Kwajalein Island Adventures

I’ve been here for almost three weeks now. Sometimes it feels like longer, and sometimes it feels like the time has just flown by.

In short, I’m adjusting well and still loving it here. Of course there are the little quirks and a few inconveniences (e.g., dial-up…), but if you can get past that, I think it’s terrific.

Actually I don’t think I’ve felt this stress-free and relaxed for years. Granted, there’s still a ton for me to learn about work stuff, but I’m up to the challenge and also haven’t felt this motivated for years.

Work

I’m still doing training shifts at work, and will continue to do so through about the end of the month. Mostly it’s involved me doing the forecasting work and then checking with the meteorologist on shift and discussing any changes I should make before issuing a product. I’ve also started to learn a bit more about the weather radar as I’ll be taking over some of the radar meteorologist tasks when the current radar guy leaves in a couple months.

After about three weeks of day shifts (9:30 am to 5:30 pm), I’ll start swing shifts (5:30 pm to 1:30 am) on Tuesday. I’ve heard swing shifts are typically slower as there’s less to do, but it does involve launching a radiosonde (weather balloon) at 11 pm as the techs typically aren’t around after about 4 pm (they launch the morning balloon at 11 am).

The company I work for is based in Norman, and they have a couple of meteorologists there who forecast remotely for Kwajalein between 1:30 and 9:30 am (8:30 am to 4:30 pm Oklahoma time). Our phones forward there when they are forecasting, so if anyone calls the weather station they’ll get someone from Norman.

Speaking of phones, we don’t have to dial international to dial off-island, and the same goes for people calling the island. On Kwajalein Island, we use an area code from California, so if someone called my number with a cell phone, it would be just like dialing someone in the States.

Anyway, I’ll be on swings for a couple weeks (including working some weekends and then just getting other days off) and then I’ll be back on days for the last week of August. My first scheduled day “on my own” is Tuesday the 30th. In early September, I’ll work a few of the morning shifts just to see the subtle differences and so I know what to do if I get called in or have to otherwise work that shift for some reason.

The real bread and butter of this place is the missions, but it’ll be a while before I participate in the forecasting duties for the launches we provide support for. Some of the mission stuff is sensitive, so I can’t talk much about that outside of work, but if you want to have an idea about a typical mission, do a Google search for Vandenberg missile and Kwajalein Atoll (check out the news section of Google, too, and you may find one about a launch during my first week here).

Questions?

Ok, now to answer a few questions I’ve received from friends and figured I’d answer for everyone.

In my last post I mentioned the bugle call. So apparently bugle calls are typical at army forts around the world. The USAKA (United States Army Kwajalein Atoll) scheduled bugle calls are as follows (it’s not an actual bugle, just a recording broadcast around the island):

6 am – Reveille (US flag is raised, everyone in earshot is supposed to stand at attention [not that everyone does…], the military day has official begun)

12 pm – Mess Call (self-explanatory)

5 pm – Retreat / To the Colors (flag is lowered at the end of the work day, everyone in earshot is supposed to stand at attention)

10 pm – Tattoo / TAPS (end of the day)

There’s also a siren that blasts “all-clear” for 20 seconds each work day at 6 pm (the first time I heard it I was confused as it sounded like a tornado siren…). There is a siren warning system here, but not sure I’d be able to remember which siren is for which warning as there are several outlined in the phone book.

Another question is what music is on the radio. Well, it’s an army network I think, and there are only a few stations. I haven’t tried tuning in to the stations, but I think there’s a Marshallese music station, an NPR station, and a country music station. I think there’s another one or two sometimes too.

I did bring along my entire, diverse music collection, so I still have a lot to listen to.

Someone recently let me borrow a small TV, so now I’ve been able to tune in to the AFN (armed forces network) channels. We have about 10 channels on the island, including a couple news channels, a sports channel or two, a channel that plays movies, a channel that plays semi-recent US TV shows, a “family” channel that plays recent and older shows and movies from at least the Disney and ABC family channels, the community activities channel (slideshow of stuff going on on Kwaj, set often to pop music), and the weather channel (not THE weather channel, but OUR weather channel, which plays satellite and radar loops, forecasts, current weather, tidal info, sunrise/sunset info, etc. set to usually NPR radio).

A TV guide comes out every Saturday, along with the “Hourglass”, the island’s newspaper/newsletter.

Other questions I’ve gotten have been about the weather. As we’re on a tiny island in the tropics (about 8 N, 167 E) the ocean moderates the temperature very well. Highs throughout the year range from about 84 to 88, lows from about 74 to 78. The average daily temperature range is less than 10 degrees. One of the meteorologists told me the record high is about 93 and the record low 69.

