Inside Bharati Research Station - India's Third Antarctic Research Facility (Stunningly Beautiful!)

[Chanakya's_Chant]

India's Home For Scientists In Freezing Antarctica Is Stunningly Beautiful!​

28 years after setting up our first permanent research station in Antarctica, India set up the third such station, budgeted at 230 crore, in 2012.

Named Bharti, the station made us an elite member of nine nations which have multiple stations in the region.

Dakshin Gangotri was our debut in Antarctica, and was buried in ice 6 years after being set up, forcing India to abandon it.

The Bharti station, established by Goa's National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research overlooks the sea, letting the Indian team research polar marine life.

Considering that Antarctica has a 13 million sq km landmass, it made sense to ensure that coastal research was also included.

Durable housing

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The compact, yet comfortable 2,500 sq m Bharati Indian Polar Station can accommodate 25 scientists, saving them from the outdoors where temperatures range from -89 degrees Celsius in winter to -25 degrees Celsius in summer.

Difficult construction

"With wind speeds crossing 40 knots, maneuvering ships to Antartica is a challenging job. We're also considering transportation of materials on ice that could be more than 1.5 metres thick, from the ship's mooring point to the construction site, using special vehicles," Rajasekhar, head of vessel management, National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai, told the Times of India.

At par with world standards

Decades after she first set foot on Antarctica, celebrated geologist Sudipta Sengupta, among the first Indian women to visit Earth's southernmost continent in 1983, said that Indian polar stations are at par with the world. Sengupta and marine biologist Aditi Pant were part of the Third Indian Expedition to Antarctica that ran from December 3, 1983, to March 25, 1984. Her pioneering work in the Schirmacher Hills of East Antarctica — a line of low coastal hills — boosted further study in the area.

One of the major achievements of the 81-member team of the third Indian expedition was setting up of the maiden Indian station — the 'Dakshin Gangotri'. The first expedition was flagged off in 1981 that signalled the commencement of the Indian Antarctic Programme.

'Dakshin Gangotri' was replaced in 1988 by the indigenously-designed second permanent station 'Maitri', shortly before the first station was buried in ice and abandoned in 1990-91. 'Bharati', became India's third state-of-the-art research base in Antarctica.

Why are Indian scientists going to Antarctica?

One of the reasons for polar research being sought after by the world, including India, according to Sengupta, is the continent's geological history. Antarctica was once a part of the pre-historic supercontinent called Gondwanaland that also comprised present-day South America, Africa, Arabia, Madagascar, India and Australia.

Now a professor at Jadavpur University, Sengupta explained the importance of polar research in Antarctica: "It being the only polar continent, glaciological studies are extremely important. Also biological, geological studies are necessary as Antarctica was a key piece of Gondwanaland. It is also the area for upper atmospheric studies like that of the ozone hole and meteorological effects (that affect world weather)."

Bharati, a miracle of engineering and fortitude

Made from prefabricated shipping containers from Germany, it lets scientists continue their research, no matter what the weather outside. This can include wind gusts as high as 321 km per hour, and temperatures as low as minus 40°C. And, in line with the Antarctic Treaty System, Bharati can be completely disassembled and removed without leaving even a brick behind. It is set up on stilts to prevent snow drift buildup locking the scientists in.

It's really comfortable

Bharati comprises three floors, made of an interlocked set of shipping containers that are insulated from the elements. There's a terrace, air-conditioning, a floor that serves as the residential quarters, (24 single and double rooms). Along with a kitchen, dining room, library, there's also fitness room, offices, lounge, and a operating theater.

The ground floor is where the work happens - labs, storage, technical spaces, and workshop.

(With inputs from Arun Ram, TNN | IANS)

Source:- India's Home For Scientists In Freezing Antarctica Is Stunningly Beautiful!

 

[anant_s]

Bharati
About 3000 km east of Maitri, the new Indian research base ‘Bharati’ is located between Thala Fjord & Quilty bay, east of Stornes Peninsula in Antarctica at 69° 24.41' S, 76° 11.72' E approximately at 35 m above sea level. The station with a very small footprint was commissioned on 18 March 2012 to facilitate year-round scientific research activity by the Indian Antarctic program.Station can support 47 personnel on twin sharing basis in the main building during summer as well as winters with additional 25 in emergency shelters / summer camps during summers and thus making the total capacity as 72. The station consists of one main building, fuel farm, fuel station, sea water pump house, a summer camp and a number of smaller containerized modules. The main building offers regulated power supply, automated heating and air conditioning with hot and cold running water, flush toilets, sauna, cold storage, PA system, aesthetically designed living, dining, lounge and laboratory space. The communication is through dedicated satellite channels providing connectivity for voice, video and data with India mainland.
Bharati: Bharati


Other bases in Antarctica.

 

[gau8av]

nice, but made in Germany, so not exactly Indian tech.

also, no Indian claim ?

 

[Mythal]

nice, but made in Germany, so not exactly Indian tech.

also, no Indian claim ?

