Antarctica is a great 20th century historical reserve as well as a natural reserve. Here in the frigid temperatures and and dry air (Antarctica is the driest continent on earth), buildings and objects remain well preserved and are designated historical monuments with strict codes of conduct enforced to protect them. In 1947 the British established a base her that they named Faraday station (or Base F). With only a short period of closure in the 1950s it was continuously occupied as a meteorological station until 1996.
Wordie Hut was the first building here and was in use between 1947 and 1954 when it was superseded by the newer base. This charming old hut is in a remarkable state of preservation and is a unique time capsule right down to the preserved food items that are still in situ.
In 1960 a newer station was built nearby and it was this station that first picked up the hole in the ozone layer in the 1980s. This station was eventually sold to Ukraine in 1996 for the nominal sum of 1 pound. It is now renamed Verdansky station and between 12 and 26 scientists over winter here every year. It is here that we see our first glimpses of sunshine and blue sky.
