The Secret Base Greenland Base of Project Iceworm

this is the story of camp century the city under ice it was in May 1959 after more than a year of preparation that a small party of Army engineers conducted the final search to select a site for camp century listen now to the voice of Captain Tom Evans the young officer who was in charge of the construction of the camp this was the day we really got underway colonel triggering commanding officer of the United States Army Polar Research & Development Center was with me when we made the final reconnaissance we needed a flat surface 11 with less than one degree of slope this would minimize construction problems by enabling us to keep all of our tunnels on the same level we finally picked this plateau a smooth white plain of ice for as far as you could see this was the closest location to tule our supply base which would not be affected by the summer thaw that first day we set out flags marking the boundaries of the camp this is rugged country nothing lived on the icecap not even seal or caribou survived in this climate our job was to cross 150 miles of ice much of it split by crevasses and then build a city under the ice experimenting with new concepts of polar construction it was several weeks later at a point where the icecap sloped down to a narrow strip of barren land along the coast but our supplies began rolling in by truck for transfer to sleds to make this transfer possible we'd had to build a three-mile road up onto the edge of the ice cap we brought in everything this way construction materials steel arches clothing nails steel beams prefabricated houses lumber food even ice cream in the months it took to build camp century more than six thousand tons of supplies were used even the vehicles we used at the site had to be transported over the ice on Big Bob sleds we call these convoys of 10 and 20 ton sleds heavy swings crawling up the ice capita proximately 2 miles an hour a heavy swing would reach the cab in about 70 hours if everything went well we use wooden caboose like trailers warnig ins to house members of the construction crews for the three-day trip mukluks 3-month old Eskimo sled dog went along as camp mascot strictly against regulation caterpillar tractors with extra wide treads pulled the heavy swing each tractor could pull from fifty to a hundred tons finally like a wagon train in the Old West the first heavy swing got underway at the same time we used another type of smaller vehicle to transport an advance party these polecats would average 10 miles an hour and make the trip a little more than half a day a convoy of polecats each section carrying six men was called a light swing we also use light aircraft throughout the operation these flights brought in key personnel special cargos and mail we couldn't forget anything this wasn't country in which to turn around and go back ache office was useless this close to the pole instead our convoys followed a series of trail markers traveling in a wanigan was a long way from the early tractor trains of the 30s with sourdough biscuits and warmed up being from the days spent loading the heavy swing the men's faces were already deeply sunburned during the trip and shifts half the mental road and half slept Navy type bunks were used for sleeping if you could sleep in the 24-hour sunlight first to arrive at the surface work camp were the aircraft a few hours later the polecats folded for the next several months this primitive scene of crowded James way arctic cuts without door latrines was our holding now the real job began altogether I had four other officers in a hand-picked group of 11 noncommissioned officers to help supervise the military construction crew of camp century plans for the cab had been developed months in advance the basic concept was simple a system of 23 trenches would be dug into the icecap and then covered with steel arches and snow branching off the main communication trench would be a series of lateral trenches housing complete research laboratory and test facilities modern living quarters and recreation areas and a complex of support facilities since transporting great quantities of diesel fuel over vast Arctic wastes was impractical we would install a nuclear power plant we got to work immediately cutting trenches this snow milling machine the Peter plow was our pride and joy right a factor in Switzerland it could handle up to 1,200 cubic yards of snow an hour designed to clear roads in the Alps it was ideal for our purpose being capable of making extremely precise cuts it was usually operated by two men one controlling the machines horizontal movement the other controlling its vertical movement and speed while a trench was several feet deep planks were put down on the shoulders of the cut later on these planks would be used to support the steel arch roof which would cover the trench cab sanctuary was starting to grow and so was mukluks we use three Peter Klaus to cut all the different trenches we needed by making a series of undercuts the width of most of the layer of trenches was greater at the bottom than at the top this cut down on the amount of roofing material required before long the first roofs began to go into place constructed of overlapping steel arches these roofs could be put up very quickly by this time we had a crew working in a snow quarry cutting large bricks of snow in this way we made maximum use of the materials available at the site somehow mukluks seemed to be everywhere always making himself useful when a roof of steel arches was in place it was covered with snow because it had been milled the snow would harden into an extremely durable surface inside each tunnel at the end of joining the main communication tunnel passages were cut through not all the excavation could be done by machine the shovel was still a very useful tool next work began on foundations for the prefabricated buildings that would be placed within