Read a Q&A with the Tara expedition leader

The Tara expedition leader was 35-year-old Grant Redvers. Mr. Redvers, a native of New Zealand, has a masters degree in environmental science. He spent three seasons as a scientific technician at Scott Base in Antarctica and participated in earlier Tara expeditions to the Antarctic Peninsula in 2005, to South Georgia in 2005 and 2006 and to Patagonia in 2006. He was with the Tara Arctic Expedition from its beginning in the summer of 2006 until it came home in January, 2008. In December of 2008, MSNBC sat down and spoke with Grant on board the Tara when it was docked on the Seine in Paris as part of an exhibit on the Tara Expedition. We wanted to know what it was like to spend almost two years in the Arctic – and if it gets so cold that your eyeballs freeze (We were glad to learn that never happened).

Question: Tell us about how you were first selected for this role as Tara Expedition Leader.

Grant Redvers: For me personally, I'd come from a background that was originally a scientific background. And then I got involved with-- people who were doing expeditions in Antarctica. So, I spent a few years working in Scott Base which is the New Zealand research station in Antarctica, next to the-- American base.

I basically hassled Etienne Bourgois (the owner of Tara and funder of the expedition) for a job, and got on board in-- in Ushuaia (Argentina) in 2005.

So-- I had been involved with Tara for a couple of years before the Arctic expedition. And this background of-- of my scientific work and then-- as a sailor and a diver and-- being involved in sort of outdoor activities most of my life, climbing and running around in the mountains, those mix of skills-- led me to being involved in the Arctic project.

And—Etienne proposed that I-- become expedition leader for that project. So, that's how I ended up on Tara in the Arctic.

Question: How does living and working in the Arctic compared to the Antarctic?

Grant Redvers: Well, the-- the-- from my previous experience of expeditions in Antarctica or in the sub-Antarctic islands, they're generally a lot shorter duration compared to what we did-- on Tara. You're a lot less exposed in Antarctica. There's bases generally-- quite close by. There's people. There's cruise ships.

It's quite-- a populated continent now, Antarctica. By comparison-- the Arctic is an empty ocean. And particularly in the winter-- you know, we were the only people drifting in the middle of 14,000 square kilometers of ice. You really do sense that you're completely alone. You're exposed. If you have a problem, there's no guarantee that-- really, you're going to be able to evacuate someone. Just the risks, I think, are-- in the winter period, are a lot higher. And you're isolated. It's just-- it's-- it's-- seems a lot harsher, as well, I think. If you make a mistake in the Arctic, I think the consequences are-- can be a lot more severe.

Question: And what are those risks?

Grant Redvers: Well, obviously, living on a frozen ocean-- it's a dynamic environment. We had-- work that we had to do on the ice, particularly at the start of the expedition when we were in this phase of being frozen in. The ice was moving a lot. And we had one period where-- we had a storm and-- and basically all of the ice around us broke up into small pieces. And we were flushed out into the open ocean again. So, we had to recover our material. And-- you have to try and remember all the time that you actually are still living on an ocean. It's just got a-- thin veneer of ice on top of it. So, that's obviously a risk of-- living in this dynamic-- frozen, semi-aquatic world.

Question: Were Polar bears an issue?

Grant Redvers: Polar bears-- another risk. We had 18 bear visits -- the majority of those in the summer period. And obviously, we gotta take precautions against the bears. We always had a radio. We traveled with the dogs that would warn us if bears were nearby. We always had a gun and a flare.

We were quote fortunate. We didn't have any-- really-- dangerous-- meetings with bears. The dogs, however, did. The dogs were primarily-- they had to warn us, or scare the bears away. And one of the dogs, the older one (Zagrey), was a little bit too enthusiastic with his-- scaring one day, and got a little bit close and received-- a swipe-- that needed a bit of stitching.

So, they were a real risk. I mean, the bears are there wandering around. It's their-- it's their environment. It's their home. And-- they're hungry. They're looking for food. So, of course they see this-- boat that smells very nice on the ice. And-- they're very inquisitive.

So, they approached very close to the boat-- and tried eating some of our-- instruments from time to time, and did create a bit of tension at times. Because we had our toilet was outside. So-- when you're going outside in the middle of the night-- by yourself and-- and you know there's bears around sitting on the toilet with a gun beside you and a flare and a radio (LAUGHS) it can be a little bit nerve-wracking.

Free video   A less-than-comfy expedition Web exclusive: See the close cramped living space aboard Tara. MSNBC

Question: Could you just briefly summarize the kind of special equipment that you needed to do an expedition like this?

Grant Redvers: Well, obviously primarily we need a-- vessel, a boat that's made to be stuck in the-- in the winter in the Arctic pack ice. So, Tara was-- was actually specifically designed for this purpose. She's reinforced to withstand the pressure of the winter pack ice.

So, the-- the first thing you need is a vessel that's made to be stuck in the ice. You obviously need personal equipment: clothing-- protection from the cold. This is nothing really special. It's what everyone uses in the Antarctic bases. It's-- just common sense, layering clothes and jackets and gloves and hats and goggles and-- it does make your activities outside-- challenging sometimes when it takes you half an hour just to get ready to go outside to the toilet. So, this-- in terms of personal equipment.

And then in terms of the work we were doing-- we were doing oceanographic work, atmospheric work. We were studying the snow and the ice pack. So, there's a lot of tools and equipment that go with that: drills for drilling through the ice-- just-- various things that-- that-- that we use every day for working out on the ice, skis and-- and picks and shovels.

And shovels were very important tool during the-- the duration of the expedition. Because every day-- just about every day, we had to dig snow to-- to clear off the deck of the-- of the boat; 'cause after every storm or-- or even a light wind there would be snow drifting up on and around the vessel. So, we spent a lot of time digging. If you ever go to the Arctic, take a shovel. Take two shovels. (laughs)

Question: And what-- so, what would be your top tip for keeping warm?

Grant Redvers: To dig. (laughs)

Question: Manual labor?

Grant Redvers: Yeah, no, no, seriously. The best way to warm up was to dig some snow. We tried-- little hand warmers which worked pretty well-- just to-- to-- you know, ward off the-- the-- the real chilling temperatures when it was around minus-40. But-- you heat up pretty quickly actually. With all the layers on, we generally found even when it was minus-30, 40, and you start digging, you would be taking off a layer pretty quickly.

Question: What does it feel like when you go outside and it's minus-40 (Celsius) on your face?

Grant Redvers: Minus-40, you sense it straightaway. You've really gotta be completely covered up and ready to be exposed before you go outside. At minus-30, you can get away with walking outside and putting your last glove on and-- or putting your hat on and it's not too bad. But I think at minus-40, you really need to be fully prepared to go outside. It's not a snap freeze. But it's a-- if you're not careful, within a few minutes, you're gonna have problems.