Pole: The 90's...
Winter 1990
Manager: Tom Fay, population 20
Notable Antarctic aviator (who made his first of many flights to Pole in 1976,
and later started Adventure Networks) Giles Kershaw dies in an ultralight
accident on the Jones Ice Shelf near Rothera (3/5)
He died as part of an ill-fated documentary filming
which was also intended to be covered in National
Geographic. During his career Giles made a number
of visits to Pole. This photo (of what he did often)
was taken during his support of Ran Fiennes' Trans-
Globe Expedition which visited Pole in December 1980.
A few months before this picture was taken, Giles
participated in a medevac near SANAE. (photo courtesy
80-81 w/o Chuck Huss)
Support contractor changes from ITT ANS to ASA, a joint venture of Holmes &
Narver (H&N, the first support contractor in the late 60's through 1980)
and EG&G (4/1)
Greenhouse experiments underway in former paint/DNF storage hut moved into the dome.
The small building, also previously used for DNF
storage, was gutted, reinsulated and vapor sealed,
and equipped with a vestibule. More info, a photo
of the interior, and credits are here.
Comms department completes move into new addition.
Summer 1990-91
Pomerantz Land (solar-polar) site, CMBR sites operated again.
Power plant upgrade continued, #3 engine replaced with a new 3412, one more to go...
Looking into the main part of the power plant from
the addition, towards the end of the summer. The
original radiator plenums have all been replaced
with the new heat exchanger stands, and 2 out of 3
engines are new, but #2 (center engine) is still
the original 353...to be changed out during 1991-92
along with the water tank behind it. (Photo by Janet
Phillips)
New summer camp emergency galley/lounge constructed to replace structure damaged by
fire the previous season.
Major water system repair effort to fix leaks.
Dome structural and panel repairs completed.
Five fuel bladders in the fuel arch replaced (with new bladders).
Switch from DFA and JP-4 to a single fuel (JP-8/AN-8) underway.
Foundation for Carnegie-Mellon CMBR telescope (s) constructed at CMBR.
New "International Antarctic Centre" in ChCh replaces old NSFA, CDC buildings etc.
Winter 1991
Manager: Dennis O'Neill, population 21
Dump burning discontinued, recycleables and hazardous waste is collected and
saved for retrograde.
Open burning of trash at McM Fortress Rocks Landfill stopped (2 March) after
asbestos discovered on site; "temporary" incinerator built and used for
food wastes and landfill operations discontinued--all other wastes were
stored for retrograde.
First galley addition constructed, this was the 2-story extension toward the
freshie shack, including new counters and a dishwasher.
The galley as it appeared after winter 1991...the
extension on the south end toward the freshie shack
is visible from the change in the red and white siding.
The aluminum porch and landing are in front of the
first floor entrance (the wooden stairs in the back-
ground are to the roof of the freshie shack).
(CARA photo)
CARA organization officially established encompassing future COBRA,
AST/RO, SPIREX projects.
Midwinter airdrop includes a bunch of McMurdo mail.
"Madrid" Environmental Protocol adopted by the Antarctic Treaty nations
(10/4), ratification would take a few more years.
Summer 1991-92
PICO (Polar ice coring office) shows up and drills 4 820m holes for strings of photo-
multiplier tubes, testing for a future SPASE/GASP project to detect neutrinos,
this project would later become AMANDA (Antarctic Muon And Neutrino Detector Array...)
Summer camp consists of 10 Jamesways, 2 heads, one galley/lounge. Maximum station
population cap was 140, making for crowded mealtimes and bathrooms...
More piping rework in the power plant to improve the glycol system performance.
Third 3412 (engine #2) installed to complete power plant generator upgrade project,
work slowed by another asbestos survey, this time some is found in the exhaust stack
insulation.
Potable water tank in power plant replaced with larger capacity stainless steel tank.
Remaining bladders in the fuel arch replaced.
"White Dish" CMBR telescope, predecessor to Python etc., erected at CMBR site.
USGS installs new GPS station on roof of skylab and discontinues doppler satellite
tracking program (December)
AST/RO (Antarctic Submillimeter Telescope/Remote Observatory) building foundation
and structural steel erected, to be the first structure in the new dark sector.