The claims are a stupid thing. Only the 7 countries making these claim recognize these claims. It is like a group of 4 people going to a public park and dividing the park into 4 parts, one for each one of them. The problem with the claims is that the countries making them are now usually restricted to the areas that they have claimed while the rest of the world has access to entire Antarctica.

 

[gau8av]

The claims are a stupid thing. Only the 7 countries making these claim recognize these claims. It is like a group of 4 people going to a public park and dividing the park into 4 parts, one for each one of them. The problem with the claims is that the countries making them are now usually restricted to the areas that they have claimed while the rest of the world has access to entire Antarctica.

that was my first thought too but then they might find some resources and a way to extract them at some stage in the future, given how we're situated geographically, 'ours' would have been a proper big slice too

had no idea that the claimants are all stuck inside their claimed region, funny

 

[Mythal]

that was my first thought too but then they might find some resources and a way to extract them at some stage in the future, given how we're situated geographically, 'ours' would have been a proper big slice too

had no idea that the claimants are all stuck inside their claimed region, funny

There is no legal restriction or treaty stopping them from working/building camps in other regions, but if they do they would in a way recognize that claims does not mean anything so nullifying their own claims.

 

[Chanakya's_Chant]

nice, but made in Germany, so not exactly Indian tech.

also, no Indian claim ?

Containers were first prefabricated in Germany - Assembled in Antarctica by NCAOR - All communication and research facility installations were made in India - ECIL and NRSC won the contract out of a global tender for setting up the ground station and also a communication facility for the same.

As part of it, a data reception station and another data communication facility linking Bharati Station and NRSC was established. ECIL installed two large antennae of 7.5 diameters each-one for remote sensing and the other for communication.

 

[Chanakya's_Chant]

 

[scientien]

@Chanakya's_Chant dude day b4 u created this thread i was viewing this on google map and they are clearly visible,also i was looking for Himadri Station and new research station IndiaARC, so are u in IB or was that coincidence.

 

[Chanakya's_Chant]

@Chanakya's_Chant dude day b4 u created this thread i was viewing this on google map and they are clearly visible,also i was looking for Himadri Station and new research station IndiaARC, so are u in IB or was that coincidence.

Actually I was researching another story while I came across this article - It was about India's Polar Remotely Operated Vehicle (PROVe) being deployed in Northern Antarctica after successful trails

India's Polar Remotely Operated Vehicle (PROVe) Trails Successful - Deployed in Northern Antarctica

 

[scientien]

ehicle (PROVe) being deployed in Northern Antarctica after

Dude you tried searching Himadri on google map, i was unable to find one.But i found one interesting thing called ALERT in North Atlantic.Also we have observer status in North Atlantic treaty,do you think of any strategic importance there in North? they say worlds 22percent oil reserves are in North Pole.

 

[Echo_419]

Containers were first prefabricated in Germany - Assembled in Antarctica by NCAOR - All communication and research facility installations were made in India - ECIL and NRSC won the contract out of a global tender for setting up the ground station and also a communication facility for the same.

As part of it, a data reception station and another data communication facility linking Bharati Station and NRSC was established. ECIL installed two large antennae of 7.5 diameters each-one for remote sensing and the other for communication.

Well atleast most of it was made in India
Also what is a Chinese flag doing there

Bharati
About 3000 km east of Maitri, the new Indian research base ‘Bharati’ is located between Thala Fjord & Quilty bay, east of Stornes Peninsula in Antarctica at 69° 24.41' S, 76° 11.72' E approximately at 35 m above sea level. The station with a very small footprint was commissioned on 18 March 2012 to facilitate year-round scientific research activity by the Indian Antarctic program.Station can support 47 personnel on twin sharing basis in the main building during summer as well as winters with additional 25 in emergency shelters / summer camps during summers and thus making the total capacity as 72. The station consists of one main building, fuel farm, fuel station, sea water pump house, a summer camp and a number of smaller containerized modules. The main building offers regulated power supply, automated heating and air conditioning with hot and cold running water, flush toilets, sauna, cold storage, PA system, aesthetically designed living, dining, lounge and laboratory space. The communication is through dedicated satellite channels providing connectivity for voice, video and data with India mainland.
Bharati: Bharati
View attachment 234723 View attachment 234724 View attachment 234725

Other bases in Antarctica.
View attachment 234726

We should try to claim some too

 

[Chanakya's_Chant]

Dude you tried searching Himadri on google map, i was unable to find one.But i found one interesting thing called ALERT in North Atlantic.Also we have observer status in North Atlantic treaty,do you think of any strategic importance there in North? they say worlds 22percent oil reserves are in North Pole.

It does have a strategic potential - using Arctic sea lanes for shipping would reduce voyage times by 40% compared to Indian, Pacific or Atlantic ocean routes. India’s ONGC reportedly wants to have a stake in new oil and gas projects announced by Russia on the Arctic shelf.

