Many dreamed of reaching the South Pole, among them - the French navigator Jean-Baptiste Charcot, a famous explorer of the Arctic and Antarctic (he died in 1936 during another expedition to Greenland).

Dreamed of being the first to reach the pole in Antarctica and Nansen, who intended to go to the southern polar seas on his beloved Fram. In 1909 Englishman Ernest Shackleton and his comrades penetrated into the very heart of the mainland and were forced to turn to the coast just 100 miles from the pole due to an acute shortage of food.

In October 1911, in the frosty Antarctic spring, two expeditions, Norwegian and British, almost simultaneously rushed to the South Pole. One was led by Roald Amundsen (1872-1928), a polar explorer who had already wintered on a ship in Antarctic waters at the end of the 19th century. And he managed to become famous in the Arctic, having overcome the labyrinth of the Canadian archipelago on a tiny boat "Joa" in 1903-1906.

The second is Captain First Rank, Knight of the Order of Victoria, Robert Falcon Scott (1868-1912). Scott was a naval officer who in his lifetime commanded both cruisers and battleships.

At the very beginning of the 20th century, he spent two years on the Antarctic coast, leading an exploratory wintering. A small detachment led by Scott made an attempt to penetrate deep into the continent, and in three months they managed to move almost 1,000 miles towards the pole. Returning to his homeland, he began to prepare for the next expedition. When their ship "Tera Nova" was on its way to Antarctica, the British learned that the "Fram" was going there at full speed with the Amundsen expedition on board and the goal of the Norwegians was the same South Pole!

Further competition was already under the motto: "who wins?". Amundsen was extremely skillful in choosing the place for wintering and the future start - as much as 100 miles closer to the pole than Scott's. On their way, which ran at an angle to the route of the British, Amundsen's people did not encounter either terrible cold or deadly lingering snowstorms. The Norwegian detachment carried out the trip back and forth in a much shorter period of time, without going beyond the short Arctic summer. And here we can only pay tribute to the organizer of the expedition.

And so, on January 17, 1912, Robert Scott and his comrades came to geographic point South Pole. Here they saw the remains of someone else's camp, traces of sledges, dog paws and a tent with a flag - exactly a month before they reached the Pole rival. With his characteristic brilliance, without a single victim, without serious injuries, having withstood the route schedule drawn up by him almost up to a minute (and, what looks absolutely fantastic, having predicted the timing of returning to the coastal base with the same accuracy), Amundsen demonstrated another and far from his last achievement.

The following entry appeared in Scott's diary: "The Norwegians got ahead of us. Terrible disappointment, and it hurts for my faithful comrades. None of us, as a result of the blow received, could not sleep ...".

The detachment of the British set off on the return journey, following from one intermediate warehouse with food and fuel to another. But they were stopped forever by the endless March blizzard.

Their bodies were found more than seven months later by a rescue team that came looking for them. Next to Scott's body was a bag filled with diaries and farewell letters. There were also 35 pounds of samples collected during the route on the rocks framing the Antarctic glaciers. The English continued to drag these stones even when death was already looking into their eyes.

The last line in the diary was a phrase that later spread around the world: "For God's sake, do not leave our loved ones ..."

Confessing to his wife that there was no chance of salvation, Robert Scott asked her to interest their son natural history so that he would continue his work as a naturalist traveler in the future. Dr. Peter Scott (he was not even a year old when his father went on his last expedition) became an eminent biologist and ecologist, one of the leaders of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and natural resources.

On the coast of the mainland near the base of the British expedition, on the top of a high hill facing the majestic Ross Ice Barrier, a three-meter cross made of Australian eucalyptus rose.

On it - a tombstone in memory of the five dead and the final words of the classic of British poetry: "Fight, seek, find and not give up!".

Amundsen, having learned about the death of Scott and his companions, wrote: "I would sacrifice fame, absolutely everything, to bring him back to life. My triumph is overshadowed by the thought of his tragedy. It haunts me!"

