"Arctic Shamrock" is the northernmost outpost of the Russian Federation, as well as the northernmost structure of this scale. The uniqueness of this object is observed in everything: from the architectural features of the complex to the latest technologies that ensure the full functioning of the outpost.
Country of the Big Dipper
The country of the Big Dipper - this is how the word "Arctic" can be translated from Greek. This is the northernmost region of the world. The area of the Arctic, depending on the method of territorial division, varies from 21 to 27 million square kilometers.
In 2014, D. Medvedev signed an order to resume development. It meant the opening of thirteen airfields, ten air defense stations, sixteen ports. In addition, drifting and search stations resumed work.
Construction
The construction of the Arctic Shamrock base began in 2007, but information about the stages of construction became publicly available only in 2015. The location of the base was the island of Alexandra Land in the archipelago of Franz Josef Land at the eightieth degree of northern latitude. This is not the only Russian military facility located in the northern latitudes. In the archipelago of the New Siberian Islands on Kotelny Island, there is "Northern Clover" - the first Arctic base in Russia, "Trefoil" became the second.
"Arctic Shamrock" is the northernmost object in the world, during the creation of which not only construction and installation, but also earthworks were used. They consist in the device of buried foundations, load-bearing structures and summing up communications. Despite the fact that the construction has not yet been completed, the base is already inhabited and fulfills its functions. Construction work is carried out by SpetsStroy of Russia. More than eight hundred people are involved in the construction. For the buildings, unique technologies were used that allow the construction of permanent structures in permafrost conditions, and modern materials that effectively retain heat and significantly reduce the cost of maintaining a positive temperature in the base buildings.
Base Description
On the territory of the "Arctic Shamrock" there are several buildings and special structures. The main building of the base is an administrative and residential complex, made in the form of a three-pointed star. This is a five-story building painted in the colors of the Russian tricolor.
Three elliptical buildings were built between the branches of the administrative and residential complex. They housed a kitchen and dining room, leisure facilities, medical and administrative blocks. The outpost also has a boiler house, a power plant, warehouses, garages and other outbuildings. The buildings are interconnected by insulated passages. This is a very important communication that allows you to freely move around the territory of the base even in the most severe frost.
In addition, roads are organized on the territory of the island, and a pumping fuel station is equipped on the shore. All this makes the Arctic Shamrock complex autonomous. The equipment of the base is capable of ensuring a one-time stay of one and a half hundred people for eighteen months.
Unique Features
During the construction of the outpost, the designers encountered certain difficulties due to the remoteness of the complex from the mainland and the very low average annual temperature of the region. Equipment and building materials are delivered to the site by means of transport. However, this is possible only four months a year during summer navigation.
The main feature of the "Arctic Trefoil" is the pile foundation, the presence of which eliminates the risk of buildings. is located in the center of the base, and from it, like rays, there are branches to other buildings and buildings. Moreover, even from space, the "Arctic Shamrock" is able to amaze with the uniqueness of its architectural solutions.
Life on the base
For the garrison guarding the northern borders of the Russian Federation, comfortable conditions have been organized both for work and for leisure. The main building of the base is divided into four blocks - three beams and the central part, which has an atrium with a glass roof, which ensures the flow of daylight into the building. In addition, an observation deck on the roof of the building allows you to observe every point of the base. In the beams of the building are mainly residential premises. From the central part, insulated passages lead to other main buildings.
In addition to the main buildings, the base houses technical and utility facilities that can ensure the autonomy of the facility for a long time.
air defense
Functions of the Shamrock
In addition to its main function - protecting the air borders of the Russian Federation, meteorological research is carried out at the base. The control of the Northern Sea Route is not only military protection, but also ensuring the safe passage of ships in terms of weather conditions. Modern equipment installed at the base helps to analyze the current, ice movement and other factors that can slow down or hinder navigation.
prospects
Until quite recently, only a certain circle of people knew about the existence of the base. In March 2017, Russian President V.V. Putin. The visit was also attended by the Prime Minister, the Minister of Defense and the Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology. One of the purposes of the visit was to visit the outpost. And already in April, a new project was launched on the website of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation - a virtual tour of the Arctic Shamrock. Now everyone can get acquainted with the conditions in which the northernmost military unit lives.
