Base Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva is the most important Antarctic base of
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
. It is located at
Fildes Peninsula
The Fildes Peninsula is a long peninsula that forms the south-western end of King George Island (South Shetland Islands), King George Island in the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica. It was named from association with nearby Fildes Strait b ...
, an ice-free area, in front of
Fildes Bay, at the west end of
King George Island,
South Shetland Islands
The South Shetland Islands are a group of List of Antarctic and subantarctic islands, Antarctic islands located in the Drake Passage with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the n ...
. Situated alongside the
Escudero Station in
Villa Las Estrellas and only from the Russian
Bellingshausen Station, it is at an altitude of above sea-level. The base is located in the
Chilean commune of
Antártica, which is the Antarctic territory claimed by Chile (
Antártica Chilena Province,
Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region).
Also nearby are the bases of
Great Wall
The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand Li (unit), ''li'' long wall") is a series of fortifications in China. They were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection agains ...
(China),
General Artigas Station (Uruguay),
King Sejong Station (Republic of Korea),
Carlini Base (Argentina),
Commandante Ferraz (Brazil),
Henryk Arctowski (Poland) and
Machu Picchu Base (Peru). Further away is
Captain Arturo Prat Base, also Chilean, 50 km to the west.
Description
It has a -long airstrip (''
Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Martin Aerodrome'',
ICAO
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international sch ...
Code SCRM),
with 50 intercontinental and 150 intracontinental flights each season, serving as a means of transport to many nearby bases. It also includes the
Villa Las Estrellas residential area that has a hospital, a school, a bank, a small supermarket, etc. The maximum population during summer is of 150 people, and the average during winter is about 80 people.
It began to operate in 1969 as ''Centro Meteorológico Eduardo Frei''. When the installations were expanded, it was renamed as ''Base Teniente Rodolfo Marsh'', with the meteorology center keeping its original name. During the 1990s, all of the installations came to be named Base Presidente
Eduardo Frei Montalva
Eduardo Nicanor Frei Montalva (; 16 January 1911 – 22 January 1982) was a Chileans, Chilean political leader. In his long political career, he was Minister of Public Works, president of his Christian Democratic Party (Chile), Christia ...
, with the airstrip retaining the name Teniente Rodolfo Marsh.
Climate
Like the coastal areas of Antarctic Peninsula and the subantarctic islands south of the 60º parallel, the area has a
tundra climate, that could be considerably borderline "maritime-influenced
polar climate
The polar climate regions are characterized by a lack of warm summers but with varying winters. Every month a polar climate has an average temperature of less than . Regions with a polar climate cover more than 20% of the Earth's area. Most of ...
", thanks to temperatures that rarely drop below in winter (which is commonplace in most of Antarctica), and temperatures that could soar a few digits above freezing for most parts of the year. The base's area and its vicinity (the entire island, actually) experiences a rather heavy precipitation, with an average precipitation rate of yearly, which makes it unusual on the Antarctic continent, as the continent is significantly drier than the islands are to the north.
Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva - permanent station of Chile, Antarctica - Sunrise, sunset, dawn and dusk times for the whole year - Gaisma
/ref>
See also
* List of lighthouses in Antarctica
* List of Antarctic research stations
* List of Antarctic field camps
References
External links
Official website Chilean Antarctic Institute
*
Webcam Teniente Martin airport
{{Authority control , additional=Q60176531
Outposts of the South Shetland Islands
Argentine Antarctica
British Antarctic Territory
Chilean Antarctic Territory
Lighthouses in Antarctica
1969 establishments in Antarctica