There's a research base in Antarctica that sits on skis and lifts itself up so that it doesn't get buried in snow
Antarctica is no place for humans, but the Halley VI Research Station provides stylish, space-age shelter for British scientists to study and endure the frosty south.
These mini AT-ATs, which were designed by the U.K. firm Hugh Broughton Architects, serve as a base for the British Antarctic Survey.
Halley VI opened in 2013, and it provides scientific equipment and living space for researchers as they study the ozone, global atmospheric conditions, and space weather. During the summer, which lasts from late December to early May, 70 staffers are stationed there. Only 16 people are on-base during the long, dark Antarctic winter.
The eight modules sit on hydraulic legs, allowing them to rise off the ground to escape being buried in accumulating snow. The whole station is mobile, and each section sits on skis allowing it to be dragged to a new location.
It's a good thing they're mobile, because there's a massive crack in the ice shelf that Halley VI sits on. While past stations would be left to float out to sea, the BAS will send bulldozers down to carefully drag the modules to a safe location on the other side of the growing crack.
The plan is very complex and not without its downsides. The route needs to be carefully planned to avoid even the slightest of inclines, and the new site will likely be further from the coast where they drop off supplies. If all goes according to plan, the Halley VI station will be relocated in a year, where they'll observe auroras under a different part of the Antarctic sky.