The AST/RO structure after the first year of construction; the
building panels were staged on top of the platform for the winter.
This was the first use of those foam insulated wall panels that
would later be used for everything else including the new station.
(photo by Galen Rowell)
Where'd this stuff come from? The first summer airdrop since the pre-Herc era dropped
some of the larger components for this structure.
New seismo vault occupied, sponsored by IRIS (Incorporated Research Institute for
Seismology) but still operated by USGS; Drum-type analog seismographs in the
science building replaced with digital models, earthquakes will never look
the same.
Norwegian glaciologist Monica Kristensen and assistant show up (by plane, as an
NSF-sanctioned project) with ground-penetrating radar to look for Amundsen's
tent, their attempt to come back for it in 1993-94 proved fatal...
Japanese adventurer Shinji Kazama reaches Pole (3 January) on a specially modified
Yamaha motorcycle. The trip from PH took 24 days. He was supported by a snow-
mobile which provided occasional assistance over rough areas.
Construction starts on Pegasus blue ice runway near McM.
Crary Lab (CSEC) dedicated at McM.
Winter 1992
Manager: Gary Freeman, population 22
New greenhouse equipment and lighting (prefabbed in McMurdo by Phil Sadler and
volunteers); managed at Pole by Kitt Hughes (here is the environmental impact
statement for this effort...this era was when NSF when writing these up for many
Antarctic projects.
McM "interim" incinerator constructed.
Summer 1992-93
Summer population cap 125; much more supportable than the previous year's 140
AST/RO building construction continues, structure enclosed and interior work underway.
CARA tests prototypes for AST/RO and COBRA (COsmic Background Radiation
anisotropy) experiments.
Current array of long-term snow stakes installed using GPS survey techniques--a total
of 240 poles in 6 20km strings 60° apart. The stakes were installed so the original
height of each pole above the snow surface was exactly 6'. They are monitored yearly.
Compressor/vaporizer system installed to enable use of liquid helium instead of gas bottles
for weather balloon launches.
Shell of Elevated Dorm (blue building) completed.
Wet silencers installed on generators for additional heat recovery for Rodriguez well.
Wind profiler radars (five 2x2m antennas) set up on the surface southeast of CAF.
This view from the met tower shows the newly installed
scooplike antennas next to CAF (presumably the trench is
unrelated). The 915-mhz detected the movement of moisture,
hence wind, up to 2km above the surface. The project also
included an array of AWS's and other instrumentation. This
photo also gives a good view of the SPASE-1 boxes and the
GASP telescope (Jesse Leech, Antarctic Journal, 1994 review
issue)
CRREL makes first Rodriguez well installation at the domed station (a "sewer bulb"
in reverse, hot water is circulated to melt more, when the bulb gets developed
enough, some of the water can be used by the station). Water treatment system is
installed too, but all this is finished too late to permit winter use--or, as has
been said, the plan was to allow 1 year for water circulation for bulb creation
(the well idea was originally developed by Army engineer Raul Rodriguez, for Camp
Century, Greenland in 1960-61; the first rodwell at Pole was tested successfully
in 1972-73). Here's the inside story on the Pole rodwells including video (!)
New GCA (ground control approach/air traffic control system) installed.
NGA (Non Government Activity) events--Five Norwegians, Ralph Høibakk, Herman Mehren,
Sjur Mørdre, Simen Mørdre and Hallgrim Ødergård, are the first to use the now
well-traveled route from Berkner Island to Pole. Norwegian Earling Kagge is
the first unsupported skier from Berkner Island, in 50 days (1/7) "Antarctic
Women's Expedition" arrives also, but doesn't continue to McM due to time
constraints.
McM Pegasus blue ice runway certified for use by wheeled C-130's
Appeals Court rules that EPA act applies to Antarctica (29 January), decision not
appealed, new "interim" incinerator at McM shut down.
Winter 1993
Manager: Stan Wisneski, population 28 (!) a new record
New stove exhaust hood system installed in the galley.
Fire escapes and emergency exit hatches installed on dome berthing rooms (by
winter construction crew--the first since the dome was built).
