How do scientific expedition members live in Antarctica?

Here is a diary of a scientific examiner for your reference:

Hello everyone! Today I share with you my story in Antarctica.

Antarctica is the seventh largest continent in the world, with an area equivalent to one and a half China. It is the only ice and snow continent that has neither sovereignty nor indigenous inhabitants. 97% of the Antarctic continent is covered by ice and snow, with an average ice layer of more than 2,000 meters. This ice locks 90% of the fresh water on the earth. Antarctica is not only the coldest place on earth, with temperatures reaching minus 60 degrees Celsius in winter, but it is also the windiest place in the world. The maximum wind force ever measured is 91 meters per second, which is equivalent to three times the force of a Category 12 hurricane. There are currently nearly 100 research stations in Antarctica from more than 40 countries.

Since 1984, China has conducted annual Antarctic expeditions. The country has built 4 expedition stations. In 1985, the Great Wall Station was built. It is on the edge of the Antarctic continent. Now Antarctic tourism can be reached by boat from Argentina. this range. In 1989, the Zhongshan Station was built in the Rasman Hills of East Antarctica. In 2009, China built the Kunlun Station at the highest point of the ice sheet. The temperatures are over minus 40 degrees Celsius in summer and over minus 80 degrees Celsius in winter. The newly built Taishan Station is located between Zhongshan Station and Kunlun Station. It is an intermediate rest stop.

Garbage that cannot be burned must be taken home for disposal

I went to Antarctica for the first time with the Snow Dragon ship in 1994. After replenishing supplies in Australia, I set off for the Antarctic. There is a westerly belt between 40 and 60 degrees south latitude, which circles the Antarctic. There are cyclones one after another, and the wind and waves are very strong. If you cannot pass between the cyclones, you have to brave the wind and waves to be safe, so we generally head towards Drive southwest. During the most stormy time, we could not go south, but could only go west. We sailed several nautical miles day and night, which was like being fixed in place. All the scientific expedition team members were seasick. They lay in bed unable to get up and vomited whatever they ate. They were shaken like this for a week. Some team members could only rely on salt water to stay alive. Some crew members also suffered from seasickness. At this time, they could only hold on to their posts while vomiting. After passing 60 degrees south latitude, the weather is calm, and you can see icebergs one after another, and the beautiful scenery of Antarctica emerges. Everyone gets up to enjoy the beautiful scenery, and sometimes penguins can be seen on the icebergs.

Antarctic environmental protection requirements are extremely strict. No garbage is allowed to be left in Antarctica, and alien species are not allowed to enter. Domestic garbage at the research station is burned if it can be burned, and all the garbage that cannot be burned is packed in boxes and brought back to the country. Treatment, domestic drainage must go through biochemical membrane treatment. When we went on field trips, our own poop had to be brought back to the station in garbage bags for disposal. One time, a team member had diarrhea and didn't have a garbage bag in his hand, so he dug a hole in the snow and buried it. A few days later, his stationmaster passed by. After the snow was blown away by the wind, this thing was exposed. The stationmaster thought it was a meteorite, so he took it back to the room to admire it. He found that the thing was smelly and soft, which made him a joke. He immediately called a meeting and severely criticized this behavior.

Of course, Antarctic expeditions are also full of risks. Driving a snowmobile on the Antarctic continent is afraid of crevasses, and driving a snowmobile on sea ice is afraid of ice holes. During the 25th Antarctic expedition, the expedition ship was unloading supplies 20 kilometers away from Zhongshan Station. A mechanic was driving a sled to transport the goods, and the vehicle and people sank into the sea. After a few seconds, a head emerged, and then an arm. He stretched out and lost consciousness as soon as he climbed up. The rescue team quickly carried him back. This scene happened to be photographed by CCTV reporters. He woke up the next day and said that he climbed out of the cab's sunroof while sea water was pouring into the cab. In addition, the summer in Antarctica is December, January, and February. At this time, the ice has melted, and only small boats and barges can be used to transport supplies to the research station. The small boats travel through the icebergs. If the icebergs collapse or turn over, it will cause extreme events. Big waves are very dangerous.

