Conquering the Environment

A major selling point to impress the public was emphasis on conquering the harsh environment of the Arctic. Not even the freezing and desolate tundra can stop the US Army from making new discoveries. As stated by National Geographic in 1960, this project was “man’s conquest of the remotest continent.” Almost all reports contain descriptions of the fatal below-zero temperatures and freezing winds that had to be overcome.

Permafrost, permanently frozen ground as hard as concrete, was one of the toughest natural challenges to overcome during construction. It was pegged the "archenemy of construction". And then, it had the bad habit of melting when arm buildings were constructed above the permafrost.

Insulated bunkrooms in the tunnels were kept warm and cozy with heat from the nuclear reactor despite being buried in a big hunk of ice. Workers had everything they needed from recreation to first aid and had no need to leave the tunnels (which we now know was not the best idea).

Scientists used these lines marked on the walls of the trenches to measure the rate and direction of snow deformation caused by the constant flow of the ice sheet. This eventually became the reason why the camps were abandoned after only a few years.

Temperatures could drop to -60 degrees while winds could reach 125 miles per hour.

What better way to use a natural freezer (snow blocking the bunkroom door) than to keep drinks cold?

Bare skin could freeze solid after only a few minutes exposed to the outside on the ice sheet.

This emergency shelter has ropes leading toward it to help people to find it during a storm.

Buildings in the tunnels had to be elevated on wooden foundations to avoid melting the underlying ice and snow - which would have caused sinking.

Men always had to keep an eye out for deep crevasses in the ice sheet that were often hidden by snow and made movement across the ice dangerous.

The days-long trip by heavy swing (trains of large snow tractors) was one of the only ways to reach the camps from the coast. This photo shows a heavy swing stopped on the icecap mid-journey after hearing of an upcoming blizzard.

This photo shows that same swing after the storm buried in snow.