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Summit Camp, also known as Summit Station, is a year-round staffed research station near the apex of the Greenland ice sheet. The station is located at 3,216 metres (10,551 ft) above sea level.

The population of the station is typically five in wintertime and reaches a maximum of 38 in the summer. The station is operated by the United States National Science Foundation through the logistical-support contractor Battelle Arctic Research Operations (Battelle ARO). A permit from the Danish Polar Center (Danish: Dansk Polarcenter) under the auspices of the Government of Greenland (Greenlandic: Kalaallit Nunaanni Inatsisartut) is required to visit the station.

Geography

The station is located approximately 360 km (220 mi) from the east coast of Greenland, 500 km (310 mi) from the west coast (at Saattut, Uummannaq), and 200 km (120 mi) north-northeast of the historical ice sheet station Eismitte. The closest town is Ittoqqortoormiit, 460 km (290 mi) east-southeast of the station. The station, however, is not part of the Sermersooq municipality but falls within the bounds of the Northeast Greenland National Park.

Summit Station consists of the Big House (communications and galley), Mobile Science Facility, Temporary Atmospheric Watch Observatory, Berthing Module, a combined garage and generator building, and storage buildings.

The surface elevation at Summit Station has increased at an average of 1.9 cm (0.75 in) per year over the period 2008–2018. Accumulation is the single largest factor in elevation change.

History

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Summit Station was originally established in April 1989 in support of the Greenland Ice Sheet Project Two (GISP2) deep ice coring effort. A ski-equipped C-130 from the New York Air National Guard performed an open snow landing near the site, bringing the put-in team consisting of Mark Twickler, Jay Klink, Michael Morrison, and two navigation specialists; Doug Roberts and Jim Normandeau who located the exact location chosen for the GISP2 drilling site, established a camp, and laid out the runway. Subsequent flights brought in additional materials and personnel needed to build the station.

Two major structures were planned and built: The Big House, an insulated panel building (housing a galley, common space, and office), elevated to minimize snow drifts; and a geodesic drill dome to house the deep drill. Extensive under-snow trenches were also constructed to house the core handling, processing, and storage facilities. Many smaller Weatherport hut buildings and tents were also erected as storage and shop areas, as well as sleeping quarters. These were erected and taken down each season. On July 1, 1993, the bedrock was reached. Originally only occupied in the summer, the station has been staffed year-round since 2003, with a winter population of four to five.

The Greenland Telescope is yet to be relocated here, though preparations are still underway.

Climate

The climate is classified as ice cap, with no month having a mean temperature exceeding 0 °C (32 °F). Typical daily maximum temperatures at Summit Camp are around −35 °C (−31 °F) in winter (January) and −10 °C (14 °F) in summer (July). Winter minimum temperatures are typically about −45 °C (−49 °F) and only rarely exceed −20 °C (−4 °F). The highest temperature at Summit Station was 2.2 °C (36.0 °F), recorded on 13 July 2012 and on 28 July 2017; the lowest recorded temperature was −69.6 °C (−93.3 °F) on 22 December 1991, On 6 July 2017 the site recorded the lowest temperature in the northern hemisphere for the month of July at −33.0 °C (−27.4 °F). On August 14, 2021, it rained throughout the entire day at Summit Camp, marking the first time since record-keeping began (1989) that precipitation had fallen in liquid form at Greenland's glacial summit.

Transport

During the summer months, the station is accessed via Kangerlussuaq Airport with LC-130 Hercules aircraft which land on a 4,572 by 60 m (15,000 by 197 ft) snow runway, which is prepared and regularly groomed for ski-equipped aircraft. Winter access is infrequent, using smaller, ski-equipped aircraft such as Twin Otter flown by Kenn Borek Air.

72°34′46.50″N 38°27′33.07″W / 72.5795833°N 38.4591861°W / 72.5795833; -38.4591861

See also

• List of research stations in the Arctic
• NEEM Camp
• Camp Century
• Eismitte
• North Ice
• List of mountains in Greenland

References

1. UNAVCO Archived 2008-08-28 at the Wayback Machine, UNAVCO Summit Station GPS Base Station
2. Summit Camp
3. ^ Arctic Logistics Information And Support (ALIAS) Archived 2008-07-06 at the Wayback Machine
4. "Battelle Arctic Gateway". Battelle Arctic Gateway. December 5, 2020. Retrieved December 5, 2020.
5. Summit Camp virtual tour
6. Hawley, Robert L.; Neumann, Thomas A.; Stevens, C. Max; Brunt, Kelly M.; Sutterley, Tyler C. (October 29, 2020). "Greenland Ice Sheet Elevation Change: Direct Observation of Process and Attribution at Summit". Geophysical Research Letters. 47 (22). doi:10.1029/2020GL088864. S2CID 228968340.
7. "Summit Station". GEOSummit. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
8. ^ "Vejrekstremer Grønland". Danish Meteorological Institute (in Danish).
9. Extreme Temperatures - "Extreme Temperatures Around the World". Retrieved January 15, 2013.
10. Date of maximum temperature - "Record warmth at the top of the Greenland Ice Sheet". Weather Underground: Dr. Jeff Masters' Wunderblog. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
11. Patel, Kasha (August 19, 2021). "Rain falls at the summit of Greenland Ice Sheet for first time on record". Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 19, 2021. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
12. "Climatological Standard Normals 1991-2020 – Greenland" (PDF). Danish Meteorological Institute. Retrieved March 7, 2024.
13. Shuman, Christopher A.; Steffen, Konrad; Box, Jason E.; Stearns, Charles R. (2001). "A Dozen Years of Temperature Observations at the Summit: Central Greenland Automatic Weather Stations 1987–99". Journal of Applied Meteorology. 40 (4). American Meteorological Society: 741–752. doi:10.1175/1520-0450(2001)040<0741:adyoto>2.0.co;2. hdl:11603/24315. ISSN 0894-8763.
14. "ESRL". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
15. A, Kenn Borek Air Ltd IATA ID: 4K ICAO ID: KBA Suite; Calgary, 808-55th Ave NE. "Kenn Borek Air". borekair.com. Retrieved November 25, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

External links

• Exploration history of northern East Greenland
• Webcam of Summit Camp
• Summit Camp Homepage
• CH2M HILL Polar Services Homepage for Summit Station
• Weather data of Summit Camp
• Documenting 2013 journey to Summit Station
• ESRL Global Monitoring Division - Summit Observatory
• WeatherPort Shelter Systems

• Research stations in Greenland