Pathfinder launch / Penguin at Ice Runway

    This morning, NSBF announced that they were progressing with the next phase of this year's balloon campaign by launching a pathfinder balloon (pictures here).  A pathfinder is much smaller than the long-duration balloons and is solely used to probe the wind speed and direction near 125,000 - 130,000 feet, so that NSBF can get an idea of whether or not the seasonal circumpolar winds are setting up correctly.  In the beginning of December, an extremely high-altitude wind vortex sets up over the continent with its center

directly over the South Pole.  During TIGER 2001 - 2002, our payload barely ever deviated from 77°S. Lat. during its entire first orbit.
    Then this evening, I decided to walk out to the Ice Runway to see the infamous emperor penguin that has been hanging out there for the last three days.  He has supposedly been standing there in basically the same place, near the Ice Runway, incidentally about 12 miles from the open water.
    So I went out to spend some quality time with the well-dressed bird.  He was drifting in and out of sleep when I got there but he perked up a bit for the camera.  It is apparently quite rare to see an emperor penguin around here.

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