Construction crew finishes out interior of Elevated Dorm
31-gallon oil pans are installed on Caterpillar 3412 Genset numbers two and
three. This allows an extra two hundred and fifty hours between services.
Electrical code violations corrected in the Greenhouse. Completion of these
repairs allowed use of this facility to continue.
The main sewer outfall elevation dropped approximately six inches breaking
heat tape and disabling the line. After two months of attempts to repair
the line, it still did not function. Backup line used until a new line
could be run the following summer.
All use of the dump at Pole discontinued in accordance with Madrid Protocol; all
waste saved for retrograde.
Serious McMurdo windstorm blows down the cross atop Observation Hill...it was
reinstalled the following summer
Summer 1993-94
SPIREX (South Pole Infrared Explorer) telescope installed temporarily on roof of
AST/RO building.
CMBR telescope PYTHON erected between AST/RO and MAPO building sites.
CARA/AMANDA building construction started, building framed and enclosed, partially
in use by AMANDA group.
This photo, looking northwest from the AST/RO building
roof in January 1994, shows the newly enclosed CARA/
AMANDA building (as yet unnamed anything else) still
under construction. It is missing the SPIREX platform,
which would be constructed on the near end of the struc-
ture a year later. In the foreground is the CMBR telescope
PYTHON, in the left background is the PICO site where the
first permanent AMANDA holes are being drilled. The dome
is directly behind you across the skiway. (CARA photo)
First permanent drilling/construction for AMANDA, four strings are installed to ~1km
deep and made operational.
Monica Kristensen tries for Pole again to search for Amundsen's tent and flag to take
back to Norway for the Winter Olympics. Seriously! During the traverse to Pole,
fellow Norwegian Jostein Helgested is killed in a 130' crevasse, The USAP/NZ SAR
team led by Steve Dunbar goes in via Pole and lands at the site in a Twin Otter
to rescue the rest of the NGA expedition from a serious crevasse field in the
Shackleton Range. Here is the full story from the June 1994 Antarctic Journal,
and also from USA Today.
Elevated dorm completed and occupied (December)
The 3000-square-foot structure was originally confi-
gured to house 19 people, with 2-1/2 baths, galley,
lounge, and laundry. The solar panel heating system
cut fuel usage from 56 gallons to 12 gallons during
the first week of operation. It was designed for sum-
mer berthing and winter use as the emergency camp
(Antarctic Journal (NSF photo), 1994 review issue).
So then...
4.5m antenna installed on elevated dorm for GOES-2 "broadband" access and 2 small
antennas were installed to hit LES-9...
An aerial view looking toward the dome, with the new
elevated dorm in the foreground and the GOES dish on
its roof. This picture was probably taken in about
1995-96. (NASA photo).
This provided some of the first real-time internet connections
Here is the screen shot of the first true Internet
connection from South Pole to the outside world, via
LES-9, on 8 February 1994. Prior to this connection,
data was sent over a serial modem, in much the same
way teletype messages were sent over HF to McMurdo in
the old days. With the old, non-internet connection,
all data and email traffic went through the comms
operator who batched things up, (after reading the
mail for the juicy bits) and manually transferred
the data up north. (More information, credits, and
larger screen shots...)
Major galley addition started on "window" side as well as on the end towards the main
entrance arch.
Rodriguez well certified as a potable water source
Movable 10,000 gal steel fuel tanks on skis show up for storage of emergency fuel,
replacing bladders on the surface
McM Pegasus runway in service for C-141's in February.
Winter 1994
Manager: Janet Phillips, population 27
SPIREX catches Shoemaker-Levy comet collision with Jupiter, watched by some of the
first CARA w/o's with data sent back via the new satellite links
Galley interior completed
This 1998 view from the top of the dome shows the more recent
additions to the galley, including the dining area expansion
and interior stairs on the east side, they lead up to the bar
or what is now more commonly known as the upper galley. Also
there is a new pantry and upper lounge area on the north end.
