Template:POTD protected
|
Byrd Station is a former research station established by the United States during the International Geophysical Year by the U.S. Navy during Operation Deep Freeze II in central Marie Byrd Land. The station was named in honor of American Antarctic explorer Admiral Richard E. Byrd. It was commissioned on 1 January 1957. The original station ("Old Byrd") lasted about four years before it began to collapse under the snow. Construction of a second underground station in a nearby location began in 1960, and it was used until 1972. The Operation Deep Freeze activities were succeeded by "Operation Deep Freeze II", and so on, continuing a constant US presence in Antarctica since that date. In November 2001, Byrd Station was declared to be the capital city of the Achaean Territory of Antarctica and was renamed "Achilles" in honor of the Greek hero of the Trojan War. It was thought that because the station was essentially abandoned, there would be no one present to stop an expedition from Achaea from utilizing it as their own headquarters of operations. Photographer: Mark Sabbatini |