the tunnels leveling the floor was very important to provide a good bearing for the foundations and prevent any building from settling unevenly this was cold work the temperature within these tunnels sometimes 1 to 20 degrees below zero and this was summer prefabricated sections were delivered by forklift the non conductive wood and the air insulation barrier below it protected both the building from the cold of the ice floor and the ice floor from the warmth of the building every prefab that wanted to camp century had been pre erected tested and then shipped to us as a unit every clip every doorknob every light switch came in a single shipment and this way we knew there would be no delays caused by missing parts this is a standard t5 engineer Arctic building designed for cold weather use composed of plywood insulation panels these buildings would provide space for comfortable working and living under the ice since every unit had been checked out in advance our crews could put up one of these buildings in less than a day as soon as the show was completed crews began to wire the buildings for interim power provided by diesel generators as the major interior worked within each tunnel is completed the entranceway was blocked up with bricks of snow it took about two days to build one of these walls once in place these bricks would bond together into a solid wall and only a small entranceway would be left we then used a bulldozer to push loose snow into the doorway of the tunnel to complete the see later an escape hatch will be placed at the end of a small wooden form for an emergency exit when it was completed the entrance was weatherproof and serviceable throughout the long period of construction within the primitive facilities of the work camp the men saw the everyday problems of working and living as best they could meanwhile work had begun on the for nuclear trenches these were the widest and deepest trenches and did not use the undercutting principle on this cut we use three plough simultaneously to pause throwing up snow from below the third cutting a spoil trench up above to prevent loose snow from sliding back into the cut to avoid mounting caused by the Sun much of this work was done at night these scenes were filmed at 2:00 a.m. you you until the trench was covered there was always a threat that the 40-foot arches would collapse a shoulder already weakened by the twenty four-hour-a-day Arctic sunlight the faster the roof went up the better the frame for the reactor building was made of steel beans despite the cold and the constant winds my construction workers climbed like monkeys over the scaffolding and rode the beams into place at the same time within the tunnels already completed we were installing piping for water and electricity heavy insulation material was wrapped around every pipe to protect against the extreme cold a copper heating element inside the insulation kept water lines from freezing flexible sewage lines also had to be run through the camp this time to keep on schedule we were using 12 and sometimes 14 hour shifts for like any modern city camp century required a complex of interconnecting quarters carrying a maze of piping of all sizes and shapes one of our proudest achievements was our solution of the water problem a steam hose with a special drilling nozzle was used about a hole three and a half feet in diameter 120 feet down into the ice cap until a pool of water formed which did not drain off this pool provided 10,000 gallons of fresh water daily throughout the cab an extensive electrical system was now installed for electrical heating would not only be clean but it would also reduce the threat of fire and fire was the worst hazard under the ice from the very beginning we had had to take precautions against fire or a storm closing the write-ups or any other disaster which might block the regular entrances to the CAF sixteen of these escape hatches were strategically located throughout the various tunnels in their off-duty hours the men did what they could to amuse themselves with the recreational opportunities that had Bronco busting was one favorite pastime well this time what Glock was almost full-grown by early July most of the heavy construction work on the tunnel was completed throughout this operation it was a steady stream of heavy swings moving back and forth across the ice more than any other single factor that made it possible for us to complete Camp Centurion scheduled to service our many vehicles a maintenance shop was constructed closer to the service both as a repair shop and as a garage for the sub-zero temperatures meant equipment had to be kept Ward otherwise engines wouldn't start lubricating oil solidified and electrical connections froze it was at this time that the Marine Fiddler's arrived at Uli with the nuclear power plant designed for air transport ability but transported by sea to reduce costs the nuclear plant was the last major phase of our operation and the most difficult this unit for example part of a vapor container weighed more than 21 tonne awkward to handle and with high centres of gravity these packages were delivered to the ice cap over a road built specifically for their transport more than 400 tons of piping a machinery arrived in this one shipment since the arctic cold makes metal very brittle each unit had to be handled with great care the vapor container the largest single item in the power plant was carried on a special flat bottom slide built expressly for its transport everything's aimed by in the morning the heavy swing moved out but unfortunately it was only a few hours later that one of the worst storms of the season blew up to complete preparations to receive a nuclear plant my crews bundled up and kept on working you the opening in the roof of the main nuclear trench now had to be closed quickly before the trench began filling with snow despite the storm the heavy swing was still moving