What is the largest research station in Antarctica?
Polar regions of Earth
The southern polar region has no permanent human habitation. McMurdo Station is the largest research station in Antarctica, run by the United States. Other notable stations include Palmer Station and Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station (United States), Esperanza Base and Marambio Base (Argentina), Scott Base (New Zealand), and Vostok Station (Russia).
Hermitage Peak (Antarctica)
Hermitage Peak () is a peak, high, standing north of Mount Ubique, in the Surveyors Range, Antarctica. It was named by the New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition (1960–61) for Hermitage, Berkshire, England, the home of the Royal School of Military Survey.
Mount Lanzerotti
Mount Lanzerotti () is the northernmost of the Sky-Hi Nunataks, rising to about in Palmer Land, Antarctica. It was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names in 1987 after Louis J. Lanzerotti, of Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, New Jersey, principal investigator for upper atmosphere research at Siple Station and South Pole Station for many years from 1970. Lanzerotti was a member of the Polar Research Board at the National Academy of Sciences, 1982–90, and was Chairman of the Committee on Antarctic Policy and Science, 1992–93.
British Antarctic Survey
The headquarters of the BAS are in the university city of Cambridge, on Madingley Road. This facility provides offices, laboratories and workshops to support the scientific and logistic activities in the Antarctic.
Jang Bogo Station
The Jang Bogo Station in Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica is a permanent South Korean research station. It is the second base of South Korean Antarctic research mission (after King Sejong Station), and the first that is located in mainland Antarctica. Completed in February 2014, the station houses 15 people in winter and 60 in summer in a 4000 square-metre building with three wings, and is one of the larger permanent bases in Antarctica.
List of agencies affected by the United States federal government shutdown of 2013
The United States Antarctic Program announced that it changed its three research stations to "caretaker" status, meaning that "[a]ll field and research activities not essential to human safety and preservation of property will be suspended". Most work at Antarctica is done between the months of October and February, when the region experiences summer. Because of the logistical difficulties involved in working in Antarctica, the shutdown may result in the cancellation of all American research in Antarctica for the entire 2013–2014 season. Scientists at McMurdo Station, Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, and Palmer Station study topics such as biology, astrophysics and climate change.
Admirals Nunatak
Admirals Nunatak () is a nunatak rising to on the upper Uranus Glacier, central Alexander Island, Antarctica. The name originates from dog teams named "The Admirals" that served at various British stations in Antarctica, 1952–94, and honors the loyal service of all Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey/BAS sled dogs. The nunatak appears to have some relation to Huns Nunatak which lies about northeast of Admirals Nunatak.
Arctic Cordillera
More than one-fifth of Ellesmere Island is protected as Quttinirpaaq National Park (formerly Ellesmere Island National Park), which includes seven fjords and a variety of glaciers, as well as Lake Hazen, the world's largest lake north of the Arctic Circle. Barbeau Peak, the highest mountain in Nunavut () is located in the British Empire Range on Ellesmere Island. The most northern mountain range in the world, the Challenger Mountains, is located in the northwest region of the island. The northern lobe of the island is called Grant Land. In July 2007, a study noted the disappearance of habitat for waterfowl, invertebrates, and algae on Ellesmere Island. According to John P. Smol of Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, and Marianne S. V. Douglas of the University of Alberta in Edmonton, warming conditions and evaporation have caused low water level changes in the chemistry of ponds and wetlands in the area. The researchers noted, "In the 1980s they often needed to wear hip waders to make their way to the ponds...while by 2006 the same areas were dry enough to burn.
Port Chalmers
Port Chalmers was a port of call for several notable expeditions during the heroic era of Antarctic exploration. It was the last port visited by Robert Falcon Scott before heading south on his final expedition to Antarctica. A large stone monument now stands above the town dedicated to Scott's final expedition. Following the 1923 transfer of the Ross Dependency (Antarctica) to New Zealand, and the New Zealand Government's lease of rights, the giant Norwegian whaler, C.A. Larsen, became the largest vessel serviced in the Otago Dock, Port Chalmers, in April 1928.
British Antarctic Survey
In 2012 the parent body, NERC, proposed merging the BAS with another NERC institute, National Oceanography Centre in Southampton. This proved controversial, and after the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee opposed the move the plan was dropped.The BAS operates five permanent research stations in the British Antarctic Territory:Of these Research Stations, only Rothera and Halley are usually manned throughout the year. Halley VI was closed for the March 2017 winter after relocation due to safety concerns when a previously inactive crack, "Chasm 1", in the Brunt Ice shelf began to expand in the direction of the base. The base was closed again in March 2018 with similar concerns. The remaining bases are manned only during the Antarctic summer.
Signy Research Station
Signy Research Station is an Antarctic research base on Signy Island, run by the British Antarctic Survey.
Goudier Island
Operation Tabarin established a research base, station A, on the island in 1944. Research continued until 1962 when operations were transferred to Station F (Faraday station) on the Argentine Islands. It was restored in 1996 and is now one of the most popular tourist attractions in Antarctica.
Antarctica New Zealand
Antarctica New Zealand is an Institute set up by the New Zealand Government in 1996 to manage its interests in Antarctica and the Ross Sea. As well as providing logistics support to a large scientific programme, it also runs bases such as Scott Base. It has run other bases in the past, such as Vanda Station.
Queen's University Biological Station
Queen's University Biological Station (QUBS) is the largest inland field station in Canada. For 70 years, researchers and students have gathered at the Queen's University Biological Station to conduct research and participate in courses spanning ecology, evolution, conservation and environmental biology. In 2002, it became part of the United Nations recognized Thousand Islands – Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve. The mandate at QUBS consists of education, research, and conservation.
ECARE
The Estación Científica Antártica Ruperto Elichiribehety (English: Ruperto Elichiribehety Antarctic Scientific Station; better known in English by its Spanish acronym ECARE) is an Uruguay summer research station in Antarctica, established by the Uruguayan Antarctic Institute on December 22, 1997 on the Antarctic Peninsula.
