Permanent Docking Pier Reaches McMurdo Station After 9,100-Nautical-Mile Tow

The McMurdo Docking Pier has successfully arrived at McMurdo Station, the United Sates’ research station in Antarctica, after completing a 9,159 nautical mile journey across the Pacific and Southern Oceans.

The pier was towed from the Pacific Northwest by TradeWinds Towing over 69 days, averaging 5.5 knots throughout the voyage. The voyage included four days of weather routing to avoid the worst of the Southern Ocean systems. On the final leg from New Zealand to Antarctica, the tow encountered seas of up to 30 feet

The new pier will replace the traditional seasonal ice pier that has historically served the station. Designed with a raked hull to ride on top of sea ice and engineered for long-term durability in polar conditions, the structure will provide more reliable, lower-maintenance mooring infrastructure to support cargo operations at the largest research facility in Antarctica.

Built in Portland by Gunderson Marine & Iron and designed by Glosten for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the new pier will replace the traditional seasonal ice pier that has historically served the station. Designed with a raked hull to ride on top of sea ice and engineered for long-term durability in polar conditions, the structure will provide more reliable, lower-maintenance mooring infrastructure to support cargo operations at the largest research facility in Antarctica.

“This project reflects the capability and resilience of our workforce,” said Dee Burch, President of Gunderson Marine & Iron. “From engineering and fabrication in Portland to arrival at the edge of the world, this pier represents the strength of American shipbuilding and the commitment to supporting critical scientific research in one of the harshest environments on earth.”

The successful arrival marks a major milestone in the multi-year effort to modernize logistics infrastructure supporting U.S. Antarctic research operations.

The permanent docking solution comes after McMurdo’s traditional ice pier was deemed unusable during the 2025 season due to severe damage, forcing Military Sealift Command to deploy a 65-ton floating Marine Causeway System as a temporary replacement.

For the 2026 resupply season, MSC chartered the Dutch-flagged heavy-lift ship Plantijngracht to carry cargo and another 65-ton Modular Causeway System to McMurdo.

Operation Deep Freeze is a Defense Support to Civilian Authorities mission conducted in partnership with the National Science Foundation, which manages the U.S. Antarctic Program. MSC-chartered ships have made the annual run to Antarctica since McMurdo Station was established in 1955.

The mission is also supported by the USCGC Polar Star, the U.S. Coast Guard’s only active heavy icebreaker. The 50-year-old vessel conducts icebreaking operations to create and maintain a navigable channel to the station, enabling essential fuel and cargo deliveries that sustain research stations and operations.

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