As political scientists predict, in the near future a fierce struggle for the Arctic territories will unfold on the world stage. In addition to the five contenders known for a long time, having borders in the Arctic Ocean, other countries began to claim their rights to the northern territories.
The massive melting of glaciers opens up new prospects for the development of northern territories rich in natural resources. In addition, from the point of view of the country's defense, the Arctic is of strategic importance.
Last Monday, the Russian Ministry of Defense posted on its official website a virtual tour of the newest military base, the Arctic Shamrock. This object has previously become a topic of news, naturally attracting the attention of the public, but only now everyone can get acquainted with its main features, as well as see the unique buildings from the inside.
The base "Arctic Shamrock", which got its name in connection with the original shape of the main building, is located on the island of Alexandra Land in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. This is the second such object deployed in recent years in such high latitudes. Earlier, the base "Northern Clover", located on about. Boiler house of the Novosibirsk Islands archipelago.
According to some reports, the possibility of building a base on Alexandra Land became a topic of discussion in the middle of the last decade. A few years later, a final decision was made and preliminary work began. The construction of the first facilities was started only a few years ago. To date, most of the facilities of the new base have been built and put into operation. The main achievement of the builders was the construction of a housing and administrative complex - the largest and most important object of the base.
In addition to the housing and administrative complex on about. Alexandra Land is now home to many other buildings and structures for various purposes. In addition, in the course of construction work and preparations for it, a large number of roads were laid and several positions were equipped to accommodate certain weapons, equipment, etc.
An important feature of the construction, which had a corresponding effect on its complexity and duration, was the inability to use building materials mined near the construction sites. All the necessary resources had to be delivered from the mainland. In addition, all structures and buildings received a pile foundation, the use of which is due to the presence of permafrost. Thus, all objects of the base, including a large housing and administrative complex, actually hang above the ground.
Considering the peculiarities of the local climate, the architects minimized the need to leave the buildings. All the main buildings of the base are connected to each other by a large number of covered insulated passages. Thanks to this, personnel can get to almost anywhere in the base without leaving open spaces. In most cases, the fighter's path will lie through the housing and administrative complex, located in the center of the base and being its main element. However, all structures have their own exits.
For obvious reasons, the housing and administrative complex of the base aroused the greatest interest of the public and specialists. It is the largest building on Franz Josef Land, and also attracts attention with its unusual shape. It should also be noted that this building has become the northernmost capital building in the world. Finally, it is because of this object that the entire base got its name.
All the main premises and facilities of the base are located in a common building of unusual architecture with a total area of 14,000 sq.m. The housing and administrative complex is a capital building on metal piles, consisting of several basic elements. The main one is the central structure of the original form in terms of shape, built in the form of a three-beam star. It is because of this feature of the complex that the base received the name "Arctic Shamrock". There are three other buildings in the sectors between the "beams" of the central building. To obtain the required strength characteristics and to solve some other problems, they are made in the form of spherical domes or truncated ellipsoids. The central and side buildings are interconnected by transitions. All buildings of the complex are painted in the colors of the Russian flag.
During the construction of the complex, the most modern materials were used, which make it possible to retain heat as efficiently as possible and almost completely eliminate energy losses. This allows you to economically consume the fuel necessary to maintain the required conditions. For greater convenience of infrastructure maintenance, the complex has a separate technical floor. It houses all the main elements of energy and other infrastructure. This arrangement of communications greatly simplifies their maintenance and repair.
The central building of the housing and administrative complex, in addition to its unusual shape, has some other interesting features. So, in order to avoid the accumulation of large masses of snow, a roof of a special design is used. Each of the "beams" of the body has a gable roof. The ridges of three similar roofs converge in the center of the building, forming its highest point. In the central part of the roof, a large glazed area is provided, which provides illumination of the atrium during daylight hours. The body is divided into four blocks, designated by letters from "A" to "G". The first three letters of the alphabet are used to denote "beams", the letter "G" denotes the central block.