British Antarctic Territory
The British Antarctic Survey has two permanently staffed research stations in the Territory:Signy was operated from 1947 until 1996 and now is only staffed in the summer. There are also two summer-only forward operating stations at Fossil Bluff and Sky Blu.
Holmes Ridge
Holmes Ridge () is a rock ridge, long, which is the largest feature in the western part of the Finger Ridges in the Cook Mountains of Antarctica. It was named after Robert E. Holmes of the Space Science and Engineering Center, University of Wisconsin–Madison, who was involved with the siting and operation of automatic weather station units throughout Antarctica, 1991–97.
Antarctica
Antarctica ( or , ) is Earth's southernmost continent. It contains the geographic South Pole and is situated in the Antarctic region of the Southern Hemisphere, almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle, and is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. At , it is the fifth-largest continent. For comparison, Antarctica is nearly twice the size of Australia. About 98% of Antarctica is covered by ice that averages in thickness, which extends to all but the northernmost reaches of the Antarctic Peninsula.
Dome C
Dome C, also known as Dome Circe, Dome Charlie or Dome Concordia, located at Antarctica at an elevation of above sea level, is one of several summits or "domes" of the Antarctic Ice Sheet. Dome C is located on the Antarctic Plateau, inland from the French research station at Dumont D'Urville, inland from the Australian Casey Station and inland from the Italian Zucchelli station at Terra Nova Bay. Russia's Vostok Station is away. Dome C is the site of the Concordia Research Station, jointly operated by France and Italy.
Research station
Many nations also have research stations located in Antarctica; Showa Station, Halley and Troll are examples.
British Antarctic Survey
The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) is the United Kingdom's national Antarctic operation. It is part of the Natural Environment Research Council. With over 400 staff, BAS takes an active role in Antarctic affairs, operating five research stations, two ships and five aircraft in both polar regions, as well as addressing key global and regional issues. This involves joint research projects with over 40 UK universities and more than 120 national and international collaborations.
Halzen Mesa
Halzen Mesa () is an oblong islandlike mesa, long and rising to , that is the largest and easternmost of three mesas in the Insel Range, McMurdo Dry Valleys, in Victoria Land. The upper surface is relatively level but the periphery is marked by abrupt cliffs that rise 500 to 600 m above the floor of Barwick Valley and McKelvey Valley. Named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names in 2005 after Francis Halzen, Physics Department, University of Wisconsin–Madison, who in 1988 conceived of AMANDA, the Antarctic Muon And Neutrino Detector Array at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station; United States Antarctic Program principal investigator in a project to build the IceCube neutrino telescope at the South Pole Station in six field seasons beginning 2004-05.
Amsler Island
Amsler Island is located off the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula. It is named after American marine biologists Charles (Chuck) and Margaret (Maggie) Amsler of the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The island is a triangular rocky plot of granite land approximately long and wide at its widest point. It was once thought to be part of a larger island known as Anvers Island because the gap between the islands was covered by the Marr Ice Piedmont. Rapid recession of the ice due to global warming revealed this as a separate island in 2004. The United States Board on Geographic Names chose this name in 2007 in recognition of the Amslers' three decades of research in the Anvers Island area. Amsler Island was the original site of the United States Antarctic Program research base Palmer Station from 1965 until the current station approximately away was constructed in 1968.
International Polar Foundation
Based in Brussels, Belgium, the International Polar Foundation (IPF) communicates and educates on polar science and polar research as a way to understand key environmental and climate mechanisms. The foundation also promotes innovative and multifaceted responses to the complex challenges raised by the need for action on sustainable development, and designed, built and operates the first zero emission Antarctic scientific research station Princess Elisabeth Antarctica. The IPF was founded in 2002 by polar explorer Alain Hubert, Hugo Decleir and André Berger.
Research stations in Antarctica
The Operation provoked a massive expansion in international activity after the war. Chile organized its First Chilean Antarctic Expedition in 1947–48. Among other accomplishments, it brought the Chilean president Gabriel González Videla to personally inaugurate one of its bases, thereby becoming the first head of state to set foot on the continent. Signy Research Station (UK) was established in 1947, Australia's Mawson Station in 1954, Dumont d'Urville Station was the first French station in 1956. In that same year, the United States built McMurdo Station and Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station, and the Soviet Union built Mirny Station.
IceCube Neutrino Observatory
IceCube is part of a series of projects developed and supervised by the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Collaboration and funding are provided by numerous other universities and research institutions worldwide. Construction of IceCube was only possible during the Antarctic austral summer from November to February, when permanent sunlight allows for 24-hour drilling. Construction began in 2005, when the first IceCube string was deployed and sufficient data was collected to verify that the optical sensors functioned correctly. In the 2005–2006 season, an additional eight strings were deployed, making IceCube the largest neutrino telescope in the world.
British Antarctic Survey
The BAS also operates the Ny-Ålesund Research Station on behalf of the NERC. This is an Arctic research base located at Ny-Ålesund on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen.
Palmer Station
The Palmer Station is a United States research station in Antarctica located on Anvers Island, the only US station located north of the Antarctic Circle. Initial construction of the station finished in 1968. The station, like the other U.S. Antarctic stations, is operated by the United States Antarctic Program (USAP) of the National Science Foundation. The base is about as distant from the equator as Fairbanks, Alaska.
USCGC Polar Star (WAGB-10)
"Polar Star" is the only ship in the United States' fleet large enough to break the heavy sea ice to access McMurdo, the U.S. research station in Antarctica. However, as of 2017, this 40-year-old vessel is sometimes referred to as a "rust bucket" by members of her crew, signalling a need for further overhaul or replacement. Some spare parts have become so hard to find that crew members are reportedly sourcing them from eBay. During the 2017-2018 Antarctic season "Polar Star" suffered serious technical problems. On January 11, 2018 one of the cutter's three main gas turbines failed; although these are used to provide the power required for breaking up multiyear ice, local conditions allowed the ship to continue with only two turbines. Five days later a shaft seal failed, flooding the engine room; the crew were able to effect repairs and pump out the flooded space. The supply mission to McMurdo was successfully completed.