Thinking ability will weaken if you live for more than 5 months

There are two types of Antarctic expeditions, one is called the summer expedition, which lasts for 3 months in Antarctica; the other is called the winter expedition, which requires a stay of 15 days. moon. Every May, June, and July is the polar night in Antarctica. It is pitch dark, and we rely on lamps to illuminate our way. There are generally 17 of our wintering team members left behind, and we eat at the same table every day. One day, several team members did not come to eat. I called and asked, and they said that the wind and snow were too heavy and blocked the door. The wind was too strong that day, and we It was impossible to get through. The wind and snow stopped the next day, so we could go over and shovel the snow away. Although life is poor, when the weather is clear, you can see the aurora. The unpredictable changes under the starry sky make people feel like they are in space, which is particularly beautiful. Vegetables are extremely valuable in Antarctica. All supplies are supplied by the Snow Dragon ship once a year. After a month, the green vegetables are gone, leaving only Chinese cabbage, potatoes, and onions. Chinese cabbage can be eaten for five or six months. We feel very distressed when we see Chinese cabbage rotting.

Working in Antarctica is far away from your homeland and family. After work, you can only get together to play poker. If you lose, you will put stickers on your face or dig into the table. We don’t pay, because money is useless in Antarctica. Canned food, drinks, instant noodles, and biscuits are all placed on the shelves, and you can take whatever you want. It’s really communism, and all the doors are unlocked. In normal times, the 17 overwintering team members take turns giving lectures every week, and publish an issue of Zhongshan Life Weekly every month. They try to enrich themselves and prevent T3 syndrome: after living in Antarctica for more than 5 months, people's pituitary gland will change. People are more depressed and prone to anger, their thinking ability is weakened, their reaction ability is reduced, and they can't sleep. The way to prevent it is to organize more activities to make life full. The fresh water resources in Antarctica are all ice and snow. The water we drink is made from melted ice and snow. The water is very pure, but it has no minerals. Over time, it will easily cause hair graying and hair loss.

You won't get colds in Antarctica because the cold environment is so pure that there are no viruses, which will weaken people's immunity and make them more likely to get sick after returning home. After 2008, the Zhongshan Station had Internet access, but the Russian station next to it did not. They often came to use the Internet. However, because of insufficient bandwidth, young people and girlfriends had to arrange their time to take turns accessing the Internet, so we stipulated that every Monday and Wednesday , 19:00-21:00 on Friday will be given to them. There is a particularly important festival in Antarctica called Midwinter Day, which falls on June 22nd. It is the darkest day in Antarctica. After this day, the dawn of Antarctica will slowly come, so on this day all those investigating in Antarctica will hold major celebrations.

When I said goodbye to my mother, I knew it was the last time I would see her.

Finally, I want to talk about the feelings of the Antarctic scientific researchers. There is a tombstone at our Zhongshan Station, which belongs to Gao Qinquan, the first wintering station director. He was the first person in China to reach the South Pole and made great contributions to the establishment of Zhongshan Station. Because he became ill due to hard work and hard work in Antarctica, he died young due to illness after returning to China. His last wish was to bury half of his ashes in Antarctica. Every summer, the expedition team members would pay homage to him, and on Qingming Festival, more than a dozen of our wintering team members would also visit his grave and offer incense. Once, when we were sweeping the grave, one of our team members burst into tears. I asked, "What's wrong with you?" He said he had just received a call in the morning that his grandmother, who had brought him up since childhood, had passed away. This happens often. I used to be the chief engineer of the Snow Dragon ship and went to Antarctica once a year. One year I came back from Antarctica. I called before the ship docked and learned that my mother had been diagnosed with terminal gastric cancer three months ago and had her entire stomach removed. She was afraid that it would affect my work, so she kept her family from telling me. During the six months at home, I stayed with my mother. Before leaving again, the doctor told me that it was impossible for my mother to wait until I came back in five months. Before departure, I said goodbye to my mother. I knew it would be the last time I saw her. When the ship arrived at Zhongshan Station, the news of my mother's death came. The debt that Antarctic scientific researchers owe to their families can never be made up for.

Let me show you another photo. This is July 1, 2011, the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. At that time, it was polar night in Antarctica, and the sky was a little bright at 12 noon. We held During the flag-raising ceremony, it was very windy and snowy that day, but the team members still spontaneously requested to raise the flag. Seeing the five-star red flag flying in the Antarctic, every team member was shocked, because we can represent the country and stick to the Antarctic. This is a symbol of national strength. When we saw the five-star red flag flying there, our feelings for the motherland boiled. .