The dewpoint is typically in the low 70s, so it is very humid here.

Also, since we are in the tropics, the sun does go straight overhead. So even if it’s not 100 degrees, we get maximum solar radiation and it can feel like the sun is literally cooking you. I bet the stores make a lot of money on sunscreen out here!

Speaking of the sun, it takes a bit getting used to the sun going down so “early” in the summer. The length of days doesn’t change much here (maybe an hour throughout the year). Currently the sun is rising just after 6 and setting about 7:40.

The rainy season is about May to November, when light easterly winds and frequent showers dominate (if you want to know more, do a search for the ITCZ, inter-tropical convergence zone). December to April is the windy season, when strong northeast trade winds blow (strong being about 15-20 knots) and typically there are only a few light showers.

This year I heard there wasn’t much of a dry season, though, and we’re currently about 20 inches of rain above average! The average annual precipitation is just under 100 inches.

Typhoons / tropical cyclones don’t occur here very often, but they are possible. About the strongest one would maybe be about a Category 2 on the Saffir-Simpson scale, but even that could cause some considerable flooding and damage.

Tsunamis are even less of a threat, as the ocean floor slopes so steeply from here. It’s about a 1:1 ratio, so if you go a mile out to sea, the floor is about a mile down (probably one of the reasons swimming in the ocean is prohibited). A big wave just couldn’t build up. Still, a few inches of a wave could cause a bit of flooding and erosion around the shore.

I’m not sure of the temperature of the water in the ocean or lagoon, but both feel fairly warm. I’d guess in the low 80s, at least in the lagoon. Maybe upper 70s.

Okay, I think that’s all for now. Even if I don’t take the time to post photos (though sometimes I will, to make things more interesting!), I’ll try to update more frequently and answer certain questions thrown at me. 🙂

Maybe next time I’ll talk more about the stores and businesses and such on the island…

It is BEAUTIFUL here!

I’ve been on Kwajalein for almost a week now, and it still feels pretty surreal. I’m starting to settle in more though, and I really enjoy it here.

Picking up from where I left off in my last post, I took about a 5-hour flight from Hickam AFB in Honolulu (had to get up at about 1 am!). I arrived here Tuesday morning local time.

The first surreal experience was just beginning to notice little islands covered in palm trees surrounded by the bluest water you could imagine. We barely saw any land before we approached and landed on the runway.

After I got off the plane and got my temporary badge, I met Ed (the ATSC site manager), Mark (chief meteorologist), and Josh (one of the staff meteorologists). After I dropped off my bags in my BQ (bachelor’s quarters), Josh showed me around the island. First, I have to say my BQ is nicer than I expected. It seems fairly new or newly renovated, perhaps (or at least kept in good condition). It’s pretty much like a hotel room. My room is furnished with a bed, bookshelf, dresser, entertainment stand, bedside stand, computer desk and chair, coffee table, and chair. There are two large closets, a little kitchenette (mini fridge/freezer, sink, counter space and cupboards and a few shelves), and the bathroom. I have a large window facing west towards some more buildings and palm trees (can’t quite see the lagoon though). I’m on the third floor.

Anyway, I started to unpack that first day and get settled in. The next couple of days I spent finishing up some paperwork and getting another tour of the island from Mark.

On Friday I began to shadow Mark. I’ll be shadowing him for a while, to get forecasting training. The day shifts (which I’ll be on for a while) are from 9:30 to 5:30. So far I’m just working Tuesday through Saturday, with Sundays and Mondays off (our “weekends”, to correspond with Saturday/Sunday in the US). While a overwhelming at first, I think I’ll get the hang of things fairly quickly and really enjoy it.

Today I got out and took some photos around the island. I also went wading in the lagoon. The water’s great! I still can’t believe how turquoise blue the water is…it’s better than Hawaii. There aren’t a lot of people here, so the beaches and the water is quite nice.

Here are a few photos. Since the Internet connection I have at home is slow dial-up, I won’t post too many photos just yet and I’ll be shrinking them down so they upload faster.

Enjoy!

PS – Note I changed the header to a photo of the ocean from Kwaj! 🙂

My (eastern) view as soon as I walk down the hall from my BQ and out the outside door onto the third floor landing. Isn't it AWESOME?!?

View of the ocean from third floor

View of the ocean from the south shore of Kwajalein, looking southwest

Part of the marina, looking west across the lagoon (most of the small boats were left of this image)

Looking down to over a dozen nurse sharks! I've heard they hang out here as fishermen throw fish and fish guts down there as they come in at the end of the day.

