Institute from 1970-1995. He worked as an Associate Professor of Geophysics and Electrical Engineering and researched Sea Ice.

Section 1:  Applied Sea Ice Research\ pipeline\ oil companies\ Prudhoe Bay\ sea ice\ sea ice -- measurments\ strength\ low value\ Arctic Ocean\ calculated forces\ offshore\ Nelson, Dick|

Section 2:  chart recorders\ paper -- sensitive\ offshore\ McKenzie Delta\ Barrow\ Arctic Research Lab\ gauge\ Prudhoe Bay\ Seal Island\ generators -- on site\ Honda generator\ remote site|

Section 3:  ice forces\ instruments -- advanced\ computer\ geophysics\ electronics\ progress -- faster|

 Back to top

Ned Manning Ned was employed by the Geophysical Institute as a machinist since 1987 and recently retired. He participated in the machining and design of products such as the Freon Gravitational Engine, which is an energy producing device utilizing Arctic air and water as its source, and the Pin Bone Machine, which is a de-boning device for salmon pin bones.

Section 1:  Naval Arctic Research Lab\ Barrow\ Geophysical Institute\ Ohtake, Taku\ instruments\ balloons\ ice crystals\ researcher\ presentation\ sun dogs\ Dener, Warren\ Ice Island T3\ gun policy\ gun safety\ scientific stock room|

Section 2:  gun\ small caliber gun\ Ohtake, Taku\ balloon -- wrapped up in power line|

 Back to top

John Benevento Benny came to work at the Geophysical Institute in 1979 and reached the status of Electronic Shop Supervisor before he left in 1997.

Section 1:  Augustine Island\ Cook Inlet\ Davies, John\ weather -- terrible\ Oil Point\ research\ Osgood, John -- pilot\ Oil Point -- land\ night time\ windy\ helicopter shaking|

Section 2:  call spouses\ marine operator\ supervisor\ helicopter -- locked in\ son\ collect call\ stories\ fly down cliff\ watch rotor\ trees\ cut nose\ cloud level\ helicopter -- abort\ dove down toward water|

 Back to top

Merritt Helfferich Merritt worked at the Geophysical Institute from 1966-1993. He held the title of Associate Director for University Relations from 1985-1993.

Section 1:  leases\ Aleutian Islands\ Board of Regents\ Geophysical Institute Administration\ attitudes\ Ester Dome\ rocket firing\ Poker Flat\ NASA employee\ wires\ equipment -- caught fire\ Davis, Neil\ Poket Flat\ helicopter\ rotating beacon|

Section 2:  helicopter\ rotating beacon\ Thompson, Elvin\ tower -- existing\ jumping cable -- guide in to position\ radio\ communicating\ wind\ helicopter -- gyrating\ release tower section\ cables -- hooked on\ guideline\ Thompson, Elvin -- rope around his neck\ helicopter landed|

Section 3:  Belon, Al\ Cortes, Sherman -- Vice President of Finance\ Roederer, Juan\ business office\ Benevento, John\ running feud|

Section 4:  Wescott, Gene\ Geophysical Institute\ party\ control room\ rain dance\ Belon, Al\ bucket of water\ rained on Gene|

 Back to top

Glenn Shaw Glenn studied Auroral Physics while he worked at the Geophysical Institute as an Associate Professor of Geophysics. He has been employed at the G.I. since 1971, and studies Atmospheric Sciences.

Section 1:  Geophysical Institute -- coming to\ proposal\ Kenya\ solar eclipse\ Mather, Keith\ culture\ history\ stories\ geophysical data\ Sweet, Larry\ East Africa\ record data\ ship equipment\ boxes -- become light tunnels\ volt meter\ LED -- photographed|

Section 2:  data\ papers\ applied optics\ polarization of the sky\ solar eclipse\ Leaky, Richard\ Darwinian evolution\ Nile perch\ Lake Rudolph\ women -- weaving\ moving huts\ spitting berries|

Section 3:  island\ hired boat\ motor -- started spitting\ motor -- quit\ crocodiles -- coming toward them\ dangerous\ boat -- slapped with their tales\ boat -- started\ island -- met the chief\ bones\ graves -- none\ metal tools -- none\ skeletons|

 Back to top