2009-10 Photos - Updating McMurdo

This is an excellent aerial photo taken in February 2010, it includes the Oden at the ice pier. Two other obvious things...first, the new bermed white fuel tanks in the foreground which have been constructed starting in the 2007-08 extended season. The project includes 4 2 million gallon tanks, 2 1 million gallon tanks, and a still-unpainted 2 million gallon tank used for overflow. At the very bottom of the picture is the new pump house and gas station (JH). The second highly visible project...the blue building in the center of town. Yes, NSF decided to repaint Building 155 in a more distinctive color--which may be used for other structures as well. A view of the color change in progress, but with no work being done on this snowy day. The tops of two of the new wind turbines can be seen in the background (JS/APL). Another highly visible project near the center of town was the demolition of the old Quonset hut best known as the home of the only remaining bowling lanes in the world with manual pinspotter machines. Unfortunately, bowling lanes are heavy, and the weakened structure could not be repaired economically. Below, a few photos...
Some of the demolition crew in front of the structure as work is underway (ME).	For comparison, here's my December 1972 view of the front of the building. The facility and bowling lanes were completed during the 1961 winter.
The upstairs bowling lanes when new, in 1961 (BR/APL).	A more recent photo, from January 2006 (CB).
And the removal work on the bowling lanes, Richard Dill is getting ready to cut the approach into 4 pieces. The pinspotter equipment was put in storage (ME).	Clearing out the first floor (ME).
Not much left...(ME)	Just the posts (ME).
Supervisor (and photographer) Mike Ebel with some of the scrap siding panels (ME).	Above the road to Scott Base, the huge old transmitter building at T-site was also removed (ME).
The building housed the massive HF radio transmitters that were formerly used for communication (ME).	Up on the side of Observation Hill, the last two remaining buildings from the 1960s era nuclear power plant were being removed. This was Building 87, the "secondary building" which had housed the turbine, pumps, and other control equipment--the reactor itself, its "primary building" and lots of underlying soil had been removed in the 1970s after the plant was decommissioned in 1972. This building was removed to floor level this season (ME).
Adjacent to it is the old water plant, building 126. It had its asbestos siding panels removed/abated, the rest of the demolition is scheduled for next season. These two structures had been used for storage for many years (ME).	For comparison, here's my 1988 photo of the site. The secondary building (87) is on the left, the old water plant (126) is on the right. Between them is another warehouse (89) which was removed more recently. (I do have more historical information about the nuclear plant on this page.)
Credits: JH: Joe Harrigan...JS/APL:Jeff Scaniello/Antarctic Photo library...BR/APL:Bruce Raymond Antarctic Photo library...CB: Craig Bell...ME: Mike Ebel.