Chilean Antarctic Territory
(P): Permanent; Are open all the year.
(S): Seasonal; Are open in the Austral Summer.
The largest population center is located on King George Island and consists of Frei Montalva Station, which has an airport ("Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Martin Aerodrome", ICAO Code SCRM ), and which is connected to the communal capital, the village of Villa Las Estrellas, which has a town hall, hotel, day-care center, school, scientific equipment, hospital, post office and bank. This enclave is a center of logistical support for the other eight countries with scientific bases on King George Island.
Firefighting in Antarctica
Other research stations in Antarctica, such as Vostok Station (Russia), Scott Base (New Zealand), and Terra Nova Station (Italy) are protected by part-time fire brigades.
Davis Station
The Davis Station, commonly called Davis, is one of three permanent bases and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Davis is situated on the coast of Cooperation Sea in Princess Elizabeth Land, Ingrid Christensen Coast in the Australian Antarctic Territory, a territory claimed by Australia. Davis lies in the Antarctic oasis, a remarkable ice free area known as the Vestfold Hills.
Antarctica
Antarctica is home to more than 70 lakes that lie at the base of the continental ice sheet. Lake Vostok, discovered beneath Russia's Vostok Station in 1996, is the largest of these subglacial lakes. It was once believed that the lake had been sealed off for 500,000 to one million years, but a recent survey suggests that, every so often, there are large flows of water from one lake to another.
Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research
The institute is distributed over several sites within North Germany and the Otto Schmidt Laboratory for Polar and Marine Research (OSL) at the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) in Saint Petersburg as Russian-German cooperation in the field of Arctic research, named after the polar explorer Otto Schmidt.
Bharati (research station)
Bharati (Hindi: भारती) is an Antarctic research station commissioned by India. It is India's third Antarctic research facility and one of two active Indian research stations, alongside Maitri. India's first committed research facility, Dakshin Gangotri, is being used as a supply base. India has demarcated an area beside Larsemann Hills at 69°S, 76°E for construction. The research station has been operational since 18 March 2012, though it is still being run on trial basis and formal launch is awaited. Since its completion, India has become one of nine nations to have multiple stations within the Antarctic Circle. Bharati's research mandate focuses on oceanographic studies and the phenomenon of continental breakup. It also facilitates research to refine the current understanding of the Indian subcontinent's geological history. News sources have referred to the station variously as "Bharathi", "Bharti" and "Bharati".
Swedish Polar Research Secretariat
In 1987-1988, the Secretariat set up its first research station in Antarctica, Svea. The next year, the Wasa Research Station was opened. As of 2010, the Secretariat is also in charge of the Abisko Scientific Research Station in sub-arctic Sweden. In (northern) summer, it charters the icebreaker Oden from the Swedish Maritime Administration for research expeditions to the Arctic Ocean.
Least of the Great Powers
Italy contributes greatly to scientific research and operates some permanent research stations in Antarctica. In terms of spaceflight capability, the country owns the Broglio Space Centre. The country is also a major contributor to the European Space Agency and the International Space Station.
Brown Station
The Argentine Antarctic Institute took over the station in 1964–65, creating one of the most complete biology laboratories on the Antarctic Peninsula. It included a main house of ; two folding fuel tanks; and an additional building exclusive for scientific research, equipped with three labs, photography workshop, emergency radio station, office and library. It was called "Almirante Brown" Research Station and inaugurated on 17 February 1965.
Villa Las Estrellas
Villa Las Estrellas (English: "The Stars Town") is a Chilean town and research station in Antártica Commune, Antártica Chilena Province, Magallanes and Antártica Chilena Region. It is located on President Eduardo Frei Montalva Base, a military base, on King George Island. It is the larger and one of only two civilian settlements on Antarctica (the other being Argentina's Esperanza Base). It has a summer population of 150 and a winter population of 80.
McMurdo Sound
McMurdo Sound and its ice-clogged waters extends about 55 kilometres (34 mi) long and wide. The sound connects the Ross Sea to the north with the Ross Ice Shelf cavity to the south via Haskell Strait. The strait is largely covered by the McMurdo Ice Shelf. The Royal Society Range rises from sea level to 4,205 metres (13,796 ft) on the western shoreline. Ross Island, an historic jumping-off point for polar explorers, designates the eastern boundary. The active volcano Mount Erebus at 3,794 metres (12,448 ft) dominates Ross Island. Antarctica's largest scientific base, the United States' McMurdo Station, as well as the New Zealand Scott Base are on the southern shore of the island. Less than 10 percent of McMurdo Sound's shoreline is free of ice. It is the southernmost navigable body of water in the world.
Felicity Aston
Between 2000 and 2003 Felicity Aston was the senior meteorologist at Rothera Research Station located on Adelaide Island off the Antarctic Peninsula operated by the British Antarctic Survey, monitoring climate and ozone. As was usual at the time for British Antarctic Survey staff, she spent three summers and two winters continuously at the station without leaving Antarctica.
Northeast Science Station (Russia)
The Northeast Science Station of the RAS () is an Arctic research station located in Chersky, Sakha Republic in Northeast Siberia. It is one of the world's three largest Arctic stations.
NOAAS Ronald H. Brown (R 104)
At in length, "Ronald H. Brown" is the largest vessel in the NOAA fleet. Her hull is hardened against ice to allow for Arctic and Antarctic research. The ship has a total of 59 bunk spaces and can seat 30 at a time in her mess room. The ship also includes a two-bed hospital facility. She carries a complement of six NOAA Corps commissioned officers, one commissioned U.S. Public Health Service medical officer, 22 crew and a maximum of 31 scientists.
