The plane landed safely on the ice! When the crew opened the rear hatch, we were immediately hit with a wave of icy cold air. Exiting the C17 aircraft is always really exciting as everyone is eager to get their first ever (or first of this season) glimpse of the icy continent. Once we disembark, we are quickly ushered along towards the transport vehicles that will be driving us to McMurdo Town.
Here is a compilation of some videos I took during this journey:
I have been receiving a lot of questions asking about what life is like here in McMurdo, so I wanted to write a short blog introducing you to McMurdo Town - my home for this 5-week expedition. Just a note: most of these photos are from last season but the town looks pretty much the same this year.
Overarching view of McMurdo Town. Source: Cool Antarctica
The station is not actually located on the main continent of Antarctica but instead is situated on the Hut Point peninsula of Ross Island.
McMurdo Station is a US federal research station and represents the logistics hub of the United States Antarctic Program (a branch of the National Science Foundation).
Left to right: Berg Field Center (blue), Hotel California, Mammoth Mountain Inn, The Chalet, and Observation Hill in the background.
The primary function of McMurdo Town is to support scientific research, but it also provides logistical air and ground support for South Pole Station, seasonal field sites, and nearby stations operated by other countries.
Left to right: Gym (rounded building) and Helicopter Hangar (green). Sea ice in the background with paths to two of our dive huts.
McMurdo was established in 1955 and was originally built by the US Navy.
Left to right: Dive huts (orange), Dive Locker (blue), storage (blue container), cold storage warehouse (green). Mount discovery in the background.
Today, the town (~100+ buildings) is the largest community in Antarctica and is capable of supporting up to ~1500 residents. Approximately 1,000 in the summer and around 250 in the winter.
Left to right: Medical (white + red), Gallaghers Club (brown, foreground), Firehouse (brown + white)
Left to right: Chapel of the Snows, Water distillation plant, Power plant, Fire pump house
Left to right: Blue Building 155 (the central hub of McMurdo: home to the galley, store, library, laundry, craft room, weight room, offices, and dorm rooms) and Southern Exposure Club (white)
Left to right: Buildings 209, 208, 207, and 206 - the dorms
The exposed volcanic rock in the area makes McMurdo the southernmost bare ground accessible by ships in the world. In the photo below, I am jumping in front of the Ice Pier which is exposed in the summer when the sea ice melts.
Other things you will find in McMurdo include:
Radioshack
Climbing Wall
Coffee House
Music/Band Room
Science Laboratory (Crary)
Diesel generators (which replaced the nuclear power station!)
Wind turbines
A hyperbaric chamber
Disc golf course
Discovery Hut (built during Robert Falcon Scott's 1901–1903 expedition)
Airfields
Here is a town map in case you are curious:
This town is always busy! The only day off is Sunday. To keep morale high, most evenings there are a variety of volunteer-organized social, recreational, and sporting events including yoga, volleyball, soccer, disk golf, book clubs, game nights, crossword groups, crafting, trivia, science talks, dance classes, and much much more!