A remote and unoccupied research station in Antarctica has, for the first time, collected important scientific measurements of climate, ozone and space weather thanks to ground-breaking technology developed by British Antarctic Survey’s (BAS) engineers.
A remote and unoccupied research station in Antarctica has, for the first time, collected important scientific measurements of climate, ozone and space weather thanks to ground-breaking technology developed by British Antarctic Survey’s (BAS) engineers.
The technology was developed to ensure the continuation of measurements during the winter months at Halley Research Station. The station operates currently during summer only and has been unoccupied since February this year. Operating in temperatures lower than -40⁰C an innovative power system based around a micro-turbine has collected data for 123 days.
Cracks in the Brunt Ice Shelf, on which Halley Research Station sits, have led to concerns about the stability of the Ice Shelf and the decision not to commit staff to wintering at the station until the stability of the ice shelf can be assured. The summer team who left the station on 25 February installed an innovative autonomous power system that can generate up to 30 kW of power and run a suite of scientific instruments.
The heart of the power system is a Capstone C30 Micro-turbine, similar to a jet engine, that is housed in a specially designed temperature-controlled container, with a continuous fuel and data feed. This can be controlled from BAS headquarters in Cambridge, and has provided continuous power at about 9kW since it was first turned on in January.
Read more at British Antarctic Survey
Photo Credit: MemoryCatcher via Pixabay