Nurse sharks

More nurse sharks

Boat pier near the marina

Looking across the lagoon to several islands, including Carlsson and Carlos

Camp Hamilton Beach (lagoon side), looking southwest

Great Eggfly or Blue Moon Butterfly in the Kwaj public gardens. Two of these were flying around fighting with each other, and finally one of them landed on the scaveola and posed for me. I also saw a large yellow butterfly with some dark orange/brown splotches. I'll have to go back and see if I can find it again later.

Great Eggfly or Blue Moon Butterfly

Some sort of banana spider

Looking north-northeast over the lagoon. Ebeye is the island on the far left (where many Marshallese live)

A shy gecko on a bench

First landing site for Americans seeking to capture Kwajalein from the Japanese...looking over the ocean towards the southwest

A few other random notes. There are a handful of radio stations out here, to my surprise. Several times a day there’s a bugle call. They have different ones at different times (morning, noon, early evening, and late evening). The one I usually hear so far is at 10 pm. It’s interesting. 🙂

I’ll try to update with more photos and writing as I have time and patience to work with a slow Internet connection. 🙂

When I flew to England for the first time in May 2008, I saw so many beautiful shades of green, I decided my favorite color should be green, rather than blue.

Today I flew to Hawaii.

Now what do you think my favorite color is?????  🙂

The flight from Seattle to Honolulu was pretty uneventful, which is a good thing. I’m a little nervous about flying over water, but I think I can get used to it. It was pretty cloudy just off the coast, but cleared up to where there were just some little cumulus clouds here and there. The flight was about five and a half hours.

Here’s my first view of Oahu, approaching from the north/northeast, I think.

Our pilot told us that this new runway at Honolulu International Airport is an alternate landing site for the space shuttle (!). I looked it up on the Internet and found that it is called the Reef Runway, was completed in 1977, and was the first major runway constructed entirely offshore!

We flew past the airport and circled around to approach from the west. Here’s a view looking over some of the many houses near the beach. (Look at that water! Sadly my photos really don’t do justice to its beauty).

I first checked in to the Ala Moana Hotel. It’s a pretty fancy hotel, and is adjacent to a big shopping mall. I’m in the Kona Tower on floor 10, but I had some difficulty getting up here as it’s necessary to insert the room key into a slot in the elevator to get to floors 5 and up. Long story short, I rode the elevator up and down with probably some people wondering what in the world I was doing. Eventually I figured out the system and made it to floor 10. I have a pretty nice view towards the ocean.

I then went for a walk. I meant to just go down to the nearest beach, perhaps not the mile or so down to Waikiki.

However, I think I wound up paralleling the beach for a while before I realized it, and while I was walking in a straight line south (I think! I really need a map), the buildings were too tall for me to tell if I was getting closer to the beach or not. About to give up and go back, or look for a map, I started to see people with swimsuits. Then surfboards. I figured I had to be getting close. I was in the shopping district of Waikiki, so there were people everywhere.

Then I saw the beach. Stunning Waikiki Beach, in so many ways.

Here are some photos from my walk.

Here’s a close-up of a Hawaiian Hibiscus, the state flower.

There were also some bird-of-paradise flowers here in a park.

Below is a surfboard rental place. I had never seen one of these before. I caught a glimpse of the ocean through here, and then walked around and saw the beach.

There it is! Finally! And it was well-worth the walk down there. Oh so beautiful.

But what’s the first thing I ALWAYS have to do when I see a beach? Get in the water!! Admire later!

And then I looked up and around and admired. A lot.

I thought Florida’s water was blue. Florida has nothing on Hawaii! While I have seen photos and videos of bright turquoise blue water, it’s nothing like seeing it with your own eyes.

UNBELIEVABLE.

My new favorite color, the color of the tropical ocean near the shore.  🙂

World-famous Waikiki Beach!

As you can see, everyone else in Hawaii loves it too.

I had never seen so many people along a beach and in the water before.

The water was quite warm, which was good, as I got wetter than I intended.

I meant to only dip my feet in, but the tide was coming in and a couple waves quickly swept up to my knees!

Wow. I can’t wait to come back and spend more time around here!

Ok, now here’s a photo of a cute little bird I saw hop up next to me, probably looking for food.

I had no idea what it was, but a quick Google search of “Hawaii red head crest bird” yielded the desired result.

This is a Red-Crested Cardinal, native to South America and introduced to Hawaii.

I thought it was quite beautiful.

