Looking out on to the sea ice air field
McMurdo Station - Antarctica

Antarctica is a particularly rugged continent, I presume it's because it hasn't had the chance for the deposition of large amounts of run-off that other warmer continents have had to flatten out some silty or sandy plains. Exposed ice-free land therefore tends to be rough, rocky and varied in elevation. This means that runway areas are not exactly abundant, so most airstrips are on ice.

Sea ice lends itself in particular to wide open areas of flatness which can be made into air strips. It still takes work however as the surface can be very rough at the scale of a few feet which can seriously upset an aircraft landing on it.

Royal Society range in background.

10th Oct 2007