90 Degrees South

Here is a shot of the pole, just in case there were any doubters. The marker has to be moved ~33 ft each year because of drift in the ice sheet and is therefore replaced yearly during a new year's celebration.  The marker is created each year by the winter machinist. This current one doubles as a sundial. 

The actual South Pole Station can be seen in the background of the above photo. I'll give updates of various specifics of the station throughout the winter, but for a general tour you can check out this link. Since I've been here, the station's summer population has never topped 150. During construction years the population can be over 300, but during the winter there will only be about 44 people here. 

Above is a shot of the South Pole Telescope, where I'm working. It is a 10 meter microwave telescope built to measure various aspects of the Cosmic Microwave Background radiation (CMB). The telescope is about a 10-15 minute walk from the main station, in what is known as the Dark Sector (radio quiet zone). Around the station there is also a Clean Air Sector (for atmospheric measurements) and a Quiet Sector (where some seismology equipment is set up). 

Telescope as seen from the station