Molodyozhnaya Station (Antarctica)
Molodyozhnaya (, ""Youth"") (also known as "Molodezhnaya") was a Soviet, then Russian research station in East Antarctica at 67°40′S 45°50′E. After being mothballed in 1990, it was reopened in 2006 to operate on a seasonal basis. In Russian, the station is sometimes referred to as the capital of Antarctica.
Science and technology in China
The Chinese Arctic and Antarctic Administration (CAA) organizes China's scientific programme for both the Arctic and Antarctic. Polar research by China, in particular in Antarctica, has been growing rapidly. China now has three Antarctic research stations and one in the Arctic on the Norwegian island of Svalbard.
Geography of Norway
Queen Maud Land is Norway's claim in Antarctica. This large, sectorial area stretches to the South Pole and are completely dominated by the world's largest ice sheet, but with some impressive nunataks penetrating above the ice. The Troll Research Station manned by Norway is located on a snow free mountain slope, the only station in Antarctica not to be located on the ice.
Cape Baranov
Located near Cape Baranov, roughly to the SSE of the cape, the Prima Polar Station of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute closed down in 1996 and reopened in June 2013 as a private venture. This is currently the only Arctic research facility operating in Severnaya Zemlya.
Research stations in Antarctica
Many of the stations are staffed around the year. A total of 40 countries (as of October 2006), all signatories to the Antarctic Treaty, operate seasonal (summer) and year-round research stations on the continent.
The population of people performing and supporting scientific research on the continent and nearby islands varies from approximately 4,000 during the summer season to 1,000 during winter (June). In addition to these permanent stations, approximately 30 field camps are established each summer to support specific projects.
Research stations in Queen Maud Land
Princess Elisabeth Antarctica was established by Belgium as a project to promote polar sciences, as well as to demonstrate the possibility of building a Zero emission station. Research is conducted by an international team of scientists, studying climatology, glaciology and microbiology. It went into service on February 15, 2009. The station, designed, built and operated by the International Polar Foundation, is the first polar base that combines eco-friendly construction materials, clean and efficient energy use, optimization of the station's energy consumption and clever waste management techniques through the use of a micro smart grid. The station is connected to nine wind turbines that stretch out along the Utsteinen ridge. It houses up to 16 scientists at a time. 
The station is built against a ridge (The Utsteinen ridge) that is exposed to gales of up to . The station can withstand such strong winds through its aerodynamic shape and its foundation anchoring of several metres deep into the permafrost. Philippe Samyn, a Belgian architect, was involved in designing the shell and underlying structure. The upper deck of the building is the actual station and looks over the ridge edge. The lower deck contains a garage for snowcat vehicles and other utilities. The station is named after Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant, Princess of Belgium, the eldest daughter and heiress apparent of Philippe, King of the Belgians.
South Orkney Islands
Britain and Argentina both maintain bases on the islands. The Argentine base, Orcadas, established 1904, is sited on Laurie Island. The 11 buildings of the Argentine station house up to 45 people during the summer, and an average of 14 during winter. The British Antarctic Survey base, Signy Research Station, is located on Signy Island and was established in 1947. Initially operated year-round, since 1995/6 the Signy Research Station has been open only from November to April each year (southern hemisphere summer).
Arctic resources race
The first offshore oil platform in the Arctic was Prirazlomnaya in the Pechora Sea off Russia, operated by the Russian company Gazprom; it began production in late 2013. Russia jailed 30 Greenpeace activists protesting the platform and seized their ship. The largest Arctic platform in the Arctic is Goliat in the Barents Sea off Norway, co-owned by Eni Norge AS and Statoil; it began production in 2015. Royal Dutch Shell had $7 billion project to extract oil from the Chukchi Sea off Alaska, "Polar Pioneer", but abandoned the project in 2015 after determining that it was "not sufficient to warrant further exploration". Contributing to these decision was the record-low price of oil and the high operating costs of operating in a remote region with extreme weather.
Antártica (commune)
Antártica is a Chilean commune in Antártica Chilena Province, Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region, which covers all the Chilean Antarctic Territory, the territory in Antarctica claimed by Chile. It ranges from 53°W to 90°W and from the South Pole to 60°S, overlapping the Argentine and British Antarctic claims, and is the largest and least populated commune in Chile, being over 25 times the size of the next largest commune, Natales. It is administered by the Cabo de Hornos municipality in the South American mainland.
Dumont d'Urville Station
The Dumont d'Urville Station () is a French scientific station in Antarctica on Île des Pétrels, archipelago of Pointe Géologie in Adélie Land. It is named after explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville, whose expedition landed on Débarquement Rock in the Dumoulin Islands at the northeast end of the archipelago on January 21, 1840. It is operated by the "French Polar Institute Paul-Émile Victor", a joint operation of French public and para-public agencies.
Texas A&amp;M University
TAMU researchers have named the largest volcano on Earth, Tamu Massif, after the university.
In December 2016, the university became the focus of a PETA campaign hoping to close down certain veterinary laboratories, which it alleges perform abusive experiments on dogs with muscular dystrophy, including breeding dogs to worsen their illnesses and housing them in inhumane cages. The campaign urged supporters to write letters to the school in protest of experimenting on the dogs. Texas A&M responded that a video had been posted by PETA with insufficient context, and it said that the animals in question receive high-quality care with oversight from the National Institutes of Health and Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Antarctica Marathon
The Antarctica Marathon may have been the first for-profit sporting event held in Antarctica, on January 28, 1995. The event is now held every year in late February or early March. The race is held on King George Island, one of the largest Antarctic Islands just off the Antarctic Peninsula. There is also a half-marathon held at the same time. The start and finish is at Bellingshausen Station (the Russian base), and the course passes the Artigas Base (Uruguayan), the Frei Base (Chilean) and the Great Wall Base (Chinese). The course follows a gravel road that connects the bases.