Amundsen and Scott, Scott and Amundsen... Today at the very point that brought great victory one and mortal defeat to the other, leads Scientific research Antarctic station, which was named Amundsen-Scott.

Antarctic station "Amundsen-Scott"; a striped pole is visible in front of the flags, indicating earth's axis(January 2006)

The station was built in November 1956 for scientific purposes by order of the US government.

Chronology

Dome (1975-2003)

The aluminum unheated "tent" is the pole's landmark. It even had a post office, a shop and a pub.

Any building at the pole is quickly surrounded by snow, and the design of the dome was not the best. A gigantic amount of fuel was used to remove the snow, and shipping a liter of fuel costs $7.

The 1975 equipment is completely outdated.

New scientific complex (since 2003)

The unique design on piles allows snow not to accumulate near the building, but to pass under it. The sloping shape of the lower part of the building allows the wind to be directed under the building, which contributes to the blowing of snow. But sooner or later, snow will cover the piles, and then it will be possible to raise the station twice with jacks (this ensures the service life of the station from 30 to 45 years).

Building materials were delivered by Hercules aircraft from McMurdo station on the coast and only during daylight hours. More than 1000 flights have been made.

The complex has:

• 11 km low-frequency antenna for observing and predicting celestial and space storms,
• the highest pole at the pole 10-meter telescope, climbed 7 floors up and weighing 275 thousand kg
• drilling rig (depth - up to 2.5 km) for the study of neutrinos.

On January 15, 2008, in the presence of the leadership of the US National Science Foundation and other organizations, the American flag was lowered from the dome station and raised in front of a new modern complex. The station can accommodate up to 150 people in summer and about 50 in winter.

Climate

The minimum temperature at the geographic south pole of the Earth was −82.8 °C, 6.8 °C higher than the absolute temperature minimum on the planet and at Vostok station (there was −89.6 °C), by 0.8 °C lower than the unofficially recorded minimum in 1916 in Oymyakon - the coldest winter city in Russia and northern hemisphere and was celebrated on June 23, 1982, one day after the date of the summer solstice. In the current century, the worst frost in Amundsen-Scott was observed on August 1, 2005, -79.3 °C.

Activity

In summer, the population of the station is usually more than 200 people. Most of the staff leave by mid-February, leaving only a few dozen people (43 in 2009) wintering, mostly support staff plus a few scientists who run the station during several months of the Antarctic night. Winterers are isolated from the rest of the world from mid-February to late October, at which time they face many dangers and stresses. The station is completely self-sufficient in winter, powered by three generators running on JP-8 aviation fuel.

Research at the station includes sciences such as glaciology, geophysics, meteorology, upper atmospheric physics, astronomy, astrophysics, and biomedical research. Most scientists work in low frequency astronomy; the low temperatures and low humidity of the polar air, combined with altitudes of over 2,743 m (9,000 ft), provide much greater air transparency at some frequencies than is typical elsewhere on the planet, and months of darkness allow sensitive equipment to operate continuously.

Developments

In January 2007, a group of Russian high officials visited the station, including FSB chiefs Nikolai Patrushev and Vladimir Pronichev. The expedition, led by polar explorer Artur Chilingarov, started in Chile on two Mi-8 helicopters and landed at the South Pole.

September 6, 2007 TV show aired man made for the National Geographic Channel with an episode about the construction of a new building here.

November 9, 2007 program Today NBC, with co-writer Ann Carrie, made a report via satellite phone that was broadcast live from the South Pole.

On Christmas Day 2007, two members of the base got into a drunken brawl and were evacuated.

In popular culture

Every year, the station staff gathers to watch the films "The Thing" and "The Shining"

The station features prominently in a number of science fiction television series, including The X-Files: Fight for the Future.

Station at the South Pole called Snowcap Base was the site of the first Cybermen invasion of Earth in the 1966 TV series Doctor Who The Tenth Planet.

In film White mist(2009) takes place at Amundsen-Scott station, although the buildings in the film are completely different from the real ones.

