Telecommunications in Antarctica are provided by the countries and organizations that have established research stations on the continent, and commercial satellite and mobile phone providers. There are no undersea cables connecting the continent to the outside world, so all intercontinental communication is accomplished by terrestrial or satellite radio, or physical delivery.

Antarctica is included by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in any of its internal administrative zones.

Telephone communication

A small number of stations are connected to the public switched telephone network by radio link. Other locations use satellite phones or voice over IP for intercontinental calls. Some bases have local telephone exchanges.

United States bases Telephones – mobile cellular: Argentine bases have GSM networks provided by Argentinean carriers Claro and Movistar; Iridium system in use. Chile has 5G network provide by Entel company.

Australian and New Zealand stations Five locations (Casey Station (AU), Davis Station (AU), Macquarie Island Station (AU), Mawson Station (AU) and Scott Base (NZ)) all have telephone connections that enable direct dialling to and from the outside world. Connections to the Australian stations is via the country calling code +672.

Argentinian and Chilean bases within their claims, which have families living at them, are also connected by direct dial connections.

Connection to Scott Base and the nearby United States base McMurdo Station is via the New Zealand country calling code +64 (see Telecommunications in New Zealand).

Television Television broadcast stations American Forces Antarctic Network at McMurdo Station, US; cable system with six channels (note: information for US bases only, 2002) Television channels several hundred at McMurdo Station, US (note: information for US bases only, 2001)

Internet Internet Service Providers (ISPs): Argentine bases have on polar plateau which was installed in 2009.

Country code (Top level domain): .aq

Internet users: 2,700 (2021)

Facebook users: 1,800 (2021)

Data access to the Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station is provided by access via NASA's TDRS-F1, GOES & Iridium satellite constellation. Marisat F-2 provided data communications until it was retired in 2008. For the 2007–2008 season, the TDRS relay (named South Pole TDRSS Relay or SPTR) was upgraded to support a data return rate of 50 Mbit/s, which comprises over 90% of the South Pole's data capability, which is used primarily for scientific data return.

The Australian Stations each have a satellite data connection, currently contracted to Speedcast. This provides each station with a 9 Mbit/s symmetric connection.

Data and telephony access to Scott Base - New Zealand is provided via C-Band by Spark NZ & Horizons 3E. , Starlink services were also being trialed at the base.

Regarding Argentine bases in general, Marambio Base has wireless internet and two mobile phone servers.

Orbcomm satellites which pass over Antarctica can relay short messages to and from transceiver units to email or XML over HTTP.

The McMurdo station has permanent access to a shared 17 Mbit/s connection; testing of the Starlink service began in September 2022, with a second terminal providing connectivity for the Allan Hills field camp brought in November 2022. As of January 2025, Starlink was working for the cruise ship Scenic Eclipse II, as far South as McMurdo station.

Radio

Official broadcasts Argentina Bases: Radio Nacional Arcangel San Gabriel, Esperanza Base, on 15.476 MHz with 2 kW and 97.6 MHz. QSL cards verified. Chile Bases: Radio Soberania, Villa las Estrellas on 90.5 MHz with 100 W. United States Bases: American Forces Antarctic Network AFAN McMurdo, on 93.9 MHz with 30 W and 104.5 MHz with 50 W. Scott Base - New Zealand: Scott97FM, On 97.0 MHz with 25 W

Amateur radio Several bases used their transceivers also to provide amateur radio worldwide communications on HF or amateur radio satellites with specific club callsigns, also useful on utility and emergency communications.

List of research facilities and country codes Base Countrycallingcode Country Note Almirante Brown Antarctic Base 54 Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station 1 Artigas Base 598 Asuka Station 81 Base Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva and Villa Las Estrellas 56 Belgrano II 54 Bellingshausen Station 7 Bernardo O'Higgins Station 56 Byrd Station 1 Captain Arturo Prat Base 56 Casey Station 672 can be direct dialed Comandante Ferraz Brazilian Antarctic Base 55 Concordia Station 39 33 Davis Station 672 can be direct dialed Dome Fuji Station 81 Dumont d'Urville Station 33 Esperanza Base 54 Gabriel de Castilla Spanish Antarctic Station 34 Georg von Neumayer Station (Replaced by Neumayer Station) 49 Gonzalez Videla Station 56 Great Wall Station 86 Halley Research Station 44 Henryk Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station 48 Jang Bogo Station 82 Jinnah Antarctic Station 92 Juan Carlos I Base 34 Jubany 54 King Sejong Station 82 Kohnen-Station 49 Kunlun Station 852 Law-Racoviță-Negoiță Station 40 Leningradskaya Station 7 Machu Picchu Research Station 51 Macquarie Island Station 672 can be direct dialed Maitri Station 91 Marambio Base 54 Mario Zucchelli Station 39 Mawson Station 672 can be direct dialed McMurdo Station 1 can be reached by 64 code to Scott Base (NZ) Mendel Polar Station 420 Mirny Station 7 Mizuho Station 81 Molodyozhnaya Station 7 375 Neumayer Station 49 Novolazarevskaya Station 7 Orcadas Base 54 Palmer Station 1 Princess Elisabeth Base 32 Professor Julio Escudero Base 56 Progress Station 7 Rothera Research Station 44 Russkaya Station 7 San Martín Base 54 SANAE IV (South African National Antarctic Expeditions) 27 Signy Research Station 44 St. Kliment Ohridski Base 359 Scott Base 64 can be reached via 64 2409 and four digits on McMurdo exchange Showa Station 81 Svea 46 Tor Station 47 Troll Station 47 Wasa Research Station 46 Vostok Station 7 Vernadsky Research Base 380 Zhongshan Station 86

Notes

References

External links United States Antarctic Program - Information Technology and Communications