Argentina: Football greetings from the ice

During our winter in the northern hemisphere, the world looks very different in the southern hemisphere: All available ice-capable naval vessels visit and supply the many national and international research stations in the distant Antarctic. Personnel and equipment are exchanged, or food is stored for the coming winter months. Major repairs or construction work can also only be carried out during this time, after which it will be another icy night south of the Arctic Circle.

Antarctic supply

The "Almirante Irízar", the Argentinian Navy's 15,000-tonne and now 45-year-old ice supply vessel, has now arrived at the southern tip of the Weddell Sea, its southernmost point of this year's Antarctic campaign. Argentina's southernmost permanently manned station, "Base Belgrano II", named after General Manuel Belgrano, a national freedom fighter and founder of the Argentine flag, is located 15 kilometres inland from the ice at Vahsel Bay.

Greetings from the freezer compartment

Almost two months after the World Cup in Qatar, the crew of the "Almirante Irízar" sent their congratulations to the football team and the nation. All the men and women on the ship lined up on the ice in the shape of the three stars - for the third title they had brought home. When the ship had to stop at the gigantic sheet of ice anyway to find the best route along the relatively ice-free channel between the edge and the mainland (Coats Land) using a drone, the opportunity was quickly taken to create a special kind of greeting to the "Albiceleste" - the "white and sky blue" (national colours).

Tradition

This gesture by the icebreaker has become a tradition - and not always a pleasant one: In winter 2017/18, the salute went to the submarine S-42 "San Juan", which was lost with 44 crew members around 3,000 kilometres further north and was later found imploded 800 metres deep on the shelf edge. The crew of the "Almirante Irízar" stood on the ice as the number 44.

Argentine submarine "San Juan", sunk 15 November 2017 Photo: Armada Argentina