Kathleen Conlan
Conlan is currently a Research Scientist at the Canadian Museum of Nature. Her research focuses on communities of marine life on the sea floor of the Antarctic and Arctic and the impacts of natural or anthropogenic changes. Conlan’s research has had significant impact. Her study of long-term benthic changes near McMurdo Station helped change the U.S. Antarctic Program’s procedures for sewage discharge in the Antarctic. She also discovered that the B-15 iceberg (the world’s largest recorded iceberg) in Antarctica could impact benthic life over 100 km as it blocked access to their main food supply, the annual plankton bloom. This is a far-reaching effect that had not been previously documented.
Antarctica
Several governments maintain permanent manned research stations on the continent. The number of people conducting and supporting scientific research and other work on the continent and its nearby islands varies from about 1,000 in winter to about 5,000 in the summer, giving it a population density between 70 and 350 inhabitants per million square kilometres (180 and 900 per million square miles) at these times. Many of the stations are staffed year-round, the winter-over personnel typically arriving from their home countries for a one-year assignment. An Orthodox church—Trinity Church, opened in 2004 at the Russian Bellingshausen Station—is manned year-round by one or two priests, who are similarly rotated every year.
The first semi-permanent inhabitants of regions near Antarctica (areas situated south of the Antarctic Convergence) were British and American sealers who used to spend a year or more on South Georgia, from 1786 onward. During the whaling era, which lasted until 1966, the population of that island varied from over 1,000 in the summer (over 2,000 in some years) to some 200 in the winter. Most of the whalers were Norwegian, with an increasing proportion of Britons. The settlements included Grytviken, Leith Harbour, King Edward Point, Stromness, Husvik, Prince Olav Harbour, Ocean Harbour and Godthul. Managers and other senior officers of the whaling stations often lived together with their families. Among them was the founder of Grytviken, Captain Carl Anton Larsen, a prominent Norwegian whaler and explorer who, along with his family, adopted British citizenship in 1910.
A. B. Dobrowolski Polar Station
The research station was built by the Soviet Antarctic Expedition in 1956 and named "Oazis" (Оазис, ). The station was handed over by the Soviet Academy of Sciences to the Polish Academy of Sciences in January 1959. It was manned briefly by the Polish expedition, which carried out a number of studies, primarily in the fields of gravimetry and geomorphology. The station has not been used regularly since, due to the lack of funds and the high costs of air transport, and there are no plans to reopen the station as a permanent institution. The station has been visited periodically by Polish and other research teams. The last Polish team was reported to have visited the station in the 1960s or 1970s (sources vary). A 1998 Polish statistical yearbook described the base as "periodically active". Official classification of the station is "inactive". The station is only occasionally visited by tourists, such as those who documented their visit in 2010.
Bradley Observatory
The Bradley Observatory is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by Agnes Scott College. It is located in Decatur, Georgia, east of Atlanta, Georgia, (USA). The observatory's largest telescope, the Beck Telescope, is a vintage 30 inch (750 mm) Cassegrain reflector built in 1930. The telescope was owned and operated by an amateur astronomer, Mr. Gibson. He offered the telescope for sale, seeking to upgrade his own telescope. Agnes Scott purchased it in 1947 for about $15,000. For many years, the Beck telescope was the largest in the Southeast United States, until the Fernbank Observatory opened in 1972 with its telescope.
The observatory was built in order to house the Beck telescope and was dedicated in 1950. It also houses faculty offices and a planetarium. The observatory is a contributing structure within the National Register South Candler Street-Agnes Scott College Historic District. Dr. Chris DePree is the current director of the Bradley Observatory.
East Base
East Base on Stonington Island is the oldest American research station in Antarctica, having been commissioned by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939. The station was built as part of two US wintering expeditions – United States Antarctic Service Expedition (1939–1941) and Ronne Antarctic Research Expedition (1947–1948). The base covers from north to south and from east to west. The base was accorded the status of one of the Historic Sites and Monuments in Antarctica on 7 May 2004.
Pole of Inaccessibility (Antarctic research station)
The Pole of Inaccessibility Research Station () is a defunct Soviet research station in Kemp Land, Antarctica, at the southern pole of inaccessibility (the point in Antarctica furthest from any ocean) as defined in 1958 when the station was established. Later definitions give other locations, all relatively near this point. It performed meteorological observations from 14 to 26 December 1958. The Pole of Inaccessibility has the world's coldest year-round average temperature of .
Ward Hunt Ice Shelf
The Ward Hunt Ice Shelf is the largest ice shelf in the Arctic, located on the north coast of Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada. During the 20th century the Ellesmere Ice Shelf broke up into six separate shelves, the largest being Ward Hunt. Ward Hunt Ice Shelf is about in size, and has been in place for approximately 3,000 years as part of a continuous ice shelf that encompassed the northern coast of Ellesmere Island until the beginning of the twentieth century. In 2005 one of the other shelves, the Ayles Ice Shelf, calved completely.
Wasa Research Station
The Wasa Research Station is a Swedish research facility in Antarctica, established in 1988/1989. It is situated next to the Finnish Aboa Research Station on the "Basen" nunatak in the Kraul Mountains in Queen Maud Land. The two stations cooperate, and are jointly referred to as the Nordenskiöld Base Camp.
Queen Maud Land
The Norwegian–British–Swedish Antarctic Expedition of 1949–52 was the first international scientific expedition in Antarctica. The expedition established its winter quarters at a base called Maudheim at 71°S, 11°W, and mapped much of western Queen Maud Land. During the International Geophysical Year (1957–1958), year-round stations were established in Queen Maud Land by Norway, the Soviet Union, Belgium and Japan. The Norwegian expedition continued with topographical mapping, while the others started geophysical and geological research. Norway's Norway Station was lent to South Africa following the withdrawal of the Norwegian expedition in 1960. South Africa later built the SANAE station, near the now-defunct Norway Station. The Soviet Union, and later Russia, has maintained continual operations, although it moved from Lazarev Station to Novolazarevskaya Station. Japan has been based at its Showa Station since 1957, except for a hiatus of a few years. Belgium closed its King Baudouin Station in 1961, though it mounted limited operations in cooperation with the Netherlands in 1964–66. The United States established the temporary Plateau Station in 1966.
