I decided to set up a Foundation whose purpose is to protect the environment and to encourage sustainable development (...). By definition, this is a common global challenge that requires urgent and concrete action in response to three major environmental issues: climate change, biodiversity and water.

H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco

We land at 9.00 hrs at the Franco-Italian station Concordia.

The welcome is extremely warm. All the staff from the base are waiting for us as we step off the plane.

There are 60 of them working here in the summer, and about 15 in the winter. Some of the winter staff will be leaving the base this morning. Chiara Montanari, the director of the station, is our guide.

Inside the station, we soon feel at home: a French chef and an Italian chef are busy in the kitchen. An espresso from the coffee machine in the morning and delicious pasta at lunch time - the opportunity to take up once again some of the habits lost since our departure.

At 10.30 hrs, we begin a tour of the facilities. Claire Lecalvez, the station’s number 2 explains how the site is designed, which has to stand up to the winter with its high accumulation of snow and a temperature which can drop to minus 80°.

The two main buildings rest on pillars with adjustable height in order to raise their level.

Prevention against all types of pollution on the site as everywhere in Antarctica is a major concern. All waste is sorted and then treated elsewhere, water is recycled using prototype machinery that is useful in the event of extreme confinement. It is being tested here so that it can then be developed for use in space.

Concordia is a unique example of cooperation between two countries, France and Italy, through its joint management and also its willingness to open up to others with the arrival of German researchers.

It also sets the example in terms of management: two women are in charge: Chiara is the director and Claire Lecalvez her right-hand woman in charge of logistics.

The afternoon is mainly spent visiting Concordia’s telescopes.

The site is gradually making a name for itself in astronomical research. To facilitate images being taken by the telescopes, the sky, according to researchers, must be “very transparent”. That means that there must be very little humidity in the air. This is the case on the Franco-Italian site as precipitation, in the form of snow, is only 3 centimetres per year. Furthermore the atmospheric pressure here is equivalent to that found at an altitude of 4 000 metres.

For these reasons, there is nearly always a collection of telescopes being installed, chiefly to analyse the history of the stars and the state of the atmosphere.

It is also a site for important studies in glaciology. Drillings of up to 3 270 metres deep have made it possible to obtain ice core samples dating back 800 000 years.

Much information can be obtained from this ice, in particular data on climate change. The ice is, among other things, a direct indicator of the state of greenhouse gases. As Joël Savarino, in charge of research at the CNRS explains “… through the air bubbles trapped in the ice, we can measure the concentration of such gases. Every time there is a warm period, there is an increase in greenhouse gases. Today, there is a reversal of the situation: In the past, the climate influenced greenhouse gases. Currently, under the influence of human activities, greenhouse gases are being emitted that influence the climate…”

Whilst the structures to accommodate the telescopes are being completed, Concordia is also getting ready for a harsh winter: The station is over a thousand kilometres away from any other station. In the winter, the temperature drops to below 80°. The 15 members of the winter staff will be blocked in and therefore completely independent and self-sufficient.