Before I left the beach, I got “Waikiki Sunset” flavored shaved ice. They serve the shaved ice in great big cups. This flavor was a mix of passion fruit, strawberry, and something else, I think mango.

A nice security guy saw me trying to take a photo of my giant shaved ice when my spoon fell on the ground. He offered to take my photo, and said I should give the sign for “Aloha”. I think my hand should be more horizontal (looks like I want somebody to call me…), but there you go.

One of the countless shops. I think I know where to go to look for some good flip flops now!

I saw many metal bands around the palm trees. I tried to find out what they’re for, and from what I can tell, they’re put there to prevent rodents from climbing the trees and knocking palm fruit (e.g., coconuts) down on people’s heads.

And here’s the state flag of Hawaii, next to a US flag, reminding me that while it feels so surreal to be here, I really am still in the US.  🙂

And know I’m going to finish my recently delivered Hawaiian Pizza from Round Table, and then get settled for the night and go to sleep. I have to be up extra early as I need to be at the air force base to fly to Kwaj by 2:30 or 3 am. I think the flight leaves between 5 and 5:30 am.

My next update will be from Kwajalein! So long to the US for a while!

After a 25-minute flight from Yakima to Seattle (yes, really that short!), I’m sitting here at SeaTac for a couple of hours.

My next flight is from Seattle to Honolulu, and it leaves at 9:10 am and arrives at 12:14 am local time (it’s a 3-hour time difference so it’s really a 6-hour flight).

Hurray for free Wi-Fi!

It’s almost time for me to head out.

I’ve spent the past five weeks traveling around the state of Washington and visiting friends and family. I went up the Space Needle for the first time, to a Mariners game in Safeco Field for the first time, to the Museum of Flight in Seattle, up to the Sinlahekin Wildlife Area in the north Cascades, to Sequim on the beautiful Olympic Peninsula, down to central Oregon, and more.

After all the preparation and anticipation, I’m just about ready to go. I’m very excited, but also a little nostalgic, looking back on where I’ve come from and the many adventures I’ve had. I’ll miss family and friends, but I trust I’ll see them again soon, and I’m ready for the next chapter of my life.

I fly out of Yakima at 6 am Sunday morning, arrive at SeaTac 40 minutes later, and then fly to Honolulu a couple hours later. I’ll fly to Kwajalein the next day.

I’ll be taking my DSLR and a couple of smaller digital cameras, including a new camera that I can take underwater. I plan to frequently update this blog with stories and photos.

My apartment is looking pretty empty now. There are just a few more little items waiting to be put in the car Sunday morning, but otherwise I’m ready to go back to Washington.

It’s hard to believe that I could pack up most of my worldly possessions into 36 boxes, 28 of which were shipped over the last week to Ellensburg (where I’m headed next) to be stored with my parents and 8 of which were shipped this morning to Kwajalein.

Here’s a link to a post I just wrote on my other blog, regarding leaving Norman: Winds of Change…

I will say that after I sold my bed a week and a half ago and sold my couch a week ago (been sleeping on an air mattress ever since), I’m looking forward to sleeping on a bed again!

A few more things checked off my long to-do list: I had a dental cleaning just before going to Florida, an eye exam early this morning, and received vaccinations for Hepatitis A and Typhoid later in the morning! I will need one more Hep A shot after at least 6 months from now, but I should be able to get that on Kwaj. Hep B was also required, but I had that vaccine when I was a kid.

This afternoon I boxed up most of my books (and I have lot!), dividing them into four groups, ranging from what I definitely want shipped to the island to what I definitely just want in storage.

I also went through most of my clothes and tossed a lot of old stuff out. My graduate student budget does not allow for new clothes very often, but now that I’ll be working with a “real” salary, I can afford to replace a lot of old clothes that were longing to meet the garbage bin. I felt a bit like the show “What Not To Wear”, where they throw out most of the person’s wardrobe in favor of newer, better clothes!

The packing is a daunting task as I have a lot of stuff and I’m going through it all by myself, so I just plan to do a little bit each day and I’ll hopefully be about ready in a couple weeks!

Soon I’ll have to attempt to sell some furniture. The living quarters on Kwaj are furnished and I don’t want to bother storing my furniture when I can replace it with nicer stuff when I get back. Items for sale will include a table and chairs, bar stools, a couch, a bed, a coffee table, bookshelves, DVD and CD shelves, lamps, a dresser, a desk, a file cabinet, a TV, a TV stand… And anything I don’t sell I’ll probably just give away, so I don’t have to take it with me up to Washington.

