Progress Station

Progress Station
Прогресс
Central building of Progress Station in summer 2007
Central building of Progress Station in summer 2007
Location of Progress Station in Antarctica
Location of Progress Station in Antarctica
Progress Station
Location of Progress Station in Antarctica
Coordinates: 69°22′51″S 76°23′25″E / 69.380833°S 76.390278°E / -69.380833; 76.390278
Country Soviet Union
 Russia
Location in AntarcticaLarsemann Hills
Antarctica
Administered byArctic and Antarctic Research Institute
Established1 April 1988 (1988-04-01)
Elevation15 m (49 ft)
Population
 (2017)[1]
 • Summer
50
 • Winter
25
UN/LOCODEAQ PRO
TypeAll-year round
PeriodAnnual
StatusOperational
Activities
List
  • Geology
  • Geodosy
  • Geophysics
  • Glaciology
  • Marine biology
Websitewww.aari.nw.ru

Progress (Russian: Прогресс) is a Russian (formerly Soviet) research station in Antarctica. It is located at the Larsemann Hills antarctic oasis on the shore of Prydz Bay.

The station was established by the 33rd Soviet Antarctic Expedition[2] on April 1, 1988, and was moved to another place on February 26, 1989[3] In 2000, work was temporarily halted but it reopened in 2003.

A landing field is located close to the station for air connection with other stations. From 1998 to 2001 works were performed to transfer transportation operations to Progress from the Mirny Station and make it the main support base for Vostok station.

In 2004, work began on a year-round facility at the station. On October 4, 2008, a fire broke out at the construction site resulting in the death of a construction worker and two serious injuries. The fire resulted in the complete loss of the new structure, as well as damage to the station's communications and scientific equipment.[4]

In 2013, the construction of a new wintering complex was completed. It is a residential unit with a sauna and gym, rooms for meteorologists and radio operators, a medical care unit which doubles as a regional hospital, and its own galley.[5]

In 2022, the wintering complex was modernized and enlarged. An additional adjacent airfield, complementing the pre-existing Progress Skiway and called Zenit after the St. Petersburg football club, was built from scratch and features a runway of 3,000 meters length and 100 meters width, which is also able to accommodate larger planes such as the Ilyushin IL-76.[6]

  1. ^ a b Antarctic Station Catalogue (PDF) (catalogue). Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs. August 2017. p. 121. ISBN 978-0-473-40409-3. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 October 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  2. ^ (in Russian) Kapustin Arctica-Antarctica philatelia
  3. ^ (in Russian) Progress Station at AARI website
  4. ^ Sudhir Khandelwal (11 October 2008). "FIRE ACCIDENT AT PROGRESS, THE RUSSIAN ANTARCTIC STATION". Retrieved 2008-10-18.
  5. ^ "Новый зимовочный комплекс в Антарктиде: "курорт" среди вечной мерзлоты".
  6. ^ "New Russian runway in Antarctica starts receiving aircraft". Interfax. November 11, 2022. Archived from the original on November 11, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2022.