The South Pole station was built in phases, so the first group of occupants was able to take up residence in January 2003, and it was officially inaugurated in January 2008. Full summer operations began in October 2011. The 6039-sq-meter, elevated station stretches 128m, facing the prevailing winds with an aeronautical design that helps scour snow from beneath it. The complex accommodates 150 people in summer and 50 in winter.
Two separate, blue-gray, horseshoe-shaped modules are connected by flexible walkways and can be raised on stilts to prevent destructive snow buildup. The main entrance, sometimes called ‘Destination Alpha,’ faces the skiway. Another staircase entrance on the back of the station is ‘Destination Zulu.’
One module houses living quarters, a dining room, a bar, a hospital, a laundry, a store, a post office and a greenhouse (adding to the futuristic, space-station feeling of the new facility, the greenhouse is officially known as the ‘food-growth chamber’). In the other module are offices, labs, computers, telecommunications, an emergency-power plant, conference rooms, music practice rooms and a gym. Cozy reading rooms and libraries are scattered throughout both units.
The station has triple-pane windows, 200kg stainless-steel outside ‘freezer’ doors and a pressurized interior to keep out drafts. At one end, a four-story aluminum tower, familiarly known as ‘the Beer Can,’ contains a stairwell, a cargo lift and utilities. Photovoltaic panels take advantage of the summer’s 24 hours of sunlight. One wind turbine was added in the 2009–10 season, but the light winds of the Polar Plateau mean that the station would require a much larger windmill farm to support its needs.
