Walk against the wind. Climb mountains. Look to the North. More often.

October 26, 2015 9:49 AM

The most cut-off man on Earth. The story of Slava, a meteorologist who works at the most remote weather station on Earth and in a time capsule all his own.
posted by Kitteh (21 comments total)

I want to go to there.
posted by You Can't Tip a Buick at 9:59 AM on October 26, 2015

Is this the base discussed in Chew? That scene is probably the best moment of the series.
posted by lownote at 10:05 AM on October 26, 2015

I love that Arbugaeva's work made it to the blue. I'm an Arctic nerd, and the landscapes are just gobsmackingly beautiful. I may have to go to her upcoming London exhibit.
posted by Emperor SnooKloze at 10:12 AM on October 26, 2015

Honestly, this doesn't seem real. It looks like a still from a BioShock game. Are we sure this isn't an elaborate ARG?
posted by The Bellman at 10:14 AM on October 26, 2015 [2 favorites]

god I get such an old-techgasm off of looking at that communications set though.
posted by You Can't Tip a Buick at 10:16 AM on October 26, 2015 [2 favorites]

I'd so buy this game!
posted by Thorzdad at 10:20 AM on October 26, 2015 [3 favorites]

I am no fan of snow but there is something about this place which makes disliking intensely cold weather irrelevant.
posted by Kitteh at 10:22 AM on October 26, 2015 [3 favorites]

Glorious photos.
posted by Kabanos at 10:45 AM on October 26, 2015 [3 favorites]

The article says Slava is due to retire soon - he is 63 and has been there for 13 years. I wonder what will happen to the weather station. Will someone else volunteer to be posted there? Will they revamp the station into one of those "characterless facilities staffed by young people using new technology", as Arbugaeva describes other weather stations?
posted by cynical pinnacle at 11:17 AM on October 26, 2015

Pretty isolated, sure. But since a reporter can obviously reach it, not solitary enough for me.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 11:48 AM on October 26, 2015

THEM: Welcome back! Man, ten years alone at an Arctic weather station. And to think you volunteered for it, just so you'd finally be away from any distractions from finishing your novel. I can't wait to read the manuscript.

ME: Well, I mean...I have most of a first draft...but you know how it goes...
posted by Ian A.T. at 12:07 PM on October 26, 2015 [10 favorites]

This definitely fits on my NOPE meter. Nope, nope, nope.


nope.
posted by Chuffy at 1:18 PM on October 26, 2015

Those astoundingly blue eyes, almost reflecting the sea. I hope that the gallery puts this photo just to the right, almost as though it was his imagination of what is outside his window.
posted by Muddler at 2:10 PM on October 26, 2015

Almost like he's not human!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 2:11 PM on October 26, 2015

I prairie-dog over the cubicle wall and look at my fellow inmates in my perfectly good 1st world office. I sit back down and stare at the spreadsheet.

I would so take that weatherman job.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 3:32 PM on October 26, 2015 [1 favorite]

"Slava" is Vyacheslav Korotki. I know because ChuraChura posted about him last December. I'm not calling double—it's a different article, and the photos are nice (though there were nice photos in the New Yorker story as well)—but it bothers me that this piece takes great care to name the photographer but doesn't bother to give the hero of the story his actual name.
posted by languagehat at 5:20 PM on October 26, 2015 [6 favorites]

I would so take that weatherman home with me.
posted by maggieb at 5:29 PM on October 26, 2015

Those photos. Dang.
posted by a halcyon day at 6:05 PM on October 26, 2015

This one could so be a painting.
posted by flabdablet at 3:08 AM on October 27, 2015

The one of the girl with the boots and the dog is my favorite.
posted by The corpse in the library at 3:59 PM on October 27, 2015

The one of the girl with the boots and the dog is my favorite.

There are more photos of the Tiksi series on her website. Beautiful color palette.
posted by Kabanos at 7:10 AM on October 28, 2015