Station "Amundsen-Scott" appears in Evgeny Golovin's song "Antarctica".

It is a Wonder of the World in the computer game Sid Meiers Civilization VI, namely in the Rise and Fall add-on.

Time zone

At the South Pole, sunset and sunrise are theoretically only visible once a year, on the autumn and spring equinoxes respectively, but due to atmospheric refraction, the sun rises and sets for more than four days each time. There is no solar time here; there is no pronounced daily maximum or minimum in the height of the sun above the horizon. The station uses New Zealand time (GMT +12 hours or +13 hours on

History and present

The station is located at an altitude of 2835 above sea level, on a glacier, which nearby reaches a maximum thickness of 2850 m (). The average annual temperature is about -49 ° С; varies from −28 °C in December to −60 °C in July. average speed wind - 5.5 m / s; gusts up to 27 m/s were recorded.

Station foundation (1957-1975)

The original station is now called the "Old Pole" (Eng. old field) - was founded in 1956-1957. an 18-man US Navy expedition that landed here in October 1956 and wintered there for the first time in 1957. Since climatic conditions were not previously known, the base was built underground to overcome any worst weather conditions. The lowest temperature in 1957 was recorded at −74 °C (−102 °F). Survival in such a low temperature, combined with low humidity and low air pressure, is only possible with proper protection.

The station, abandoned in 1975, is covered with snow (like any structure at the South Pole) at a rate of 60-80 mm per year. Now it is buried deep enough and is completely closed to the public, as snow has crushed all the wooden floors.

On January 4, 1958, the British Commonwealth Transantarctic Expedition arrived at the station with renowned mountaineer Edmund Hillary. This was the first expedition to use automobile transport, and the first to reach the Pole by land since Amundsen in 1911 and Scott in 1912. The expedition moved from the New Zealand station Scott Base.

Dome (1975-2003)

An aerial photograph of Amundsen - Scott Station taken circa 1983. The central dome is visible, as well as various containers and ancillary buildings.

The main entrance to the dome is located below the snow level. Initially, the dome was built on the surface, but then gradually sank into the snow.

The aluminum unheated "tent" is the pole's landmark. It even had a post office, a shop and a pub.

Any building at the pole is quickly surrounded by snow and the design of the dome was not the best. A gigantic amount of fuel was used to remove the snow, and shipping a liter of fuel costs $7.

The 1975 equipment is completely outdated.

New scientific complex (since 2003)

The unique design on piles allows snow not to accumulate near the building, but to pass under it. The sloping shape of the lower part of the building allows the wind to be directed under the building, which contributes to the blowing of snow. But sooner or later the snow will cover the piles and then it will be possible to raise the station twice with jacks (this increases the service life of the station from 30 to 45 years).

Building materials were delivered by Hercules aircraft from McMurdo station on the coast and only during daylight hours. More than 1000 flights have been made.

The complex has:

• 11 km low-frequency antenna for observing and predicting celestial and space storms,
• the highest pole at the pole 10-meter telescope, climbed 7 floors up and weighing 275 thousand kg
• drilling rig (depth - up to 2.5 km) for the study of neutrinos.

On January 15, 2008, in the presence of the leadership of the US National Science Foundation and other organizations, the American flag was lowered from the dome station and raised in front of a new modern complex. The station can accommodate up to 150 people in summer and about 50 in winter.

Activity

In summer, the population of the station is usually more than 200 people. Most of the staff leave by mid-February, leaving only a few dozen people (43 in 2009) wintering, mostly support staff plus a few scientists who run the station during the months of Antarctic night. Winterers are isolated from the rest of the world from mid-February to late October, at which time they face many dangers and stresses. The station is completely self-sufficient in winter, powered by three generators running on JP-8 aviation fuel.