The large white area in the center of the picture is the roof
of the greenhouse, which was built in 1994-95 on the roof of
the Annex...directly above the room I occupied in 1977. Hmm,
I heard the roof would sometimes leak...the 1989 addition to
the east end of comms can also be seen.
To the left of the science building is the electrical substation which was built in
1994-95. This picture also shows the "fire escape" hatches which were installed on the
berthing rooms in 1993. (photo by Robert Schwarz)
Serious power outage in March due to frozen glycol in the radiators; summer camp
generator fired up to backfeed station after 50 dark minutes, more than 3 hours
elapse before full power is restored.
Before water consumption began, the Rodriguez water well heat tape catches on fire
in the hole and the system freezes up, one day after the power outage; snow
melter ops continue
CARA building interior construction continues in winter.
First videoconference from Pole (9/13) using CuSeeMe software and the LES-9 satellite
(Michael Hancock talks to CARA in Wisconsin from the new CARA building)
Janet Phillips was first female Pole manager; after McM winfly all 3 US stations
have female sm's (Ann Peoples at Palmer, Karen Schwall at McMurdo). Here's an
article Janet wrote about this for her local paper, the Jemez [Springs, NM]
Thunder, for Women's History Month.
Summer 1994-95
CARA building finished and dedicated as Martin A. Pomerantz Observatory (MAPO)
At left is John Lynch with Dr. Pomerantz. They are
holding the plaque which would be installed inside
the building to commemorate the dedication. This
would be Marty's last trip to the ice (more photos
and the Antarctic Journal article about the dedica-
tion). And perhaps coincidentally or perhaps not...
...the Pomerantz Land solar observatory site operated for the last time
CRREL comes back to rework the water well; new hole drilled (water in bulb still liquid
after 9 months), water again officially declared potable (they also harvest micro-
meteorites from the water bulb)
AST/RO telescope installed, annex added to AST/RO building for liquid helium storage
SPIREX platform constructed on MAPO, telescope moved from AST/RO building
The dark sector as it appeared in January 1995 as you approach
from the dome. The AST/RO telescope has just been installed on
the right side of the roof of the AST/RO building in the fore-
ground. Behind the CMBR telescope, the SPIREX platform is under
construction on the end of MAPO (Photo by April Lloyd).
New Gorman-Rupp pump and aircraft refueling station set up.
Permanent greenhouse constructed on top of annex.
New electrical substation building constructed in the dome (next to the main entrance,
north of the science building) to replace all of the manual transfer switches in the
power plant arch.
First live TV broadcast "Live from Antarctica." (1/11)
Retrograde of backlog of solid waste since 1991 (300+ tons) completed.
[?]Met tower in clean air sector relocated (to make way for the new NOAA building?) (?
Or did this happen early 95-96 )
SPASE-II construction started in dark sector 1/4 mile SW of MAPO
Winter 1995
Manager, John Parlin, population 28
First greenhouse operations limited by electric power shortages.
First AST/RO observations.
Summer 1995-96
SPASE-2 array construction starts 1/2 mile south of MAPO.
CRREL shows up and tests their new utilidor tunneling machine (at one time there had
been plans for a tunnel all the way to the dark sector, under the skiway...)
New 2-story building for NOAA under construction 500' east of CAF which it will
replace.
4 more AMANDA holes, these 2-2.2 km deep "AMANDA-B" drilled and put in
operation.
Summer visitors include...
Norwegian Borge Ousland, trying for a solo unsupported crossing, he bagged the
second half due to frostbite but would be back to finish whole thing the next year.
Pole Marek Kaminski, trying the same thing, he didn't make it across either, but he
did hit both poles in one calendar year...he came back to Pole in 1996-97 as well.
w/o Chris Bero's dad shows up via ANI airlines for a father-son visit.
Science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson, digging up background for his next
book "Antarctica," researches in, around, and under the station...
Winter 1996
Manager: Tim Coffey, population 26
No midwinter airdrop; discontinued due to email, supply system improvements,
greenhouses, and budgets...
Environmental protocol ratified by Congress, final "official" implementation would take a
bit longer yet.
First use of C-141 aircraft (instead of LC-130s) for WINFLY flights to McMurdo
Summer 1996-97
CRREL returns with tunneling machine, digs 400' x 7' wide x 10' high snow tunnel brancb
off the utilidor for gravity sewer outfall.
