* Astronomy

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South Pole Expedition

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China expedition team members have installed a steel structure at the Zhongshan Station in Antarctica.
Built in 1988, Zhongshan Station is one of China's first two research stations in the Antarctica.

Source Xinhua

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China's 25th Antarctic expedition team hits harsh weather
China's 25th Antarctic expedition team has encountered unexpectedly harsh weather 40 kilometres north of China's Zhongshan Station. The Snow Dragon Expedition Vessel is making efforts to break through thick ice and move forward.

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The Snow Dragon ice breaker arrived at the Zhongshan Station on the Mirror Peninsula on Saturday to resupply the station with more than 400 tons of oil and 1,000 tons of supplies.
The Snow Dragon left the Changcheng (Great Wall) Station on the southern tip of King George Island on Feb. 9.

Blobrana · L

The Antarctic research vessel Snow Dragon left the Antarctic mainland early on Tuesday to continuing the journey to Zhongshan Station.
China's 24th scientific expedition team made a one-day stopover on the mainland's coast Monday to shelter from unfavourable weather conditions.

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A Chinese expedition returned last week from a 14-day crawl across the East Antarctic ice sheet in cargo containers, pulled by tractors, that doubled as living quarters. The trip, sponsored by the Polar Research Institute of China, completes only the second traverse to Dome A the highest point on the eastern ice cap and the place where China intends to start building a research base next year.
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China's Antarctic Great Wall Station is to have internet access by the end of February.
The "Snow Dragon," the scientific polar vessel, managed to transported nearly four tons of satellite communications equipment from china.
According to Li Xinrui, senior engineer at China International Telecommunication Construction Corporation (CITCC), the major contractor on the program, the Changcheng Station - Shanghai satellite communication program - is under intense construction.
China's Antarctic Zhongshan Station will also have satellite communications installed next year.

Blobrana · L

China's 24th scientific expedition team aboard the "Xuelong" ship has arrived at the Changcheng (Great Wall) Station in the western Antarctic.
The exploration ship, carrying 91 researchers and 40 crew members, arrived with supplies for Changcheng Station's largest ever renovation. The project includes a 1,000-square-meter building for scientific research, a recreation centre for the researchers as well as garbage and sewage treatment facilities.
The ship left China's eastern coastal city of Shanghai on Nov. 12.It arriving at the Zhongshan Station in eastern Antarctic on Dec. 11 and headed to Changcheng on Dec. 23. 2007.
Other members of the 188-strong exploring team will travel to Antarctic by air.

Source:Xinhua

Blobrana · L

A 17-member Chinese Antarctic expedition team set off on Saturday for Dome A, the highest polar icecap peak at an elevation of 4,093 meters.
This is the 24th Antarctic expedition conducted by Chinese scientists and their second attempt to survey the peak of Dome A after they made the first ever successful ascent by mankind on Jan. 18, 2005.
The 17 Chinese scientists, chosen through nationwide competition, will travel 1,300 kilometres into the inland icecap during their 70-day expedition. They will be climbing the peak of Dome A from the edge which is over 200 meters above the sea level and conduct a series of scientific surveys to pave the way for setting up the third Chinese scientific research station in Antarctica.
They will carry out eight field surveys, including the comprehensive expedition on glaciology, geophysics, astronomy, topography and meteorology.
The scientists will also conduct surveys on drilling position of the deep ice core at Dome-A and choosing the location for an observation station in the inland region of Antarctica.
It is also the first time for the Chinese expedition team to conduct a series of new researches, including choosing the locus of the astronomical observatory at Dome-A, installing wireless sensor network at Dome-A, conducting earthquake observation in the inland icecap, drafting a topographic chart with the scale of 1:50000 and carrying out physiological and psychological researches on expedition team members.
Meanwhile, the Chinese expedition will implement the core of China's action plan for the International Polar Year, PANDA.

Source: Xinhua

Dome A (Dome Argus) is an Antarctic plateau located 1200 kilometres inland. It is thought to be one of the coldest naturally occurring places on Earth, with temperatures believed to reach -90 °C. It is the highest ice feature in Antarctica, comprising a dome or eminence of just over 4,000 m elevation, located near the centre of East Antarctica and approximately midway between the head of Lambert Glacier and the South Pole.

Position: 80°22S 77°22E

The name "Dome Argus" was given by the Scott Polar Research Institute from Greek mythology; Argus built the ship in which Jason and the Argonauts travelled.

Blobrana · L

China has announced that the "Snow Dragon," a third-generation icebreaker, would be dispatched to the Antarctic in mid-November to modernise the two Chinese stations and start building a third one.