Great Wall Station (Antarctica)

Great Wall Station

长城站
Great Wall Station 长城站
Antarctic base
	Great Wall Station
	Great Wall Station Location of Great Wall Station in Antarctica
	Coordinates: 62°13′01″S 58°57′43″W / 62.216838°S 58.961855°W
Country	China
Location in Antarctica	Fildes Peninsula; King George Island
Administered by	Polar Research Institute of China
Established	20 February 1985
Elevation	10 m (30 ft)
Population (2017)
• Summer	60
• Winter	13
UN/LOCODE	AQ GWL
Type	All-year round
Period	Annual
Status	Operational
Activities	List Geology ; Geomagnetism ; Seismology;
Website	Chinese Arctic and Antarctic Administration

The Great Wall Station (Chinese: 长城站; pinyin: Chángchéng Zhàn) is the first Chinese research station in Antarctica and opened on 20 February 1985. It lies on the Fildes Peninsula on King George Island, 960 kilometres (600 mi) from Cape Horn. It is sited on ice-free rock, about 10 metres (33 ft) above sea level.^[2]

The station is about 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) from the Chilean Base Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva. A 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) long unpaved road, Zhongzhi Gonglu, provides convenient vehicle access from the station to Frei, Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Martin Airport and Bellingshausen Station.^[3] The station collaborates with logistical support and sharing of facilities with other nearby stations from Chile, Russia, Uruguay, Korea and Brazil.^[4]

History

In 1984, China organized its first scientific expedition to Antarctica, and Guo Kun was named the leader of the 591-member expedition team. The team departed Shanghai on 20 November 1984 on two ships, the Xiang Yang Hong 10 and the J121, and arrived at King George Island off the coast of Antarctica on 30 December.^[5] A main part of their mission was to construct China's first antarctic base, the Great Wall Station. As the Xiang Yang Hong 10 was not an icebreaker, the team had to leave before the end of the antarctic summer and had only a short window of opportunity to complete their mission.^[5] Under Guo's supervision, the team worked 16 to 17 hours a day in often severe weather conditions, and completed the construction in only 40 days. Construction of the station was completed on 14 February 1985.^[5]^[6]

In summer, the station holds up to 60 people;^[1] in winter, 14. The station's No. 1 Building, erected in 1985, lies at the centre of the station and has a total floor area of 175 square metres (1,880 sq ft). It marks the beginning of China’s presence in Antarctica and its Antarctic research program.

In 2012, the Antarctic Treaty System designated two sites at the station as Historic Sites and Monuments in Antarctica following nominations by China: a monolith erected to commemorate the establishment of the station and the station's No.1 Building.^[7]