Due to the large angles of inclination of the roof, block "G" has five floors, while other elements of the building have a lower height and, as a result, reduced usable volumes. All available space on the floors is divided into a large number of rooms of different sizes and for various purposes. Most of the available volumes are given over to residential premises. In addition, the housing and administrative complex has a billiard room, a table tennis room and a greenhouse. In the central part of the building there is an observation deck from which you can observe the entire territory of the base.
Block G has an atrium in its central part. At this point, all the corridors of the side blocks converge, leading to the side platforms. The central vertical support of the atrium serves as a flagpole. At the side walls of the atrium on the first floor, as the virtual tour shows, there are information stands.
From the side wall that unites blocks "A" and "B" a short covered gallery departs, connecting the central building with the administrative block. Like other side elements of the building, this block has the shape of a truncated ellipsoid and is placed on piles. Along the perimeter of the curved wall there are several rows of windows. All available volumes are allocated for various premises for various purposes, etc. On several floors of the administrative block there are command offices, training classes and other necessary premises.
Opposite blocks "B" and "C" the architects placed another round building given over to a medical service block, a cultural and leisure center and property warehouses. The medical block of the base includes a separate doctor's office, a treatment room, a ward for patients and a dental office. In the same building there is a gym with a variety of sports equipment and an assembly hall that can serve as a cinema. The remaining premises of the block are given over to warehouses for clothing items.
The third round building is located between blocks "B" and "A" and is completely devoted to the tasks of feeding personnel. It has a kitchen, dining rooms for military personnel, including a separate quarters for officers, as well as a food depot. The size of the warehouses allows you to place a significant amount of supplies on them, sufficient for the autonomous operation of the entire base for a long time.
With the help of covered passages and galleries, a significant number of other structures for various purposes are connected to the housing and administrative complex. The base has garages and workshops for equipment, warehouses for various purposes, an autonomous power unit with a power plant and a boiler house, a water treatment plant, sewerage, etc. To receive fuel and lubricants, a coastal pumping station was built on the island, with the help of which fuel can be pumped directly from tankers to the appropriate warehouses. In addition, a wooden Orthodox chapel was built on the basis of the Arctic Shamrock.
The infrastructure of the base provides a full-fledged service for the garrison of 150 people. Using only its own stocks of food, fuel and clothing items available in warehouses, the base can operate normally and solve the assigned tasks within 18 months. The only practically unlimited resource of the base is water. It is proposed to extract it by melting snow with subsequent cleaning. The specifics of the local climate will not leave the base without water.
The main task of the garrison of the base "Arctic Shamrock" is the implementation of air defense. Back in 2014, the first air defense unit was deployed on the island of Alexandra Land. During the first few months, soldiers and officers had to be accommodated in temporary residential buildings and keep equipment in prefabricated garages. To date, permanent structures suitable for long-term operation have been built, which has had a positive effect both on the complexity of service in the special conditions of the Arctic and on its results.
The construction of a new base on Franz Josef Land with a full-fledged infrastructure is the most important stage in the development of the Arctic grouping of the Russian armed forces. By commissioning a number of new facilities, the military department has received a number of important opportunities that can positively affect various aspects of the defense of the country's northern borders.
First of all, the appearance of the Arctic Shamrock base with air defense means led to the strengthening of the grouping of troops in the northern direction. The Arctic is of great interest both for Russia and for many foreign countries, which is why the Russian military needs to take appropriate measures and prepare to protect the interests of the country. The presence of air defense formations in the northern directions makes it possible to protect navigation in the region, and in addition, to a certain extent, it complicates the work of the naval forces of a potential enemy in a threatened period or in the event of a real conflict.
In addition to protecting the Northern Sea Route from a military point of view, the new base can participate in ensuring navigation in the region. The permanent presence of the garrison on Franz Josef Land makes it possible to carry out meteorological studies, study the movement of ice and other factors that directly affect navigation. By collecting and transmitting data, the military will help maritime transportation and secure transport ships.
