Passengers prepare for takeoff on their way to McMurdo Station, Antarctica, on a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III at Christchurch International Airport, New Zealand, Aug. 23, 2015. These passengers will be working for the National Science Foundation-managed U.S. Antarctic Program, a program that has been conducting scientific research in the area since 1956. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Madelyn McCullough)