China is expanding its footprint in Antarctica with its fifth research station on the continent. Recent satellite imagery shows construction progressing quickly at Qinling Station, located on Inexpressible Island near the Ross Sea. The station, which officially opened on February 7, 2024, will help China strengthen its position as a scientific and political heavyweight in the world’s southern frontier.
Images reveal the station’s now-operational main building alongside newly built structures, including a concrete pad that could be used for helicopter landings, as well as storage tanks and warehouse facilities. In an ice-free southern corner of the site, a small wharf area enables China’s icebreakers and support ships to offload new personnel, supplies, and construction materials.
A new road connects the main building to the framework of a large structure waiting to be built in the site’s northeast quadrant. The framework is being prepared in the zone earmarked for scientific research, observation, and satellite antennas in publicly available planning documents. Smaller foundations and excavations are underway nearby, but their purpose remains unclear.
Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery provided by ICEYE offers a unique perspective of the site. Unlike passive multispectral imagery, which produces images using light from different wavelengths, SAR uses radar signals to capture surface features.
In areas like the polar regions, where challenging environmental conditions such as frequent cloud cover and inconsistent daylight can hamper multispectral imagery collection, SAR can help close gaps in coverage.
SAR imagery of Qinling Station places the site’s hilly topography in clear view and better enables distinction between ice, water, and land. It also sharply highlights new areas of construction activity at the site, including the future excavation area where the framework for a large new building has been laid.
Source: Adapted from a 2021 Chinese environmental evaluation report submitted to the Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty.
The coming months will likely see significant, continued progress on the station’s construction during the milder Antarctic summer. In November 2024, China launched its 41st Antarctica expedition, consisting of both its icebreaking research vessels, Xue Long 1 and Xue Long 2, as well as a large cargo ship, Yongsheng. According to China’s State Council, a primary purpose of the mission will be to build the remaining supporting infrastructure at Qinling Station.
Further construction work on the station and its infrastructure will provide additional details about its capabilities. China has plans to outfit the site with satellite antennas, which can be used for both civilian research as well as military and intelligence purposes.
For more on China’s ambitions and activities in the polar regions, and how they can support dual-use objectives, explore this previous report from Hidden Reach.
Matthew P. Funaiole is vice president of the iDeas Lab, Andreas C. Dracopoulos Chair in Innovation, and senior fellow in the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, D.C. Brian Hart is deputy director and fellow of the China Power Project at CSIS. Aidan Powers-Riggs is an associate fellow with the iDeas Lab at CSIS. Jennifer Jun is an associate fellow and project manager for satellite imagery analysis with the iDeas Lab and Korea Chair at CSIS. Joseph S. Bermudez Jr. is a senior fellow for Imagery Analysis at CSIS.
