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Showering at the South Pole

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Re: Showering at the South Pole

#11

Post by _boffin_ »

eigenhombre wrote: post #6

Am tickled to see this here, having done these calculations myself in the same place several years running (due to summer visits at the Pole for work from 1997-2011). The author doesn't mention workouts. There are good gym facilities at the Pole, and there's nothing like a half-minute shower (the author's "Option 2") after using them. Now that I know there is an appetite for shower recipes, I'll share mine from 2011[…

Did anyone ever engineer the shower heads to reduce the GPM and thus, increase their shower time?

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#12

Post by toomuchtodo »

umvi wrote: post #9

...why not just have a nuclear reactor to provide an infinite heat source? Submarines at the bottom of ocean have more shower time than south pole stations.

Did not work out previously.

https://www.wired.com/2011/03/0304antarctic-nuclear-plant-mc...

http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2014/ph241/reid2/

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#13

Post by iudqnolq »

> You’ve sacrificed your health, well-being, social life, and potential future job prospects, but you can enjoy a truly obscene amount of shower, guilt-free.

I'd be interested in if there's actually health issues here. Anecdotally, from backpacking, it's no big deal to go that long.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#15

Post by randyrand »

I was curious to see how and if they meter it. Is there a wall clock? Honor/Guessing system? A bell?

Edit: found it "McMurdo doesn't really care. According to my buddy who worked at both the power plant and the water treatment plant, the station produces more than enough water. You can pretty much shower twice a day (though it's so damn dry there that I don't recommend it at all). Pole is restricted - people will police each other and heckle those who take too long."

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#16

Post by pstuart »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #12
umvi wrote: post #9

...why not just have a nuclear reactor to provide an infinite heat source? Submarines at the bottom of ocean have more shower time than south pole stations.

Did not work out previously. https://www.wired.com/2011/03/0304antarctic-nuclear-plant-mc... http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2014/ph241/reid2/

Seems like at the time it was a primitive and poorly executed affair. We could do much better this time.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#17

Post by quelltext »

randyrand wrote: post #15

I was curious to see how and if they meter it. Is there a wall clock? Honor/Guessing system? A bell? Edit: found it "McMurdo doesn't really care. According to my buddy who worked at both the power plant and the water treatment plant, the station produces more than enough water. You can pretty much shower twice a day (though it's so damn dry there that I don't recommend it at all). Pole is restricted - people will pol…

I don't get the dryness comment.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#18

Post by david2ndaccount »

quelltext wrote: post #17
randyrand wrote: post #15

I was curious to see how and if they meter it. Is there a wall clock? Honor/Guessing system? A bell? Edit: found it "McMurdo doesn't really care. According to my buddy who worked at both the power plant and the water treatment plant, the station produces more than enough water. You can pretty much shower twice a day (though it's so damn dry there that I don't recommend it at all). Pole is restricted - people will pol…

I don't get the dryness comment.

Showering can dry out your skin.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#19

Post by [deleted] »

quelltext wrote: post #17
randyrand wrote: post #15

I was curious to see how and if they meter it. Is there a wall clock? Honor/Guessing system? A bell? Edit: found it "McMurdo doesn't really care. According to my buddy who worked at both the power plant and the water treatment plant, the station produces more than enough water. You can pretty much shower twice a day (though it's so damn dry there that I don't recommend it at all). Pole is restricted - people will pol…

I don't get the dryness comment.

[deleted]

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#20

Post by pottertheotter »

eigenhombre wrote: post #6

Am tickled to see this here, having done these calculations myself in the same place several years running (due to summer visits at the Pole for work from 1997-2011). The author doesn't mention workouts. There are good gym facilities at the Pole, and there's nothing like a half-minute shower (the author's "Option 2") after using them. Now that I know there is an appetite for shower recipes, I'll share mine from 2011[…

Thanks for sharing. In the picture of Gary, what is the contraption in front of his mouth?
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