Research at the station includes sciences such as glaciology, geophysics, meteorology, upper atmosphere physics, astronomy, astrophysics, and biomedical research. Most scientists work in low frequency astronomy; the low temperature and low humidity of the polar air, combined with the altitude of over 2,743 m (9,000 ft), causes the air to be much more transparent at some frequencies than is normal elsewhere, and months of darkness allow sensitive equipment to operate continuously.

Developments

In 1991, Michael Palin visited the base during the 8th and final episode of his TV series. documentary BBC Pole to Pole.

In 1999, while wintering, doctor Jerry Nielsen discovered that she had breast cancer. She had to give herself chemotherapy with medication dropped in July, and then she was taken out after the first plane landed in mid-October.

In January 2007, a group of Russian high officials visited the station, including FSB chiefs Nikolai Patrushev and Vladimir Pronichev. The expedition, led by polar explorer Artur Chilingarov, started in Chile on two Mi-8 helicopters and landed at the South Pole.

September 6, 2007 TV show aired man made for the National Geographic Channel with an episode about the construction of a new building here.

November 9, 2007 program Today NBC, with co-writer Ann Carrie, made a report via satellite phone that was broadcast live from the South Pole.

On Christmas Day 2007, two members of the base got into a drunken brawl and were evacuated.

In popular culture

The station features prominently in a number of science fiction television series, including The X-Files: Fight for the Future.

Station at the South Pole called Snowcap Base was the site of the first Cybermen invasion of Earth in the 1966 TV series Doctor Who The Tenth Planet.

In film White mist(2009) takes place at Amundsen-Scott station, although the buildings in the film are completely different from the real ones.

Time zone

At the South Pole, sunset and sunrise are only theoretically visible once a year, on the autumn and spring equinoxes respectively, but due to atmospheric refraction, the sun is above the horizon for more than four days each time. There is no solar time here; there is no daily maximum or minimum in the height of the sun above the horizon. The station uses New Zealand time (GMT +12 hours or +13 hours summer time) as all flights to McMurdo station originate from Christchurch and therefore all official travel from the poles passes through New Zealand.

The discovery of the South Pole - the centuries-old dream of polar explorers - on its own final stage in the summer of 1912, it took on the character of a tense competition between the expeditions of two states - Norway and Great Britain. For the first it ended in triumph, for others - in tragedy. But, despite this, Roald Amundsen and Robert Scott, who led them, forever entered the history of the development of the sixth continent.

The first explorers of the southern polar latitudes

The conquest of the South Pole began back in those years when people only vaguely guessed that somewhere on the edge southern hemisphere must be land. The first navigator who managed to get close to it was sailing in the South Atlantic and in 1501 reached the fiftieth latitude.

This was the era when, having briefly described his stay in these previously inaccessible latitudes (Vespucci was not only a navigator, but also a scientist), he continued his journey to the shores of a new, recently discovered continent - America - bearing his name today.

Almost three centuries later, the famous Englishman James Cook undertook a systematic exploration of the southern latitudes in the hope of finding an unknown land. He managed to get even closer to it, while reaching the seventy-second parallel, but Antarctic icebergs and floating ice prevented his further advance to the south.

Discovery of the sixth continent

Antarctica, the South Pole, and most importantly, the right to be called the discoverer and pioneer of the ice-bound lands and the fame associated with this circumstance haunted many. Throughout the 19th century there were incessant attempts to conquer the sixth continent. They were attended by our navigators Mikhail Lazarev and Thaddeus Bellingshausen, who were sent by the Russian Geographical Society, the Englishman Clark Ross, who reached the 78th parallel, as well as a number of German, French and Swedish researchers. These enterprises were crowned with success only at the end of the century, when the Australian Johann Bull had the honor of being the first to set foot on the shore of hitherto unknown Antarctica.

From that moment on, not only scientists rushed into the Antarctic waters, but also whalers, for whom the cold seas represented a wide fishing area. Year after year, the coast was developed, the first research stations appeared, but the South Pole (its mathematical point) still remained inaccessible. In this context, the question arose with extraordinary urgency: who will be able to get ahead of competitors and whose national flag will be the first to fly on the southern tip of the planet?

