© 2020 BBC. The natural isolation of the frozen and desolate expanse has been taken to new extremes since the WHO declared a pandemic on March 11. What do we know of … China holiday: Millions on the move for Golden Week, 'It's OK to have a bad day': The challenge of motherhood during the pandemic. "Supplies are sanitized before they can be brought in and contact with the ship is minimal. [6], 62°11′35″S 58°58′55″W / 62.193126°S 58.981986°W / -62.193126; -58.981986Coordinates: 62°11′35″S 58°58′55″W / 62.193126°S 58.981986°W / -62.193126; -58.981986, Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva - permanent station of Chile, Antarctica - Sunrise, sunset, dawn and dusk times for the whole year - Gaisma, "CLIMATOLOGÍA DE LA PENINSULA ANTARTICA Y DE LA BASE PRESIDENTE EDUARDO FREI MONTALVA", United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, Official website Chilean Antarctic Institute, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Base_Presidente_Eduardo_Frei_Montalva&oldid=973667727, Articles with Spanish-language sources (es), Infobox mapframe without OSM relation ID on Wikidata, General articles using infobox Lighthouse, Pages using infobox Lighthouse needing Wikidata item, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Source: Dirección Meteorológica de Chile (temperature data:1970-2004, all other 1990-2000), white tower and panels with red horizontal band, This page was last edited on 18 August 2020, at 14:47. Vaccine will 'not return life to normal in spring', Gavin the paddleboarding seal becomes local celebrity. Rescuers are currently searching inside a 60-mile radius from the last point of contact. VideoThe fight for women's prayer rights in Israel, US Election: Whoever wins, social media is changing. The last tourist ship arrived in Bahia Fildes on March 3, just when the first case of infection was reported in Chile. Chile has cut its Antarctic staff to a minimum, maintaining a skeleton force of 10 navy personnel at its Escudero military base in Bahia Fildes on the South Shetlands. But Chile's air force said local weather was good at the time of the plane's disappearance.

', Carnival Cancels All 2020 Cruises From U.S. .css-8h1dth-Link{font-family:ReithSans,Helvetica,Arial,freesans,sans-serif;font-weight:700;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;color:#FFFFFF;}.css-8h1dth-Link:hover,.css-8h1dth-Link:focus{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}Read about our approach to external linking. How likely are you to survive a plane crash?
Authorities canceled all tourism, evacuated non-essential personnel, and prohibited contacts between the international ice stations. The spirit among those there is strong. But the fear of the coronavirus has put an end to all physical contact between the bases. From April, as the austral winter closes in and sun becomes a memory, weather conditions prevent all but essential travel to and from the continent, isolating personnel even further. A search-and-rescue mission is under way.

Strict new health protocols were quickly put in place and visits limited to vital supplies. As the planet battles the seemingly inexorable spread of the coronavirus, Antarctica remains the only COVID-19-free continent -- thanks in the main to strict security and not a little luck. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Base Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva is the most important Antarctic base of Chile. Antarctica caught a lucky break when the start of the crisis coincided with the end of the tourist season, which brings around 50,000 visitors a year on cruise ships to view penguins and seals in the pristine environment. It also includes the Villa Las Estrellas residential area that has a hospital, a school, a bank, a small supermarket, etc. Chile’s military base Presidente Eduardo Frei, on the King George island in Antarctica, is seen on March 13, 2014. An air force statement said that the plane was about 450 miles (725km) into its 770-mile journey when contact was lost, placing it within the Drake Passage. A search-and-rescue mission is under way. He said the plane, whose pilot had extensive experience, might have been forced to touch down on water. The base's area and its vicinity (the entire island, actually) experiences a rather heavy precipitation, with an average precipitation rate of 405 millimetres (15.9 in) yearly,[5] which makes it unusual on the Antarctic continent, as the continent is significantly drier than the islands are to the north. US election 2020 polls: Who is ahead - Trump or Biden? Base Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva is the most important Antarctic base of Chile. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. The base is located in the Chilean commune of Antártica, which is the Antarctic territory claimed by Chile[1] (Antártica Chilena Province, Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region).