The completed utilidor tunnel with the sewer outfall piping in
service. The elevated station uses a similar tunnel system for
water and sewage; the waste water is dumped into played-out Rod-
riguez well bulbs. (1999 photo by Joel Michalski)
Here is more than you ever wanted to know about the tunnels...
SPASE-2 finished along with intermingled VULCAN (Cerenkov detector) array,
AMANDA construction continues with 6 more 2 km strings installed finishing
AMANDA-B.
Viper steel structure for the instrument and its control room erected west of MAPO
The Viper structure under construction in 1996-97. In this
view looking northeast, the steel support structure is being
erected behind the control room which has yet to receive its
blue siding panels. This photo was taken by Todd Cardiff,
one of the ironworkers who was putting this puzzle together
next to MAPO.
AASTO (Automated Astrophysical Site-Testing Observatory) installed
This structure was a prototype "super-AGO" installed SE of
the AST/RO building, soon the web cam would come too, courtesy
of JACARA (Joint Australian Centre for Astrophysical Research
in Antarctica). Also involved were Jack Doolittle, 1977 Siple
w/o, more recently the AGO guy, and fellow Stanford OAE Ev
Paschal who was one of the first 4 Siple w/o's in 1973. The
project had problems with the propane generators the first few
years and was never relocated to Dome C as had been considered,
but the testing here was used to develop the units later set up
at Dome C and Dome A. The photo is by Michael Burton, from the paper The history of astrophysics
in Antarctica" available from JACARA.
New "Balloon Inflation Facility" (BIF) occupied...
Before BIT could be torn down, a replacement had to be
completed...here's a construction photo (Chris Rock)
is to be credited for this and the next 5 ASA photos...
Other replacement structures....
the new cargo building...
and the new helium storage building
shown here under construction. Remember, the station
is now using dewars of liquid helium for balloons.
The new helium and cargo buildings are occupied...
as seen here from the top of the dome...from the left
is the BIF (balloon inflation facility), helium storage,
and cargo office. Notice the naked end of the helium
arch.
as demolition of the 1975 station begins on schedule to make way for the next one:
the Balloon Inflation Tower goes away, leaving the cargo (helium) arch open-
ended for its last winter.
Demolition of the BIT underway, with the Mantis
crane pulling stuff out of the inside. The radome,
which almost certainly dated from the original IGY
station, is still sitting on the berm. Here is a
detailed sequence of photos of the demolition!
Hose/cable connections to Rodwell relocated to clear footprint of new garage
arch; the new routing blocks access to the snow melter, which was abandoned.
A portable fuel-fired snow melter was obtained for use as a backup
Visitors include Edmund Hillary along with the PM of New Zealand
New summer camp power plant completed with two 150kw 208v generator modules and
an interconnecting module (one of these would later be moved to the dark
sector and added to Building 61 substation there). Old 1981-82 camp power
plant demo'd and retrograded
And...new dome substation building constructed to feed summer camp with 4160v power
under normal conditions.
New NOAA building occupied, CAF is abandoned.
The newly completed Atmospheric Research Obser-
vatory (ARO) is shown here with the shipping
crates for the instrumentation and other equip-
ment that is being installed. None of the roof-
mounted sample collection systems are in place
yet. (NOAA CMDL/ESRL photo). This photo also
happens to be the begining of their virtual tour
of the new facility.
3.2KW prototype wind turbine installed on 40' tower
The Northern Power Systems (NPS) turbine project was begun in
1995, and the unit was installed at Pole in January 1997 for
what turned out to be two winters of testing...with an estima-
ted 10,000 hours of rotation (more pictures and information).
Winter 1997
Manager: Don McCreight, population 28
Digital all-sky camera in skylab replaces the 35mm model.
Major pipe freezing problems in the galley.
Congress approves full funding for the new station (the "South Pole Modernization
Project," signed off on by President Clinton in November).
