APL Proudly Serves All Seven Continents

McMURDO, Antarctica – APL’s known for its global service linking six continents – Asia, North and South America, Europe, Africa and Australia. But in fact, APL serves one more – Antarctica, on a yearly voyage of the ice-classed vessel American Tern for the US National Science Foundation (NSF).

Since 2002, the 521-foot containership has made a 10-week round trip to the main US scientific research base in the Antarctic town of McMurdo. The community, whose population swells to around 1,200 in the “Austral summer” (the winter months north of the equator), depends on the annual trip for the bulk of its living supplies and equipment for around 150 scientific projects sponsored by NSF.

Up until 2002, the NSF had been using a smaller ice-classed ship for its annual supply run. As its research in Antarctica grew, it needed a larger vessel, and turned to its transportation partner in the US government, the Military Sealift Command (MSC). The MSC contacted APL, which bought the ship to serve NSF. It’s a prime example of the flexibility APL brings to its customers to help them meet unusual needs.

On its Antarctic voyage, the American Tern does more than just take supplies one-way. By international treaty, no waste (other than treated sewage) is to be left on the continent. So on its return trip, the American Tern carries garbage, a year’s worth of food scrapings (frozen and carried in refrigerated containers) and recyclable materials such as scrap metal, which NSF sells to a waste processor.

The ship has also brought back what geologists call “core samples” of soil, rock and ice that scientists study to understand more about the world’s coldest and driest continent. Among other things, the frozen samples taken by drilling deep into Antarctica’s ice layer help scientists learn more about the earth’s climatic changes over time.

The scientific research on Antarctica is a model of international cooperation, with scientific teams from numerous countries studying biology, oceanography, geology, climatology and astrophysics, among many other disciplines. As the seasons change and the researchers at McMurdo prepare for the solid darkness of the Antarctic winter, they’re sustained by everything from food to flashlights delivered aboard the American Tern. And the vessel, escorted by an icebreaker, will again appear over the frozen horizon early next year.