The construction of a new base shows the fundamental possibility of deploying such facilities even in remote areas with difficult conditions. As a result, with the further use of such opportunities on Franz Josef Land and other archipelagos of the Arctic Ocean, new military facilities can be built. The base "Arctic Shamrock" is responsible for the implementation of air defense, but it is possible to deploy objects of a different purpose, with the help of which the army will protect the northern borders from various threats.
In just a few years, the Russian Ministry of Defense was able to build two new military bases in the Arctic. To date, both garrisons have begun full-fledged service and are solving the tasks assigned to them. The military and political leadership of the country has long declared the Arctic a zone of special attention, including in the context of the further development of the armed forces. In this regard, in the foreseeable future, new objects similar to the "Arctic Shamrock" or "Northern Clover" may appear on certain islands of the northern seas. During the construction of the two newest bases, the most modern ideas and materials were used. The construction of the next similar facilities, obviously, will be carried out taking into account further progress. Thus, even more interesting objects of the armed forces may appear in the Arctic in the future.
According to the websites:
http://mil.ru/
http://rg.ru/
http://ria.ru/
http://tvzvezda.ru/
Virtual tour of the base:
http://mil.ru/files/files/arctic/Arctic.html
In the northernmost point of Russia, on the archipelago of Franz Josef Land, a unique military facility "Arctic Shamrock" is being built. No one has ever built military installations of this magnitude so close to the North Pole. Only Russian people are capable of this!
© The post contains personal pictures and photographs of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The Arctic Shamrock is currently the only capital construction facility in the world being built at 80 degrees north latitude.
Alexandra Land is an island with an area of 1130 square kilometers, which is part of the Franz Josef Land archipelago. During World War II, a German weather station and a submarine base were located on the island.
The relevance of Alexandra Land as a military base has increased significantly after the creation in December 2014 of the Joint Strategic Command "North", designed to comprehensively ensure the security of the Russian Arctic region. The three main tasks of this security are the defense of the shelf of the Arctic seas, the Northern Sea Route and the Northwest Passage.
The administrative and residential complex "Arctic Shamrock" is a five-story shamrock painted in the colors of the Russian tricolor, between the rays of which there are three ellipsoids - an administrative block, a public catering block, as well as a cultural and leisure center combined with a medical service block.
The Arctic Shamrock is the second complex of a closed cycle being built in the interests of the Northern Fleet in the high-latitude regions of the Arctic. The first to be built at the 75th degree of northern latitude was the Northern Clover AJC on Kotelny Island of the Novosibirsk Islands archipelago.
In the center of the trefoil there is an atrium - a multi-light space, illuminated through the glazing in the roof and stained-glass windows located in the side walls. Above the central support of the atrium there is an observation deck, protected by translucent structures, which allows visual observation of the main objects of military infrastructure.
In fact, this is a complex for life and work, equal in autonomy to a space station. The autonomy of the complex will ensure comfortable living and performance of official duties by a group of 150 people for a year and a half.
The total area of the complex is more than 14 thousand square meters.
The residential block in the "Arctic Trefoil" consists of modules for one, two and three people.
Dining room
More than 800 people work at the construction site. The construction of the Arctic Shamrock is carried out using innovative and energy-efficient technologies that minimize energy consumption.
The work is carried out by the legendary enterprise - Spetsstroy of Russia.
The complex is designed in such a way that such facilities as a power unit, a boiler house, power plants, treatment facilities, warehouses and storage facilities are connected by heated passages, which means that military personnel will not need to go out in the cold, which here reaches minus 52 degrees.
Roads have been paved on the island, a coastal pumping station has been built and is functioning, which makes it possible to receive fuel from tankers and supply it to the fuel and lubricants warehouse.
Now there is even a chapel on the island, where they will take care of the fortress of the spiritual bonds of soldiers and officers.
The Arctic is in the zone of strategic interests of our country, therefore, in April, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu personally inspected Russia's northernmost military base.
This is one of the five garrisons that are now being built in the northern latitudes. The complex on Franz Josef Land is Russia's northernmost outpost in the Arctic. Similar towns are planned to be built along the entire northern border of Russia.
