Mrs. Cooperman's First Grade asked:

Thank you so much for answering our questions. Today we thought of one more! We were having a discussion about the top 3 things we would want to bring with us on a trip to Antarctica. One student thought to bring a cell phone. Would it work? Is there a phone system where you were?

That's a good question.  We use VHF (very high frequency) hand held radios and satellite phones for communication when we are in the field.  However, we can't use cell phones because there are no service providers or cell phone towers in Antarctica.  The top three things for me are good coffee, a good book, and sunglasses.  I love coffee, and if I want good coffee I have to bring it with me.  A good book is important for long long flights, or when I have to wait a long time for a helicopter to come pick me up from a field site.  Sunglasses are important because the sunlight is very intense in Antarctica because it's daylight 24 hours a day and because there is so much ice around to reflect the sunlight.

Here I am "using" a VHF radio at Lake Fryxell Camp