Research stations in Antarctica

Antarctica is a very cold and dry continent. Many countries have built research stations there. These stations help scientists study the weather, animals, ice, and space. Research stations are places where scientists live and work. They have special buildings to keep warm and safe from the cold. The stations have laboratories, living areas, and communication tools. As of 2023, 55 of the 56 countries that signed the Antarctic Treaty have research stations in Antarctica. Some stations are open only in summer, and some are open all year.

An October 2006 NASA satellite image of Antarctica.

History

The first people to explore Antarctica were explorers in the early 1900s. They wanted to learn about the cold continent and its secrets. The first research stations were built in the 1940s and 1950s. At first, only a few countries had stations. These stations were small and used for short trips during the summer.

In 1959, many countries signed the Antarctic Treaty. This treaty made Antarctica a place for peace and science. It stopped countries from fighting over land there. After the treaty, more countries built research stations. The stations became bigger and better. Some now work all year round, even during the cold winter. Today, there are more than 70 research stations in Antarctica. Scientists from many countries live and work there to study the environment and help protect the Earth.

Geography

Antarctica is the southernmost continent on Earth. It is almost completely covered by ice. The continent is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. Many research stations are built along the coast because the weather is less extreme there. Some stations are also built inland, in high areas like the Antarctic Plateau, where it is much colder.

The land is made of mountains, ice sheets, and glaciers. The South Pole is near the middle of the continent, and it is one of the coldest places on Earth.

Climate

Antarctica has the coldest climate in the world. It is a polar desert, with very little rain or snow. Most of the continent is always below freezing.

In summer (October to February), temperatures near the coast can reach around 0°C, but in winter (March to September), temperatures can drop below −60°C inland. The coldest temperature ever recorded on Earth was −89.2°C at Vostok Station.

Winds can be very strong, especially near the coast. Almost all of Antarctica get days of 24-hour darkness (polar night) in winter and 24-hour sunlight (midnight sun) in summer.

Demographics

Antarctica has no permanent population. No one lives there all the time. People who live and work in Antarctica are mostly scientists and support staff. They come from many different countries and stay for weeks, months, or up to a year.

In summer, about 4,000 to 5,000 people live in research stations, but in winter, this number drops to around 1,000 people, because of the harsh weather. Most stations have fewer people in winter. Only the strongest and best-equipped stations stay open all year.

Research

Scientists study Antarctica to learn about:

• Climate change and how the Earth's weather is changing
• Ice sheets and glaciers
• Animals like penguins, seals, and whales
• Space and astronomy because the sky is very clear
• Geology and history of the Earth

Types of research stations

There are two main types of research stations:

• Year-round stations: Scientists live and work here all year, even during the cold winter. These stations have more equipment and supplies.
• Summer stations: These are open only during the Antarctic summer (about October to February). Scientists stay for a few months and then leave when it gets very cold.

Countries with research stations

Many countries have research stations in Antarctica. Some of the main ones are:

• United States (e.g., McMurdo Station, Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station)
• Russia (e.g., Vostok Station)
• Australia (e.g., Davis Station)
• United Kingdom (e.g., Rothera Research Station)
• Argentina (e.g., Esperanza Base)
• Norway (e.g., Troll Station)
• China (e.g., Great Wall Station)

Maps of research stations

Pacific Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

Indian Ocean

Southern Ocean

Antarctic Peninsula

↑
Chile

↑
South Africa

↑
India

New Zealand
↑

Jinnah

Svea

Sobral

Tor

Dobrowolski

Signy

Law-
Racoviță

Kohnen

Taishan

Kunlun

Molodyozhnaya, Vechernyaya

Elisabeth

Nordenskiöld

Union Glacier

Zucchelli, Gondwana

Bird

King Edward Point

Belgrano

Vostok

Orcadas

Mawson

Troll

Mirny

Neumayer

Halley

Concordia

Qinling, Jang Bogo

Davis

Dumont d'Urville

SANAE

Casey

Novolazarevskaya,
Maitri

Showa

Amundsen–Scott

Progress,
Bharati,
Zhongshan

McMurdo, Scott

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Active research stations in Antarctica, except the Antarctic Peninsula. Red squares represent summer-only stations.

List of research stations in Antarctica

The United States has the southernmost base, called Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, and the biggest base, called McMurdo Station. The second-southernmost base in summer is China’s Kunlun Station, and in winter it is Russia’s Vostok Station. This is a list of research stations in Antarctica:

