Palmer Station

	IATA: none; ICAO: none;
Summary
Airport type	glacial landing area
Owner	National Science Foundation
Operator	National Science Foundation
Serves	Palmer Station
Location	South Pole, Antarctica
Runways
	landing for ski equipped aircraft only

File:Palmer Station (2008).JPG

Palmer Station.

Palmer Station, on Anvers Island, is Antarctica's only U.S. station north of the Antarctic Circle. Initial construction of the station finished in 1968.

Station description

File:PALMERPENGUINB.JPG

Palmer Station.

The station is named for Nathaniel B. Palmer, usually recognized as the first American to see Antarctica. The maximum population that Palmer Station can accommodate is 46 people. The normal austral summer contingent varies but is generally around 40 people. Palmer is staffed year-round, however, and the population drops to between 15 and 20 people for the winter maintenance after the conclusion of the summer research season. There are science labs located in the Bio-Lab building (pictured), as well as a pier and a helicopter pad.

The facility is the second Palmer Station; "Old Palmer" was about a mile to the northwest adjacent to the site of the British Antarctic Survey "Base N", built in the mid fifties. The site is on what is now known as Amsler Island. Old Palmer was built about 1965, and served as a base for those building "new" Palmer, which opened in 1968. Old Palmer was designated as an emergency refuge for the new station in case of disaster, though this perceived need disappeared over time. It was dismantled and removed from the Antarctic as part of the National Science Foundation's environmental cleanup efforts in the early 1990s.

Most of the station's personnel are seasonal employees of the U.S. Antarctic Program's main support contractor, Raytheon Polar Services. The summer support staff is usually 23 people. Previous main support contractors were Holmes and Narver of Orange CA, ITT Antarctic Services of Paramus NJ, and Antarctic Support Associates of Englewood CO. Over time many support staff have worked for two or more of these firms.

Science

The majority of the science research conducted at Palmer Station centers around marine biology. The station also houses year-round monitoring equipment for global seismic, atmospheric and UV monitoring networks. Palmer also hosts a radio receiver that studies lightning over the Western Hemisphere.

Palmer Station is located near penguin colonies -- Adélie, Gentoo and Chin-strap penguins are in abundance during summers, but small numbers can be found in the area at all times of the year.

The area is also home to several types of seals: Fur seals, Elephant seals, Crabeater seals and Leopard seals. The area is often visited by Minke, Orca and Humpback whales.

Other research is conducted from the R/V Laurence M. Gould. Science cruises cover physical oceanography, marine geology and marine biology. The ship also carries field parties to sites around the Antarctic Peninsula to study glaciology, geology and paleontology.

Station Supply and transport

Palmer Station is re-supplied by the Research Vessel R/V Laurence M. Gould, a ship with an ice-strengthened hull that makes routine science research cruises around the Peninsula. The R/V Nathaniel B. Palmer, the USAP's other research vessel, has also made port calls to Palmer Station -- Hero Inlet, where the pier is located, is too shallow for the Palmer to dock at the station, though. Both ships are staffed and leased to the USAP by Edison-Chouest Offshore.

Hero inlet is named for the R/V Hero, a 125 foot wood trawler type vessel built to conduct research and supply Palmer Station from ports in Argentina and Chile. The "Hero" was owned by the National Science Foundation and built in 1968 by the Harvey Gamage shipyard in Maine. Palmer Station is located on Gamage Point, named for the shipbuilder.

After years of service the "Hero" was retired in 1984 and replaced by the R/V Polar Duke, a larger and more modern ice strengthened vessel under charter from Rieber Shipping, based in Bergen Norway. The "Duke" was replaced by the R/V Laurence M. Gould in 1997.

Additionally, throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the United States Coast Guard icebreakers USCGC Polar Star and USCGC Polar Sea alternated assisting in Palmer Station resupply and retrograde.

There is no routine air access to Palmer. Over the years small ski equipped aircraft have occasionally landed on the glacier to the east of the station.

USAP participants travel onboard the R/V Laurence M. Gould from Punta Arenas, Chile. The course follows the Straits of Magellan to the east, then south along the coast of Argentina, past Cape Horn, then directly south across the Drake Passage and on to Anvers Island. The entire journey usually takes 4 days, however sea ice and storms can slow the journey down.

On film

The 1981 Japanese film Fukkatsu no hi (Virus) centers around Palmer Station as the gathering place for humanity's last survivors of a deadly virus. The film stars George Kennedy as Admiral Conway, the station's commanding officer and features Glenn Ford as the President of the United States. Much of the footage for the film was shot in the vicinity of Palmer Station, though none was actually filmed at the station.

External links

64°46′27″S 64°03′11″W / 64.774167°S 64.053056°W / -64.774167; -64.053056