In one of the coldest places on the planet, the Franz Josef Land archipelago, the Russian military has completed the construction of a military base. It is called "Arctic Shamrock", because the shape resembles a flower. The complex is so equipped with everything you need that, if necessary, you can live in it in complete isolation for a whole year and a half.
Since 2007, construction of a secret facility has begun on the island of Alexandra Land in the Arctic Ocean. Only 10 years later it became known that a Russian military complex called the Arctic Shamrock was being built here.
The scale of the base is striking, because the construction took place in extreme conditions. But in this region there are rich deposits of oil and natural gas. In addition, the island is also the location of the air defense unit of the Northern Fleet.
In total, the base consists of 70 buildings designed to employ 150 people. In the center is the central building in which the employees will live. On one tier there are single block cabins, and on the other - two and three-bed cabins. All buildings are interconnected by passages. In the Arctic cold, this is a vital solution. The average January temperature is minus 24 degrees Celsius, but sometimes the thermometer can drop to minus 52 degrees.
An autonomous high-capacity boiler house maintains heat at the base, while the surrounding snow serves as a source of water. In the event of complete isolation and lack of external communication, the resources of the Arctic Shamrock will be enough to provide the workers with everything they need for a whole year and a half.
Next, we will talk about how the construction of the unique military facility “Arctic Shamrock”, which is located on Franz Josef Land, is progressing. The uniqueness of this structure lies in the fact that a military facility of this scale is being built for the first time so close to the North Pole.
The Arctic Shamrock is currently the only capital construction facility in the world being built at 80 degrees north latitude.
Alexandra Land is an island with an area of 1130 square kilometers, which is part of the Franz Josef Land archipelago. During World War II, a German weather station and a submarine base were located on the island.
The relevance of Alexandra Land as a military base has increased significantly after the creation in December 2014 of the Joint Strategic Command "North", designed to comprehensively ensure the security of the Russian Arctic region. The three main tasks of this security are the defense of the shelf of the Arctic seas, the Northern Sea Route and the Northwest Passage.
The administrative and residential complex "Arctic Shamrock" is a five-story shamrock painted in the colors of the Russian tricolor, between the rays of which there are three ellipsoids - an administrative block, a public catering block, as well as a cultural and leisure center combined with a medical service block.
The Arctic Shamrock is the second complex of a closed cycle being built in the interests of the Northern Fleet in the high-latitude regions of the Arctic. The first to be built at the 75th degree of northern latitude was the Northern Clover AJC on Kotelny Island of the Novosibirsk Islands archipelago.
In the center of the trefoil there is an atrium - a multi-light space, illuminated through the glazing in the roof and stained-glass windows located in the side walls. Above the central support of the atrium there is an observation deck, protected by translucent structures, which allows visual observation of the main objects of military infrastructure.
In fact, this is a complex for life and work, equal in autonomy to a space station. The autonomy of the complex will ensure comfortable living and performance of official duties by a group of 150 people for a year and a half.
The total area of the complex is more than 14 thousand square meters.
The residential block in the "Arctic Trefoil" consists of modules for one, two and three people.
Dining room
More than 800 people work at the construction site. The construction of the Arctic Shamrock is carried out using innovative and energy-efficient technologies that minimize energy consumption.
The work is carried out by the legendary enterprise - Spetsstroy of Russia. The work is carried out in the most difficult climatic conditions: squally wind, snowstorm, arctic frosts. For the construction of structures, absolutely everything is imported from the mainland along the Northern Sea Route. Delivery is possible only during the summer navigation period - these are four months a year.
The complex is designed in such a way that such facilities as a power unit, a boiler house, power plants, treatment facilities, warehouses and storage facilities are connected by heated passages, which means that military personnel will not need to go out in the cold, which here reaches minus 52 degrees.
Roads have been paved on the island, a coastal pumping station has been built and is functioning, which makes it possible to receive fuel from tankers and supply it to the fuel and lubricants warehouse.
This is one of the five garrisons that are now being built in the northern latitudes. The complex on Franz Josef Land is Russia's northernmost outpost in the Arctic.
Similar towns are planned to be built along the entire northern border of Russia.