Permanent stations

Name	Location	Country	Administration	Year est.	Max. pers.	Summer pop.	Winter pop.	UTC offset	Mean annual temp. (°C)
Amundsen–Scott South Pole	Geographic South Pole	United States	United States Antarctic Program	1957	153	150	49	12.1+12	−49.5
Arctowski	King George Island	Poland	Polish Academy of Sciences	1977	40	40	16	−3	−1.6
Arrival Heights Laboratory	Ross Island	New Zealand	Antarctica New Zealand	1959				12.1+12	−19.7
Artigas	King George Island	Uruguay	Uruguayan Antarctic Institute	1984	60	9	8	−3	−0.9
Arturo Prat	Greenwich Island	Chile	Chilean Navy	1947	30	30	8	−3	−2.0
Belgrano II	Coats Land	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1979	20	24	19	−3	−13.3
Bellingshausen	King George Island	Russia	Russian Antarctic Expedition	1968	40	40	20	−3	−2.3
Bharati	Larsemann Hills	India	National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research	2012	47	46	23	5.5+5:30	−10.2
Carlini	King George Island	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1953	80	80	29	−3	−1.6
Casey	Vincennes Bay	Australia	Australian Antarctic Division	1957	99	99	21	8.1+8	−5.9
Comandante Ferraz	King George Island	Brazil	Brazilian Antarctic Program	1984	64	35	15	−3	−1.8
Concordia	Dome C, Antarctic Plateau	Italy France	National Antarctic Research Program, IPEV	2005	80	70	13	8.1+8	−51.7
Davis	Princess Elizabeth Land	Australia	Australian Antarctic Division	1957	91	91	17	+7	−7.3
Dumont d'Urville	Adélie Land	France	IPEV	1956	90	90	24	+10	−11.1
Eco-Nelson	Nelson Island	Czech Republic	Czech Antarctic Foundation	1988	8	5	5	−3	−2.3
Eduardo Frei and Villa Las Estrellas	King George Island	Chile	Chilean Air Force	1969	150	150	80	−3	−2.3
Escudero	King George Island	Chile	Instituto Antártico Chileno	1995	90	60	2	−3	−2.3
Esperanza	Hope Bay	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1953	90	116	56	−3	−4.6
GARS	Cape Legoupil	Germany	German Aerospace Center	1991	10				−3.9
General Bernardo O'Higgins	Cape Legoupil	Chile	Chilean Army	1948	60	52	24	−3	−3.9
Great Wall	King George Island	China	Polar Research Institute of China	1985	60	60	13	−3	−2.5
Halley	Brunt Ice Shelf	United Kingdom	British Antarctic Survey	2013	52	70	17	−3	−18.5
Jang Bogo	Terra Nova Bay	South Korea	Korea Polar Research Institute	2014	62	62	23	+11	−15.1
King Sejong	King George Island	South Korea	Korea Polar Research Institute	1988	68	68	22	−3	−1.8
Maitri	Schirmacher Oasis	India	National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research	1989	65	45	25	+5:30	−9.7
Marambio	Marambio Island	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1969	165	165	70	−3	−8.1
Mawson	Mac. Robertson Land	Australia	Australian Antarctic Division	1954	53	53	15	+6	−8.3
McMurdo	Ross Island	United States	United States Antarctic Program	1956	1200	1000	153	12.1+12	−17.3
Mirny	Davis Sea	Russia	Russian Antarctic Expedition	1956	50	50	25	+6	−11.3
Neumayer III	Atka Bay	Germany	Alfred Wegener Institute	2009	60	60	9	0	−16.0
Novolazarevskaya	Queen Maud Land	Russia	Russian Antarctic Expedition	1961	70	70	40	0	−10.3
Orcadas	Laurie Island, South Orkney Islands	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino, Argentine Navy	1903	65	35	17	−3	−3.0
Palmer	Anvers Island	United States	United States Antarctic Program	1968	46	44	13	−3	−1.8
Progress	Prydz Bay	Russia	Russian Antarctic Expedition	1988	50	50	25	−5	−9.4
Qinling	Inexpressible Island, Terra Nova Bay	China	Polar Research Institute of China	2024	80	80	30	+12
Rothera	Adelaide Island	United Kingdom	British Antarctic Survey	1975	136	160	27	−3	−5.3
San Martín	Barry Island	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1951	21	19	21	−3	−4.6
SANAE IV	Vesleskarvet, Queen Maud Land	South Africa	South African National Antarctic Programme	1997	80	110	15	+2	−16.5
Scott Base	Ross Island	New Zealand	Antarctica New Zealand	1957	86	78	11	12.1+12	−19.6
Showa	East Ongul Island	Japan	National Institute of Polar Research	1957	130	170	40	+3	−10.5
Troll	Queen Maud Land	Norway	Norwegian Polar Institute	1990	70	45	7	0	−18.0
Vernadsky	Galindez Island	Ukraine	National Antarctic Scientific Center of Ukraine	1994	24	30	12	−3	−3.3
Vostok	Antarctic Ice Sheet	Russia	Russian Antarctic Expedition	1957	30	30	15	+6	−55.2
Zhongshan	Larsemann Hills, Prydz Bay	China	Polar Research Institute of China	1989	60	60	17	+7	−11.2

