Science Out of Africa

"That means all of your instruments have to be installed and working on the ground, the airplane has to be able to make it to the site with all of its instruments running -- and there are usually several airplanes -- and then of course the space platform, Terra, must be overhead," Mark explained.

"The metaphor that Dr. Jim Conel, a colleague of mine at JPL, uses is that it's like trying to balance several pencils on top of each other on the end of your finger -- each pencil representing one of the factors that has to go right before the whole thing gets pulled off."

When the weather co-operates and everything goes just right, the scientists called it a "Golden Day."

"In this business, if you get one Golden Day a month you're doing good," said Mark, "even though you had every day of that month as an opportunity to do your mission."

During his most recent trip to Africa, Mark's project enjoyed three Golden Days.

Dealing with potentially life-threatening circumstances for months to obtain just three days of peak data certainly reflects the commitment these scientists have for the work they do.

"A lot of these professionals could be making a whole lot more money somewhere else," Mark said. "But they're studying a problem that's ultimately for the benefit of humanity. I think to a small extent that's in the back of everyone's mind, and that's kind of what holds everybody together and keeps us focused."

That and a charging elephant will do wonders for your concentration!

For more information

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