McMurdo-Station

- 77.85166.66666666667Koordinaten: 77 ° 51 '0 "S, 166 ° 40' 0" E

The U.S. McMurdo Station (nickname Mactown ) is the largest research station in Antarctica and logistics. It was built in 1955 and now consists of over 85 buildings. Located on the Hut Point Peninsula on the southern tip of Ross Island base has a runway for large transport aircraft on the sea ice with regular flights in the summer to Christchurch in New Zealand, a harbor, repair shops, businesses and the Albert P. Crary Science and Engineering Center. In summer it is usually free of snow and the usual winter cast of 250 people then rises up to 1,100 people. For various denominations is also a non-denominational chapel, the Chapel of the Snows.

McMurdo is logistical base for the Amundsen -Scott South Pole Station at the South Pole, but also for the Russian Vostok station. A 3 km long road connecting McMurdo with the New Zealand Scott Base.

McMurdo has, among other things, its own newspaper ( Antarctic Sun ), a television station, a small church, a fire station ( Antarctic Fire Department ) and a greenhouse with fresh vegetables. The inhabitants call themselves " McMurdoites ", " McMurdites " or " Mactownites ".

In McMurdo, the only nuclear reactor in the Antarctic was operated from 1962 to 1972 ( nukey Poo ) as part of the Army Nuclear Power Program. The reactor was brought back to the cut-off in the U.S., along with 11,000 cubic meters of contaminated ground.

Climate

On an annual average, the temperature of McMurdo minus 17 degrees Celsius, rainfall 212 mm. The height of the station is situated at 24 m. ü. M.

Research

The station conducts research in the McMurdo Sound ( with the McMurdo Ice Shelf ) and Mount Erebus.

McMurdo is the starting point for field research in the Transantarctic Mountains, for example, the dry valleys and the Ross Ice Shelf.

In December 2004, the experiment BESS - Polar launched to measure cosmic radiation.

Aerial view of the station

Look at McMurdo (1998)

Climate chart of McMurdo

Traffic

McMurdo has a port, the southernmost in the world. There is a road from McMurdo to the South Pole, the South Pole Traverse.

McMurdo is seasonally from three airports operated:

• Is an ice runway near Black Iceland, named after the crashed plane, still see the wreckage there: Pegasus Ice Runway ( ICAO NZPG )
• Sea Ice Runway ( ICAO: NZIR )
• William's Field ( ICAO: NZWD ), a snow slope

There are several ground transportation (road and off-road ) for people and cargo, including Ivan the Terra Bus.