Russia, India to jointly drill for Arctic oil through Rosneft, ONGC | RTN.ASIA

OVL had earlier bought Imperial Energy, which has fields in Siberia, for $2.1 billion in 2009. It is keen to get a foothold in the Arctic projects and expand in Siberia and Far East Russia.

 

[Chanakya's_Chant]

India set to become major scientific player in polar region​

Dry coring on sea ice off India's station Bharati, near Quilty Bay. (Photo/Thamban Meloth)
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India is aiming for a high-powered research in the polar region for collecting vital clues on global climate change and its effect on the fluctuations in the Indian monsoon system.

For the first time, Indian scientists were able to collect systematic and continuous data, which can give newer understanding and insight into the earth system, last month for a period of one year from Arctic waters. So far, data collection from the Arctic was confined to only surface area and was not continuous.

The team of scientists from the Earth System Science Organization-National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) and the ESSO-National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR) successfully recovered data from IndARC, the country's first multi-sensor moored observatory deployed in the Kongsfjorden fjord of the Arctic Ocean, almost halfway between Norway and the North Pole, in July last year. After retrieving the data, the sensors were deployed again.

"This is one of the greatest milestones India has achieved and has shown to the world our strength to design, install and retrieve an Arctic moored observatory. The collected data is most valuable and preliminary observations are promising to study further in depth. All the sensors worked successfully for a year and collected more than 10 lakh data points for the scientists to have a deeper insight on Arctic processes," said Dr R Venkatesan, who heads the NIOT team.

"The acquired data would be of vital importance to the Indian climate researchers as well as the international fraternity. In addition to providing for an increased understanding of the response of the Arctic to climatic variabilities, the data would also provide a good handle in our understanding of the Arctic processes and their influence on the Indian monsoon system through climate modelling studies," he said.

The observatory has an array of 10 state-of-the-art oceanographic sensors, programmed for measuring real-time data subsea temperature, conductivity, salinity, pressure, water current speed and direction strategically positioned at discrete depths in the water column.

'RV Lance' Norwegian Research Vessel at ARCTIC used for installation of IndARC Ice sheet at Arctic. Photo/NIOT​

Last year, the cabinet had cleared a decision to purchase a vessel for polar research. While it will take some time for the vessel to finally come, it is a big step towards positioning India as a major global player in the scientific study of the region. With a research vessel of its own, India will prove its commitment to polar research and contribute to the global knowledge to understand the earth as a single system. At present, India spends Rs 150-200 crore on polar study, a major chunk of which goes in hiring the vessels.

The new polar research vessel will be built by a company in Spain and will cost Rs 1051 crore. The yet to be named vessel will take 34 months to be completed. Besides being armed with laboratories for scientists to carry out experiments while on the sea, it will also have an ice breaker which will allow it to be portable round the year.

"We are in the final stage of signing with the company in Spain. Till now we were hiring vessels from international market, mainly Russia, but they were only used as cargo ships for transporting people and material," secretary to the ministry of earth sciences, Shailesh Nayak, told HT

India has been involved in research activity in the polar region since 1981. So far, it has carried nearly 8 expeditions to Arctic and around 33 to Antarctica. The country sends around 75 scientists in a year for carrying out polar research, mostly to Antarctica.

The two major areas that India hopes to gain research ground are the study of climate change and microbiological research in the Antarctica. Scientists at the NCAOR are studying and carrying out scientific analysis in the 100 metres ice core that was brought last year. This is the longest core India has been able to bring back home.

"It took us almost 3 weeks to drill into the ice sheet and recover the core. This was then shipped back in special containers at -20 degree Celsius. The core is being studied for climatic parameters of the past. We study the isotopes of water molecules and reconstruct the past temperature," Thamban Meloth, who heads the drilling team from ESSO-NCAOR, told HT.

Study of ice core records provide one of the most direct and accurate method to study climate change beyond the instrumental data availability (typically few decades in Antarctica). Ice cores contain an abundance of scientific information about past climate and climate change, he said.

Some scientists will also study the microbiological components of the ice and snow brought back from the latest expedition to Antarctica.

"We isolate the microorganisms and look at the microbiological diversity. Besides studying their interaction with the organic environment, we also try to understand their adaption strategies," said a scientist.

Ice melting top view at Arctic. Photo/NIOT​

A look at Indian research facilities in the Antarctica and Arctic:

• Dakshin Gangotri (1983) – India's first permanent station in Antarctica. Built on an ice shelf, this was completely lost to the ice by 1990.

• Maitri (1989) – India's second permanent station in Antarctica. Situated on an ice-free area in the central Dronning Maud Land, this facility has been the mainstay of Indian Antarctic research for the past 25 years.

• Bharati (2012) – India's third and most modern permanent research station in Antarctica. Situated in an ice-free area of Larsmann Hills.

• Himadri (2008) – India's first research station in the Arctic.

(Source: Thamban Meloth's article in Ocean Digest)

Source:- India set to become major scientific player in polar region

 

[Fabricio Tavares]

Bharati is a beautiful antarctic station! Any info on Maitri's modernisation?