Chile claims more than 1.2m sq km (463,000 sq miles) of Antarctic territory and operates nine bases there.

The C-130 is also staffed by 17 crew members. [3], It began to operate in 1969 as Centro Meteorológico Eduardo Frei. The coastal areas of the island are home to a comparatively diverse selection of vegetation and animal life, including elephant, Weddell, and leopard seals, and Adelie, chinstrap and gentoo penguins. "The next turnover will be in the first fortnight of December, so the people left there will spend all winter there," Rear Admiral Manuel Burgos, president of the Uruguayan Arctic Institute, told AFP. Uruguay and Argentina have also each sent a plane to help locate the missing C-130. Air Force Gen Eduardo Mosqueira told local media that the plane did not activate any distress signal.
Four ships and 10 planes from Chile are taking part in the search operation. The air force published a map of the plane's last known location on Twitter: The Drake Passage is a body of water connecting the South Atlantic and South Pacific oceans, and is known for treacherous weather conditions. Nearby is one of five Russian bases, as well as missions from Uruguay, Korea and China. The declaration of a pandemic made controls even tighter, said Valenzuela. Chile's Eduardo Frei Antarctic base on the Fildes Peninsula, King George island on May 10, 2020 As the planet battles the seemingly inexorable spread … It is located at Fildes Peninsula, an ice-free area, in front of Fildes Bay (Maxwell Bay), west of King George Island, South Shetland Islands. They were travelling to provide logistical support to a military base on Antarctica's King George Island. Chile's Defence Minister Alberto Espina has travelled to Punta Arenas. We assume it with a resolve and we don't let ourselves get down," said Valenzuela, who arrived in Antarctica in November for a stint that will last a full year.

An initial overflight of the area where communication was lost failed to yield any sign of the missing plane. Also nearby are the bases of Great Wall (China), General Artigas Station (Uruguay), King Sejong Station (Republic of Korea), Carlini Base (Argentina), Commandante Ferraz (Brazil), Henryk Arctowski (Poland) and Machu Picchu Base (Peru). VideoUS Election: Whoever wins, social media is changing, Teen sailor breaks solo round-Britain record, Subway bread rolls not bread, Irish court rules, .css-orcmk8-HeadlineContainer{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;-ms-flex-pack:justify;justify-content:space-between;}Covid: Vaccine will 'not return life to normal in spring'.css-1dedj2h-Rank{-webkit-align-self:center;-ms-flex-item-align:center;align-self:center;color:#B80000;margin-left:3.125rem;}1, Archie Lyndhurst: CBBC star and son of Nicholas Lyndhurst dies aged 192, Covid-positive MP Margaret Ferrier suspended over Parliament visit3, Brexit: EU starts legal action against UK over deal breach plan4, Presidential debate: Rules to change after Trump-Biden spat5, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend speak of 'deep pain' of losing baby6, Covid: Poland and Turkey added to UK's quarantine list as fines rise7, US election 2020 polls: Who is ahead - Trump or Biden?8, China holiday: Millions on the move for Golden Week9, 'It's OK to have a bad day': The challenge of motherhood during the pandemic10. Uruguay cut staff at its Artigas base to just nine people, after recently evacuating 10 non-essential personnel. People stay on board and we don't have direct contact now," he said. The Air Force has published a list of all those on board.

Air Force Gen Francisco Torres said that the search for the plane had "begun immediately" after it had failed to arrive at the military base in Antarctica. It also said that the plane would have had enough fuel to keep airborne until 00:40. A round-up of our most popular stories delivered to your inbox. Further away is Captain Arturo Prat Base, also Chilean, 50 km to the west. Video, US Election: Whoever wins, social media is changing, Covid: Vaccine will 'not return life to normal in spring', Archie Lyndhurst: CBBC star and son of Nicholas Lyndhurst dies aged 19, Covid-positive MP Margaret Ferrier suspended over Parliament visit, Brexit: EU starts legal action against UK over deal breach plan, Presidential debate: Rules to change after Trump-Biden spat, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend speak of 'deep pain' of losing baby, Covid: Poland and Turkey added to UK's quarantine list as fines rise.