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All Antarctica McMurdo Station McMurdo Station

McMurdo Station

Antarctica's bustling metropolis, originally established by Richard E. Byrd.

McMurdo Station, Antarctica

Added By
Sarah Brumble
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Ob Hill and McMurdo Station   Alan Light / CC BY 2.0
McMurdo Station   Eli Duke / CC BY-SA 2.0
  Eli Duke / CC BY-SA 2.0
  Eli Duke / CC BY-SA 2.0
  Eli Duke / CC BY-SA 2.0
  Eli Duke / CC BY-SA 2.0
  brookpeterson / CC BY-ND 2.0
  Michael Reinhardt / Atlas Obscura User
The McMurdo Station sign with one of the last sunsets of 2017 melting into the horizon.   photographybysuzan / Atlas Obscura User
  Shawb1 / Atlas Obscura User
  Shawb1 / Atlas Obscura User
Discovery Hut   Alan Light / CC BY 2.0
Bust of Robert Byrd   Alan Light / CC BY 2.0
Open water at McMurdo Station   Eli Duke / CC BY-SA 2.0
McMurdo Station at night   Eli Duke / CC BY-SA 2.0
  Shawb1 / Atlas Obscura User
  Michael Reinhardt / Atlas Obscura User
  Shawb1 / Atlas Obscura User
  Shawb1 / Atlas Obscura User
Overlooking McMurdo Station, this tiny welded penguin sits upon an Antarctic map, by Observation Hill. A welder years ago hid numerous figurines he made throughout the station, this is one of them.   photographybysuzan / Atlas Obscura User
  Michael Reinhardt / Atlas Obscura User
  Michael Reinhardt / Atlas Obscura User
  Michael Reinhardt / Atlas Obscura User
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Located on a volcanic rock marking the southernmost solid ground accessible by ship, McMurdo Station is the gateway of most all scientific, private, and touristic jaunts into the Antarctic.

During the interminably sunny summer months, McMurdo’s population booms to over a thousand, comprised of scientists from both private and public spheres, supported by a whole cadre of seemingly average Joes who keep the mini-city bustling. Grocers procure international comfort food, carpenters, and construction workers maintain the place, bus drivers transport passengers and goods via the infamous “Ivan the Terra Bus,” gardeners tend greenhouses - and everyone eats soft-serve ice cream from McMurdo’s cafeteria.

One thing is for certain, individuals who choose to call McMurdo home, even for part of the year, can be as unusual as the climate at their doorsteps. Werner Herzog’s 2007 documentary “Encounters at the End of the World” admirably and lovingly demonstrated this point. And of course, when secluded in such extreme conditions, outlets for personal entertainment are of utmost import: a curling rink recently replaced the station’s bowling alley, there’s a weekly news publication, cable television, and personal Internet access to keep everyone sane.

Though officially “founded” in 1956 as a base for scientists venturing to the south pole and other remote research facilities scattered about the continent, just a stone’s throw from modern-day McMurdo lies the spot on Hut Point marked by said hut which was left stocked with provisions in 1904 by Robert F. Scott on his polar expedition.

Thanks to the hut’s frigid (but dry!) climate and generally low-traffic location, the original pantry, laboratory, and sleeping quarters of the men remain pristine and virtually untouched from their original condition. There are even the remains of seals butchered by the expedition for food. The hut is a time capsule of early Antarctic exploration.

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Strange Science Martian Landscapes Intriguing Environs Polar Week Ecosystems

Know Before You Go

Access to McMurdo station is extremely limited outside of approved scientific purposes, your best bet is to volunteer for an internship or apply for a position in the base support staff (fire department, galley staff, etc). Year round flights arrive from New Zealand via military transport aircraft, ice breakers and resupply ships arrive during the summer months.

Community Contributors

Added By

littlebrumble

Edited By

michelle, Molly McBride Jacobson, Braecrest, Blindcolour...

  • michelle
  • Molly McBride Jacobson
  • Braecrest
  • Blindcolour
  • photographybysuzan
  • Michelle Cassidy
  • Shawb1
  • Michael Reinhardt

Published

March 8, 2011

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Sources
  • Antarctic Connection: McMurdo Station: http://www.antarcticconnection.com/antarctic/stations/mcmurdo.shtml
  • Center for Astrophysical Research in Antarctica: Virtual Tour - McMurdo Station: http://astro.uchicago.edu/cara/vtour/mcmurdo/
  • Smithsonian National Zoological Park: Antarctic Exploration: http://nationalzoo.si.edu/scbi/AquaticEcosystems/Antarctica/Expedition/McMurdo.cfm
  • MSNBC: "Reflections from time on ‘the Ice’" (January 2007): http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15834019/
McMurdo Station
McMurdo Station
Antarctica
-77.844378, 166.663628
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