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How to Operate an Airport in Antarctica
- wim 6y agoAnother interesting problem with the weather sometimes is "high" temperatures, negatively impacting the friction characteristics of the blue ice runway.
- laurent92 6y ago> The original construction of the runway was done over two years and accomplished using a laser cutter We live in science fiction.
- foobarbecue 6y agoThis must be a mistranslation or something. They would have used a laser for surveying but there's no way they used a laser to cut any ice -- that just doesn't make physical sense.
- mhh__ 6y agoCould you not use a IR laser to gradually engrave the pattern into the ice from afar? Practically it seems dangerous and a waste of money but in principle...
- foobarbecue 6y agoWell, you'd have to heat it faster than the heat conducts away through the ice, so that's a bigger heat flux than you can easily deliver with em radiation. You're doing a big area if you want a runway so you'd probably be better off with a floodlight than a laser. And you're just gonna melt the ice to water so you probably want a pump or something to remove the water.
- perl4ever 6y agoHere's a claim of some sort of Russian laser ice cutter from several years ago: https://www.rbth.com/science_and_tech/2015/05/14/laser-equipped_icebreakers_could_appear_in_russian_arctic_46005.html https://www.rbth.com/science_and_tech/2015/05/14/laser-equip...
- 0_____0 6y agoIt's not clear what they mean by this. Is it an actual laser doing the cutting? Or a traditional implement guided or verified by a laser (to my ears more plausible)?
- stergios 6y agoMy guess is they used something akin to a laser level to identify the high and low spots. Then you grade down the highs and fill in the lows with the machines.
- unwind 6y agoLike other commenters, I unfortunately don't think that's true. The Wikipedia [1] page says: To build a permanent airfield at Troll, the Norwegian Polar Institute bought a snow groomer and a tracked vehicle with a snow blower, flatbed and ice cutter. The works was organized with a land-based Global Positioning System laser system. So that might very well be where the idea that the actual cutting was done using laser came from. I wasn't able to quickly goog up some example of what it probably was (an accessory on some kind of tracked heavy equipment), but perhaps someone else knows? [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll_Airfield https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll_Airfield
- michaelt 6y agoThey probably mean a laser-based "grade control system" - such as the Trimble GCS900, CAT Accugrade and similar. The idea is, instead of having the heavy equipment operator move some dirt then someone following with survey equipment and telling him he removed too much or too little, the survey equipment is mounted right on the blade/bucket and automatically gets the height right on the first pass.
- jcrawfordor 6y agoIn this video an excavator operator explains the use of a very simple laser grading system: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sklWQQGnC4o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sklWQQGnC4o And of course there are much more sophisticated systems available including automated control of the blade. Pretty much standard equipment on any construction project today.
- happy-go-lucky 6y agoVideo of an aircraft landing at the airfield: https://mobile.twitter.com/flightradar24/status/1366334553674178560 https://mobile.twitter.com/flightradar24/status/136633455367...
- mzs 6y agoand liftoff: https://www.instagram.com/p/CL4kfpxjDXM/ https://www.instagram.com/p/CL4kfpxjDXM/
- mcguire 6y agoI hope the pilot could make out the runway better than I could.
- capableweb 6y agoAbsolutely. Not by looking out of the windows though, but because of the magnitude of instruments pilots have in front of them to "see" the world around them.
- supernova87a 6y agoBut I don't think that's fully correct -- my understanding was that the Antarctic runways do not have instrument precision approaches. GPS etc. gets you to the airfield approx. location, but the landing is done visually. Or am I recalling incorrectly? I seem to remember this from an Air & Space article or National Geographic or something similar.
- briankelly 6y agoThey have large metal triangles below the snow that instruments can see - more for getting the location and orientation of the runway itself. (Family friend works on constructing these runways among other things and I'm going off of memory here)
- happy-go-lucky 6y ago> Before 2005, getting personnel to the Norwegian Polar Institute’s Troll Research Station (AT27/QAT) in Antarctica involved a weeks-long boat ride followed by a 250 kilometer trek over snow, ice, and rock. Things were so grueling at the time.
- astrea 6y agoI know it was probably not very romantic in reality, but I can't help but imagine a Star Trek style adventure and the exciting challenges that come along with it.
- happy-go-lucky 6y agoBeing an outdoorsy type, I would say such an adventure is exciting and all :) They approached this earthbound problem pragmatically. Imagine taking such arduous journeys at regular intervals.
- rob74 6y agoWhat would be nice to know is if the 767 shown in the photos is typical for the aircraft using this airport? I can't imagine that they need the plane's passenger capacity (~200), but maybe they use it for cargo? Also, if they want to make the trip from Cape Town and back without refueling, they probably need a widebody airplane (EDIT: according to the aircraft's page, it's even an "Extended Range" model)...
- icegreentea2 6y agoI might be the start/end of season transfer? Wiki says Troll station has ~40 summer staff (and 6 winter). The combination of range, cargo, and the awkward amount of people probably makes something like a 767 pretty reasonable.
- londons_explore 6y agoTo take all the cargo for 40 people to live there probably involves many trips of a 767 each year. Just bringing in the fuel for the generators to keep everything heated and lit for a year is probably the cargo capacity for a 767. That stuff would normally move by ship to other continents, but with no nearby port, I guess everything is moved by air.
- mauvehaus 6y agoTFA says fuel is delivered to the nearest port and brought in with tracked vehicles pulling it in 200l drums on sledges. The cost is commensurate with the length of the supply chain. They prefer it if planes can fly in with enough fuel to fly back home unrefueled for that reason among others.