Summer-only stations

Name	Location	Country	Admin.	Year est.	Max. pers.	Summer pop.	UTC offset	Mean annual temp. (°C)
Aboa	Queen Maud Land	Finland	Finnish Antarctic Research Program	1988	17	13		−15.3
Brown	Paradise Harbor	Argentina	Instituto Antártico Argentino	1951	12	12	−3	−2.4
Cámara	Half Moon Island	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1953	22	20	−3	−2.4
Carvajal	Adelaide Island	Chile	Instituto Antártico Chileno	1984	46	46		−9.8
Collins	Fildes Peninsula	Chile	Instituto Antártico Chileno	2006		6
Dallmann	Carlini Station	Germany	Alfred Wegener Institute	1994	16	16		−2.4
Deception	Deception Island	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1948	36	18	−3	−3.0
Dirck Gerritsz Laboratory	Rothera Station	Netherlands	British Antarctic Survey, Netherlands Polar Programme	2013	10	10		−5.0
Dobrowolski	Bunger Hills, Wilkes Land	Poland	Polish Academy of Sciences	1956	10	10		−9.1
Elichiribehety	Hope Bay	Uruguay	Uruguayan Antarctic Institute	1945	8	7		−4.8
Gabriel de Castilla	Deception Island	Spain	Spanish National Research Council	1989	36	33		−0.7
Gondwana	Transantarctic Mountains	Germany	Alfred Wegener Institute	1983
González Videla	Waterboat Point, Graham Land	Chile	Chilean Air Force	1951	15	15		−6.7
Guillermo Mann	Cape Shirreff	Chile	Instituto Antártico Chileno	1991	8	8		0.4
Jinnah	Sør Rondane Mountains, Queen Maud Land	Pakistan	Pakistan Antarctic Programme	1991
Juan Carlos I	South Bay, Livingston Island	Spain	Spanish National Research Council	1988	50	27	−3	−1.2
Julio Ripamonti	Ardley Island	Chile	Instituto Antártico Chileno	1982		4	-3
Kohnen	Queen Maud Land	Germany	Alfred Wegener Institute	2001	28	6		−42.2
Kunlun	Dome A	China	Polar Research Institute of China	2009	26	26		−51.4
Law-Racoviță-Negoiță	Larsemann Hills, Princess Elizabeth Land	Romania	Romanian Polar Research Institute	1986		13
Lenie	Admiralty Bay	United States	United States Antarctic Program	1985		2
Machu Picchu	Admiralty Bay, King George Island	Peru	Instituto Antártico Peruano	1989	30	30		−2.1
Maldonado	Greenwich Island	Ecuador	Instituto Antártico Ecuatoriano	1990	34	32
Matienzo	Graham Land	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1961	12	12	−3	−5.0
Melchior	Melchior Islands	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1947	15	12	−3	−2.9
Mendel	James Ross Island	Czech Republic	Masaryk University	2007	20	20		−6.8
Molodyozhnaya	Thala Hills, East Antarctica	Russia	Russian Antarctic Expedition	1962	15	15		−11.0
Petrel	Dundee Island	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1967	45	25	−3	−7.1
Port Lockroy	Goudier Island	United Kingdom	United Kingdom Antarctic Heritage Trust	1944		4
Primavera	Graham Land	Argentina	Instituto Antartico Argentino	1977	18	18	−3	−3.0
Princess Elisabeth	Queen Maud Land	Belgium	International Polar Foundation	2007	40	22		−18.0
Risopatrón	Robert Island	Chile	Instituto Antártico Chileno	1949		6		−2.3
Shirreff	Cape Shirreff	United States	National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration	1996		6
Signy	Signy Island, South Orkney Islands	United Kingdom	British Antarctic Survey	1947	8	14		−2.1
Sobral	Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf	Argentina	Instituto Antártico Argentino	1965	7	6	−3
St. Kliment Ohridski	Emona Anchorage, Livingston Island	Bulgaria	Bulgarian Antarctic Institute	1988	22	22	−3	−1.0
Svea	Queen Maud Land	Sweden	Swedish Polar Research Secretariat	1988		5
Taishan	Princess Elizabeth Land	China	Polar Research Institute of China	2014	20	20		−30.3
TARS	Horseshoe Island	Turkey	Turkish Polar Research Program	2019	50	26
Tor	Queen Maud Land	Norway	Norwegian Polar Institute	1993		7
Union Glacier	Union Glacier	Chile	Chilean Army, Chilean Navy, Chilean Air Force, Instituto Antártico Chileno	2014		70	−3
Vechernyaya	Mount Vechernyaya, Thala Hills	Belarus	National Academy of Sciences of Belarus	2007	12	11
Wasa	Queen Maud Land	Sweden	Swedish Polar Research Secretariat	1989	20	13		−15.3
Yelcho	South Bay, Doumer Island	Chile	Instituto Antártico Chileno	1962	28	28		2.0
Zucchelli	Terra Nova Bay	Italy	National Antarctic Research Program, ENEA, CNR	1986	120	120	12.1+12	−14.0

Life

Life in Antarctica is hard because it is very cold and isolated. Scientists wear warm clothes and work inside heated buildings. They communicate with their home countries using radios and internet. They do important work to help people understand the Earth better.