Signy Research Station

Signy Research Station (originally Station H)[2] is an Antarctic research base on Signy Island, run by the British Antarctic Survey.

Signy Research Station
Antarctic base
Signy Research Station in 2006
Signy Research Station in 2006
Location of Signy Research Station in Antarctica
Location of Signy Research Station in Antarctica
Signy Research Station
Location of Signy Research Station in Antarctica
Coordinates: 60°42′30″S 45°35′42″W
Country United Kingdom
British Overseas TerritoryBritish Antarctic Territory
Location in AntarcticaSigny Island
Administered byBritish Antarctic Survey
Established18 March 1947 (18 March 1947)
Elevation
[1]
5 m (16 ft)
Population
 (2017)[1]
 • Summer
14
 • Winter
0
TypeSeasonal
PeriodSummer
StatusOperational
Activities
List
  • Climatology
  • Limnology
  • Microbiology
  • Sedimentology
Websitewww.antarctica.ac.uk

History

Signy was first occupied in 1947 when a three-man meteorological station was established in Factory Cove above the old whaling station.[3][2] It was the second research base on the South Orkney Islands (after the Argentine Orcadas Base in 1903). In 1955, a new hut, Tønsberg House was built on the site of the whaling station. In 1963, it was turned into a laboratory for biological research. Initially operated year-round, since 1995/6 the station has been open from November to April each year (southern hemisphere summer).

Facilities

Today, the base has four buildings with capacity for 8 people.[1][3] The main building, Sørlle House (named after the whaling captain Petter Sørlle, who himself named Signy Island), provides living accommodation and laboratories. The other buildings are for storage and provision of power and water services. There are also four small huts around the island.

A light railway was constructed in 1963 for unloading stores and large items of machinery. When built, this was the southernmost railway in existence. It was later extended up a hill to reach the fuel tanks.[4][5]

Research

Marine and terrestrial biology is carried out at Signy, particularly looking at the effects of climate change on the southern ocean ecosystems. Three species of penguin (Adélie, chinstrap and gentoo) are monitored at the base.[3]

To continue an original time series of visual sea ice observations after the station became summer-only, an automated sea ice camera now operates all year around,[6] providing a continuous record of sea ice extent near the station for over 50 years.

Climate

Signy Research Station has a tundra climate (ET according to the Köppen climate classification), because all twelve months have a mean temperature under 10 °C (50 °F). Signy Research Station has very long, cold winters (although they are mild for Antarctic standards) and short, cool summers. It has only three months with the average temperature above freezing point. The temperature is consistently cold year-round, with August, the coldest month, having a mean of −10.3 °C (13.5 °F) and an average low of −15.6 °C (3.9 °F). February is the warmest month, with a mean of 3.9 °C (39.0 °F) and an average high of 6.4 °C (43.5 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded was 19.8 °C (67.6 °F) on 30 January 1982, which is the highest temperature recorded anywhere south of 60°S,[7] and the lowest recorded temperature was −27.8 °C (−18.0 °F) in June.

Climate data for Signy Research Station, 6 m asl (1971–2000 normals)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 19.8
(67.6)		 16.2
(61.2)		 13.3
(55.9)		 4.6
(40.3)		 4.9
(40.8)		 3.9
(39.0)		 7.4
(45.3)		 3.3
(37.9)		 4.7
(40.5)		 6.6
(43.9)		 6.6
(43.9)		 3.6
(38.5)		 19.8
(67.6)
Average high °C (°F) 6.1
(43.0)		 6.4
(43.5)		 6.3
(43.3)		 0.7
(33.3)		 0.2
(32.4)		 −2.0
(28.4)		 −4.6
(23.7)		 −5.0
(23.0)		 0.9
(33.6)		 1.1
(34.0)		 2.0
(35.6)		 1.6
(34.9)		 1.1
(34.1)
Daily mean °C (°F) 1.2
(34.2)		 3.9
(39.0)		 3.1
(37.6)		 −1.8
(28.8)		 −2.1
(28.2)		 −6.9
(19.6)		 −7.4
(18.7)		 −10.3
(13.5)		 −2.9
(26.8)		 −1.6
(29.1)		 −0.8
(30.6)		 −0.1
(31.8)		 −2.1
(28.2)
Average low °C (°F) −0.7
(30.7)		 1.4
(34.5)		 −0.2
(31.6)		 −4.3
(24.3)		 −4.4
(24.1)		 −11.7
(10.9)		 −10.1
(13.8)		 −15.6
(3.9)		 −6.6
(20.1)		 −4.2
(24.4)		 −3.5
(25.7)		 −1.9
(28.6)		 −5.1
(22.7)
Record low °C (°F) −1.5
(29.3)		 1.0
(33.8)		 −4.4
(24.1)		 −8.8
(16.2)		 −11.8
(10.8)		 −27.8
(−18.0)		 −27.7
(−17.9)		 −25.4
(−13.7)		 −13.9
(7.0)		 −8.7
(16.3)		 −9.0
(15.8)		 −3.8
(25.2)		 −27.8
(−18.0)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 33.7
(1.33)		 — 72.6
(2.86)		 6.6
(0.26)		 10.3
(0.41)		 2.6
(0.10)		 5.7
(0.22)		 4.7
(0.19)		 140.0
(5.51)		 — — 14.1
(0.56)		 —
Average precipitation days (≥ 1 mm) 11.63 — 26.57 — 5.17 — — 1.82 10.00 — — 5.64 —
Source 1: Météo climat stats[8]
Source 2: Météo Climat [9]

See also

References
  1. Antarctic Station Catalogue (PDF) (catalogue). Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs. August 2017. p. 143. ISBN 978-0-473-40409-3. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 October 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  2. "History of Signy (Station H) - British Antarctic Survey". Retrieved 2019-05-13.
  3. "Signy Research Station". British Antarctic Survey. Archived from the original on 18 September 2008. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  4. David Rootes (1988). A concise account of Signy Base 'H'. British Antarctic Survey. p. 17. ISBN 085665129X.
  5. Martin Coombs. "Big whales, small engines!". Railways of the Far South. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  6. "Signy Sea Ice Camera". British Antarctic Survey. Archived from the original on 12 November 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  7. "WMO Region VII (Antarctic: all land/ice south of 60°S): Highest Temperature". Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  8. "Moyennes 1981-2010 Antarctique" (in French). Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  9. "Météo Climat stats for Ile Signy". Météo Climat. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
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