Ends of the Earth
Editor's note: This post was written by Mike Simon last week in Antarctica. Internet connectivity being what it is at the South Poe, we are publishing it now.
(From Mike Simon, NBC News photojournalist)
I’ve been humming an old Chicago tune down here in Antarctica. Anyone vaguely aware of 70’s music will know the song, “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?”
You see, it’s been a constant battle trying to compute all of the different time zones that we have to remember. For starters, there is only one time zone that matters to all broadcasters: New York time. Antarctica operates on New Zealand time, which is 17 hours ahead of New York. I also have to keep in mind that New Zealand/Antarctica is 19 hours ahead of my home base in Denver. (My wife probably did not like me asking about Halloween two days before it was October 31.) How could I be so clueless about what day it is? Well, things would not be so hard if I had any math skills. Our brilliant IT guy here told me all you need to do is subtract 24 hours then add seven hours for New York and five hours for Denver. (See, you’re already getting confused. Just like me.) For our live shots on the Today Show, we have to be ready two hours ahead of the 7 a.m. East Coast broadcast. Hmm, 7 a.m. ET is, oh, midnight in Antarctica. Two hours before is 10 p.m. But Antarctica/New Zealand is a day ahead of New York. So it’s going to be Tuesday already before we get even get Monday’s Today Show off the air.
CONTINUED >>
Ann successfully made it back from Antarctica and was back on the show today.
When she walked into the studio this morning, she was greeted with a warm ovation, and the crew provided her with her very own igloo at the news desk. WATCH VIDEO
She also recounted some of the highlights of her trip with Matt, Meredith and Al. WATCH VIDEO
When things settled down a bit, she sat down with me to discuss her trip. Here's our conversation:
CONTINUED >>
At 6:56 a.m. ET, just four minutes before we went on the air, TODAY producer Matt Carluccio called the control room to let us know that Ann and the crew had successfully landed at the South Pole.
Moments after we went on the air, Ann spoke to Matt, Meredith and Al on the phone, getting a standing ovation from the studio. WATCH VIDEO
After six days of unsuccessful trips from McMurdo Station to the South Pole, Ann and company finally made it -- and arrived to people holding "Welcome Ann!" signs. It sounds like she and the crew were a little queasy when they arrived, which stands to reason -- in about a three-hour span, they went from sea level to an altitude of more than 9,300 feet. That'll mess with your body.
CONTINUED >>
Matt was back this morning with plenty of stories from his trip to Greenland for Ends of the Earth. After the show today, we sat down to talk about his favorite and least-favorite memories, his new friend Peter and, yes, the rugged look.
Here's our conversation:
Q: What was your favorite part of the trip?
Matt Lauer: I think by far, taking a helicopter -- and it was one of these big, 20-passenger, Sikorsky monstrous helicopters -- and flying from Ilulissat Airport up to the glacier. And actually flying and landing on a cliff overlooking what they call the calving area of the glacier. So you're looking at where the icebergs actually break off, fall into the fjord and then head down to the sea.
So from that calving area, as far as the eye can see, is the actual glacier. It covers 80 percent of the country of Greenland, which is the largest island in the world. So you can get a sense of how big this is, and all it is is this kind of rippling off-white ice. It's just awe-inspiring. I've never in my life seen anything like it that close. It's something I'll never forget.
CONTINUED >>
(From Peter Alexander, NBC correspondent)
The Galapagos Islands boast a mesmerizing diversity of creatures -- many of them seen no where else in the world and most of them, sadly, endangered (video). Once 200,000 tortoises roamed the Galapagos chain. Today, only 15,000 to 17,000 tortoises remain.
