“The man's pants zipper broke, but he fixed it on the fly.”
Atomic power in AntarcticaIn 1962, the Atomic Energy Commission announced that the first atomic power plant in Antarctica, the PM-3A, Naval Nuclear Power Unit, was in operation at McMurdo Sound. Between 1 Jan and 1 Mar 1962, the prefabricated plant was assembled on Observation Hill by a team of contractors and military technicians. This source of power was initially chosen when engineers realized that a fission power plant could operate for years without new fuel. In 1970, management and funding of all Antarctic operations was consolidated by President Nixon under the National Science Foundation. The NSF was to take over the funding of PM-3A as of 1 Jul 1972, but it was decommissioned that year, and replaced with a diesel electricity generator. |