Race to the South Pole

At the beginning of the 20th century, attempts were repeatedly made to conquer the impregnable corner of the Earth, and each time the polar explorers managed to get closer to it. The climax came in October 1911, when the ships of two expeditions at once - the British, led by Robert Falcon Scott, and the Norwegian, led by Roald Amundsen (the South Pole was an old and cherished dream for him), almost simultaneously headed for the coast of Antarctica. Only a few hundred miles separated them.

It is curious that at first the Norwegian expedition was not going to storm the South Pole. Amundsen and his crew members were on their way to the Arctic. It was the northern tip of the Earth that was listed in the plans of an ambitious navigator. However, on the way, he received a message that he had already submitted to the Americans - Kuku and Piri. Not wanting to lose his prestige, Amundsen abruptly changed course and turned south. In doing so, he challenged the British, and they could not help standing up for the honor of their nation.

His rival Robert Scott before dedicating himself research activities, served for a long time as an officer in the Navy of Her Majesty and gained sufficient experience in command of battleships and cruisers. After retiring, he spent two years on the coast of Antarctica, taking part in the work of a scientific station. They even made an attempt to break through to the pole, but having advanced a very significant distance in three months, Scott was forced to turn back.

On the eve of the decisive assault

The tactics of achieving the goal in a kind of race "Amundsen - Scott" were different for the teams. The main vehicle of the British were Manchurian horses. Short and hardy, they were the best suited to the conditions of the polar latitudes. But besides them, travelers also had at their disposal dog teams, traditional in such cases, and even a complete novelty of those years - motor sledges. The Norwegians, in everything, relied on the proven northern huskies, who had to pull four sleds, heavily loaded with equipment, throughout the journey.

Both of them had a journey of eight hundred miles one way, and the same amount back (if they survived, of course). Ahead of them were glaciers cut by bottomless cracks, terrible frosts, accompanied by snowstorms and blizzards that completely excluded visibility, as well as frostbite, injuries, hunger and all kinds of hardships that were inevitable in such cases. The reward for one of the teams was to be the glory of the discoverers and the right to hoist the flag of their state on the pole. Neither the Norwegians nor the British doubted that the game was worth the candle.

If he was more skilled and experienced in navigation, then Amundsen clearly surpassed him as an experienced polar explorer. The decisive crossings to the Pole were preceded by wintering on the Antarctic continent, and the Norwegian managed to choose a much more suitable place for her than his British counterpart. Firstly, their camp was located almost a hundred miles closer to the end point of the journey than the British, and secondly, Amundsen laid out the route from it to the pole in such a way that he managed to bypass the areas where the most severe frosts raged at this time of the year. and incessant snowstorms and snowstorms.

Triumph and defeat

The detachment of Norwegians managed to go all the way and return to the base camp, keeping within the period of the short Antarctic summer. One can only admire the professionalism and brilliance with which Amundsen led his group, withstood with incredible accuracy the schedule he himself compiled. Among the people who trusted him, there were not only dead, but even those who received any serious injuries.

A completely different fate awaited Scott's expedition. Before the most difficult part of the journey, when one hundred and fifty miles remained to the goal, the last members of the auxiliary group turned back, and five British explorers harnessed themselves to heavy sleds. By this time, all the horses had fallen, the motor sledges were out of order, and the dogs were simply eaten by the polar explorers themselves - they had to take extreme measures in order to survive.

Finally, on January 17, 1912, as a result of incredible efforts, they reached the mathematical point of the South Pole, but there a terrible disappointment awaited them. Everything around bore traces of the rivals who had been here in front of them. The imprints of sledge runners and dog paws were visible in the snow, but the most convincing evidence of their defeat was a tent left between the ice, over which the Norwegian flag fluttered. Alas, they missed the discovery of the South Pole.

