It's a bone of contention among Antarctic researchers that those at the cutting-edge of science should be housed in huts from the middle of last century.
Parts of the current Scott Base in the Ross Sea date back to Edmund Hillary's 1957 expedition.
By comparison drawings for the new Scott Base redevelopment look like they have just landed from a sci-fi fantasy. The Green wing-like structures are light-years removed from the wooden huts which arrived with the 1911 expedition. Although in reality they'll be buuilt under 2km from the cabin.
There are a raft of new research stations coming online in the next decade.
Having just finished the environmental assessment Ceisha Poirot GM of Policy Environment and Safety at Antarctica New Zealand, says they can't wait to move into the new building. The Green Star rated base will be as kind to the continent as it is to research staff.
"It's a matter of looking after our people to 2021 standards, because 1957 was quite some time ago," she says. "The world has moved on."
Sadly there are no civilian missions to Scott Base or any of the other 70 international research stations. You'll have to either be part of a research programme or be invited as an Antarctic Ambassador, like Lorde was in 2019.
One can only dream.
Until then, here's a look at some of the coolest Architecture projects south of sixty degrees.
Comandante Ferraz
It wouldn't look out of place in an Icelandic resort.
The Commandant Ferraz base of Brazil's Antarctic programme replaces the original base which burned down in 2012. The new base on King George Island is a teal-hue structure with generous Gyms and libraries are given as much prominence as laboratory areas.
Architect Eron Costin said the concept of the design was inspired by Antarctic clothing to be "an artefact that protects and comforts."
Speaking to Dezeen magazine they his practice Estudio 41 has prioritise outdoor views and natural light.
"Technological performance, but it must go hand-in-hand with aesthetics,"he said.
Halley VI
Similar to the Scott Base rebuild - the Halley VI replaced cabins from the late 1950s.
The most southerly base operated by the British Antarctic Survey, it has to withstand temperatures of -56°C. The long modular structure is designed to sit atop the 150m thick Brunt Ice Shelf, preventing it from being buried or from falling down a fissure. Perhaps the most ingenious design is the mechanical legs, which can be raised to "climb" out of a snow drift.
However inside the moon-base like structure, you'll find comfort and design concept, fit for a crew of 52 during the austral summer.
The pool tables and wooden panels may seem a little flamboyant for a research station but they serve a purpose. Timber panels were chosen "which give off pleasant natural scents" to help combat Seasonal Affected Disorder from the long 9-month winter gloaming.
At the north end of the station high-performance glazing gives epic window views "to provide a space for smaller groups to contemplate the majestic and hostile icescape outside."
Bharati Base
India's newest portal to Antarctica was built by German architects BOF, around a "window to the eternal ice".
The design brief was fiendlishly complicated. The architects say when they won it they "don't know whether to laugh or cry." From a design perspective, the Antarctic Treaty compliant 2400 square metre unit had to include its own power and plumbing. They were given little room to play with.
It was shipped out in 128 containers and assembled over the short Antarctic winter, on an island in the Larsemann Hills.
However they managed to find comfortable living space for 40 workers during peak season, including a dining area, a gym and a state of the art laboratory and library.
All of this is arranged around the central reinforced window, which takes in both the island and sea ice.
Architects Bert Bücking, Patrick Ostrop and Ole Flemming would love the opportunity to return for more projects.
Quoting Marline Dietrich, they say they still have a suitcase packed, waiting for the call.
McMurdo
It's not only the New Zealanders reinvesting in the Ross Sea. The Americans have been given the go ahead to work on its AIMS programme through "renovations to its facilities in the Antarctic".
Crews have already begun demolishing old hangars and huts to make way for what will be a dramatic new science city.
For its replacement, instead of going to a defense contractor, they hired Oz Architecture.
"They didn't want more of the same; they wanted a fresh set of eyes," principal architect Rick Petersen told Architectural Digest.
Within the 27870 square-metre footprint, they will be installing all the "creature comforts" and infrastructure of a high-end research campus. There is even a large lecture theatre.
"The main things that are doing are improving efficiency, logistical and energy, and at the same time improving wellness and quality of life."
Scott Base
The Scott Base redevelopment has been six decades in the offing.
The dramatic, wing-like structures to be built on Ross Island have been dubbed "New Zealand's Coolest Redevelopment" by the project's New Zealand architects Jasmax.
The Green Star 5 Star Design represents a significant upgrade from the current buildings. Some of which have been in place since Edmund Hillary's 1957 expedition.
"Significant thought" has been put into a design that reflects Māoritanga and a uniquely Kiwi connection to the continent, with "durability, comfort, economy and style", says lead architects Hugh Broughton.
Interiors have been designed to reflect New Zealand's "cultural and natural landscape."
They want it to be a home away from home for Kiwi scientists.
"The layout has been developed to include lots of places for people to stop and chat as they walk from one place to another, fostering collaboration."
At the centrepiece in the dining area, the 100 occupants will be treated to "a glazed end wall with spectacular views towards Mount Erebus and Mount Terror."
It's the kind of experience that tourists cannot buy. Not without spending three years writing a thesis, anyway.
