WIRELESS BLANKS IN ANTARCTIC

Press, Volume XCIV, Issue 28130, 20 November 1956, Page 3

WIRELESS BLANKS IN ANTARCTIC

Delay To Building Of Polar Base

(From BRIAN O'NEILL, "The Press" w ith the Unitea States Navy Task Force 43 in the Antarctic] McMURDO SOUND, Nov. 18 lhe projected landing ot men and equipment for the construction of a scientific base at the South Pole this week was delayed by a combination of rough weather and radio blackout. The blackout now appears to be lifting and it weather forecasts are good the Pole landing—the second in history—may place on Monday morning. The blackout lasted nearly four days and virtuallv cut off the American base in McMurdo Sound from the outside world.

.N°t GVen the Little America base 400 miles to the east on the Ross Ice Shelf could be reached by radio direct. Vital aircraft mapping and weather reconnaissance missions were held up because communications could not be relied on. A Globemaster transport from Christchurch to McMurdo Sound was not picked up Ur it was 75 miles off the icestrip. The blackout was a freak phenomenon which has been experienced in similar degree twice during the winter just past. The complete and uncanny silence on all radio bands has been put down to solar flares which have created ionospheric disturbances. Traffic Delayed

Important Navy task force traffic has been delayed on an average two days, with some communications running three days behind. Press traffic has piled up three days behind. The Navy communications centre has managed -to break through the silence barrier on two or three occasions, and ton priority traffic has been slipped through before the barrier has closed up again. At one stage McMurdo Sound was reaching Washington and Balboa, in the Panama Canal Zone, where stations were sending back signals on the same frequency to be picked up by the Little America Base. Although planes have been able to work on high frequency and ultra high frequency radio (which operate only on “line of sight’’) dead spots in much terrain have made flying risky with possible emergencies always looming. Weather planes have not been able to send back information which would be of use to the airdrop group. In the last two days a big blizzard has swept in from the polar plateau towards McMurdo Sound. When it hit the Liv glacier it blew down all the radio antennas at the landing strip there. Seven men are manning the Liv strip 345 miles from the South Pole to give support with fuel and emergency supplies to aircraft staging back to McMurdo Sound. Aid From N.Z. Signal Corps One of the busiest men in the communications shack at Williams Air Operating Facility (McMurdo Sound), this week has been Captain Ronald Chambler, Royal New Zealand Army Signals Corps, of Christchurch. Captain Chambler flew into Williams at the beginning of the week with equipment lent by the army to the United States Navy task force. The big receiver and the 350 watt transmitter he brought with him were damaged on the way and had to be repaired before they could be set up for use.

The equipment came into use for the first time on Saturday afternoon a few hours after the blackout started lifting. and has been instrumental in relieving much of the communications backlog.

“Captain Chambler was in there clear to hear all the time.” said Commander Charles Snay. U.S.N.. with his hand to his eyebrows. Commander Snay is staff communications officer in the task force. “Captain Chambler really came to the rescue.” he said.