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Showa 昭和基地
Antarctic base
Shōwa Kichi
Aerial photograph of Showa Station, December 2018.
ShowaLocation of Showa Station in Antarctica
Coordinates: 69°00′15″S 39°34′55″E / 69.004122°S 39.581836°E / -69.004122; 39.581836
Country	Japan
Location in Antarctica	East Ongul Island Queen Maud Land Antarctica
Administered by	Japanese Antarctic Program
Established	1957 (1957)
Elevation	29 m (95 ft)
Population
• Summer	170
• Winter	40
Time zone	UTC+3 (SYOT)
UN/LOCODE	AQ SYW
Type	All-year round
Period	Annual
Status	Operational
Activities	PANSY incoherent scatter radar
Facilities	60 separate buildings
Website	National Institute of Polar Research

Showa Station (Japanese: 昭和基地, Hepburn: Shōwa Kichi), sometimes alternately spelled Syowa Station, is a Japanese permanent research station on East Ongul Island in Queen Maud Land, Antarctica. Built in 1957, Showa Station is named for the era in the Japanese calendar during which it was established, the Shōwa period.

Overview

Showa Station serves as a research outpost for astronomy, meteorology, biology and earth sciences. It comprises over 60 separate buildings, large and small, including a 3-storey administration building, living quarters, power plant, sewage treatment facility, environmental science building, observatory, data processing facility, satellite building, ionospheric station, incinerator, earth science building, and radiosonde station. Also present are fuel tanks, water storage, solar panels, a heliport, water retention dam, and radio transmitter.

PANSY Incoherent Scatter Radar

Showa station is home to the Program of the Antarctic Syowa Mesosphere–Stratosphere–Troposphere/Incoherent Scatter (PANSY) incoherent scatter radar, which took its first measurements in 2017.

Legacy

1957 Expedition

The station was founded by the inaugural Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition in 1957. This expedition was airlifted out after a storm (by a nearby American ship that had a helicopter). However there was no space for the dogs to get on. The storm made deploying the second team impossible in February 1958. In January 1959, the third team returned to the station and found that, of the 15 sled dogs that had been left by the first team at the base, two, Taro and Jiro, had survived.

Historic monument

A cairn and plaque at the station commemorate Shin Fukushima, a member of the 4th Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition, who died in October 1960 while carrying out his duties. The cairn, which contains some of his ashes, was erected on 11 January 1961 by his colleagues. It has been designated a Historic Site or Monument (HSM 2) following a proposal by Japan to the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting.

In popular culture

• Showa Station is the Antarctic destination of the protagonists of A Place Further than the Universe, a 2018 Japanese anime series.
• The monster Ghidorah is located on the base - called "Outpost 32" - in the 2019 film Godzilla: King of the Monsters
• Showa Station is depicted in the 1983 film Antarctica.

Climate

The climate is classified as an Ice cap climate (Köppen: EF), since there are no months where the average temperature exceeds 0.0 °C (32.0 °F).

See also

Showa
IATA: none ICAO: AT25
Summary
Airport type	Private
Serves	Syowa
Location	East Ongul Island
Time zone	(+3)
Elevation AMSL	95 ft / 29 m
Coordinates	69°00′22″S 39°35′24″E / 69.006167°S 39.590000°E / -69.006167; 39.590000
Map
ShowaLocation of airfield in Antarctica
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 17/35 3,274 998 Snow

• List of Antarctic research stations
• List of Antarctic field camps
• List of airports in Antarctica
• Asuka Station
• Dome Fuji Station
• Mizuho Station
• Antarctica (1983 film)
• A Place Further than the Universe

References

1. ^ Antarctic Station Catalogue (PDF) (catalogue). Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs. August 2017. p. 89. ISBN 978-0-473-40409-3. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 22, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
2. "Showa Station (Syowa Station), East Ongul Island, Lützow-Holm Bay, Queen Maud Land (Dronning Maud Land), Eastern Antarctica, Antarctica". mindat.org. Retrieved June 29, 2007.
3. Hashimoto, Taishi (September 2019). "PANSY Radar at Syowa Station, Antarctic". Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology. 36 (9). American Meteorological Society: 1881–1888. doi:10.1175/JTECH-D-18-0175.1. S2CID 199683788. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
4. "List of Historic Sites and Monuments approved by the ATCM (2012)" (PDF). Antarctic Treaty Secretariat. 2012. Retrieved October 24, 2013.
5. 気象庁 / 平年値（年・月ごとの値）. Japan Meteorological Agency. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
6. "Showa Skiway". Airport Nav Finder. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

External links

• Official website National Institute of Polar Research
• Syowa Base Now!! (Japanese only)
• OpenStreetMap
• COMNAP Antarctic Facilities
• COMNAP Antarctic Facilities Map
• Showa Research Station Amateur Radio Station 8J1RL

• Earth sciences
• Geography
• Japan

v t e Antarctica
Geography	Antarctic sea ice Climate Climate change Heat waves Ice shelves Geology Glaciers Mountains Tundra Volcanoes Regions Biogeographic realm Antarctic Peninsula East Antarctica ice sheet shield Extreme points Floristic Kingdom Islands South Pole South magnetic pole West Antarctica ice sheet Bodies of Water Antarctic/Southern Ocean Lake CECs Lake Mercer Lake Vostok List of rivers McMurdo Sound Ross Sea Weddell Sea Life Flora Microorganisms Wildlife Birds Mammals Krill
History	Expeditions Heroic Age World War II Colonization COVID-19 pandemic Years
Politics	Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs Military activity National programs Territorial claims Treaty System
Society	Antarctica Day Antarctic English Crime Demographics Economy Field camps Firefighting Flags Gateway cities Midwinter Day Protected areas Religion Research stations Telecommunications Time Tourism Transport Women
Famous explorers	Roald Amundsen Richard E. Byrd Douglas Mawson Ui-te-Rangiora (legendary) James Clark Ross Robert Falcon Scott Ernest Shackleton
Category Commons Index

• Outposts of Antarctica
• Outposts of Queen Maud Land
• Japanese Antarctic Program
• Buildings and structures completed in 1957
• Prince Harald Coast
• 1957 establishments in Antarctica
• Historic Sites and Monuments of Antarctica