Permanent Dock Replaces Ice Pier at U.S.’s McMurdo Station in Antarctica
The new McMurdo Dock Pier has successfully arrived at the U.S.’s Antarctica station as the operation marks 70 years since it was first launched. According to the reports, the arrival of the docking pier marks a major milestone in a multi-year effort to modernize the logistics infrastructure supporting U.S. Antarctic research operations.
The station was established in 1955-1956 and sits on Ross Island, not far from the location used by Ernest Shackleton and other famed explorers. The British also used Ross Island as their base for expeditions into Antarctica. It is located approximately 25 miles from Mount Erebus, the world's southernmost active volcano.
The McMurdo Docking Pier was constructed by Gunderson Marine & Iron, which is located in Portland, Oregon. Designed by Glosten for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the docking pier features a raked hull to ride on top of sea ice and is engineered for long-term durability in polar conditions. The companies report that the new pier will provide more reliable, lower-maintenance mooring infrastructure to support cargo operations at the largest research facility in Antarctica.
After fabrication was completed, the pier faced a daunting 9,159 nautical mile voyage across the Pacific Ocean and Southern Ocean. The pier, towed from the Pacific Northwest by TradeWinds Towing, was underway for 69 days, averaging 5.5 knots over the course of its journey. Severe Southern Ocean weather systems forced them to adjust the route, adding four days to the total transit time.
Gunderson Marine reports that during the final leg of the voyage from New Zealand to McMurdo, the tow encountered seas reaching 30 feet. The note that the sea conditions underscore the extreme conditions the structure was engineered to withstand.
New McMurdo Docking Pier arriving in Antarctica (Gundersom Marine & Iron)
“From engineering and fabrication in Portland to arrival at the edge of the world, this pier represents the strength of American shipbuilding and the commitment to supporting critical scientific research in one of the harshest environments on earth,” said Dee Burch, President of Gunderson Marine & Iron.
The Docking Pier has successfully arrived at McMurdo Station, Antarctica. It is ready to take on its vital role at the station and will improve the efficiency of the annual resupply missions known as Operation Deep Freeze.
The McMurdo Docking Pier replaces the traditional seasonal ice pier historically used at the station. Normally, the ice pier was established at the beginning of the resupply season with the help of the Navy Cargo Handling Battalion. However, in recent years, the Military Sealift Command has been sending a Marine Causeway System aboard the resupply ship.
that matters most
Get the latest maritime news delivered to your inbox daily.
Last year, the cargo ship Ocean Giant transported the MCS to McMurdo, and when the cargo operations were completed by the second ship, the Ocean Gladiator, the dismantled sections of the MCS were retrieved and loaded onto the ship for transport back to California. Similarly, this year, the chartered Dutch heavy-lift ship Plantijngracht offloaded a 65-ton floating Modular Causeway System (MCS) that had to be installed before the cargo operations could begin. To complete Operation Deep Freeze, the ship loaded containers of retrograde cargo, including trash and recyclable materials for disposal and equipment no longer required on the station, and also had to reload the MCS.
The Military Sealift Command highlights that the size and weight of the ship’s cargo required a stronger docking pier.