7 Unwritten Rules Every Antarctic Winter Crew Must Follow to Survive 8 Months Locked in the Dark

When the last plane leaves the South Pole in February, about forty-five people stay behind for eight and a half months of isolation, six of them in total darkness. These are the seven rules nobody prints in the handbook, from red flashlights and two-minute showers to the horror movie they watch on the first night. And the strange club with 300 in its name. Sources: National Science Foundation / U.S. Antarctic Program, Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station overview and The Antarctic Sun (winter crew size, isolation period) NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory, South Pole Observatory overview IceCube / WIPAC "Week at the Pole" posts (The Thing tradition, covered windows and red lights in the Dark Sector, midwinter) IceCube South Pole weather records (record low -117.0 °F, June 23, 1982) NSF report on the U.S. Antarctic Program (aircraft limits in extreme cold, late 1990s) CNN, CBS News and Associated Press coverage of the 2001 and 2016 winter medical evacuations; reporting on Dr. Jerri Nielsen, 1999 brr.fyi South Pole winter blog, 2023 (showers, Rodwell, red lighting, last egg) Winter-over syndrome / polar T3 syndrome research summaries USAP news: Robert Schwarz winter-over record (14 winters) Leidos South Pole job postings (posted pay ranges)