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"Antarctica-Russia 2003" is a title of a new expedition organized by International Climbing Club (ICC). The expedition is intended to attract attention of a human society to essential problems of Antarctica exploration.
Athletes are going to climb virgin summits in Voltat mountain range and entitle them. Climbers plan to first-climb several hardest routes in Mulih-Hoffman and Orvin mountains, what will be a part of Russian and CIS Championships. Besides of topography researches, the expeditions plans to conduct medical, biological and psychophysical researches that concerns extreme polar conditions.
Polar climbers will test new cryogen oxygen equipment that was designed especially for altitude climbs, new Russian snow-landrovers and high-latitude equipment.
The expedition started on the 3rd of December and will continue for 2.5 months. Preparatory work had started much earlier; a part of expedition loads and two landrovers were sent there in early November. After the ` advance-guard’ a support team flied to East Antarctica on the 30th of November to examine the situation in local mountains.
In mid-January a `parent climbing unit’ of the expedition is leaving to Capetown and, after it, to `Novolazarevskaya’ Antartic station. The team includes most experienced Russian climbers: Eugene Vinogradov, Nikolay Zakharov, Valery Pershin, Alexander Foigt, Gleb Sokolov, Peter Kuznetsov, Oleg Khvostenko, coach Yuri Baikovsky and a head of the expedition, vice-president of Russian Olympic Committee, Valery Kuzin.
Central region of Antarctica is considered to be a cold pole of the Earth. Here, at `Vostok’ polar station there was registered (in 1983) awful frost in -89.60C. Though this season athletes expect no such frosts, but an `ordinary’ Antarctic conditions are extremely difficult for climbing: temperature of -400C with winds up to 40-60 m/s.
Leaders of the expedition were very captious in choosing clothing that would be able to protect climbers from icy breathing of Antarctica. As a result, they took a decision in favour of well-tried BASK equipment.
12.12.2002
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