If it wasn’t already, it’s now official; I signed the contract on Tuesday, and my plane ticket has been purchased! I fly out of Yakima on July 17th. There’s a bunch of other paperwork and stuff to do in the meantime, and I know the next several weeks are going to fly by fast.

I’m planning on moving back to Washington to visit with family from early June to mid-July, so not only am I planning a move to the island but I’m planning a brief move to Washington. I have to sort through all my stuff to figure out what I want to bring with me to Kwaj, what I want to store in Washington, and what I want to sell or get rid of. I don’t plan on bringing a lot with me to the island.

Today I got some moving boxes. I have lived in Norman for five years, and have many good memories and friends here. I am sad to leave, but am looking forward to the next chapter of my life and am excited to see what it brings.

On a side note, in the midst of all this craziness, I am going back to Florida this weekend to try to watch Endeavour’s launch again! Check out the space shuttle category of my other blog for news on my recent epic road trip down there. I was randomly chosen to go to a NASA Tweetup and hear from astronauts, scientists, etc. and watch the launch from the press site. The launch was delayed, but we were invited back to watch it on Monday. Here’s to hoping for a smooth launch this time!

This is a cross-post from my other blog, the Green Sky Chaser Blog. I’ve been trying to feature the weather, climate, history, and geography of places around the world every Tuesday.

This morning’s post in the global weather and climate series featured Kwajalein Island, part of the Kwajalein Atoll of the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

I’ll write a lot more about the island later, of course, but I thought I’d do a feature post on Kwaj before I even get there.

The Kwaj Lodge, for short-term housing but typical of housing on the island. From Wikipedia

Map showing the location of Kwajalein Atoll, from Wikipedia

Kwajalein Island is a small island on the southern end of the Kwajalein Atoll. An atoll is a series of islands on a coral reef that surrounds a lagoon. Kwajalein Atoll is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, although Kwajalein Island is a U.S. Army base so there really are no locals on this island.

Kwajalein has a long history, but in short, the Marshall Islands are Micronesian and were taken over by the Japanese some time in the early 1900s. The U.S. fought over (and won) Kwajalein during World War II, and today the island is an army missile testing site (from what I understand the island is sort-of “rented” out to the U.S., although there is much more to it than that).

A few more facts about Kwajalein (weather data from the RTS Weather Station, where I’ll be working):

• Time zone: UTC + 12
• Elevation: near sea level
• Climate zone: Tropical marine
• Average high temperature: 87 °F (30 °C)
• Average low temperature: 78 °F (25 °C)
• Average annual high/low temperature range: 86 to 87 °F (30 to 31 °C) / 78 °F (25 to 26 °C)
• Record high temperature: 97 °F (36 °C)
• Record low temperature: 68 °F (20 °C)
• Average annual rainfall: 80 inches (2,030 mm)

Weather: As you can tell by the statistics, Kwajalein does not have much of a temperature range; the island is typically warm and humid, and I hear there are two seasons: warm and wet, and warm and windy (trade winds).

I look forward to learning a lot more about the tropical weather of Kwajalein before and during my time there. I do know that the island is too close to the equator to get strong typhoons (tropical cyclones), although they may occasionally get sideswiped by weaker cyclones.

As to the weather this week…I’ll guess that highs will be around 86 °F and there may be a chance of thunderstorms! (Check the forecast…yep, that’s about right! Though I know there will be more to my job than just that… 🙂 )

For weather maps and information on current and forecast Kwajalein weather, see the RTS Weather Station, Weather Underground and Weather Online UK (global maps and models).

Here’s a Wikipedia link for Kwajalein Atoll, and here’s a Wikipedia link for the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

I am very pleased to announce that I have accepted a job offer to work as a meteorologist on Kwajalein Island (often called “Kwaj” for short)!

Kwajalein Island is an island in the Kwajalein Atoll, which is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. (An atoll is a coral island or group of islands that encircles a lagoon.) The Marshall Islands are a large group of islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the equator.

Kwajalein is a pretty small island, at only about 3 miles long and half a mile wide. There are about 1,200 people who live on the island, all working under the U.S. government.

My job will be a forecast position with a private weather company that has a contract there with the U.S. Army. I think the job sounds very interesting and exciting, and I could gain some great experience while on the tropical island.

This new blog will chronicle my adventure. I will attempt to keep up with my other, primarily weather blog, but as I will not be storm chasing or living in the U.S. for the next couple of years, I expect my primary blogging focus will be here.

And before someone asks, the photo I placed in the blog header is not from Kwaj, but from Pensacola Beach, taken on my recent trip to Florida. I will replace the header photo with my own photo of the Kwaj beach once I arrive on the island, in just a few months!