Anvers Island
The Palmer Station on Anvers Island is located at () and is Antarctica's only U.S. station north of the Antarctic Circle. Construction finished in 1968. Around 50 people can inhabit Palmer Station at one time. The station is named for Nathaniel B. Palmer, likely to have been one of the first three persons to see Antarctica. There are science labs in the station, as well as a dock.
Abingdon-on-Thames
Abingdon is near several major scientific employers: the UKAEA at Culham (including the Joint European Torus (JET) fusion research project), Harwell Laboratory, the STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory and the new Diamond Light Source synchrotron, which is the largest UK-funded scientific facility to be built for over 40 years. Many inhabitants work in Oxford or commute by rail to London, from nearby Didcot. The Army now occupies Dalton Barracks, which, prior to 1993, was the Royal Air Force station RAF Abingdon.
Taishan Station (Antarctica)
Taishan Station () is the fourth of four Chinese research stations in Antarctica.
Kunlun Station (Antarctica)
Kunlun Station () is the southernmost of four Chinese research stations in Antarctica. When it is occupied during the summer, it is the second-southernmost research base in Antarctica, behind only the American Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station at the geographical South Pole. When Kunlun is not in operation, the year-round Russian Vostok Station is the second-southernmost base in Antarctica.
Argentine Antarctic Program
Argentina is the closest country to Antarctica and runs six permanent scientific stations, the most of any country. They are:Orcadas Station is the oldest Argentine station in the Antarctic, and Marambio the newest.
Base Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva
Base Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva is the most important Antarctic base of Chile. It is located at Fildes Peninsula, an ice-free area, in front of Fildes Bay (Maxwell Bay), west of King George Island, South Shetland Islands. Situated alongside the Escudero Station and only 200 metres from the Russian Bellingshausen Station, its geographic coordinates are , with an altitude of 10 metres above sea-level. The base is located in the Chilean commune of Antártica, which is the Antarctic territory claimed by Chile (Antártica Chilena Province, Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region).
Ellsworth Station
Ellsworth Scientific Station (, or simply "Estación Ellsworth" or "Base Ellsworth") was a permanent, all year-round originally American, then Argentine Antarctic scientific research station named after American polar explorer Lincoln Ellsworth. It was located on Gould Bay, on the Filchner Ice Shelf.
Mount Allan (Antarctica)
Mount Allan () is the largest massif (1,600 m) in the Traverse Mountains, isolated to the north and south by low passes, on the Rymill Coast, Palmer Land. Named in 1977 by the United Kingdom Antarctic Place-Names Committee (UK-APC) after Thomas J. Allan (1940–66), British Antarctic Survey (BAS) radio operator at Stonington Island, 1965–66, who lost his life while sledging with J.F. Noel near Tragic Corner, Fallieres Coast, in May 1966.
Argentine Antarctic Program
Argentina’s scientific activities started at the beginning of the twentieth century when an Argentine named José María Sobral joined the Swedish South Polar Expedition (1901–1904) commanded by Otto Nordenskjold, which wintered two years in Antarctica. In 1904, W. S. Bruce, leader of the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition, turned over to Argentina the meteorological and geomagnetic observatory on Laurie Island, South Orkney Island which had been established in the previous year. Since then the observatory has been run by Argentina and is the location of the Orcadas Station. It claims to be the first permanent facility south of 60° Southern latitude.
Argentine Antarctica
Esperanza and Marambio are the biggest Argentine bases, holding together 70 buildings, an average of 110 people during the winter, and over a maximum of 250 during the summer. Orcadas Base, located at the South Orkney Islands off the Antarctic mainland (see map, right), was the world's first base in the Antarctic region, operating continuously since 1903. The southernmost Argentine permanent base is Belgrano II, at over 77 degrees south. The southernmost summer base is Sobral, at from "Belgrano II".
Schirmacher Oasis
After the dissolution of the Eastern Bloc, parts of the Schirmacher Oasis counted among the heaviest polluted regions in Antarctica. Polar explorers from the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research in Bremerhaven and from the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute in Saint Petersburg disposed of 1016 tons of scrap metal and refuse from the former GDR polar station and the Russian Novolazarevskaya Station.
Sergey Zimov
Sergei Zimov is a co-founder and the director of the Northeast Science Station,F. Stuart ‘Terry’ Chapin III: "Northeast Science Station. Cherskii, Russia." terrychapin.org, 12 November 2006. Retrieved 2 November 2016. one of the world's three largest Arctic stations. Located near Cherskii, Russia on the mouth of the Kolyma River, 150 kilometers south of the Arctic Ocean, the station serves as a year-round base for international Arctic research. Its focus lies on carbon cycles, methane fluxes, paleoclimate, and the changing ecosystem. Founded in 1977, the Northeast Science Station boasts three laboratories, a network of field sites, tools for data analysis and communication, transportation, accommodation for visiting researchers, and a year round staff of six. A barge floating on the Kolyma River serves as a traveling dormitory and laboratory.
Polar Research and Policy Initiative
Polar Research and Policy Initiative, commonly known as PRPI or The Polar Connection, is an independent, international foreign policy think-tank dedicated primarily to the Arctic, Nordic, Baltic and Antarctic regions, as well as energy and environment issues. PRPI is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, and has an international presence across North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific, notably through the geographic distribution of its Fellows, Advisors and Affiliates. PRPI operates principally in the international arena and is committed to supporting sustainable regional development through multi-stakeholder, multi-sectoral and multi-national dialogue and cooperation. It is credited with championing the extension and adoption of the United Nations 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development - in particular, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs or Global Goals for Sustainable Development) - in the Arctic context.
