Skip To Content
NSF Logo Search GraphicGuide To Programs GraphicImage Library GraphicSite Map GraphicHelp GraphicPrivacy Policy Graphic
OLPA Header Graphic
 
     
 

NSF Press Release

 

 

NSF Considers Alternatives for Treating Ill South Pole Worker


airplane photo
A Kenn Borek Air Twin Ltd. Twin Otter on the ground
at Rothera Station during the 2002-2003 Antarctic
research season.
Photo Credit: Andy Barker, British Antarctic Survey
Select image for larger version
(Size: 427KB)

Sept. 17, 2003 / 2:30 p.m. Eastern:
A U.S. Air Force C-141 has arrived in Christchurch, N.Z. and will standby to assist, if needed.

The Twin Otters remain at Rothera Station awaiting favorable weather.

For NSF's press release, see: http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/03/pr0397.htm.

View video of the South Pole, April 2001, at http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/03/pr0397_video.htm

NSF media officer: Peter West, (703) 292-7761 / pwest@nsf.gov

Antarctica map

A map of Antarctica with the stations involved in the medical evacuation and the potential flights paths of aircraft. The red line represents flight path of a Twin Otter from Rothera to the South Pole. The blue lines represent the flight path to New Zealand and would be used should the Twin Otter fly instead to McMurdo Station, where a U.S. Air Force C-141 would be waiting to evacuate the patient to New Zealand. Map for informational purposes only and is not to scale.


NSF will not be granting interviews for the duration of the medevac.


For weather at Rothera Station from the British Antarctic Survey, see: http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/Living_and_Working/Stations/ Rothera/Rothera_met.php


For a fact sheet on the U.S. Antarctic Program, see: http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/media/99/fs_usap.htm

 

Previous Updates

Sept 16, 2003 / 12:00 p.m. Eastern:
Twin Otter aircraft are on a 24-hour weather hold at Rothera Station. No additional information is being made public at this time.

Sept. 15, 2003 / 4:35 p.m. Eastern:
Aircraft are in Rothera awaiting favorable weather for a Pole flight.

Sept. 12, 2003 / 5:35 p.m. Eastern:
Aircraft are expected to arrive this weekend at British research station in Antarctica, where they will await the first favorable weather to fly to NSF's Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station to evacuate an ill worker spending the winter there. NSF manages the three U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP) research stations and coordinates all U.S. scientific research and logistics support on the southernmost continent.

-NSF-

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering, with an annual budget of nearly $5.3 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives about 30,000 competitive requests for funding, and makes about 10,000 new funding awards. The NSF also awards over $200 million in professional and service contracts yearly.

Receive official NSF news electronically through the e-mail delivery system, NSFnews. To subscribe, send an e-mail message to join-nsfnews@lists.nsf.gov. In the body of the message, type "subscribe nsfnews" and then type your name. (Ex.: "subscribe nsfnews John Smith")

Useful NSF Web Sites:
NSF Home Page: http://www.nsf.gov
News Highlights: http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa
Newsroom: http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/media/start.htm
Science Statistics: http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/srs/stats.htm
Awards Searches: http://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/a6/A6Start.htm

Attachment: ATTACHMENT_TITLE

ATTACHMENT_NSFNUMBER - ATTACHMENT_DATE

ATTACHMENT_TITLE

CONTENT

-NSF-

 

 
 
     
 

 
National Science Foundation
Office of Legislative and Public Affairs
4201 Wilson Boulevard
Arlington, Virginia 22230, USA
Tel: 703-292-8070
FIRS: 800-877-8339 | TDD: 703-292-5090
 

NSF Logo Graphic