# Who's the head honcho of Americans in Antarctica? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 27, 2011, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-head-honcho-of-americans-in-antarctica/607536 "2011-12-27T17:07:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2011, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-head-honcho-of-americans-in-antarctica/607536/1 "2011-12-27T17:07:57Z")
> **[United States Antarctic Program](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Antarctic_Program)** > > The United States Antarctic Program (or USAP; formerly known as the United States Antarctic Research Program or USARP and the United States Antarctic Service or USAS) is an organization of the United States government which has a presence in the Antarctica continent. Founded in 1959, the USAP manages all U.S. scientific research and related logistics in Antarctica as well as aboard ships in the Southern Ocean. > The United States established the U.S. Antarctic Research Program (USARP) in 1959—th... > **[McMurdo Station](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McMurdo_Station)** > > McMurdo Station is a United States Antarctic research station on the south tip of Ross Island, which is in the New Zealand-claimed Ross Dependency on the shore of McMurdo Sound in Antarctica. It is operated by the United States through the United States Antarctic Program (USAP), a branch of the National Science Foundation. The station is the largest community in Antarctica, capable of supporting up to 1,200 residents, and serves as one of three year-round United States Antarctic science fac The... The USAP, a civilian operation, has three year-round bases, the largest of which is McMurdo, and several seasonal bases. The U.S. military has personnel down there, and obviously other countries have their own Antarctic presence. Is the mayor, director or administrator of McMurdo the top U.S. official on the continent? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-head-honcho-of-americans-in-antarctica/607536/2 "2012-01-13T05:11:55Z")
Anyone? Bueller? ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-head-honcho-of-americans-in-antarctica/607536/3 "2012-01-13T06:12:15Z")
A starting point for reading: [http://www.nsf.gov/oig/05-2-009\_final.pdf](http://www.nsf.gov/oig/05-2-009_final.pdf) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-head-honcho-of-americans-in-antarctica/607536/4 "2012-01-13T06:13:35Z")
I don’t think that the military personnel and civilians answer to the same authority, nor do the personnel at different facilities. Why would they? ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-head-honcho-of-americans-in-antarctica/607536/5 "2012-01-13T10:07:33Z")
Yeah I agree with Chronos. And it depends on what you mean by “Head Honcho”. For example, the McMurdo station is not located on a territory of the USA, so there would be no US governor, for example. I think New Zealand authorities might oversee some aspects of the land use. Military personnel would be overseen by their superiors, just like research personnel would be overseen by their superiors. And if you follow the chain of command in either operation it will eventually devolve back to someone in the USA. The paper I linked to in the first post shows that there is a US law enforcement officer, who are themselves overseen by LE staff in Hawaii or Florida. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-head-honcho-of-americans-in-antarctica/607536/6 "2012-01-13T20:30:15Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > A starting point for reading: > > [Home | U.S. National Science Foundation Office of Inspector General OIG](http://www.nsf.gov/oig/05-2-009_final.pdf) Fascinating - thanks. Looks like some pretty good cooperation between the NSF, DOJ, FBI etc.