On September 22nd, two weeks after we arrived in Chile, I started my first day of work. Beginning in a new place is always a crazy experience, but after spending seven years at Florida and knowing everything about everyone, it was particularly odd to not know where I was going, what I was doing, or who I was meeting. I haven’t had that sensation in a while.
At first, I didn’t have much of an office. Gemini is in the midst of some renovation, so I found myself in a temporarily space. I didn’t stay in my seat for long though - I had so many meetings to go to on my first day that I barely even saw “my” desk, so it was no big loss. Still, someone had very thoughtfully laid out notepads, pens, and various other office supplies for me. I even had a phone programmed with my name and voicemail. After sharing an office (and a phone) with at least five other graduate students for seven years, this was quite a change.
The Gemini Headquarters in La Serena
My overall first impression was that Gemini Observatory is really well-organized - and I realized very quickly that it needed to be. For the uninitiated, Gemini South is one of the world’s largest telescopes - in fact it is the 8th largest. Every second of nighttime operations is worth $1. In other words, losing one night due to mechanical failures, disorganization, or poor communication costs at least $30,000.
Given this price tag, Gemini has a responsibility to make sure observations at night go as smoothly as possible. This translates into a giant complex of engineers, astronomers, and staff making sure that things are where they need to be, when they need to be there. It also means a more business-like approach and a LOT of meetings! Still people manage to have fun at work and the observatory is willing to spend the money to make sure that everyone has the tools needed to do a good job. In fact, Bernadette, who is the head of science, told me to order myself a new laptop!
Besides that, I was also scheduled for a driver’s training course. Not only would I get to drive around dirt roads with a professional driver, I was going to take my first trip since my interview out to Cerro Pachon, the mountain that is home to Gemini South. Given the efficiency at Gemini, it was unsurprising that my training had already been scheduled...for Wednesday! I was really excited because I’d heard that Danielle, the professional driver was a lot of fun. I also found out that the entire desert was in bloom, a rare event, and that the mountains on the way to Pachon were covered in flowers. I anticipated a really great day driving around learning more about operating a car on mountain roads.
Unfortunately, while this dirt-encrusted adventure *sounded* awesome, especially for someone who was a tom-boy for most of her life, the reality was dominated by some severe car sickness; I was nauseous the entire time. Danielle took us to a course that he had set up in the mountains near Pachon. Among other things, we practiced slalom and spun the car out to get a feel for how to regain control if the back-end of the car loses traction. We also went up and down a fairly step little hill to understand how the vehicle handles. I was ok while I was driving, although I found that I was too nervous to really love the experience. When my fellow trainees started to drive, my stomach began to lurch. By the end I was miserably green.
The Gemini Headquarters in La SerenaMy overall first impression was that Gemini Observatory is really well-organized - and I realized very quickly that it needed to be. For the uninitiated, Gemini South is one of the world’s largest telescopes - in fact it is the 8th largest. Every second of nighttime operations is worth $1. In other words, losing one night due to mechanical failures, disorganization, or poor communication costs at least $30,000.
Given this price tag, Gemini has a responsibility to make sure observations at night go as smoothly as possible. This translates into a giant complex of engineers, astronomers, and staff making sure that things are where they need to be, when they need to be there. It also means a more business-like approach and a LOT of meetings! Still people manage to have fun at work and the observatory is willing to spend the money to make sure that everyone has the tools needed to do a good job. In fact, Bernadette, who is the head of science, told me to order myself a new laptop!
Besides that, I was also scheduled for a driver’s training course. Not only would I get to drive around dirt roads with a professional driver, I was going to take my first trip since my interview out to Cerro Pachon, the mountain that is home to Gemini South. Given the efficiency at Gemini, it was unsurprising that my training had already been scheduled...for Wednesday! I was really excited because I’d heard that Danielle, the professional driver was a lot of fun. I also found out that the entire desert was in bloom, a rare event, and that the mountains on the way to Pachon were covered in flowers. I anticipated a really great day driving around learning more about operating a car on mountain roads.
Unfortunately, while this dirt-encrusted adventure *sounded* awesome, especially for someone who was a tom-boy for most of her life, the reality was dominated by some severe car sickness; I was nauseous the entire time. Danielle took us to a course that he had set up in the mountains near Pachon. Among other things, we practiced slalom and spun the car out to get a feel for how to regain control if the back-end of the car loses traction. We also went up and down a fairly step little hill to understand how the vehicle handles. I was ok while I was driving, although I found that I was too nervous to really love the experience. When my fellow trainees started to drive, my stomach began to lurch. By the end I was miserably green.
Once we stopped for “lunch” (a cup of coke for me and a few bites of pasta) I did get to take some shots of the dome against a back-drop of snowy mountains I confessed to Danielle that I'd had better days and I think he felt bad that I wasn’t enjoying myself much. He stopped several times to let me get out, have some fresh air and take marvelous pictures of the mountainsides in bloom. So after all the drama, I did end up with a pretty memorable day.
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