Part of the preparation for an expedition of this type is to realize that you are going to be exposed to the elements. This means that we need to do careful research to find out what the climate is like along the way. Tierra Del Fuego is famous for its climate. Check out this landsat 7 image mosaic:
View image
You can browse the entire globe for images at the following website:
http://glovis.usgs.gov/ImgViewer/ImgViewer.html
My questions to you are:
1)What is the climate going to be like when I am starting off from Ushuaia?
A good place to start is www.worldclimate.com
2)What will be the biggest meteorological challenge at the beginning of the expedition?
3)What kind of clothing should I make sure I have with me?
I look forward to hearing your answers. - Gwendal
Posted by gwendal at January 15, 2004 04:57 PMHello Everyone!
After a week here in Tierra del Fuego I have a much better grasp on the summer climate here. The winds are sometimes quite strong, and although not always present, often there is a constant westerly. This is one of the main factors affecting the weather here. When you look up to the sky you can see that the clouds are moving very fast. For this reason, when the winds are strong, it can feel quite cold causing you to reach for a sweater and some pants. However, when sheltered from the wind, the sun is hot and you can walk around in shorts and a t-shirt.
Another interesting fact: Because the wind moves fast, the weather also changes very fast. One minute it is raining hard and then five minutes later it is sunny and warm. This will mean that when cycling we will have to be careful to change into appropriate clothing frequently, to avoid getting too cold, too warm or too wet.