Research stations in Antarctica
In 1903, Dr William S. Bruce's Scottish National Antarctic Expedition set off to Antarctica, with one of its aims to establish a meteorological station in the area. After the expedition failed to find land, Bruce decided to head back to the Laurie Island in the South Orkneys and find an anchorage there. The islands were well-situated as a site for a meteorological station, and their relative proximity to the South American mainland allowed a permanent station to be established. Bruce instituted a comprehensive programme of work, involving meteorological readings, trawling for marine samples, botanical excursions, and the collection of biological and geological specimens.
Arctic policy of Russia
Russia has conducted research in the Arctic for decades. The country is the only one that uses drift stations- research facilities seasonally deployed on drift ice- and also has other research stations in its Arctic zone. The first drift station, North Pole-1, was established on May 21, 1937 by the Soviet Union. Russian research has focused on the Arctic seabed, marine life, meteorology, exploration, and natural resources, among other topics. Recent research has also been focusing on studying the Lomonosov Ridge to collect evidence that could strengthen Russian territorial claims to the seabed in that region within the Russian sector of the Arctic.
Drifting station North Pole-38 was established in October 2010. In July 2011 the icebreaker "Rossiya" and the research ship "Akademik Fyodorov" began conducting seismic studies north of Franz Josef Land to find evidence to back up Russia's territorial claims in the Arctic. The "Akademik Fyodorov" and the icebreaker "Yamal" went on a similar mission the year before. The Lena-2011 expedition, a joint Russian-German project headed by Jörn Thiede, left for the Laptev Sea and the Lena River in the summer of 2011. It was to study Siberian climate and climate change, as well as gather information about the Russian continental shelf. The head of the expedition, who is also the chairman of the European Arctic Commission, expressed confidence that Russia will gather the evidence needed to confirm its claim to additional parts of the Arctic shelf.
United States Army Research Laboratory
The Army Research Laboratory (ARL) is the U.S. Army's corporate research laboratory. ARL is headquartered at the Adelphi Laboratory Center (ALC) in Adelphi, Maryland. Its largest single site is at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. Other major ARL locations include Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, Orlando, Florida, and NASA's Glenn Research Center, Ohio and Langley Research Center, Virginia.
Monika Puskeppeleit
She approached the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) in 1984, wanting to join a German overwintering team to the Antarctic. This goal was achieved in 1989. Puskeppeleit was the first German female doctor to overwinter at the Georg-von-Neumayer Station at Atka Bay (Eckström Shelfeis), Antarctica, during 1989-1991. During this time she was also a member and team leader of the world first female-only team to overwinter in Antarctica. As the first German female station leader, overwintering physician and ship`s doctor onboard SA Agulhas S. A. Agulhas Puskeppeleit substantially contributed to changing the perception of women during the time when Antarctica was a male dominated research area. In 2017 she founded the DocShip International e.V. which should act as an interactive international platform for ship`s doctor. During her overwintering, Puskeppeleit initiated the first polar- and biomedical research at the German Antarctic overwinter station. She started the “UV–B radiation related biological climate change research project” in cooperation with the German Institute for Aero and Space Medicine (DLR). Other pilot-projects like “testing of wind energy plants as an alternative energy source in the Antarctic” or the “Establishment of an alternative waste disposal system at the German Antarctic station” had been also carried out successfully by the female overwintering team. In 1990 as a contemporary witness, Puskeppeleit made in her function as station leader together with the all-female team a unique sociopolitical contribution to the East-West German reunification on the ice. Through regular contact by radio to the former DDR station Georg Forster (70° 46′ S, 11 50 E) for the first time it was possible to information exchange concerning polar research issues. But also in social interaction the all - female team was able to support their East - German overwintering colleagues by German “bridge building” on the ice.
Vernadsky Research Base
The Vernadsky Research Base () is a Ukrainian Antarctic Station at Marina Point on Galindez Island in the Argentine Islands, Antarctica. It is named after Soviet and Ukrainian mineralogist Vladimir Vernadsky (1863–1945).
Schirmacher Oasis
On April 21, 1976, approximately two kilometres from the Russian station Novolazarevskaya and about 120 m ASL, the first German research station, the "Georg Forster Station", was launched in Antarctica. In 1987, the station, which was run by the GDR, was named after the German naturalist Georg Forster. During its 17 years of existence, more than 100 scientists had worked at the station. In particular, their ozone measurements gained international recognition.
The station withdrew service in February 1993, and by 1996 the entire station had been dismantled and disposed of.
Mount Mende
Mount Mende () is a nunatak southwest of Mount Lanzerotti, rising to about in the Sky-Hi Nunataks of Ellsworth Land, Antarctica. It was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names in 1987 after Stephen B. Mende of the Lockheed Research Laboratory, Palo Alto, California, a Principal Investigator in upper atmosphere research, including auroral studies, carried out at Siple Station and South Pole Station from 1973 onwards.
Law-Racoviță Station
After two years of negotiations, during the 2005 meeting of the Antarctic Treaty in Stockholm, an agreement was signed through which Australia donated to the Romanian Antarctic Foundation and the Romanian Institute for Polar Research one of their research stations on the east coast of Antarctica, Law Station, which was renamed Law-Racoviță Station, after Romanian explorer Emil Racoviță and placed under the directorship of Negoiță. The signing of this agreement took place in the presence of the Romanian and Australian ambassadors to each other's countries.
Chilean Antarctic Territory
Nearby Professor Julio Escudero Base, controlled by the Chilean Antarctic Institute (INACH), under the Ministry of Foreign Relations, is the main Chilean scientific facility in Antarctica.
Progress Station
Progress () is a Russian (formerly Soviet) research station in Antarctica. It is located at the Larsemann Hills antarctic oasis on the shore of Prydz Bay.
