China’s fifth research station in Antarctica, the Qinling Station, started operation just before
the Chinese New Year of Dragon. Jiang Hanlin, an alumnus of SEU from the Class
of 2023 and a staff member of the Polar Research Institute of China,
participated in the construction mission.
As the largest single building in Antarctica, the Qinling Station is located on Inexpressible Island on the coast of
the Ross Sea in Victoria, East Antarctica. Due to its harsh climate, it is one
of the areas least affected by human activities on Earth and few countries
build stations there.
As introduced by Jiang Hanlin, to complete the construction of the new station before the onset of the Antarctic winter in February, the Qinling Station adopted an advanced prefabricated steel structure frame + modular box room + thermal insulation, and decorative integrated exterior maintenance panel system. The special-grade steel features a strength grade of Q355NH E-class weather-resistant steel and a low-temperature impact performance under -40℃. To ensure the on-site quality, prefabricated steel structural parts, and functional modules were customer-made domestically and then transported to Antarctica for on-site assembly.
Just
when the project was progressing smoothly, a hurricane was brewing. The
Qinling Research Station, once established, was designed to withstand Beaufort-scale 17 hurricanes. However, during its
construction, a complete resistance system had not yet been established, making
the station difficult to withstand hurricanes. At this stage, the research
station is at its most vulnerable. Based on the forecast, in the next two
days, the maximum wind speed can reach more than 35 meters per second,
equivalent to a Beaufort-scale 12 hurricane.
At that time, the new station was in a critical period for the
installation of curtain wall panels. The result of not closing it at once might
cause the installed curtain wall panels to be blown away, and all the previous
efforts would be wasted. Full closure would take at least 3 days, but the
time left for the workers was only 10 hours.
The
expedition team immediately decided to urgently close the windward side of the
new station, unveiling a violent battle against time. The construction
site was in full swing, but the outdoor temperature was extremely low, with snowflakes
floating in the sky, and the katabatic wind blowing from the Antarctic inland,
as freezing as the cold air coming from the freezer of a refrigerator.
Just
a few hours after all construction operations were completed, a Beaufort-scale
12 hurricane arrived! Thanks to the timely closure, everything remained
normal inside the new station amid the roaring hurricane. To complete the
construction tasks as scheduled, the internal construction resumed during the
hurricane. Workers lined up, holding onto a rope for shuttling between the
construction site and the dormitory.
Lasting for 3 days, the hurricane eventually stopped. After 72 hours of
continuous hurricane impact, the new station stood unscathed in the Ross
Sea, Antarctica! As the storm passed, the sun’s rays shone brightly on the
curtain wall panels of the research station, bursting out a bright and dazzling
light.
Jiang Hanlin graduated from Prof. Feng Ruoqiang’s research team at the School of Civil Engineering, SEU in 2023 with a Master’s Degree. He said, “I dreamed of going to Antarctica 10 years ago, and it is my great honor to realize my dream and make contributions to my country in the first year after my graduation. Life in Antarctica was full of challenges and wonders. Every day, I learn something new in extreme circumstances. In cooperating with my teammates, I deeply understood the power of unity and faith, as we overcame difficulties together. My past dream keeps inspiring me all the time. I think I will return to Antarctica one day again to continue contributing to China’s polar cause.”
Source: CCTV, School of Civil Engineering
Translated by: Melody Zhang
Edited by: Kong Haoxuan
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