at our end my crews kept working it was the only way we could be ready just as the swing arrived at the camp the storm let up and tart work began immediately unloading the shipment and preparation for its emplacement governs were removed crates opened boxes of piping and wiring each item carefully labeled were open so that each unit would be available when needed major components shipped in pieces because of weight limitations were reassembled before being moved into the trenches the condenser 15 tons of steel was one of the first units to be moved into the tunnel prepared to house when the condenser was slowly wedged forward small track rollers supported its entire weight necks still mounted on its special sled the vapor container was eased down the ramp by three tractors one in front pulling and two and back to keep it from slipping to bear the weight of a vapor container the reactor building was constructed around a framework of steel beams the floor was of heavy planking mounted on other steel beams we had to use hand rigging methods the best we could do under the confined conditions to put the nuclear equipment in place the powerplant consisted of four basic elements a nuclear heat source equipment that would convert the heat energy into electrical energy and a system to dispose of excess heat all regulated by an extensive network of instruments and controls the last buildings to be assembled were those that would contain the nuclear sections these shells were built around the nuclear system equipment only after every major component had been put in place the next phase was to be the activation of the nuclear power plant wearing the white safety hat is Captain Jim Barnett in charge of this operation who will tell you about this critical phase we took every precaution in the book and some that weren't there to make sure this would work right the first time when the entire system had been carefully tested it was put into operation we were then ready to begin loading the reactor core one by one the fuel elements were removed from the barrels in which they've been shipped carefully separated from one another each of these bars containing approximately 500 grams of uranium-235 was then unwrapped inspected and wiped clean of any dust crewmen wearing protective clothing began to load the fuel elements into a fuel storage tank this preliminary test proved that the fuel elements when assembled would not go active prematurely after each element was in place instruments were read and an evaluation of reactivity was made and reported over loudspeakers the crewmen were protected by a shield of approximately eight feet of water as they lower the fuel elements into the fuel storage tank later each of these steel and uranium bars would be transferred under water to the nearby reactor core every step of the testing was meticulously monitored and regular announcements made to the workers assigned to the loading crew total u-235 content of the assembled core is one 3.37 six kilograms coefficient of reactivity 0.93 5 the assembly is still subcritical when all preliminary tests were completed we began to transfer the fuel elements one by one and started loading the reactor core as each fuel element went into place the count rate of neutrons released gradually increase within the core to prevent the reactor from inadvertently going critical control rods were in place this gradual activation of the pile took almost nine hours in this tense atmosphere we change crews twice above us it was dark and miserable with the approach of winter the Sun was preparing the set for the years finally our meters reported a significant increase of reactivity for old camp was standing by waiting tents by the ninth hour the last fuel element had gone into place a plot show the location at every bar then the control rods were gradually withdrawn until the reactor went critical at 6:52 a.m. now here it is but all eyes nor rust withdrawals mix point of origin p.m. to a when fitting over-65 within the next few weeks the final touches were put the camp century today powered by its nuclear reactor this unique installation is a completely modern community deep under the ice this is a far cry from the primitive James way huts of the work camp we're at three showers served 250 men here there are showers parole and facilities for every modern convenience among the many sophisticated facilities at camp century is the dispensary complete in every detail well while the remote research community is isolated by a hundred and fifty miles of ice and snow its medical capabilities can cope with almost any emergency it also has a small chapel for regular religious services and it boasts the largest deep freeze in the world here is enough food to feed the camp for several months everything from steak to fruit salad the modern spacious kitchens provide a well-balanced and appetizing men to satisfy the enormous appetites that working in this climate produces means extra rations but there's always more than enough except for the fact that they have no windows the men of camp century live exactly as do other soldiers their porters are modern spacious comfortable and are not lacking in any detail today camp century is being operated as a year-round Arctic Research Center the men who built the camp have long since been replaced by military and civilian scientists from the polar research and development program as part of man's efforts to probe deeper and deeper into the secrets of the universe an elaborate programme of tests and experiments is being carried out at this very moment somewhere men from camp century or at work within the city itself or out on the ice cat only mukluks remains from the original contingent this is the story of camp century of the army engineers who carved out the underground city of the many other men of the United States Army who made this project possible and a man's never ceasing quest for knowledge

