Popular Science USA – July-August 2019

by Alex Schwartz / illustration by Adam Simpson

IN 1911 , FAMED NORWEGIAN

explorer Roald Amundsen’s team of trek-

kers became the first humans to reach

the South Pole. They stayed for less than a

week. But today, one of the most isolated

spots on Earth hosts residents year-round.

The Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station’s

position at the bottom of the globe and

seclusion from society enables scientists to

study seismology, air quality, and even the

birth of the universe in ways that are impos-

sible elsewhere. Here’s how they withstand

harsh climes to conduct some of the world’s

most advanced research.

MAPQUEST

lab at the

edge of

the world

20 FALL 2019 • POPSCI.COM

1/Ceremonial South Pole
This spot is more about photo ops
than geographical accuracy. It,
along with everything else on the
East Antarctic Ice Sheet, shifts
33 feet toward the Weddell Sea
each year, moving the decorative
flagpole farther from Earth’s
geographic bottom.

5/Quiet sector
Extreme isolation makes this one
of the quietest—and therefore
most sensitive—stations in exis-
tence. Instruments buried
hundreds of feet beneath the ice
track seismic waves that ripple
across Earth, helping us under-
stand how continents move.

6/Dark sector

The dry, cold air at the pole, along

with its high altitude and fixed posi-

tion on Earth’s axis, makes it an

ideal place to study the night sky.

The South Pole Telescope’s 32-foot

mirror captures leftover big-bang

radiation that’s undetectable from

most other parts of the planet.

3/Elevated station

The main building isn’t just a

dormitory; it also has a greenhouse

for growing food and a sauna for

warming up after frigid days. The

structure sits on hydraulic stakes

that allow snowdrifts to pass be-

neath and that can boost the sta-

tion if too many flakes accumulate.

7/IceCube Observatory

This subterranean network of

sensors spots collisions between

atoms and neutrinos, high-energy

subatomic particles. Physicists

have a clear view of the resulting

bursts of light thanks to the perfect

alignment of water molecules in

the vast untouched polar ice.

4/Water & sewage pipes

Carved about 40 feet down into

the ice, tunnels house insulated

pipes that bring up water freshly

melted by the base’s power plant.

Once a well runs dry, the crew con-

structs a new one farther along the

line—and converts the old reservoir

into a sewage pit.

8/Clean air sector

Because the South Pole is relatively

free of pollutants, it’s pristine

enough to provide a baseline mea-

surement for Earth’s atmospheric

conditions. Sensors at this lab get a

highly accurate picture of green-

house gases, crucial for tracking our

progress against climate change.

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2/Skiway

Military planes, equipped with skis

and rockets to navigate the ice,

transport researchers to and fro

during the southern summer. But

when temperatures drop and sun-

light grows scarce, air traffic

ceases, leaving the 40-odd winter-

overers completely isolated.

WATER & SEWAGE PIPES

ELEVATED

STATION

CEREMONIAL

SOUTH POLE

NGO CAMPING AREA

ATMOSPHERIC

RESEARCH

OBSERVATORY