Sunday 13 September 2026
The weather in McMurdo has been windy the last few days which has kept us from doing as many drone flights as we would like to. The stormy weather intensified Saturday night into Sunday morning with winds in McMurdo sustained at 50+ mph and gusting to more than 70 mph for 10 hours.
Because the weather in Antarctica can be so dangerous the U.S. Antarctic Program classifies weather into three conditions. Condition 3 weather is fine. Fine weather in Antarctica means that the wind chill is warmer than -70 F, winds are less than 55 mph and visibility is greater than ¼ mile. For condition 3 weather all outdoor activity and travel is allowed.
Condition 2 weather occurs if the wind chill temperature is between -70 and -100 F, winds are blowing at 55 to 63 mph or visibility is between 100 feet and ¼ mile. With condition 2 weather we are still allowed to walk from building to building in McMurdo Station but any travel outside of the station, in a vehicle, requires checking out with McMurdo central communications.
Condition 1 weather is the most severe weather classification here. This occurs if the wind chill temperature is less than -100 F, winds are greater than 63 mph or visibility is less than 100 feet. When condition 1 weather occurs no one is allowed to leave the building they are in.
When I woke up this morning the weather in McMurdo was condition 2 but was condition 1 everywhere outside of McMurdo. As I went to leave my dorm to walk to the Crary science building the entryway to the dorm was filled with drifted snow that had been blown through gaps around the door by the strong winds that had picked up overnight.
Soon after I got to my office in Crary the sustained wind strengthened to 60+ mph, with gusts up to 90 mph. With the strong wind blowing snow reduced the visibility to zero at times. As a result McMurdo’s weather was set to condition 1 and I was stuck in Crary until the weather improved.
As a weather weenie I was very excited to experience such an intense Antarctic storm. This was the first time, in my 16 Antarctic trips, that I’d ever experienced condition 1 weather. As the morning progressed I watched the weather through the windows in Crary while the wind caused the building to shake and moan. A few times I stepped just outside of Crary to experience the ferocity of the storm. Wind gusts of more than 80 mph buffeted me and made it hard to stand upright. The strong wind pelted me with blowing snow that coated my face and blew down the neck of my jacket. I was glad I was just a few steps from the comfort and safety of being inside.
Below are a few photos and videos from this morning’s stormy Antarctic weather.
The winds weakened around 11:30 this morning and the weather was classified as condition 2. This meant I could leave Crary and go to the galley to get Sunday brunch.
The forecast is calling for calmer weather the next day or two so hopefully Kara and I will be able to resume our research drone flights tomorrow.
Thanks for reading.
Hi John — what a cool experience for weather weenies like you and me! I think, though, the category descriptions for cat 1 and 3 in the intro of the post might be reversed…1 should be the “fun” stuff according to later text? Stay safe!
Thanks for catching the typo Jen. The third paragraph describing the weather conditions should be referring to condition 1 weather.
Just curious, what was the synoptic conditions that created this storm. “typical” “somewhat unusual” or what? Glad I wasn’t standing in that blizzard!
The stormy weather we experienced yesterday was driven by a synoptic scale cyclone, with a central pressure of 947 mb, crossing the southern Ross Sea, just north of the Ross Ice Shelf. McMurdo was southwest of the storm center in an area of strong southerly wind. Upstream of McMurdo the southerly wind crossed over a 1000 m ridge called Minna Bluff and the high terrain of Black Island generating amplified mountain waves, similar to downslope windstorms we get in Boulder. It was this combination of factors that gave us such strong winds in McMurdo. This storm setup is fairly common although the strength was a bit unusual.
Wow John, Thansk for telling us about this intense storm!!