McMurdo Station

McMurdo Station, research and logistics installation located on the Hut Point Peninsula, on Ross Island, Antarctica. Operated by the National Science Foundation (NSF) with the assistance of the U.S. military, the station is the largest town in Antarctica and the continent’s largest research station. It sits near the foot of Mount Erebus and occupies the southernmost point of solid ground in Antarctica. McMurdo Station is located 1,360 km (845 miles) from the Amundsen-Scott South Pole station and 3,864 km (about 2,400 miles) from Christchurch, New Zealand. It encompasses about 100 buildings spread over 2.6 square km (1 square mile) and is used as a logistics hub for Antarctic research expeditions and a resupply source for other research stations. Much scientific research is also conducted in and around McMurdo Station, and during the peak summer months, which last from October through February, the station’s population swells to between 1,200 and 1,400 people.

Given its inhospitable location, McMurdo is not self-sustaining. A massive yearly shipment of canned and dried goods is transported to the station, and regular flights carry perishable food. The only truly fresh food at McMurdo comes from a small greenhouse, though the benefits of these crops are more scientific and psychological than nutritional. From 1962 to 1972, the station’s power was supplied by a nuclear power plant, but when damage to that structure was discovered, the decision was made to shift entirely to diesel-generated power, as repairing the nuclear station would be costly, and diesel is more reliable. Wind turbines installed at nearby Scott Base, which is operated by New Zealand, also provide electric power. The station does provide its own water by making use of a desalination plant. It also manages its own waste disposal and recycling: though the station originally discarded waste directly into the ocean, today it maintains a wastewater treatment plant and recycles a portion of its waste, some of it being made into compost.

Construction

McMurdo’s prime location, which sits alongside a harbor that can accommodate deep-keel ships (and, today, several floating airstrips), has been a staging ground for Antarctic expeditions since its discovery in 1841. Anglo-Irish explorer Ernest Shackleton and British naval officer and explorer Robert Falcon Scott both constructed huts on the peninsula, which can still be viewed by interested McMurdo visitors today.

Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors.

SIGN UP

By clicking “Sign Up”, you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Britannica Quiz

Guess the City by Its River Quiz

Construction of the modern station began upon the arrival of an American military icebreaker in 1955. Though it was originally called the Williams Air Operating Facility, it was soon rechristened as McMurdo after British naval officer Archibald McMurdo, who visited the area aboard the HMS Terror in 1841, and became the launch point for various International Geophysical Year projects from July 1957 to December 1958. The years’ projects in the Antarctic were so successful that the decision was made to maintain McMurdo base permanently as an operational and scientific research facility. Though the station was at first operated by the U.S. military as part of its mission Operation Deep Freeze, from the 1970s onward control was gradually transferred to the NSF and various contractors, and today the military’s main role is providing logistical support, most notably by operating many of the flights to and from the station.

Staffing and operation

McMurdo is extremely isolated, outside the range of all cell phones and with limited access to the Internet. During the summer months several flights per week transport researchers and support staff between McMurdo and New Zealand. Weather, which includes storms and falling air temperatures that reach −50 °C (−58 °F), makes air transportation highly hazardous during the Antarctic winter, so an isolated staff of between 150 and 200 people are the only inhabitants of McMurdo for much of the year. Starting in early August, however, “Winfly” begins; it is the period in which flights transporting supplies and staff resume. Despite the relative mildness of the Antarctic summer—with temperatures that can rise as high as 8 °C (46.4 °F)—all visitors to McMurdo are issued cold-weather gear, including coats and boots.

Most residents of McMurdo work directly in science and administration or logistics, since McMurdo facilitates the movement of supplies and staff to other Antarctic stations and to all missions into the Antarctic. Researchers at McMurdo engage in projects in several fields related to the Earth and atmospheric and environmental sciences. A large proportion of residents work in support roles, from firefighters and mechanics to cooking and janitorial staff. The station also has three radio stations and boasts a large collection of vinyl records. Full-time recreation officers work to maintain facilities including three taverns and the world’s southernmost bowling alley.