Plateau Station

Infobox Airport
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IATA = none
ICAO = none
type = skiway
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operator = US Navy and National Science Foundation
city-served = Plateau Station
location = South Pole, Antarctica
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r1-length-m = 3500
r1-surface = Snow
footnotes =

Plateau Station is an inactive American research and Queen Maud Land traverse support base on the central Antarctic Plateau. Construction on the site started on December 13, 1965, and the first traverse team (named SPQML II) arrived in early 1966. The base was in continuous use until January 29, 1969, when it was closed but mothballed for future use, [cite web
url= http://traverse.npolar.no/historical-traverses/plateau-station/
title= Plateau Station
accessdate=
accessdaymonth= December
accessmonthday= 30
accessyear= 2007
author= Ted Scambos
last=
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authorlink= http://nsidc.org/research/bios/scambos.html
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publisher= Norwegian-U.S. Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica
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language= English
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quote= ] and was the most remote and coldest of any United States stations on the continent. [cite web
url= http://quest.nasa.gov/antarctica/background/NSF/facts/fact02.html
title= U.S. Stations and Camps in Antarctica
accessdate=
accessdaymonth= December
accessmonthday= 30
accessyear= 2007
author=
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publisher= NASA
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language= English
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quote= ] It is also the site for the world's coldest measured average temperature for a month, recorded in July 1968, at convert|-99.8|F|C|1. [cite book
last = Burt
first = Christopher
authorlink =
coauthors =
editor =
others = Mark Stroud
title = Extreme Weather: A Guide & Record Book
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origyear = 2007
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publisher = W. W. Norton & Company
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language = English
isbn = 039333015X
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id =
pages = 56
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quote = The lowest average temperature for any single month was recorded at the Plateau Station ... during July 1968...
ref = ]

The station was operated and staffed by the National Science Foundation and United States Navy. A pre-selected team of four scientists and four navy personnel were on constant duty at the station, which was under the command of a naval medical doctor. Originally designed for two years of service, it was in use for three years. [cite web
url= http://stinet.dtic.mil/oai/oai?verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=AD0823661
title= PLATEAU STATION, ANTARCTICA-CONCEPT, DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, AND INITIAL OCCUPANCY
accessdate=
accessdaymonth= December
accessmonthday= 30
accessyear= 2007
author= Cosenza, J. P. ; Weber, A. M.
last=
first=
authorlink=
coauthors=
date=
year= 1967
month= November
format=
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publisher= Defense Technical Information Center
pages=
language= English
doi=
archiveurl=
archivedate=
quote= ]

Until the Fuji Dome Station opened in 1995, it was the outpost at the highest altitude at convert|3624|m|ft|0 above sea level. The effective altitude, due to polar circulation vortex was in excess of convert|4000|m|ft|0, making the base a useful location for high-altitude research. Although the cold never reached the record set at Vostok Station, the average temperature was consistently lower.

The buildings on the base were assembled from five pre-fabricated units flown in by Hercules C-130 aircraft with ski landing gear. Four units formed the main building, which is 8x25 meters; and a smaller Jamesway unit was constructed 300 meters away. Two 75 kW diesel generators provided the necessary energy for the main unit; and an additional generator was maintained at the standby unit. In addition, a convert|3500|m|ft|0 skiway was built for air transport. A convert|32|m|ft|0 meteorological tower was erected with instruments at varying heights to monitor the persistent thermal air inversion layer above the Antarctic snow.

One primary purpose of the base was solar observations, given the high altitude, clear air, and relative short distance to the sun during the austral summer. But it was found that the base also provided unique opportunities to observe unusual weather phenomena.

Ice core samples were also made, but with mixed success. On October 29, 1966, the camp inhabitants experienced a severe snowquake that lowered the altitude by convert|1|cm|in|2. This was apparently caused by hoar frost crystals below the surface.

The teams were also monitored for medical and psychological effects, though it turned out that selection of staff precluded any notable emotional effects. White cell counts were found to decrease as a result of few immunological stimuli in the sterile environment.

On 22 December 2007, the Norwegian-U.S. Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica visited the base and entered the buildings, finding that it was mostly intact. [cite web
url= http://traverse.npolar.no/expedition-diary/archive/2007/12/22/discovering-historic-plateau-station
title= Discovering historic Plateau Station
accessdate=
accessdaymonth= December
accessmonthday= 30
accessyear= 2007
author= Mary Albert
last=
first=
authorlink= http://engineering.dartmouth.edu/faculty/adjunct/maryalbert.html
coauthors=
date=
year=
month=
format=
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publisher= Norwegian-U.S. Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica
pages=
language= English
doi=
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quote= ]

References