Troll (research station)

Troll
Location of Troll within Antarctica
General information
Type	Modular
Location	Jutulsessen, Queen Maud Land, Antarctica
Coordinates	72°00′41″S 2°32′06″E / 72.01139°S 2.53500°E / -72.01139; 2.53500Coordinates: 72°00′41″S 2°32′06″E / 72.01139°S 2.53500°E / -72.01139; 2.53500
Elevation	1,270 metres (4,170 ft)
Current tenants	Norwegian Polar Institute
Inaugurated	17 February 1990 11 February 2005
Technical details
Floor area	400 m2 (4,300 sq ft)
Design and construction
Main contractor	AF Gruppen

Troll is a research station located at Jutulsessen, 235 kilometers (146 mi) from the coast in the eastern part of Princess Martha Coast in Queen Maud Land, Antarctica. It is Norway's only all-year research station in Antarctica, and is supplemented by the summer-only station Tor. Troll is operated by the Norwegian Polar Institute and also features facilities for the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, the Norwegian Institute for Air Research.

Contrary to most other research stations on the continent, Troll is constructed on the snow-free slope of solid rock breaking through the ice sheet at Jutulsessen, located 1,275 meters (4,183 ft) above mean sea level. The station opened as a summer-only station in 1990 and was taken into use as an all-year station in 2005. It has an overwintering capacity of eight people and a summer capacity of 40. It is served by Troll Airfield, which is the base for the Dronning Maud Land Air Network.

Troll is located in the eastern part of Princess Martha Coast in Queen Maud Land, which Norway claims as a dependent territory. The station is located on the nunatak bare ground area Jutulsessen, at 1,270 meters (4,170 ft) above mean sea level. It is completely surrounded by the Antarctic ice sheet. This is unlike most other Antarctic research stations, which are located on snow. Troll is 235 kilometers (146 mi) from the coast.

The station facilities are owned by the Government of Norway through the Norwegian Directorate of Public Construction and Property. Operation of the facility is done by another government agency, the Norwegian Polar Institute. The facilities consist of a module-built new section that is 300 square meters (3,200 sq ft), and the old section that is 100 square meters (1,100 sq ft). The new section consists of eight bedrooms, a gym, a sauna, a kitchen, a communication center and office space. In addition, there are several smaller buildings which are used as laboratories, provision stores, generators and garages. The old station is used partially for storage and partially as a summer station. The facility also features an emergency facility for eight people, located at a safe distance from the main base, in case of fire or other accidents. The station is dimensioned to tolerate temperatures down to −60 °C (−76 °F) and wind speeds of 60 meters per second (200 ft/s).