Bharati is a permanent

Antarctic The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...

research station commissioned by

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. 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 The Larsemann Hills are a series of low rounded coastal hills along the southeastern shore of Prydz Bay, Antarctica extending for from Dålk Glacier. They were discovered in February 1935 by Captain Klarius Mikkelsen from the whaling ship ''Tho ...

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. Since its completion, India has become one of nine nations to have multiple stations within the

Antarctic Circle The Antarctic Circle is the most southerly of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of Earth. The region south of this circle is known as the Antarctic, and the zone immediately to the north is called the Southern Temperate Zone. S ...

. 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 referred to the station as "Bharathi", "Bharti""Bharti to be 3rd Indian station in Antarctica"
''The Times of India'', 6 August 2009 and "Bharati".

Facilities

The project for setting up of the ground was undertaken by the

Electronics Corporation of India Limited Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) ( ईलेक्ट्रॉनिक्स कॉर्पोरेशन ऑफ ईन्डिया लिमिटेड ( ) ) is a Public Sector Enterprise under the Department of Atomic ...

(ECIL) from the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) for a contract value of . The station building, with a floor area of , was constructed in 127 days. 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. 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 The National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research, (NCPOR) formerly known as the National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR) is an Indian research and development institution, situated in Vasco da Gama, Goa. It is an autonomous Insti ...

(NCPOR). Among others, research on tectonics and geological structures would be undertaken at Bharati Station by Indian scientists. 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.

Discoveries and achievements

In January 2017, Felix Bast, one of the scientists on the 36th Indian expedition to the Antarctic, discovered a new

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...

species at

, near the Bharati research station, and named it '' Bryum bharatiensis''.

Jantar Mantar, Jaipur The Jantar Mantar, Jaipur is a collection of 19 astronomical instruments built by the Rajput king Sawai Jai Singh II, the founder of Jaipur, Rajasthan. The monument was completed in 1734.National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research The National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research, (NCPOR) formerly known as the National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR) is an Indian research and development institution, situated in Vasco da Gama, Goa. It is an autonomous Insti ...

* Siachen Base Camp (India) *

List of Antarctic field camps Many Antarctic research stations support satellite field camps which are, in general, seasonal camps. The type of field camp can vary – some are permanent structures used during the annual Antarctic summer, whereas others are little more than te ...

* List of Antarctic research stations *

List of highest astronomical observatories This is a list of the highest astronomical observatories in the world, considering only ground-based observatories and ordered by elevation above mean sea level. The main list includes only permanent observatories with facilities constructed at ...

References

External links

National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research
Outposts of Antarctica Indian Antarctic Programme Antarctic research Research in India 2012 establishments in Antarctica {{Antarctica-stub

Facilities

Discoveries and achievements

See also

References

External links