|
Features - Back in the Day Most Recent
Quick Find
More ResultsOct
27
2016
Sixty Years Of South Pole FlightsOn October 31, 1956, a plane descended out of the clear, blue sky at the bottom of the planet. The twin-engine R4D-5 Skytrain, named Que Sera Sera, touched down on the frigid Antarctic plateau just yards away from the unmarked geographic South Pole. Though other planes had flown over the pole, this was the first ever to land there. Jun
22
2015
Filling the GapThe smallest of three U.S. scientific outposts in Antarctica, Palmer Station is the only one of the trio found north of the Antarctic Circle. Its establishment 50 years ago this year has proven vital for climate change research in Antarctica. Jun
01
2015
What Could Have BeenHistory is full of tales about boom towns that went bust. Such was the fate of Marble Point, a helicopter refueling station that as early as the 1960s was a serious contender for becoming the main research station in the U.S. Antarctic Program. Apr
20
2015
Passing of a LegendThose who knew Capt. Pieter J. Lenie - the scientists who depended on him to reach the unreachable and the crew that depended upon him for their lives - the long-serving master of the research vessel Hero was, well, a hero. His death at age 91 marks the end of an era. Feb
27
2015
Project CompleteCompletion of the conservation work at Discovery Hut in January marked the conclusion of a decade-long effort to protect three of the first human-built structures in Antarctica. Feb
27
2015
American IngenuityTwo Americans inspired by tales of heroism in the age of exploration in Antarctica had a hand in ensuring that part of the continent's early history will stand the test of time well into this century. Jan
16
2015
A Holiday to RememberMy father, Wesley B. Harding, came to Antarctica a little more than 50 years ago to install an early experiment to study cosmic rays from the sun. Strange to think that today I can send emails from a field camp and that balloons with sophisticated solid-state cosmic ray sensors are being launched to altitudes of more than 100,000 feet. Dec
11
2014
Those Were the DaysThe year was 1979. Of the many people who stepped off a plane that year, four of them are still working here 35 years later. For all of them, it was a year they will never forget. Jul
11
2014
Frontier LivingThis isn't the sort of summer camp where you send the kids. Rather, Summer Camp became known as the collection of Jamesways and other buildings at the South Pole Station that housed additional personnel when population exceeded permanent housing. Now Summer Camp is going away. May
02
2014
Heroism Not ForgottenFour former U.S. Navy service members recently received recognition in the role they played nearly 35 years ago in the recovery of more than 250 bodies from a plane crash into the side of a volcano in Antarctica. Apr
18
2014
For Future GenerationsMore than 110 years since it was built on the spit of land that would become known as Hut Point, Robert Falcon Scott's first expedition base is getting an extreme makeover Antarctic-style. But you'd never be able to tell - and that's how the conservators like it. Jan
30
2014
Memory of McMurdoA photo of McMurdo Station, circa December 1955, before there were any buildings, recently surfaced. The photo was taken by Freddie Spainhouer, a Navy photographer who was among the first to winter over at McMurdo in 1956. He is now 90 and living in Dallas, Texas. Jan
02
2014
Historic MomentA pair of campsites located high on the flanks of an active volcano in Antarctica - once used by British explorers a little more than a century ago - officially became part of history. The 50 nations of the Antarctic Treaty System formally adopted them onto the Historic Sites and Monuments list last year.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
For USAP Participants |
For The Public |
For Researchers and EducatorsContact UsU.S. National Science FoundationOffice of Polar Programs Geosciences Directorate 2415 Eisenhower Avenue, Suite W7100 Alexandria, VA 22314 Sign up for the NSF Office of Polar Programs newsletter and events. Feedback Form |
