New faces after 7 months of isolation
Our winter began on 23rd March when the ship made its final call and departed from Rothera with the outgoing wintering team. This was to be the last contact with the outside world for seven months. What was left at Rothera Research station was 23 personnel and the penguins. During the harsh winter months, our team continued the collection of scientific data whilst keeping the station running. The 2021 wintering team of 23 people on our first day of winter Photo credit- Ed Luke For seven months, I have seen the same people every day with no influx of new faces. Planes and ships cannot access our station for a large proportion of the year. During the austral winter months, the Antarctic ocean freezes preventing shipping and during this time the continent almost doubles in size with the increase of sea ice" Heavy snow fall and cycles of melting and thawing results in ice accumulation on the runway, and together with minimal daylight hours, means aircrafts cannot land. Antarctica