About the shock that the members of his group experienced, Scott left entries in his diary. The terrible disappointment plunged the British into a real shock. They all spent the next night without sleep. They were burdened by the thought of how they would look into the eyes of those people who, for hundreds of miles of travel across the icy continent, freezing and falling into cracks, helped them reach the last leg of the path and launch a decisive but unsuccessful assault.

Catastrophe

However, in spite of everything, it was necessary to gather strength and return. There were eight hundred miles of return journey between life and death. Moving from one intermediate camp with fuel and food to another, the polar explorers lost strength catastrophically. Their situation became more and more hopeless every day. A few days later, death visited the camp for the first time - the youngest of them and seemingly physically strong Edgar Evans died. His body was buried in the snow and covered with heavy ice floes.

The next victim was Lawrence Ots, a dragoon captain who went to the pole, driven by a thirst for adventure. The circumstances of his death are very remarkable - having frostbitten hands and feet and realizing that he was becoming a burden to his comrades, at night he secretly left the place of lodging for the night and went into impenetrable darkness, voluntarily dooming himself to death. His body was never found.

The nearest intermediate camp was only eleven miles away when suddenly a blizzard arose, completely eliminating the possibility of further advance. Three Englishmen found themselves in ice captivity, cut off from the whole world, deprived of food and any opportunity to warm themselves.

The tent they pitched, of course, could not serve as any kind of reliable shelter. The air temperature outside dropped to -40 ° C, respectively, inside, in the absence of a heater, it was not much higher. This insidious March blizzard never let them out of its arms...

Posthumous lines

Six months later, when the tragic outcome of the expedition became obvious, a rescue group was sent to search for the polar explorers. Among the impenetrable ice, she managed to find a snow-covered tent with the bodies of three British explorers - Henry Bowers, Edward Wilson and their commander Robert Scott.

Scott's diaries were found among the belongings of the dead, and, which amazed the rescuers, bags with geological samples collected on the slopes of the rocks protruding from the glacier. Incredibly, the three Englishmen stubbornly continued to drag these stones even when there was practically no hope of salvation.

In his notes, Robert Scott, having detailed and analyzed the reasons that led to the tragic denouement, highly appreciated the moral and strong-willed qualities of his comrades accompanying him. In conclusion, addressing those in whose hands the diary fell, he asked them to do everything so that his relatives would not be left to the mercy of fate. Dedicating a few farewell lines to his wife, Scott bequeathed to her to make sure that their son received an appropriate education and was able to continue his research activities.

By the way, in the future, his son Peter Scott became a famous ecologist who devoted his life to protecting the natural resources of the planet. Born shortly before the day when his father went on his last expedition, he lived to a ripe old age and died in 1989.

caused by tragedy

Continuing the story, it should be noted that the competition of two expeditions, which resulted in the discovery of the South Pole for one, and death for the other, had very unexpected consequences. When the celebrations on the occasion of this, of course, important geographical discovery ended, the congratulatory speeches ceased and the applause ceased, the question arose about the moral side of what had happened. There was no doubt that indirectly the cause of the death of the British lay in the deep depression caused by the victory of Amundsen.

Not only in the British, but also in the Norwegian press, there were direct accusations against the recently honored winner. A quite reasonable question was raised: did Roald Amundsen, experienced and very experienced in the study of extreme latitudes, have the moral right to draw the ambitious, but lacking the necessary skills, Scott and his comrades into the competitive process? Wouldn't it be more correct to offer him to unite and carry out his plan by common efforts?

Amundsen's riddle

How Amundsen reacted to this and whether he blamed himself for unwittingly causing the death of his British colleague is a question that has forever remained unanswered. True, many of those who closely knew the Norwegian researcher claimed that they saw clear signs of his mental confusion. In particular, his attempts at public excuses, which were completely uncharacteristic of his proud and somewhat arrogant nature, could serve as evidence of this.

Some biographers tend to see evidence of unforgivable guilt in the circumstances of Amundsen's own death. It is known that in the summer of 1928 he went on an Arctic flight, which promised him certain death. The suspicion that he foresaw his own death in advance is caused by the preparations he made. Not only did Amundsen put all his affairs in order and paid off his creditors, he also sold all his property, as if he was not going to go back.

