July 11, 2007 9:34 AM

Land Of The Midnight Sun

By
Daniel Sieberg
Topics
Journey To The Arctic
(CBS)
JUST NORTH OF THE ARCTIC CIRCLE –- Well, we've officially crossed, but the initiation ceremony has been delayed because of an extended science stop yesterday. (I think it's just prolonged our anxiety!) We're expecting to go through it this afternoon. The mystery deepened this morning when we were asked by a Coast Guard crew member what our ransom demands will be. (??) We'll reveal all later –- unless we're sworn to secrecy by Neptune.

Last night we saw the sun barely kiss the limitless horizon around midnight and then begin to slowly rise again. We've reached the land of the midnight sun, but we haven't even begun our adventure to break through massive sheets of packed ice in our journey northward. Right now we're stopped at the first science location, and we're taking advantage of the clear (and relatively warm) weather to get up in the helicopter. Chloe is up there right now, and Mark and I will join her on the next flight. It's clear blue sky as far as the eye can see with just a handful of icebergs. But once we're in the air we should get some good perspective on the ocean around us. Our position puts us about 58 miles off the west coast of Greenland.

We spent much of yesterday meeting with scientists and trying to better understand their research from phytoplankton to fin whales. More to come later today…


.

Follow Tech Talk

Scroll Left
Scroll Right More »
CBS News on Facebook
  • Building You a Better Morning

  • CBS This Morning

    "CBS This Morning," anchored by Charlie Rose, Gayle King and Erica Hill, airs weekdays from 7 to 9 a.m. ET and at the same time in other time zones.
    Learn more...