Email Print Share

News Release 13-202

Prince Henry, Walking With The Wounded trekkers, arrive at NSF's Amundsen-Scott Pole Station

Participants given tour of station and science before departing on private flight

Members of Walking with the Wounded on a tour of Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station

His Royal Highness Prince Henry of Wales (center) on a tour of NSF's South Pole Station


December 16, 2013

This material is available primarily for archival purposes. Telephone numbers or other contact information may be out of date; please see current contact information at media contacts.

Raising awareness and funding to assist wounded service members, participants in an international, charitable trek across Antarctica arrived at the National Science Foundation's Amundsen-Scott South Pole station over the weekend.

Three teams of seven participants each--representing the United Kingdom, the United States and the Commonwealth, which consists of several countries long affiliated with the British Empire--took part in the Walking With the Wounded charity event.

One well-known participant was His Royal Highness Prince Henry of Wales, more widely known as "Prince Harry," fourth in line to the British throne and a British Army veteran.

The teams arrived on Dec. 13 local time. U.S. stations in Antarctica keep New Zealand time.

Walking With The Wounded is a U.K.-based, non-governmental charity that funds both the re-training and re-education of wounded servicemen and women to help them find long term employment after leaving the armed forces. The group, according to its website, stages "extreme expeditions to illustrate the extraordinary determination and courage of our injured, using this platform to draw attention to the need to help in their career transition and to raise significant funds for charity."

Upon their arrival at South Pole Station, expedition members were welcomed by U.S. Antarctic Program personnel on site with a tour of the station dedicated to science.

Shortly after their tours, the expedition members departed on aircraft charted by their organization.

The South Pole is home to large-scale scientific experiments and detectors, including the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the South Pole Telescope, both of which were recognized for their groundbreaking contributions to physics this week by Physics World magazine.

NSF, through its Division of Polar Programs, runs Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station in its role as manager of the U.S. Antarctic Program, through which it coordinates all U.S. science on the southernmost continent and aboard ships in the Southern Ocean as well as the logistics need to support the science.

-NSF-

Media Contacts
Peter West, NSF, (703) 292-7530, email: pwest@nsf.gov

The U.S. National Science Foundation propels the nation forward by advancing fundamental research in all fields of science and engineering. NSF supports research and people by providing facilities, instruments and funding to support their ingenuity and sustain the U.S. as a global leader in research and innovation. With a fiscal year 2023 budget of $9.5 billion, NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives more than 40,000 competitive proposals and makes about 11,000 new awards. Those awards include support for cooperative research with industry, Arctic and Antarctic research and operations, and U.S. participation in international scientific efforts.

mail icon Get News Updates by Email 

Connect with us online
NSF website: nsf.gov
NSF News: nsf.gov/news
For News Media: nsf.gov/news/newsroom
Statistics: nsf.gov/statistics/
Awards database: nsf.gov/awardsearch/

Follow us on social
Twitter: twitter.com/NSF
Facebook: facebook.com/US.NSF
Instagram: instagram.com/nsfgov