Neumayer-III Station

Neumayer-Station III is a German research station in Antarctica. It is run by the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI). The station is located on the Ekström Ice Shelf in Queen Maud Land.

Neumayer-Station III opened in 2009. It replaced two older German stations: Neumayer I (1981–1992) and Neumayer II (1992–2009). The new station was built to last longer and to work better in harsh Antarctic conditions.

Neumayer-III is built on hydraulic stilts, which can be raised to keep the station above snow levels. This helps stop it from being buried by snow over time. The station is shaped like a long rectangular building with a garage and workshop below the main living area.

Scientists at Neumayer-III study:

• Climate and weather
• Atmosphere
• Glaciology (study of ice and snow)
• Geophysics and seismology
• Marine biology

The station also sends weather data to help with global forecasting.

About 50 people work at the station during the Antarctic summer. In winter, around nine people stay for the whole season. The station has:

• Bedrooms
• A kitchen and dining room
• A hospital room
• Laboratories and workspaces
• Internet and communication systems

Neumayer-III Station is built on the Ekström Ice Shelf, which is a large, flat area of floating ice in Queen Maud Land, Antarctica. The station is about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the coast of the Weddell Sea. It's coordinates are 70°40′S 8°16′W, elevation around 40 meters (131 feet) above sea level, and the station is near the coast of Antarctica, on a floating ice shelf.

The ice shelf is not solid ground—it is ice that floats on the ocean. Because of this, the station slowly moves with the ice, about 200 meters (656 feet) every year.

There are no mountains or hills nearby. The land around the station is flat and covered with snow and ice. The Sun does not rise during winter months and does not set in summer months.

Neumayer-Station III has a polar climate. It is very cold, dry, and windy all year, and has an ice cap climate.

Temperatures can drop below -50°C (-58°F) in winter and usually stay around -10°C to -25°C (14°F to -13°F) in summer. The station gets very little snowfall, but strong winds can cause large snowdrifts. Blizzards and whiteouts are common.

Winds can reach over 100 km/h (62 mph) during storms. There is no daylight during the polar night (May to July), and the Sun shines 24 hours a day during the polar summer (November to January). Because of the clean air and stable conditions, the area is good for atmospheric and climate research.

The coldest temperature ever recorded was −50 °C (−58 °F) on July 8, 2010. It also experiences strong katabatic winds. In that moment, the temperature was −22 °C (−8 °F), but it decreases the felt temperature to −47 °C (−53 °F).^[1]

Supplies are brought in by ship and then by snow vehicles or aircraft. A nearby airstrip on the ice is used in summer.

1. ↑ "Wind Chill Calculator". www.calculator.net. Retrieved 2017-04-09.