ICEPAC, a solar- and wind-powered mobile IPY research station, is a Transnational Science and Art research project based in the Dronning Maud Land sector of Antarctica.

ICEPAC, designed by Pol Taylor (ARQZE, Chile), Thomas Mulcaire (South Africa) and Ntsikelelo Ntshingila (Swaziland) and built by Sets and Devices in Cape Town, was initiated by ITASC (Interpolar Transnational Art Science Constellation), a decentralised network of individuals and organisations working collaboratively in the fields of art, engineering and science on the interdisciplinary development and deployment of renewable energy, waste recycling systems and sustainable architecture. This research will enable the production and distribution of open-format, open-source remote field research in Antarctica and the Arctic.

The 2008/2009 ICEPAC crew is Ntsikelelo Ntshingila (expedition leader, musician and producer, Swaziland), Erika Blumenfeld (artist, USA), Lötter Kock (Space Physicist, SANAE 48 Expedition Leader, SA) and Thomas Mulcaire (artist, SA). The core ITASC crew will be joined for shorter periods of collaborative field work by scientists and crew from the South African Antarctic station SANAE IV base, including Ricardo Burgo Braga (Geographer, UFRGS, Brazil), Lorena Luiz Collares (Oceanologist, FARG, Brazil), Alfons Hug (curator, Germany), Sherry Bremner (UKZN School of Physics, SA) and Ross Hofmeyr (Doctor, SANAE 47 Expedition Leader, SA).

Research projects underway during this deployment at the research station include the structure of ICEPAC itself, a black polyester webbing skin which acts as a solar collector, transferring surface heat produced through the absorption of the near-24 hour Antarctic summer sun into the interior of the station. In addition to traditional crystalline photovoltaic panels, the ICEPAC crew is testing prototype thin-film photovoltaic panels during the current expedition with a view to eventually covering ICEPAC with a flexible photovoltaic skin which will provide the station with its entire energy and heat requirement.

Other projects underway at ICEPAC incorporate Catabatic Cell, a field experiment to test the possibility of creating transient habitable spaces in the blue ice beneath the snow using solar and wind power, a type of inverted igloo. The goal is to use submersible heating elements to produce a sub-glacial station architecture using only the materials and resources already present in Antarctica (ice, wind, sun). The water produced during the formation of the cell will serve as the water supply for the ICEPAC crew. If successful, the Catabatic Cell experiment could provide a model for creating working and living conditions in Antarctica without the need to import massive amounts of materials, equipment and fuels in the constructing and maintenance of field stations in Antarctica.

And finally as part of this season's research, The Polar Project is an evolving series of environment-based artworks conceived by artist Erika Blumenfeld (US). Focusing on the distinct and sublime phenomena of light, sky, and sound in the Arctic and Antarctica, the project will culminate in a series of full-surround video and audio installations which impart a visceral experience of the Polar Regions. Blumenfeld is currently in Antarctica working collaboratively on the deployment and systems testing of ICEPAC. She is also creating new works in her Light Recordings and Moving Light series, as well as initiating the first works for The Polar Project (www.thepolarproject.com).

The projects and site-specific installations at the ICEPAC site will be exhibited as part of the 2nd Bienal del Fin del Mundo, curated by Alfons Hug and entitled 'Intemperie' (Tempest), focusing on weather, climate and Antarctica.

The main venue of the Bienal del Fin del Mundo is Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina (April 23 - May 25) with satellite exhibitions taking place at Centro Cultural Oi Futuro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Jan 19 - March 1), SANAE IV, Antarctica (Feb 3 -17), and OCA, Sao Paulo, Brazil (March 7 - April 12).

ITASC was co-founded by Thomas Mulcaire and Marko Peljhan in 2005. The project has developed under the direction of Thomas Mulcaire, Siphiwe Ngwenya and Ntsikelelo Ntshingila since 2007. ITASC is a not-for-profit company registered in South Africa.

ITASC and ICEPAC are supported by the South African National Antarctic Programme (www.sanap.ac.za) and the South African National Energy Research Institute (www.saneri.org.za).