Packed into a small van, my crew and I ventured into the higher elevations of Santa Cruz Island. (In total, the Galapagos consists of 13 major islands, six smaller islands and hundreds 
of tiny islets.) Our Ecuadorian driver slowed the van to a stop. The road was blocked. Right there, lumbering in front of us was one of the giant tortoises that make the Galapagos famous. Later, we saw at least a half dozen more in a nearby field -- a patch of land bought and protected by the Nature Conservancy. From a distance, they look like giant cocoons. The tortoises -- “tortuga” in Spanish -- can weigh up to 600 pounds. And their age? No one really knows how long they live, but estimates range from 100 to 150 years. CONTINUED >>
(From Bob Lapp, TODAY engineer/audio operator)
We have a saying in the freelance world, “stupid people make us money” and “the dumber they are, the more money we make”. The examples are endless; athletes and dog fighting, racist disc jockeys, the majority of Hollywood under 25 and OJ. You also find that most people you meet want to be famous, by talent or by sheer ignorance, it does not matter, whatever gives them their 15mins of fame. Just take a look at the explosion of “Reality TV”, You Tube, or any of the web based “video garbage cans”, somehow peoples lives will never be complete if they are not part of some massive download, or talked about on cable news.
Michael Jackson paid for my master bathroom remodel and The Enron trial paid my mortgage for 6 months…(tragic yes, but they still make the stupid list for thinking they could get away with it!), and the everyday criminal puts food on my table…..yes it is the moron money train.
Don’t get me wrong, Idiots have been keeping me busy for 20 years and I got 2 kids to put through college, so keep those Paris Hiltons and Astronauts in Diapers coming. But I often wonder what happened to all those people who actually paid attention in college? Where are all those selfless folks who wanted to save the world, not own it?
I only had to travel to the bottom of the earth to find them.
CONTINUED >>
(From Matt Carluccio, TODAY producer)
We've arrived at McMurdo Station, Antarctica.
The flight in was thrilling -- especially for the team members who were invited to sit in the cockpit on the approach into McMurdo. I'll leave it to Ann Curry to describe, and for viewers to watch the video (we'll be sure to include on November 5), but just imagine a fully-loaded cargo plane landing on 20-foot-thick sea ice. Amazing to me, but routine for the Operation Deep Freeze pilots from McChord Air Force Base who support McMurdo Station.
Our gracious hosts from the National Science Foundation greeted us and spent the better part of the day giving us a tour of "station," as the locals call it. McMurdo is the largest of the three U.S. research bases on Antarctica and it serves as the U.S. Antarctic Program's hub - basically, everyone comes through McMurdo. It is a unique place, to say the least.
CONTINUED >>
(From Matt Carluccio, TODAY producer)
There have been a lot of firsts for me in the last few days. Case in point, as I write I'm standing at the Christchurch, New Zealand airport under the massive wing of a U.S. Air Force C-17 as our crew films a 4-ton pallet of equipment being loaded on board.
But the biggest first is still about 5 hours away, weather permitting; touching down on Antarctica, or, as it's called by the locals, The Ice.
We have six NBC team members in our group and I'm pretty sure none of us know what to expect. Sure, we read the guide book, did our own research and found plenty of awe inspiring images on the internet, but can any of that really begin to capture the feeling we'll experience as we step off the plane onto a barren, icy desert sitting at the bottom of the earth; a place so remote that we - normally a rather resourceful bunch - need the full support of the National Science Foundation and the US Air Force just in order to get there.
Well, the planes are loaded and the 115 scientists, support staff and crew are in their seats. The engines are cranking up and the door is closing. A true once-in- a-lifetime first awaits.
Learn more about TODAY's Ends of the Earth event.
To ask Ann Curry and the TODAY team traveling to Antarctica a question, click here.
(From Ann Curry, TODAY Anchor)
The C-17 that will fly us to Antarctica is warming up, and as I write this our NBC news team is on the tarmac, feeling like we are about to jump into the unknown.
Producer Matt Carluccio says he's "pyched." Cameraman Mike Simon is pacing himself trying not to get "too excited." Leave it to Bobby Lapp, our soundman to see the downside, "I'm too hot in all this gear."
We are sweating, wearing three layers, and heavy expedition rated snow boots and huge coats, what we need to survive on what the scientists call "The Ice."
CONTINUED >>
