4 ms·

The whole collection of blogs is incredible. I am utterly stunned by and in awe of the facilities that have been built down there. Given the excruciatingly har

The whole collection of blogs is incredible. I am utterly stunned by and in awe of the facilities that have been built down there. Given the excruciatingly harsh conditions of the environment, I cannot imagine what the construction process must have been like. Looking at a lot of the pictures conjures a feeling for me like it all must have been built by some advanced alien civilization and left behind for us to occupy. The construction crews who created all that stuff should be celebrated as heroes as far as I’m concerned. Very impressive.

bombcar 4y ago
What surprised me is how ordinary much of the construction is - lots of it looks similar to things I’ve seen in the Midwest. The collection of doors struck me the most - some of those doors were just normal doors, others looked like a walk in freezer. Part of that may be a complex construction may work better, but a simple one can be repaired on site by those who are there.
- el_benhameen 4y ago
  As luck would have it, there’s this article for those interested in the doors: https://brr.fyi/posts/doors-of-mcmurdo https://brr.fyi/posts/doors-of-mcmurdo
  - belter 4y ago
    They have ATM's...looks like a practical joke... https://brr.fyi/posts/mcmurdo-automated-teller-machines https://brr.fyi/posts/mcmurdo-automated-teller-machines
    - ghaff 4y ago
      I can't say I'm shocked. Effectively cities probably tend to function like cities in a lot of places. I assume something like an aircraft carrier might be different but I wouldn't even bet against ATMs there.
      - bombcar 4y ago
        https://fiscal.treasury.gov/navy-cash/ https://fiscal.treasury.gov/navy-cash/ Apparently they also have advances against pay as cash, or did in the past.
    - joshvm 4y ago
      McMurdo has them, but the general store accepts cards. I don't think the bars accept cards and tipping for volunteer services (e.g. barristas) is quite common. Pole does not (it's cash only). And then there's Palmer which is card only. Most contractors can "widthdraw" money out of their paychecks to get a periodic stipend while they're down there, otherwise you have to take out a big wad in McM to last the summer/winter (e.g. scientists usually can't because we're paid by universities, not USAP).
- joshvm 4y ago
  Most of the main station (exterior) doors are walk-in style. The same goes for most of the scientific outbuildings. A lot of the smaller outbuildings, like the climbing gym, have relatively "normal" doors. There is a lot of wood construction, because it insulates well, it's light (extremely important for cheap construction), there's no moisture to speak of, and it's easily repaired. A lot of the walls are wood with a ton of insulation and metal cladding [0]. The windows are beefy, though weirdly they were designed in with metal frames which I imagine leak a lot of heat. Most of the interior construction feels somewhere between a corporate and a university space. It was built by government and defense contractors, so there is also a bit of a barracks feeling about it too. [0] https://www.southpolestation.com/polefeb1.jpg https://www.southpolestation.com/polefeb1.jpg
merek 4y ago
It's pretty amazing. Highly recommend "A tour of the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQ3_gZ3ZS_4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQ3_gZ3ZS_4 And "A walk at the South Pole" in -63C: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiHpQ2q9ZcI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiHpQ2q9ZcI

bombcar 4y ago

What surprised me is how ordinary much of the construction is - lots of it looks similar to things I’ve seen in the Midwest. The collection of doors struck me the most - some of those doors were just normal doors, others looked like a walk in freezer. Part of that may be a complex construction may work better, but a simple one can be repaired on site by those who are there.

el_benhameen 4y ago
As luck would have it, there’s this article for those interested in the doors: https://brr.fyi/posts/doors-of-mcmurdo https://brr.fyi/posts/doors-of-mcmurdo
- belter 4y ago
  They have ATM's...looks like a practical joke... https://brr.fyi/posts/mcmurdo-automated-teller-machines https://brr.fyi/posts/mcmurdo-automated-teller-machines
  - ghaff 4y ago
    I can't say I'm shocked. Effectively cities probably tend to function like cities in a lot of places. I assume something like an aircraft carrier might be different but I wouldn't even bet against ATMs there.
    - bombcar 4y ago
      https://fiscal.treasury.gov/navy-cash/ https://fiscal.treasury.gov/navy-cash/ Apparently they also have advances against pay as cash, or did in the past.
  - joshvm 4y ago
    McMurdo has them, but the general store accepts cards. I don't think the bars accept cards and tipping for volunteer services (e.g. barristas) is quite common. Pole does not (it's cash only). And then there's Palmer which is card only. Most contractors can "widthdraw" money out of their paychecks to get a periodic stipend while they're down there, otherwise you have to take out a big wad in McM to last the summer/winter (e.g. scientists usually can't because we're paid by universities, not USAP).
joshvm 4y ago
Most of the main station (exterior) doors are walk-in style. The same goes for most of the scientific outbuildings. A lot of the smaller outbuildings, like the climbing gym, have relatively "normal" doors. There is a lot of wood construction, because it insulates well, it's light (extremely important for cheap construction), there's no moisture to speak of, and it's easily repaired. A lot of the walls are wood with a ton of insulation and metal cladding [0]. The windows are beefy, though weirdly they were designed in with metal frames which I imagine leak a lot of heat. Most of the interior construction feels somewhere between a corporate and a university space. It was built by government and defense contractors, so there is also a bit of a barracks feeling about it too. [0] https://www.southpolestation.com/polefeb1.jpg https://www.southpolestation.com/polefeb1.jpg

merek 4y ago

It's pretty amazing. Highly recommend "A tour of the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQ3_gZ3ZS_4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQ3_gZ3ZS_4 And "A walk at the South Pole" in -63C: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiHpQ2q9ZcI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiHpQ2q9ZcI