Mawson's Huts

Mawson's Huts Mawson's Huts (Antarctica)
Coordinates	67°00′30″S 142°39′40″E / 67.00833°S 142.66111°E / -67.00833; 142.66111Coordinates: 67°00′30″S 142°39′40″E / 67.00833°S 142.66111°E / -67.00833; 142.66111
Country	Australia
State/territory	Australian Antarctic Territory
Built in	1912
Built by	Australasian Antarctic Expedition
Built for	Scientific outpost/exploration
Maintained by	Australian Antarctic Division; Mawson's Huts Foundation
Water	Unlimited, in ice form
Accessed by	Sea

"Mawson's Huts" are the collection of buildings located at Cape Denison, Commonwealth Bay, in the far eastern sector of the Australian Antarctic Territory, some 3000 km south of Hobart. The buildings were erected and occupied by the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (AAE) of 1911-1914, led by geologist and explorer Sir Douglas Mawson.

Mawson's Huts are rare as one of just six surviving sites from the Heroic Era of Antarctic exploration. The Australasian Antarctic Expedition was the only Heroic Era expedition organised, manned and supported primarily by Australians.

The huts included a magnetograph hut, used to measure variations in the south magnetic pole; an absolute magnetic hut, which was used as a reference point for studies in the magnetograph hut; and the transit hut, an astronomical observatory.

The most important building at the site is the winter living quarters, known as "Mawson's Hut". This pyramid-roofed hut was home to the eighteen men of the AAE main base party in 1912, and the seven (including Douglas Mawson) who stayed on for an unplanned second year in 1913. The hut combines two sections - the living quarters and the workshop, prefabricated in Sydney and Melbourne respectively, and shipped to the site for construction in 1912 by the AAE team.

Using a wireless relay station on Macquarie Island, it was possible to contact the Australian mainland by radio. The AAE was the first expedition that had this possibility. Meteorological observations got transmitted by the system continuously. It was the first use of radio on the Antarctic continent.

The main hut included facilities for eighteen men but it only measured 7.3 m × 7.3 m (24.0 ft × 24.0 ft), an area of 53 m² (570 sq ft). The adjoining workshop measured 5.5 m × 4.9 m (18.0 ft × 16.1 ft), an area of 27 m² (291 sq ft). On three sides the building is surrounded with 1.5 m (4.9 ft) wide verandas. The Verandas were used for many different things including housing the sled dogs.

The main hut contains a kitchen, a laundry, a storage and a sleeping room.