Saturday | 22 November, 2008
Ch-Ch-Chatting with the South Pole's IT manager
Is there a difference between -60 and -100? Absolutely!
Robert L. Mitchell 03/01/2008 07:13:28
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Do you have backup power for the data center?

We don't have a backup data center generator but we do have backup UPS's. There is a single generator [for the entire facility] that is running at any one time but there are three here. One is running at all times, one is on hot standby, and one can be down for maintenance. If one generator fails, another can pick up within five or six seconds.

If we lose our generators, that's our heat. It wouldn't take more than four or five hours for the building to get really chilly.

How long will you keep coming down there?

Every time I come down here I feel lucky. Every year is different and I have a hard time imagining doing anything else. But my girlfriend is trying to convince me to do something closer to home. We're having ongoing discussions about that.

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Computerworld Buyer's Guide - Vendors Matched to this Article
Adaptec , Dimension Data , Sagem , 3Com
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The backup data center is directly vented to the outside, so keeping equipment at a nice temperature is usually an easy task.
The backup data center is directly vented to the outside, so keeping equipment at a nice temperature is usually an easy task.
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  • IT manager Henry Malmgren stands near the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. The actual pole marker is in the foreground right.
  • This nine-meter diameter antenna points nearly horizontally toward the horizon to pick up geosynchronous satellites. Most communication to and from the South Pole travels over satellite.
  • Extreme weather conditions make even simple maintenance tasks complicated. Manual dexterity is severely limited by the need for extreme cold weather clothing.
  • The backup data center is directly vented to the outside, so keeping equipment at a nice temperature is usually an easy task.
  • A ski-equipped LC-130 flown by the New York Air National Guard arrives with supplies. Everything from building materials to food and fuel must be flown in.
  • The 300 Club is a select group of entertainment-starved South Pole crazies who steam in a 200-degree sauna, then run naked around the pole, realizing a 300-degree temperature change. Here's Henry Malmgren on a balmy -103F night. No, that's not grey hair on his head; it's frost.
  • The geographic South Pole stands near the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station along with IT manager Henry Malmgren.
  • cap8: The Southern Aurora lights up the night sky.
Computerworld Buyer's Guide - Vendors Matched to this Article
Adaptec , Dimension Data , Sagem , 3Com
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