Client: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, C.R.R.E.L.
Description: Remote regions survey projects

During the Austral Spring of 1990 and 1991, Civil Geometrics predecessor company (Geometric Development Corporation) was retained to perform a number of challenging survey projects at the world's southernmost research facility, the United States' Amundsen/Scott station at the South Pole. Primary among these was a project to salvage the structural integrity of the geodesic dome that houses scientific teams during the long Antarctic winter.

Founded on 9,000 feet of ice, differential settlement was taking a toll on this structure. Our task was to determine the actual shape of the structure and to relieve the strain on its members by restoring the original geometric relationship of its 70 base nodes. In a climate where minus 100 wind chill temperatures are the norm, our challenges were perhaps more physical than technical although the decision to settle for a co-planer condition rather than a level one added some technical interest. With the analysis complete, we made the necessary adjustments, adding years to the life of this well-known Antarctic landmark.

Other projects included the creation of the first detailed map of facilities at Amundsen/Scott Station and the mapping and data analysis for a potential "blue ice runway" at Mt. Howe, about 160 miles from the pole.