As many of you know I am heading south for a few months to do some painting; so what’s it all about?
On the Haute Route last year, I was chatting to Brian about a project he was involved in on Antarctica. Brian has been based at Halley Base which is in the process of being rebuilt. In fact this will be the sixth base at the site.
Γ’β¬ΕIt doesn’t need painting does it??Γ’β¬Β
The new build is replacing Halley 5, which in turn has replaced the previous 4.
Halley V contains a mix of building technologies. Three buildings are located on platforms on steel legs, which have been jacked up annually to keep them clear of the accumulated snowfall. An accommodation building and a garage weighing over 50 tons are mounted on skis and towed each year to a new position. Halley I to Halley IV were built directly on the snow and were each abandoned within ten years, having been crushed by the overlying ice.
Approximately 1.2 metres of snow accumulate each year on the Brunt Ice Shelf and buildings on the surface become covered and eventually crushed by snow, necessitating periodic rebuilding of the station. This part of the ice shelf is also moving westward by approx. 700m per year.
The new design allows the building to be hydraulically lifted each year to overcome the accumulation of snow and ice and also allows it to be relocated inland to compensate for the movement of the ice. The building has to provide full life support services for up to 50 people and withstand the severe Antarctic climate where temperatures can drop to -55ΓΒ°C.
All the module interiors (living and working areas) will need to be painted (hopefully not white!)
So that’s where I’m off to, and what I’ll be doing. I’ve had jabs for everything you could possibly get there or en-route……… Regular updates will appear here on the blog as the build continues, and dependant on the internet link from the ice-shelf.
Series - Antarctic Painting
- Polar Painting
- Journey South
- The Journey Continues; Iceberg Ahoy!
- Ice Ice Baby
- The Weddell Sea
- Nearly there!!
- Halley 6 : On The Ice
- All Work and No Play
- Different Shades of Grey
- Racing Penguin
- The Move Begins
- Moving Postcard from Antarctica
- Winter approaches
- The Halley Marathon
- The Final Week
- The Journey North
- Antarctic Painting – Year 3
- Antarctic Demolition
Can’t wait till see your reports for down south! π
A real trip of a lifetime. Just goes to show it’s not what you know, but who!
Or whom?
Whoops!
I’m unsure how you can hydraulically lift something up to avoid the snow accumulation and then move it sideways … do the original legs get left behind?
I can already picture the colour scheme – hazard yellow and black on the inside, brilliant white outside!
Amazing… :love: we will miss you though.. especially at Christmas.. π₯ take care… :alien:
LOVE Caroline π― , Steve π , Emerald
, Crysta :star: l xxxxx
Wow! While playing about with the new Adventure Locations feature of the site I have been checking a few of the older existing latitude/longitude values. This one of Ian’s was stunning when I zoomed in…
Use this link to the location of the Halley VI build site, make sure the map is in Satellite mode (button top right of map), and zoom in a bit further. Amazing! I wonder if Ian’s shadow is in there somewhere? π
aren’t the black things the buried containers that have to be dug out of the snow at the beginning of the season?
Wow, bloody brilliant, especially after I zoomed in after thinking a white screen was a bit dull.