Incoherent Scatter Radar School: Excursion in Luosto

After the experiment night, it would have been hard to attend lectures in the morning. So instead, an excursion was organised in Luosto. Students and teachers were divided into six teams and took part to a treasure hunt around the Ahvenlampi pond. With each step came a short text about a "Finnish Fun Fact", along with a related question aimed for providing a few insights on Finnish culture.

Initially, the weather was very nice, and there were only few mosquitoes. Participants came across a lot of bilberries, and several of them could even find cloudberries. The end of the treasure hunt was however somehow precipitated by the arrival of a thunderstorm with heavy rain. Coffee was served in the small laavu where the whole party just fit, before all retreated to the restaurant of the local hotel. As a souvenir, participants were all given a small amethyst stone from the Lampivaara mine – the only active one in Europe – located a few kilometres away from Ahvenlampi.

The Red team fishing a hint.
Photo: C. Heinselman

Lectures resumed in the afternoon, and students could then download the data of their experiments and started to analyse them. In the evening, the workshop banquet allowed our guests to try poronkäristys (sautéed reindeer) and cloudberry pannacotta. Those who were not completely exhausted after the experiment night and the morning treasure hunt were also given the opportunity to experience Finnish sauna at the observatory.

And we are half-way through our radar school already!

Hunting the green flash

Last week, during the CHAMOS workshop in Luosto, we climbed on the top of the Luostotunturi (514 m), and we reached the summit a few minutes before sunset (i.e. around 3pm). As the sky was clear and the horizon low enough, I tried to take pictures of the sunset, in the hope to catch the green flash.

Well, I have to admit that my camera's zooming capacities are not among its best properties. But still, if we have a closer look at the pixels corresponding to the solar limb...

There is definitely some green! The good thing is that I had never achieved this before. The bad thing is that now I want to buy a new camera to get better results...

To be continued (maybe)...

EDIT: The same story in French (with bonus pictures) here.

Virkistyspäivä – "Refreshment Day"

On Wednesday, the staff of Sodankylä Geophysical Observatory spent a recreational day in Ahvenlampi, in Luosto. In Finnish, this is called virkistyspäivä. Weather permitting, outdoor activities are particularly popular in all seasons for such occasions.

Luckily, this was a dry day with slightly positive temperatures, which was particularly well suited for a treasure hunt designed in the same spirit as geocaching during the morning. The staff members were divided into three teams and had to find hints hidden around the pond.

The Virkistelijät team listening to the instructions before departure
Photo: M. Grandin

On their way, they collected sausage sticks, blue wool thread and some metal wire, which they needed to use to "fish" one of the last hints.

The Geotupeltajat team fishing
Photo: M. Grandin

Team work was strongly required to collect the final box containing the indications to find the treasure, which consisted in tikkupulla dough and The Password for lunch.

The Ryhmärymy team reaching the final box
Photo: M. Grandin

During the afternoon, the teams took part in a competition including several activities such as rubber boot throwing and a potato-in-a-spoon-in-the-mouth relay race.

The spoon-and-potato relay race
Photo: M. Grandin

After the competition, the participants all went to the laavu where they had coffee and made the tikkupullat ("stick buns", cooked above the fire). The final task consisted in a quiz about the observatory staff members, after which the points earned by each team were counted.

In the laavu
Photo: T. Ulich

This was a really pleasant and refreshing day, for which we warmly thank the best organiser ever, Iina Sirviö, who did a great job to make this event so memorable!