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Researchers and support staff unpack gear and return it to the Berg Field Center after a successful field season
Photo Credit: Mike Lucibella
Researchers and support staff unpack gear and return it to the Berg Field Center after a successful field season.

Podcast: The Berg Field Center

Located uphill from most of the rest of town, the Berg Field Center is home to all the survival gear used by researchers in the field
Photo Credit: Mike Lucibella
Located uphill from most of the rest of town, the Berg Field Center is home to all the survival gear used by researchers in the field.

In Antarctica, scientists conduct cutting edge research on a harsh and barren continent. It's no easy task, but to help make it happen the U.S. Antarctic Program employs small army of support staff to get these researchers the supplies they need, transport them to where they need to go and keep them safe throughout.

A lot of the jobs they do are the same that any small town needs to function, often with a specialized twist that comes with working in such a remote place, but others can be less obvious. The Antarctic Sun Podcast is taking a behind-the-scenes look at the workers and what they do to make science at the bottom of the world possible.

This Episode: The Berg Field Center

Antarctica is a continent devoted to science, set aside as a pristine natural laboratory for researchers to study. But it's a laboratory unlike any other on the planet. The continent's subzero temperatures and vast empty expanses punctuated by dangerous crevasses are a constant hazard for scientists out in “the field.” To work here safely, researchers need specialized equipment beyond just test tubes and lab coats.

The Berg Field Center, known more popularly as the BFC, is home to all the survival supplies a team of researchers working in the farthest, most remote corners of the continent would need. They can check out everything from tents and sleeping bags to ice axes and crampons. It's the program's lending library for outdoor gear.

There's a saying that Antarctica can be "a harsh continent," and that can be especially true on the gear used out in the field. Not only do the people working at the BFC have to keep track of the immense amount of equipment that's constantly being checked in and out, but they have to make sure it's kept in good condition and each piece of equipment is in good working order before it goes out the door. Over the dark winter months when no researchers are out in the field, the team at the BFC repairs any wear and tear they find, before issuing it again the next season.

Photo Gallery

Anna Zajicek inspects equipment being returned by a research team coming back from the field
Photo Credit: Mike Lucibella
Anna Zajicek inspects equipment being returned by a research team coming back from the field.
A special database helps keep track of all the thousands of pieces of equipment lent out every year
Photo Credit: Mike Lucibella
A special database helps keep track of all the thousands of pieces of equipment lent out every year. Anna Zajicek calls out what equipment has been returned and Michael Brooks enters it into the database.
The BFC is where researchers can borrow anything they might need in the field. Here, Michael Brooks checks back in a number of ice axes
Photo Credit: Mike Lucibella
The BFC is where researchers can borrow anything they might need in the field. Here, Michael Brooks checks back in a number of ice axes.
The BFC is home to a lot of hardware researchers might need in the field. Anna Zajicek loads rock picks and hammers onto a cart
Photo Credit: Mike Lucibella
The BFC is home to a lot of hardware researchers might need in the field. Anna Zajicek loads rock picks and hammers onto a cart.
Anna Zajicek (left) and Bija Sass carry a Scott Tent past a wall of other stored tents
Photo Credit: Elaine Hood
Anna Zajicek (left) and Bija Sass carry a Scott Tent past a wall of other stored tents.
After all the equipment is returned and loaded onto a cart, Anna Zajicek hauls it up to the second floor of the BFC
Photo Credit: Mike Lucibella
After all the equipment is returned and loaded onto a cart, Anna Zajicek hauls it up to the second floor of the BFC where it can be stored and later inspected and repaired.
Anna Zajicek pushes a full cart to the storage and repair area
Photo Credit: Mike Lucibella
Dozens of teams borrow thousands of pieces of equipment. Anna Zajicek pushes a full cart to the storage and repair area. Throughout the year, particularly during the dark winter months, support staff inspect and repair equipment to make sure it’s safe to lend out next year.