McMurdo prepares for the summer field work

(Photo: Jen Rhemann) McMurdo crew during the winter seasonLate August heavy snow storms around McMurdo Station delayed all scheduled flights. Latest news report that finally few days ago, the first flights took place from the station officially closing the winter season.

Summer research season in Antarctica will officially start 1st of October 2012. The crew, to include scientists from various disciplines and support staff will spend next six months working at the jumping point of South Pole Station.

One of the major projects for this year will be to design and construct an additional two-million-gallon fuel tank, which will give the research station the needed capacity to operate for two years without being resupplied by ship. In recent years, resupply missions by vessel have been challenging for various reasons, from the lack of icebreaker support to cut a channel in the sea ice to McMurdo to uncooperative winter weather needed to build an ice pier.

McMurdo station is the US Antarctic research station located on the southern tip of Ross Island. It became the center for scientific and logistical operations during the International Geophysical Year in 1958.

The Antarctic Treaty now signed by close to fifty governments, regulates intergovernmental relations with regards to the region and governs daily operations conducted at McMurdo Station for United States Antarctic Program (U.S.A.P) participants.