Schirmacher Oasis
On March 10, 1959, the Soviet Union set up the research station "Lazarev" on the shelf ice in the region of the Schirmacher Oasis. The station was reinstalled in 1961 into the Oasis and was named Novolazarevskaya. In summer, up to 70 crew members reside at the station. In winter, on average 30 scientists and technicians work at the Novolazarevskaya Station. Research in natural sciences includes geodesy, glaciology, limnology, geomagnetism, geology, biology, meteorology, seismology, and other areas of expertise.
On 20 December 2007 the Russian Bath was built near the station. It is the only glued timber building in Antarctica.
Vostok Station
In 1974, when British scientists in Antarctica performed an airborne ice-penetrating radar survey and detected strange radar readings at the site, the presence of a liquid, freshwater lake below the ice did not instantly spring to mind. In 1991, Jeff Ridley, a remote-sensing specialist with the Mullard Space Science Laboratory at University College London, directed a European satellite called ERS-1 to turn its high-frequency array toward the center of the Antarctic ice cap. It confirmed the 1974 discovery, but it was not until 1993 that the discovery was published in the "Journal of Glaciology". Space-based radar revealed that the sub-glacial body of fresh water was one of the largest lakes in the world – and one of some 140 subglacial lakes in Antarctica. Russian and British scientists delineated the lake in 1996 by integrating a variety of data, including airborne ice-penetrating radar imaging observations and spaceborne radar altimetry. Lake Vostok lies some 4,000 meters (13,000 ft) below the surface of the central Antarctic ice sheet and covers an area of 14,000 km² (5,400 sq mi).
Artigas Base
The General Artigas Station (), also referred to as the Artigas Base is the larger of the two Uruguayan scientific research stations in Antarctica, the other one being Elichiribehety Base. It is one of the 68 bases in Antarctica.
Molesworth Station
Molesworth Station is located behind the Inland Kaikoura Mountain range in the South Island's Marlborough district. It is New Zealand's largest farm, at over 1,800 km², and supports the country's biggest herd of cattle. It also hosts government science programs, such as research into bovine tuberculosis and related research into possums.. The station helps rabbit population reduction.
Carlini Base
, Carlini is one of 13 research bases in Antarctica operated by Argentina.
Norwegian-U.S. Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica
The Norwegian-U.S. Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica is a research program consisting of two overland traverses of East Antarctica: the first from the Norwegian Troll Station to the South Pole in the 2007/2008 season; and a return traverse via a different route in 2008/2009. The main research focus of the program is climate change, the stated goals being to:The program is part of Trans-Antarctic Scientific Traverse Expeditions – Ice Divide of East Antarctica (TASTE-IDEA), and the International Partners in Ice Coring Sciences (IPICS), both of which have ISCU-WMO endorsement for the International Polar Year 2007-2009.
Research stations in Antarctica
During the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration in the late 19th century, the first bases on the continent were established. In 1898, Carsten Borchgrevink, a Norwegian/British explorer, led the British Antarctic Expedition to Cape Adare, where he established the first Antarctic base on Ridley Beach. The expedition is often referred to now as the 'Southern Cross' Expedition, after their ship's name. Most of the staff were Norwegian, but the funds for the expedition were British, provided by Sir George Newnes. The 10 members of the expedition explored Robinson Bay to the west of Cape Adare by dog teams, and later, after being picked up by the ship at the base, went ashore on the Ross Ice Shelf for brief journeys. The expedition hut is still in good condition and visited frequently by tourists.
Halley Research Station
The British Antarctic Survey announced that it intended to move Halley VI to a new site in summer 2016-2017. A large crack had been propagating through the ice and threatened to cut the station off from the main body of the ice shelf, prompting the decision to move. The planned move would see the station shifted from its previous site and would be the first time the station had been moved since it became operational in 2012. Horizon, the long-running BBC documentary series, sent film-maker Natalie Hewit to Antarctica for three months to document the move.
Scott Polar Research Institute
The Scott Polar Research Institute houses the world's most comprehensive polar library and archives. The Institute's Thomas H. Manning Archive contains an unparalleled collection of manuscript material relating to the polar regions, research and exploration. For scientists and scholars, the library offers a collection developed since the 1920s covering all subjects relating to the Arctic, the Antarctic, and to ice and snow wherever found. For industry, it is a prime information source on such subjects as exploration and exploitation of natural resources and on the environmental implications of such activities in the polar regions; on the design of ice-strengthened shipping and selection of sea routes; and on problems of construction and transportation in cold environments. The library also offers an unrivalled resource for the needs of international relations and strategic defence.
Antarctic
The Antarctic region had no indigenous population when first discovered, and its present inhabitants comprise a few thousand transient scientific and other personnel working on tours of duty at the several dozen research stations maintained by various countries. However, the region is visited by more than 40,000 tourists annually, the most popular destinations being the Antarctic Peninsula area (especially the South Shetland Islands) and South Georgia Island.
Research stations in Antarctica
A number of governments have set up permanent research stations in Antarctica and these bases are widely distributed. Unlike the drifting ice stations set up in the Arctic, the research stations of the Antarctic are constructed either on rock or on ice that is (for practical purposes) fixed in place.
Religion in Antarctica
Out of nearly 90 stations in Antarctica, half are only used in summer months. Most research stations have a small meeting room dual-purposed for religious assemblies. Larger stations and communities use a separate room, often a makeshift steel container for religious purposes.
Australian Antarctic Division
The AAD headquarters is in Kingston, Tasmania, just south of Hobart. The division's headquarters houses laboratories for science, electronics and electron microscopy, mechanical and instrument workshops, a krill research aquarium, a herbarium, equipment stores, communications and other operational and support facilities. The Chief Scientist since 2016 has been Dr Gwen Fenton.
Concordia Station
Dome C is situated on top of the Antarctic Plateau, the world's largest desert. No animals or plants live at a distance of more than a few tens of kilometers from the Southern Ocean. However, south polar skuas have been spotted overflying the station, 1,200 km away from their nearest food sources. It is believed that these birds have learned to cross the continent instead of circumnavigating it.