The participants were required to create a housing project for truly extreme conditions: the wind strength there reaches 40 m / s, and the temperature drops below -40 degrees Celsius. It should be borne in mind that the glacier is moving towards the ocean at a speed of 400 m / year, so it may split directly under the station, especially during the next decade. In addition, the new station should not have any significant impact on the ecological situation in the region.
Faber Maunsell engineers have built more stations and other structures in Antarctica than any other bureau. Their proposal, co-developed with Hugh Broughton Architects, is a structure with runners to facilitate transportation.
Francis Design bureau specializes in shipbuilding.
The team, led by Ian Liddell (Buro Happold) and Alex Lifschutz (Lifschutz Davidson), used the latest scientific data in their project and minimized the impact on the environment.
Also participating in the competition were the teams of Hopkins Architects and Expedition Engineers, Make Places and Arup, as well as Richard Rogers' bureau, which combined elements of a train, a cargo plane, an igloo, a cargo ship and even a penguin in its project.
The exhibition of competition projects at RIBA's London headquarters will run until January 8, 2005.
UPD 2005-18-07: the competition was won by Faber Maunsell and Hugh Broughton Architects.