The sixth continent today

One way or another, the discovery of the South Pole was made by him, and no one will take this honor away from him. Today, large-scale scientific research is being carried out at the southern tip of the Earth. At the very spot where the Norwegians once expected triumph, and the British - the greatest disappointment, today is the international polar station "Amundsen - Scott". In its name, these two fearless conquerors of extreme latitudes invisibly united. Thanks to them, the South Pole on the globe is perceived today as something familiar and quite within reach.

In December 1959, an international treaty on Antarctica was concluded, initially signed by twelve states. According to this document, any country has the right to conduct scientific research throughout the continent south of the sixtieth latitude.

Thanks to this, today numerous research stations in Antarctica are developing the most advanced scientific programs. Today there are more than fifty of them. Scientists have at their disposal not only ground-based means of control over environment, but also aviation and even satellites. The Russian Geographical Society also has its representatives on the sixth continent. Among the existing stations there are veterans such as Bellingshausen and Druzhnaya 4, as well as relatively new ones - Russkaya and Progress. Everything suggests that great geographical discoveries do not stop today.

A brief history of how brave Norwegian and British travelers, defying danger, strove for their cherished goal, only in in general terms can convey all the tension and drama of those events. It is wrong to consider their fight only as a fight of personal ambitions. Undoubtedly, the thirst for discovery and the desire to assert the prestige of their country, built on true patriotism, played a paramount role in it.

Amundsen - Scott (Eng. Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station) is a permanently inhabited US Antarctic station at the South Pole, operating since 1956. It is located at an altitude of 2835 meters above sea level. The first station in the depths of Antarctica (not on the coast of the mainland). The station was built in November 1956 for scientific purposes by order of the US government.

Chronology

When opened (in 1956 as part of the International Geophysical Year), the station was located exactly at the South Pole, but at the beginning of 2006, due to the movement of ice, the station was located about 100 meters from the geographic south pole. The station got its name in honor of the discoverers of the South Pole - Roald Amundsen and Robert Scott, who reached the goal in 1911-1912. The station is located at an altitude of 2835 m above sea level, on a glacier that reaches a maximum thickness of 2850 m nearby (2005). The average annual temperature is about −49 °С; varies from -28 °C in December to -60 °C in July. Average wind speed - 5.5 m/s; gusts up to 27 m/s were recorded.

Station foundation (1957-1975)

The original station - now called Old Pole - was founded in 1956-1957 by an 18-man US Navy expedition that landed here in October 1956 and wintered there for the first time in Antarctica's history in 1957. Since climatic conditions were not previously known, the base was built under the ice to overcome any weather conditions. The lowest temperature in 1957 was recorded at −74 °C (−102 °F). Survival in such a low temperature, combined with low humidity and low air pressure, is only possible with proper protection. The station, abandoned in 1957, is covered with snow (like any building at the South Pole) at a rate of 60-80 mm per year. Now it is buried deep enough and is completely closed to the public, as snow has crushed all the wooden floors. On January 4, 1958, the Transantarctic Expedition of the British Commonwealth arrived at the station with the famous climber Edmund Hillary. It was the first expedition to use road transport and the first to reach the Pole by land since Amundsen in 1911 and Scott in 1912. The expedition moved from the New Zealand station "Scott Base".

Dome (1975-2003)

The aluminum unheated "tent" is the pole's landmark. It even had a post office, a shop and a pub. Any building at the pole is quickly surrounded by snow and the design of the dome was not the best. A gigantic amount of fuel was used to remove the snow, and shipping a liter of fuel costs $7. The 1975 equipment is completely outdated.

New scientific complex(since 2003)

The unique design on piles allows snow not to accumulate near the building, but to pass under it. The sloping shape of the lower part of the building allows the wind to be directed under the building, which contributes to the blowing of snow. But sooner or later the snow will cover the piles, and then it will be possible twice ...