Research In A Deep Freeze - United States Antarctic Program

The United States Antarctic Program is a rich source of scientific exploration, providing numerous discoveries about the planet and the universe.

ANTARCTIC EXPLORATION began in earnest early in the 19th century, and, today, the seventh continent continues to fascinate scientists, tourists, and diplomats. Antarctica is governed by the Antarctic Treaty that went into effect in 1961 as a means of allowing the peaceful uses of the continent in the face of conflicting territorial claims. No one "owns" Antarctica. Many countries have built and run scientific research stations there, mostly in the Antarctic Peninsula, which is relatively easy to reach from South America.

To foster scientific exploration in Antarctica, the National Science Foundation's Office of Polar Programs manages and funds the United States Antarctic Program. USAP operates and maintains three year-round research stations and two research vessels. During the (Southern Hemisphere) austral summer, it also supports a number of large and small field camps. A sophisticated air and ship logistics system is required to support this far-flung network.

Antarctica has no indigenous human population. Living and working there is not quite as demanding as living and working on the moon, but there are similarities. Everything--including building materials, clothing, food, and research equipment--must be imported. People must be trained in survival techniques and instructed on how to cope with the extreme cold, avoid crevasses in the ice, and beware of dangerous situations that may lead to, for example, frostbite or dehydration. Because the Earth rotates on its axis as it travels in its orbit around the sun, the Antarctic enjoys 24 hours of daylight each day during the austral summer months and, conversely, during the austral winter, it is continually dark because the sun is in the Northern Hemisphere, where the Arctic is having its daylight period.

McMurdo Station, the largest of the research stations, is located on Ross Island at the edge of the Ross Ice Shelf. The USAP operating season begins around Aug. 20 each year, when the long winter night ends and the sun appears above the horizon for a few hours each day. At that time, the U.S. Air Force flies people and supplies to the Pegasus permanent ice runway near McMurdo for approximately a one-week period (depending on the weather). This is called Winfly, or the winter fly-in, and it is done to prepare for the full science season which begins around Oct. 1. Duties of support personnel include quickly building a runway on the sea ice very close to McMurdo. During 2000, four C-141 flights were executed, one every other day starting on Aug. 21. After Winfly, no other flights were scheduled (except in an emergency) until the summer science season opened.

Through the month of October, the U.S. Air Force brings in large transport airplanes (a C-5B, C-17s, and C-141s)to carry people, supplies, and scientific equipment to the two ice runways. Air Force C-141s continue to fly at various times throughout the summer season. Standard C-130s (flown by the Royal New Zealand Air Force) and wheel/ski-equipped LC-130s (flown by the New York Air National Guard 109th Airlift Wing) operate on a regular schedule from October through late February. The ice runways at McMurdo are not usable at the height of summer (mid December through mid January), when only the skiway (Williams Field) is able to be utilized.

Normal summer-season LC-130 air transport and helicopter support were formerly provided by the U.S. Navy's VXE-6 Squadron. They gradually withdrew from the program, ceasing helicopter operations at McMurdo in February, 1995, and LC-130 large-transport airplane operations in February, 1999. The 109th Airlift Wing currently flies LC-130 airplanes between Christchurch, New Zealand, and McMurdo Station (2,300 miles), between McMurdo and the U.S. Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station (825 miles), and to and from the science field camps as necessary. USAP also leases two smaller wheel/ski-equipped Twin Otter airplanes and various-size helicopters to service its field camps. Pole, the second year-round U.S. station, is located at the geographic South Pole, the spin axis of the Earth, and has just a snow runway, so only ski-equipped airplanes can land there.

Ship support for McMurdo Station comes at the end of the summer season in the form of a U.S. Coast Guard ice breaker and a fuel tanker and cargo vessel chartered by the Department of Defense's Military Sealift Command. The cargo ship not only delivers supplies, building materials, and equipment to be stored for the following season, it removes 100% of the solid refuse and hazardous materials waste generated at McMurdo and Pole stations.

The third U.S. facility, Palmer Station, is relatively small and is located on Anvers Island in the Antarctic Peninsula. It is primarily a marine/biological research center, the focus of an Antarctic Long Term Ecological Research program, and supports a year-round population of 43. The facility is serviced by ship from Punta Arenas, Chile. USAP leases an ice-strengthened ship, the R/V Laurence M. Gould, to bring people and supplies to Palmer Station, as well as to serve as a research vessel in the waters of the peninsula. A second, larger ship, the R/V Nathaniel B. Palmer, is used mainly for research, on rare occasions to service Palmer Station, and is capable of navigating all the waters around Antarctica.