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Bharati is a permanent Antarctic research station commissioned by India. It is India's third Antarctic research facility and one of two active Indian research stations, alongside Maitri. India's first committed research facility, Dakshin Gangotri, is being used as a supply base. India has demarcated an area beside Larsemann Hills at 69°S, 76°E for construction. The research station has been operational since 18 March 2012, though it is still being run on trial basis and formal launch is awaited.[2][3] Since its completion, India has become one of nine nations to have multiple stations within the Antarctic Circle. Bharati's research mandate focuses on oceanographic studies and the phenomenon of continental breakup. It also facilitates research to refine the current understanding of the Indian subcontinent's geological history. News sources have also referred to the station as "Bharathi",[4] "Bharti"[5] and "Bharati".[6][7]

Bharati Station
Antarctic Research Station
Bharati Station Location of Bharati Station in Antarctica
Coordinates: 69°24′29″S 76°11′14″E
Country	India
Location in Antarctica	Larsemann Hills Prydz Bay
Administered by	National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research
Established	18 March 2012 (2012-03-18)
Population
• Total	47 summer up to: 72
Type	All-year round
Period	Annual
Status	Operational
Website	National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research

Bharati Heliport
IATA: none ICAO: none
Summary
Airport type	Private
Owner/Operator	National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research
Location	Bharati Station Larsemann Hills
Coordinates	69°24′24″S 76°11′36″E
Map
Bharati Heliport Location of airfield in Antarctica
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m Concrete
[1]

Facilities

The project for setting up of the ground was undertaken by the Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) from the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) for a contract value of ₹230 crore (US$29 million).[8] The station building, with a floor area of 2,162 square metres (23,270 sq ft), was constructed in 127 days.[9] The station can host a total of 72 personnel, 47 in the main building all year round and an additional 25 in shelters during summer. The main station building is supported by a fuel farm and station, sea water pump and a summer camp.[10]

High-speed satellite raw data would be beamed in real time from Bharati Station to NRSC in Hyderabad for processing the images once the project starts functioning.

In 2007, ECIL also established the communication link between Maitri, the second Indian research station in Antarctica and National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR). Among others, research on tectonics and geological structures would be undertaken at Bharati Station by Indian scientists.[11] India also became the first nation to use the shipping containers as integral part of construction and hence constructing its base in record time and money.[12]

Discoveries and achievements

In January 2017, Felix Bast, one of the scientists on the 36th Indian expedition to the Antarctic, discovered a new moss species at Larsemann Hills, near the Bharati research station, and named it Bryum bharatiensis.[13]

See also

• Dakshin Gangotri First Indian station 1983, converted to support base
• Maitri Second Indian station 1989
• Defence Research and Development Organisation
• Defence Institute of High Altitude Research
• Indian Antarctic Program
• Indian Astronomical Observatory
• Jantar Mantar, Jaipur
• National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research
• Siachen Base Camp (India)
• List of Antarctic field camps
• List of Antarctic research stations
• List of highest astronomical observatories

References

External links

• National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research

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