Summer 1997-98
CAF demolished, new NOAA building officially dedicated as the Atmospheric
Research Observatory (ARO)
This large hole is where the CAF foundation used
to be...all that is left is the top of that alu-
minum stairway that used to go down to grade in
1988. (Chris Rock)
More demolition...the cargo/helium arch is removed to make way for the
new garage shop building
The cargo arch was excavated and removed gently
for possible future use...and some of it was.
Seems that the new arches (garage and power plant)
were designed to be aligned with the original
garage arch, but it turned out that the old
garage arch was one rib short. The rest of this
arch is out on the far berm, with that Russian
airplane that arrived in 2002 parked next to it.
This NSF photo is from the Wonder Arch people.
Summer camp moved east; Jamesways picked with the crane and moved in one piece.
instead of dismantling/reassembly
The easy way to move a Jamesway nowadays since
there is a crane available... Oh yes, if you
haven't been inside one of these in awhile, keep
in mind that there are permanent fire-resistant
partitions and private rooms inside instead of
those bunk beds with sleeping bags, No more Navy
blankets hung up on ropes. No more Preways either,
the forced-air furnaces are in separate structures
to improve fire safety. (Chris Rock)
SPASE-1 boxes removed from in front of the fuel arch, they never detected cosmic
gamma ray sources, the original goal...
Old Pole fuel recovery conducted to salvage 10,000 gallons of DFA for use by
PICO...along with most of the old weather balloons.
Plumber Scott Smith at the bottom of the
main entrance during the multi-year inve-
stigation and recovery effort...here are
more pages of photos and info....
GASP telescope shut down at the end of December and removed,
replaced by VULCAN
Three NGA skydivers killed as they land with unopened parachutes (the story
as told by the survivors, and newspaper coverage)
Three more AMANDA strings, this is start of "AMANDA 2"
New garage/shop arch erected.
The new garage/shop arch under construction. The
blue structure in the foreground is the cargo buil-
ding; the red/white structure is part of the rodwell
complex. (Chris Rock)
Existing garage arch dug out with the help of explosives, jacked 3' and erected on
new kneewalls to match new garage arch elevation.
Viper equipment/telescope installed and put in service.
Viper completed and mounted on the structure; this
view is from behind MAPO (which is on your left)
looking southwest. (CARA photo)
AASTO module installed successfully
GCA system replaced
Perhaps as a sign that the Naval Support Force Antarc-
tica was leaving, the old system (left photo) was being
replaced with the new up-to-date unit, which was on
site until about 2007 when it was moved to the berm in
deference to newer navigation systems. The old dome
may be left over from the original IGY station.
(Chris Rock)
SPTR (South Pole TDRSS Relay, the TDRS-1 satellite link) established
The original antennas were these mounted on the roof of
the elevated dorm, as seen here, this is comms guy Skip
Withrow in this photo by Kevin Culin. One of the el
dorm rooms was devoted to the equipment (here's Andre
Fortin working with it). The TDRS-1 satellite initially
provided broadband comms and internet access, tested in
December and declared operational on 5 January 1998, ex-
ceeding the initial design goals of 1.024 Mbps two-way
access via S-band, and one-way data transfer of up to 50
Mbps on Ku band (both of these numbers were later im-
proved upon). Here's an old NASA presentation on the
project; here is another old information page which is
also the source of these NASA photos.
Freshie shack enlarged
IRIS/USGS seismo equipment moved to UCLA "cold tunnel"
Treaty nations complete final ratification and approval of Madrid
(Environmental) Protocol.
Winter 1998
Manager: Katy Jensen, population 28
NSFA (Naval Support Force Antarctica) leaves the ice for the last time and
is disbanded.
Next generation of videoconferencing--first MBone multicast video/audio presentation
(4/1) as a part of "Live in Antarctica II" (this was not the first live video
from the station, that happened during the 1994 winter.
Iridium satellite streaks show up in the sky amongst the auroras.
Summer 1998-99
Garage/shop building in new arch framed and enclosed (all the photos)
Cosray platform jacked 10'
Massive solar display of sun dogs/halos and refractions observed and photographed,
probably a record event.
Old Pole salvage operations continue--heavy timbers removed for use in the
new station construction.