- mattlondon 6y agoWhen I flew down to the Antarctic peninsula from Chile in 2016 we went on a BAe 146 I think (1) The explanation given was that it had landing gear that was toughened for rough airstrips, had a relatively short takeoff, and the 4 high-mounted engines were good for landing in snow/ice and offered good redundancy. It felt pretty cramped on the inside compared to "normal" planes, especially when wearing all your cold weather gear during the flight (you stepped off right onto the snow - no airport buildings) 1 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Aerospace_146 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Aerospace_146
- Quai 6y agoThe link below is to an interview where the Norwegian King is trolling(phun intended) the queen when talking about this airport/science station. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXw9jGTdBy0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXw9jGTdBy0 It's worth noting that the word "troll" in norwegian references a type of being in scandinavian folklore, not your typical "internet-troll".
- dylan604 6y agoAnd where exactly did you think the internet troll's name was derived?
- Quai 6y agoTrolling, the fishing method. For me, a internet troll is a person that says something provocation hoping that someone will "bite" and waste time arguing.
- DarmokJalad1701 6y ago> trolling, the fishing method. I am pretty sure that one is "trawling".
- rootusrootus 6y agoTrawling is with a net. E.g. commercial fishing. Trolling is traditional rod/reel/bait.
- astrea 6y agoI had the same thought, but they're both a thing: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolling_(fishing) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolling_(fishing)
- Symbiote 6y agoTrolling is indeed a fishing method, but "don't feed the troll" was a common phrase on Usenet. Both meaning were probably intended.
- jeffrallen 6y agoFantastic blog series. I also learned that oktas are a unit of cloud coverage!
- agustif 6y agoI just learnt today about Okta, a Cloud Auth SaaS buying up Auth0 another Cloud Authentication SaaS... So I will have to now add this asterisk to my mental entry, so much for a second language.. pheww
- Waterluvian 6y agoA twin otter seems like the right plane for landing down there.
- rtkwe 6y agoWith about 40 people coming down for the summer season and all their luggage plus some equipment it's probably too small for the job of the main load in and out of people. Plus it has to refuel there where fuel is many times more expensive so that also makes the smaller planes less economical than they would otherwise be.
- nerdponx 6y agoThe article says it's commonly used at Troll.
- Waterluvian 6y agoYeah. And has a nice photo. I love that plane.
- phire 6y agoThe twin otter doesn't have enough range to fly from Cape Town to Troll research base. That's why they use the 767-300ER. They do use the twin otter for internal flights, but they have to be ferried down via south america (without passengers)
- nxpnsv 6y agoThey are quite common in Antarctica for sure. On south pole station it was mainly those and hercs...
- SiempreViernes 6y ago> Jet A-1 fuel is sent to Troll once a year in 200 liter barrels aboard the re-supply ship that docks at the edge of the ice shelf about mid-summer season. All of the supplies, including the fuel, are then taken via tracked vehicles and sledges on a 250 km journey back to the station. That long journey from Denmark helps explain why fuel is so expensive at Troll. The Norwegian polar institute buys its jet fuel from Denmark?! I knew they are supposed to be close buddies, but that was a surprise.
- sandworm101 6y agoThe ship is coming from Denmark. The cost of transporting the fuel on that ship across the ocean is probably miniscule compared to the cost of dragging it over land from the ship to the airstrip. Moving heavy things by ship is remarkably cost-efficient, a few dollars per ton to move something across the planet. Getting it that last few miles from ship to customer is where the real costs start.
- SiempreViernes 6y agoI mean, even sending the ship from Denmark is rather strange, it's not like Norway lacks a coast. Neither is any spot in Denmark the closest spot to Antarctica in continental Europe... Possibly the danes have the closest port that is home port to an ice breaker?
- Symbiote 6y agoTransport between Denmark and Greenland probably means Denmark has more suitable shops than Norway.
- SiempreViernes 6y agoOn the other hand, the northern half of Norway is basically just coast and that a lot of iron ore from Sweden goes by ship from a Norwegian port above the Arctic circle? Then there's also all that shipping of oil that Norway does...
- underseacables 6y agoRelated: Ice Pilots NWT was a reality show (free on prime video) about an airline company called Buffalo airways in the northwest territory of Canada. They fly in and out of very remote, iced over regions, with VERY old aircraft, and it’s fascinating to watch.
- gkolli 6y agothanks for the rec! going to give it a watch
- thedrbrian 6y agoThere’s also Mikey’s YouTube channel https://youtube.com/c/MikeyMcBryan https://youtube.com/c/MikeyMcBryan Full of behind the scenes videos about the planes and the logistics of their operation.
- mopsi 6y agoFlying Wild Alaska was similar, a documentary series about a family-run airline in Alaska. It is a bit less sensational than Ice Pilots NWT. Somewhat less "will they - won't they" repetitiveness and more calm wide nature shots. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Wild_Alaska https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Wild_Alaska
- snypher 6y agoNewer aircraft aren't available with a gravel kit so they sometimes stick to older models. http://www.b737.org.uk/unpavedstripkit.htm http://www.b737.org.uk/unpavedstripkit.htm
- ideashower 6y agoGood opportunity to share one of my favorite Vimeo documentaries about Union Glacier in Antarctica: https://vimeo.com/107231188 https://vimeo.com/107231188
- supernova87a 6y agoHere's also an amusing fact I keep in my mind: Who serves the route between New Zealand and McMurdo Station? The New York Air National Guard.