Channel: DOCUMENTARY TUBE

Views: 1,968,906

Rating: 4.8176775 out of 5

Keywords: Mechanics, Engineering, Discovery, mystery, National, truth, base, structure

Id: -DPQ15EgyTY

Length: 27min 35sec (1655 seconds)

Published: Thu Nov 06 2014

Reddit Comments

[u/ignorantwanderer]

Materials deform from creep when they are relatively close to their melting point. The ice along the trench walls experienced creep because on Earth it doesn't get very cold so any ice found on Earth is going to be close to its melting point.

The trench containing the nuclear reactor had the worst creep because there was so much heat associated with the nuclear reactor.

On Mars, it is much, much colder than anyplace on Earth. I have looked for creep data for ice at typical Martian temperatures, but I've only been able to find data going down to around -20 C.

The average temperature on Mars is -60 C. In places where we are likely to find ice, the average temperature is even lower.

So it is possible we will be able to make ice structures on Mars, or live inside tunnels melted into ice. Or it is possible creep will still be an issue, even at Martian temperatures.

Based on the research I've done, I think low stress (non-pressurized) ice structures will work very well on Mars. So I imagine large unpressurized ice domes to protect against radiation, temperature swings, and dust, with inflatable pressure vessel habitats under the domes.

[u/Then_Schemer]

Building an underground base on Mars I hope can learn from 'Project Iceworm'

The first hand witness to Project Iceworm would be useful.

​

The following is from Wiki :

Designed as an arctic subsurface camp and constructed by use of the cut-and-cover trenching technique, the layout of the camp consisted of a series of parallel main trenches in which buildings and other structures were housed. The camp had a design life span of 10 years with appropriate maintenance. It was permanently manned for 5 years and abandoned after 8 years.

The trenches constructed in 1959 had compressed both vertically and horizontally to the extent that many had reached their design margins within 4 years. After that, extensive snow trimming was required to maintain the trenches.[13] The trenches were covered with a steel arch and the longest trench had a length of 1100 feet, while its width and height were both 26 feet.

The subsurface camp provided good protection from the elements and had modern bathroom, dining, and medical facilities. Prefabricated buildings were placed inside the trenches. The camp maintained a number of vehicles and had plenty of storage for fuel and food. The reactor provided plenty of power and proved it could be installed, operated, and removed in such a remote location. It powered the base for over 3 years but was shutdown due to the unexpected accelerated compression of the reactor trenches, in part due to the residual heat in the reactor area required to maintain the feed water pools.

The snow trimming required to maintain the trenches, and sewage disposal were both ongoing problems. The sewage sump was 150 feet from the nearest building and initially not vented. As a result, the odour of sewage became almost unbearable in the nearest quarters after the first year of operation. Subsequent venting of the sump reduced the odour but did not completely eliminate the condition. In 1962 core samples were taken in the areas near the sump and found that liquid wastes had horizontally permeated up to 170 feet (52 meters). Thus odour from the sump affected near by trenches with sleeping quarters and also accelerated trench deformation.

In Oct 1965 the US Army concluded that subsurface ice camps are feasible and practical, that nuclear power offers significant advantages, and that the wealth of data and experience obtained from Camp Century will be of inestimable value in future designs. However, on permanent snow fields it is elevated structures that are in common use today. No large subsurface ice camps are known to have been constructed after Camp Century was abandoned.

[u/Peralton]

Absolutely fascinating and a great analog to building something on mars. You start to think about all the little things that are needed. Kitchens and storage and waste management. Lightswitches!

I imagine saturation divers who spend weeks underwater are another similar situation.

I'd like to see a video on how camp century was decommissioned.

​

EDIT: Holy cow, they didn't dismantle the camp when it was closed, they removed the reactor and then buried everything else! They assumed ongoing snowfall would entomb everything. There's still tons of waste buried under the ice including radioactive coolant water, sewage, PCBs and diesel fuel. There are concerns that global warming is going to release all that stuff into the ice sheet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9uW-8vPpAU

[u/runningray]

It's a good video for a thought experiment. The process of building a self sustaining camp on Mars versus building one in the Arctic or the Antarctic is very much the same. The planning process, the modular designs. But what we have lacked all along has been the way to get to the camp site. Obviously they talk about huge ships delivering all this material where they could build the city in the first 3 minutes of the video. That little fact is currently missing for us. Lets hope Starship can actually deliver as much mass as it's designed to do. Because once the mass is actually delivered to Mars, then the building process (whatever that will be) can start and it will probably look a lot like this video.

[u/[deleted]]

Color version

https://youtu.be/hzTfiTsk_Ak