Chilean S-70 Blackhawk helicopter shows up (1/28) from Punta Arenas via Frei/
Carvajal/PH (news story)
Air Force LC-130 discovers a crevasse while taxiing for takeoff near Upstream D
(81°S-140°W) 11/16--no injury or serious damage, but lots of work (Antarctic
Sun story and more information and photos)
End of fuel arch dug out (a "slightly" bigger job than it was 10 years
previously), bladders replaced with 45 10,000 gallon tanks with contain-
ment, a new pump station module installed. Also, new OSHA compliant escape
towers installed on the sides and end of the arch...all this to remain as
part of the new station
A view of the massive excavation required to expose
the end of the fuel arch. The tanks are stacked in
the arch in 9 groups of 5. (story and photos)
VXE-6 makes its last flight to Pole, soon to be disestablished (the
Navy is not completely out of the USAP program; they continue to
manage the planning and design of major construction projects
including the new station)
Winter 1999
Manager: Mike Masterman, population 41
...a new w/o record. The winter construction crew for the garage/shop
building lives outside the dome in the elevated dorm.
First satellite phone call between South Pole and the North Pole.
New garage/shop building is finished out on schedule except that the paint
went bad (!)
Local time was shifted from New Zealand time to the Denver time zone for the
winter, to improve coordination with the ASA office (this experiment was
never repeated)
The world and the news media focus in on the midwinter medical problems
which bring on the first airdrop since 1995.
Harvesting the fruits (and vegetables) of
the first airdrop since 1995 (Photo from
Joel Michalski)
Power outage less than 24 hours before airdrop wipes out the last spare
governor board, requiring some serious reverse engineering.
First USAF test flight of a C-17 aircraft into McM from ChCh (10/15),
it has more than twice the load capacity as a C-141.
News media focuses on Pole again, the most coverage since Byrd flew over the
place in 1929...
Summer 1999-2000
as cancer patient Dr. Jerri Nielsen is evacuated on 10/16, the earliest
first flight to Pole ever...
and probably the first operational use of JATO for takeoff from the present
skiway.
Taxiway reconfigured to make room for new station construction, not to mention
that encroaching line of survey markers
The interior of the new garage, heavy shop, vehicle
maintenance facility, or whatever... It was officially
completed and occupied in December. It is 5 times
larger than the original garage, which wasn't demo'd
for a few more years. Here's the rest of the
story, photos and info
Margaret Lanyon, NSF representative in ChCh, retires after 36 years.
Construction of new power plant arch and structure underway in front of
old garage arch
The new power plant structure is being erected at
the same time as the arch...to the right is the
"original" garage arch which has been elevated on
new kneewalls, and to the right of it is the new
garage arch, containing the garage/shop structure
officially completed in December 1999. Here is the
large version of this picture...(photo by Brad Halter)
SPIREX infrared telescope shut down and removed; DASI, the next CMBR detector installed
in its place
Exterior shell of new Dark Sector Lab constructed.
DSL would drop in priority and wouldn't be framed
out until 2002-03. Still unoccupied in 2004, it
was designated as the replacement structure for
most of the skylab science, as well the future 8m
telescope. here is another photo from a bit later
(photos from Carlton Walker).
"Millennium" live TV coverage features the annual relocation of the Pole, NOAA balloon
launch, and the New Years party.
"Russian Millennium Expedition" arrives at Pole a few days after 1/1; the longest
rubber-tired vehicle traverse in history shows up and launches the first hot-
air balloon!
At left, one of the 6x6 gasoline-
powered "snow bugs" demonstrates
its extreme low ground pressure by
driving over some of the Polies;
at right is the historic balloon
flight (photos by Robert Thompson);
(my page with more details and links)
7-person Argentine team arrives unannounced from Belgrano on snow machines for official
visit (1/4-1/7)
New toilet facility in upper galley (bar) completed, replacing hot-water urinal
in fan room.
Six more AMANDA strings drilled and put in service.
Tunneling begins for main water/sewer system for new station--first of 3 years
of work for the CRREL machine. Project led by tunneler John Wright
Unheated hypertat walkway built to facilitate winter berthing use
continue to winter 2000...
