South Pole Traverse

South Pole Traverse
McMurdo–South Pole Highway
A red line indicating the path of the traverse
Route information
Length:	995 mi (1,601 km)
Existed:	2007 – present
Major junctions
South end:	Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station
North end:	McMurdo Station
Highway system
Transport in Antarctica

The South Pole Traverse, also called the McMurdo–South Pole Highway, is an approximately 995-mile-long (1,601 km) compacted snow road in Antarctica that links the United States's McMurdo Station on the coast to the Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station. It was constructed by leveling snow and filling in crevasses, but is not paved; flags mark its route.

Route description

Satellite photo of the McMurdo Station. with the South Pole Traverse (central road)

After four years of development, the trail is now operational, with Caterpillar and Case Corp. tractors pulling specialized sleds to deliver fuel and cargo to the South Pole in about 40 days. The return trip to McMurdo Station, with less fuel and cargo, is substantially quicker. Construction started during the 2002/03 southern summer field season. It was finished in the 2005/2006 southern summer.

The McMurdo Ice Shelf and the Antarctic Plateau are relatively stable. Most crevasses occur in the short steep shear zone between them, where the road climbs to more than 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) above sea level. This section of the road needs maintenance each season. The section caused much more construction work than planned, because the ice sheets are likely to move.

History

Cargo caravan on the ice highway early 2006

The project was funded by the United States National Science Foundation (NSF) to provide a lower cost, potentially more reliable method of supplying the South Pole Station. Bad weather at McMurdo some summers has reduced the total number of supply flights the NSF could make to bring in construction supplies and scientific equipment. In addition, the traverse saves an estimated 40 flights and lowers the carbon footprint over the use of aircraft. After a one-year hiatus, a traverse team re-occupied the trail during the 2007–08 season after extensive work and completed the first operational traverse in 2008–09.

The road also facilitated the movement of heavy equipment needed to implement its proposed South Pole Connectivity Program, a planned optical fiber link between the South Pole and the French–Italian Concordia Station located at Dome C at the edge of the Antarctic Plateau; Concordia has 24-hour access to geosynchronous satellites. Such satellites cannot be used at the poles since they are below the horizon; the South Pole now uses a few older, low-bandwidth satellites that dip sufficiently south of the equator to be usable for several hours daily. These satellites are near the end of their life. The road to McMurdo might provide a regularly maintained alternate route for such a link; however, opinions vary as to the shear zone section's suitability for a long-term cable. It's also possible the NSF may choose to deploy several special purpose satellites in polar orbits.

A 7 February 2006 NSF press release stated that 110 tons (100 metric tons) of cargo had been successfully delivered overland to the South Pole Station in a "proof of concept" of the highway.

In February 2013, Maria Leijerstam pedaled a three-wheeled recumbent fatbike the length of the South Pole Traverse, a feat recognized by Guinness World Records as the first person to arrive at the South Pole by bicycle.

Major intersections

Region	Location	Mile	km	Destinations	Notes
East Antarctica	Antarctic Plateau	0	0	Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station	Southern terminus
West Antarctica	Ross Ice Shelf	994	1,600	General McMurdo Road	Access to southern area of station
		995	1,601	McMurdo Station	Northern terminus

See also

• Antarctica portal
• U.S. Roads portal

Further reading

• Contains a brief overview of fiber versus satellite links.
• Contains a discussion of the proposed highway.

External links

• Media related to at Wikimedia Commons