Travel Tips

Dallas, USA and the South Pole have something in common – they both will probably have 100 degree temperatures in July.Granted, at the South Pole the 100 degrees is below zero.This means you could freeze your skin off in mere seconds.

Even with these conditions, twenty-eight people commit six months to living at the South Pole. They have to deal with no sunlight, very little contact with the world, and no way to escape.This team works to maintain the U.S. polar base and to control the telescopes and other scientific devices located at the research station.Advancements in technology and communications are changing their work.

Recently, North American astronomers used satellite communications to be able to control the telescope at the South Pole’s observatory.This was the first time a South Pole telescope was controlled from a warmer continent.The hope is that astronomers will someday be able to use the telescope from the comfort of the warm, comfortable, regular office.antarctica tours

People on Antarctica have to deal with the coldest, driest, and windiest environments on Earth.There is not other continent that has elevations like Antarctica, so the crew also has to deal with limited oxygen.As a result, little else survives in that climate, save for animals and plants that have already adapted to the cold.

Those who accept the risk of working during the Antarctic winter are called “winter-overs.”They will have a vast library, small exercise room, computers, pool table and excellent food to enjoy.Normally, winter-overs do not speak much about what occurs during their winter months of isolation at the South Pole, from February to October.antarctic tours

One challenge faced by this crew is that the research program at the South Pole has continually grown and the research station is facing a great challenge in having a steady and consistent electrical supply.There are only three oil-burning generators to power the computers, lights, telescopes, lasers, and other electrical powered devices.This means that winter-overs have to deal with insufficient power, in addition to cramped quarters and cold buildings.

They often turn to traditions to help pass the time.One is the “300 Club”, which requires a day when the outside temperature will be at least 100 degrees below zero.The members heat the sauna up to 200 degrees.Then the winter-overs in the “300 Club” race out into the minus 100 degree temperatures and then back inside.

The also look forward to the airdrop.Every June, a U.S. Air National Guard military transport plane will fly over the South Pole to drop deliver pallets of food, mail and other supplies.The winter-overs quickly go outside, utilize heavy equipment, and bring the supplies inside.That single airdrop is the most contact with another person these people get in six months of occupation.

They do not get to look forward to seeing a tree or even going more than a mile from the pole.They look forward to the one week of vacation they get at McMurdo Station, a U.S. Antarctic base.They take advantage of this time to camp out in lovely 25-degree weather, bake in the sun on the beach, and relax in t-shirts and jeans.

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