The Faraday Station existed for 49 years and 31 days operated by FIDS and BAS. The research base was established in 1947 at the Wordie House site on Winter Island by the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey as Argentine Islands. The primary purpose of the station was to research geophysics, meteorology, and ionospherics. In May 1954 the base moved from Winter Island to the present site on adjacent Galindez Island where the main building was named "Coronation House" in honor of the 1953 coronation of Elizabeth II. The personnel of the British Argentine Islands station sometimes used the Argentine Groussac refuge station at Petermann Island. On 15 August 1977 it was renamed as Station F — Faraday soon after the Argentine Air Force established own military base at Southern Thule earlier in November 1976 during 1970–1980s contestation of the region between Argentina and the United Kingdom. The British base was renamed Faraday Station in honour of British scientist Michael Faraday. In September 1977 at Rasmussen Island was planted memorial cross in honor of G H Hargreaves, M A Walker and G J Whitfield. On 14 August 1982 another memorial cross was planted at Petermann Island in honor of A C Morgan, K P Ockleton and J Coll.
The climate of the base is classified as marine subantarctic. The climate is strongly influenced by the surrounding Pacific Ocean, moderating winter and summer temperatures. Thus, winter temperatures rarely fall below owing to the warmer waters while in summer, the cool waters and snow cover causes temperatures to rarely reach above. The mean annual temperature is although within the last decade, temperatures have risen with much of it in winter and autumn. Being located in the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula, the climate is dominated by the low pressure systems that develop over the Pacific Ocean and move eastwards towards the peninsula mountain range. This process leads to frequent precipitation and strong winds in the base. Unpredictable and short snowfalls and snowstorms occur often. On average, the base receives 300 days with snow per year. Anticyclone weather patterns caused by high pressure systems in the interior of Antarctica or from the north are rare. In the cases that they occur, when the weather is influenced by the high pressure system from the interior of the continent, cold air masses from the south moves northwards. This can occasionally lead to foggy conditions and hoarfrost.
Statistics
Infrastructure
Main complex
The station consists of nine buildings standing on rock foundations. A 1961 extension at the east end of the hut provided living quarters for 15 people. Major alterations in 1980 updated the living and working accommodation. A two-storey extension provides sleeping accommodation for 24 people, a clothing store, boiler room and reverse osmosis planton the ground floor. Upstairs are a lounge, library, dining room, gift store and kitchen. Visitors could purchase $3 shots of horilka up until 2016 in the lounge. The old part of the building is now mostly laboratories and work rooms, together with the surgery and washrooms. The generator shed was erected in 1978-79, with the old one now used as a frozen food store and a carpenter's workshop. Other buildings include two non-magnetic buildings, a balloon launching shed, and a general store.
Wordie House
Not part of the current Ukrainian Research Base, yet associated with the history of preceding British Faraday Station, the Wordie House served as a foundation of new British Antarctic station. Built on the site of an earlier British Graham Land Expedition sometime in 1935–36, it was destroyed, possibly by a tsunami, in 1946. The hut was named "Wordie House" after Sir James Wordie, a member of 1914–16 Shackleton'sImperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition who visited during its construction. To commemorate the historic landmark, on 19 May 1995 the Wordie House at Winter Island has been restored and designated as Historic Site and Monument No. 62. After Faraday base complex at Galindez Island was transferred to Ukraine, the new Vernadsky base personnel continued temporarily supervise the Wordie House. In January 2007 the landmark was inspected by conservation architect for BAS and since October 2009 the Wordie House is managed by United Kingdom Antarctic Heritage Trust under a "Memorandum of Understanding" with BAS.
Rasmussen Hut
At Rasmussen Island there is a hut that was under official use in Mar 1984–6 Feb 1996. Currently it is considered as closed, yet used occasionally by Ukrainian personnel from Vernadsky Station for emergency refuge shelter and recreational.
Operations
Climate research
As one of the longest operating bases in Antarctica, Vernadsky Station has been the subject of scientific research studies on long-term temperature trends that indicate global warming. A study published in the April 2013 issue of the International Journal of Climatology examined the daily observed temperature at the Faraday/Vernadsky station from 1947 to 2011. It concluded that “Faraday/Vernadsky is experiencing a significant warming trend of about 0.6°C/decade over the last few decades. Concurrently, the magnitude of extremely cold temperatures has reduced.”
Postal services and tourism
Vernadsky Station operates several services for visiting tourists. A post office accepts postcards at a cost of US$2 each. This is one of only a few post offices where visitors may send mail from Antarctica. Stamps for letters cost $6. Mail will take several months to be delivered. In addition to selling postage and accepting outgoing mail, the post office sells commemorative postcards and envelopes for $2 to $3 each.
Staff
During 2013-14, Vernadsky Station is staffed by 12 Ukrainians who make up the XVIII Ukrainian Antarctic Expedition.
In popular culture
The first Ukrainian expedition to the research base is featured in the Death and the Penguin novel by Ukrainian author Andrey Kurkov, which was one of the first internationally successful books of independent Ukraine, as well as its sequel Penguin Lost.
