Ship visits are vital because they bring essential supplies, from food, fuel and scientific equipment to vehicles, building supplies and personal possessions. BAS ships bring passengers and cargo to Rothera at least twice each summer, and sailing time from Stanley is around four days. Today, most people fly to Rothera on the BAS Dash 7 aircraft, either from Stanley in the Falkland Islands (about five hours) or Punta Arenas, Chile (about four and a half hours). More information on whales and seals is available here. A family of orcas, which lives in the Marguerite Bay area, is usually seen from the station several times during the summer. Small numbers of minke and humpback whales are seen in Ryder Bay each summer, and in some years minke are spotted almost every day. Crabeater and elephant seals are also present, fur seals arrive in varying numbers at the end of summer, and although leopard seals are present all year round, they are seen only infrequently.
Pups are born on the sea ice in late September. Weddell seals, which are present year-round, are the most obvious mammal around the station. More information on birds at Rothera is available here. The blue-eyed shag, which breeds on several offshore islands, can be seen whenever the sea is not frozen. Antarctic terns and Wilson’s petrels are present offshore through the summer months but nest on higher mountain ridges. There are breeding populations of Dominican gull (three pairs) and South Polar skua (15 pairs or more).
The emperor penguin is seen infrequently, with sightings most likely between September and November. Adélies are the most numerous penguin species around Rothera, with chinstrap and gentoos occasionally present in the summer. The station’s coastal location means that staff see a good range of Antarctic birds and mammals. Rothera Research Station in the winter Wildlife Rain occasionally falls at Rothera.īecause the station is just south of the Antarctic circle, it is light for 24 hours a day during summer, and for a few weeks in winter the sun never rises above the horizon. While it can snow at any time of year, in recent years the main snow fall has come at the end of winter. Prevailing winds are northerlies, reaching gale force on around 70 days a year.
You can find sea ice at Rothera from late May to late November, although it takes prolonged periods of calm conditions for ice to form and become fast. Summer temperatures are typically between 0 and +5☌, and in winter range from –5☌ to – 20☌, but because of its coastal location and the Southern Ocean low-pressure weather systems, temperatures can vary widely at any time of year. The new Bransfield House balcony at Rothera Research Station, Antarctica.
Staff on station include marine and terrestrial biologists, meteorologists, electronics engineers, a dive officer and a boating officer, a chef, a doctor, vehicle and generator mechanics, electricians, plumbers, builders, field assistants, communications managers and a station management team. In summer, the population peaks at just over 100 people, while during the winter months, from April to mid-October, a 22-strong team continues the science work and maintains Rothera’s infrastructure. The station operates throughout the year. Rothera Research Station on Adelaide Island, Antarctica Personnel The island, which is 140km long, is mountainous and heavily glaciated. Rothera supports a wide range of BAS, UK university and international collaborative science programmes including the Dirck Gerritsz laboratory that is operated by the Netherlands polar research programme.īuilt on a rock promontory at the southern tip of the Wormald Ice Piedmont, Rothera Research Station is situated on Adelaide Island to the west of the Antarctic Peninsula.Īdelaide Island is 1,860km south of the Falkland Islands and 1,630km south-east of Punta Arenas, Chile. Situated on Adelaide Island to the west of the Antarctic Peninsula the site includes the Bonner research laboratory, offices and workshops and a crushed rock runway, hangar and wharf. Rothera Research Station, the largest British Antarctic facility, is a centre for biological research and a hub for supporting deep-field and air operations.