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Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, Antarctica
South Pole is a very interesting place for UV measurements due to the annually recurring "ozone hole", stable meteorological conditions, frequent cloud-less days, constant high surface albedo, little aerosol influence, negligible air pollution, and virtually no diurnal change of SZA. In addition, important parameters for interpreting the measurements, such as total column ozone and the atmospheric ozone profile, are available from measurements of NOAA’s Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory installations at ARO.
The instrument is operated by research associates from Raytheon Polar Services under contract to NSF. Data download is performed via the Internet and limited only by satellite availability.
Solar Angles (Angles above the Horizon) at South Pole
Obstructions in the SUV's Field-of-View
Instrument Performance
For More Information
Latitude:
90°00' S
Elevation:
2841 m
Date Installed:
February 1988
Normal Season:
September - March
Instrumentation:
SUV-100, GUV-541, PSP, TUVR
The South Pole system is installed at the top of the Atmospheric Research Observatory (ARO, see photo) at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, located at the geographic South Pole. The South Pole is accessible by airplane between November and February only. The system operates in one of the harshest environments on Earth with average temperatures of -49°C.
The system was originally installed at South Pole's Clean Air Facility (CAF). Prior to 1991, the instrument could only be accessed from the outside. In January 1991, the instrument was relocated to an enclosure on top of CAF allowing access from within the laboratory. In January 1997, the system was again relocated to a specially constructed "penthouse" room in the ARO. The photo shows the top of the instrument at ARO with the main South Pole station in the background.
(Bearing relative to grid North, elevation)
Prior to the facility upgrade in 1991, the instrument was only successfully operated on an occasional basis.
For other South Pole UV radiation, stratospheric ozone, and atmospheric trace gas information, visit the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory (CMDL):
