A NEW EXPEDITION, NEW SLED, NEW PROJECTS
The Windsled, led by Ramón Larramendi, is embarking on a new scientific and exploratory mission: the Unexplored Antarctica 2018–19 Expedition, which will take place from December 4, 2018, to February 12, 2019.
This 2,000-kilometer journey, never before undertaken with this type of emission-free vehicle, will support a number of high-impact national and international scientific projects. It will also mark a geographic milestone by reaching Dome Fuji, at 3,810 meters above sea level, without using any motorized transport. The team will endure temperatures below –50°C. The expedition is sponsored by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the agency Tierras Polares and Expediciones . Collaborators include the European Space Agency, the University of Maine (USA), the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), and several Spanish universities. Funding has also come from a crowdfunding campaign supported by 332 people.
The Unexplored Antarctica 2018–19 expedition will follow a triangular route across one of the least-known regions of the planet. It will be carried out by four experienced Spanish explorers: Ramón Larramendi, Hilo Moreno, Ignacio Oficialdegui, and Manuel Olivera. Larramendi is both the creator of the sled and the expedition leader. The mission has two goals: to prove that the Windsled can handle the harshest conditions—reaching a point never accessed before without motorized vehicles—and to carry out cutting-edge scientific research led by both Spanish and international institutions.
The expedition will depart from the Russian base Novolazarevskaya and ascend to Dome Fuji, where there is currently an active Japanese base. From there, they will head to Plateau Station, a U.S. scientific base in Queen Maud Land that has been abandoned since 1969.
All four expedition members are trained Windsled pilots and have also received scientific training for the projects they’ll be conducting. A standout role will be their work for the European Space Agency’s Galileo program, under the project name GESTA.
The Windsled
This innovative vehicle can transport over two tons using kite power and is composed of three main modules:
- Locomotive module: Acts as the engine of the sled and includes a tent for shelter from extreme cold, often below –40°C. The rear section serves as a workspace and emergency shelter for the pilots during severe weather.
- Cargo module: Carries all the scientific equipment, food, devices, and collected samples. It’s also equipped with 10–12 square meters of solar panels, which feed energy into six large and several small batteries.
Habitable module: Serves as living quarters. It features a custom-designed tent that creates a greenhouse effect and can withstand Antarctic storms.
They will carry 20 kites ranging from 5 to 100 square meters, adapted to wind speeds between 6 and 60 km/h. All kites are reinforced with Kevlar, and the pulley lines extend up to 500 meters to maximize wind harnessing at high altitude.
The Windsled measures about 9 meters long by 4 meters wide. The team will work in rotating pairs to keep the sled moving up to 18 hours a day, weather permitting.
“The total cost of this expedition is a fraction of what similar scientific missions in Antarctica usually require,” says Larramendi.
Meet the Team
RAMÓN LARRAMENDI
Born in Madrid in 1965, Ramón is one of the world’s leading polar explorers. He splits his time between Greenland and Spain. At 20, he made his first trip to the polar regions. He led the Circumpolar Mapfre Expedition, covering 14,000 km over three years. In 1999, he launched the Windsled project, covering over 20,000 km in the Arctic and Antarctica. He is the founder and director of Tierras Polares travel agency and has led numerous expeditions.
IGNACIO OFICIALDEGUI
A biologist from Pamplona with a master’s in environmental impact assessment, Ignacio began his career in international development before moving into renewable energy. He currently heads the Projects & Proposals Department at Acciona Energía. He has over 30 years of mountaineering experience and has been involved in several Windsled expeditions, including to the Geographic North Pole and the South Pole with “South Pole Without Limits.”
HILO MORENO
A professional guide and mountaineer, Hilo has worked at the Spanish Antarctic Base Juan Carlos I since 2008. He has explored remote parts of Alaska, Greenland, Patagonia, Canada, Norway, and more. He participated in previous Windsled missions, including Summit of Ice 2016 and River of Ice 2017.
MANUEL OLIVERA
Originally from Mallorca, Manuel is an industrial engineer with a Master’s in Civil Engineering from USC in California. He joined the 1990–1993 Circumpolar Mapfre Expedition and has worked at Ferrovial since 1994. He was part of the first circumnavigation of Greenland in 2014 using the Windsled, managing scientific projects and communications.
Scientific Projects (2018)
- Microairpolar (Autonomous University of Madrid)
Lead researchers: Antonio Quesada and Ana Justel
This project is complemented by a mobile weather station developed by the Spanish Meteorological Agency (AEMET), and will be carried onboard the Wind Sled. Its aim is to determine the dispersion and colonization capacity of microorganisms in polar regions, where climate change is triggering deglaciation processes that expose surfaces long buried under ice. These newly exposed areas are potential sites for the development of new biological communities. AEMET will install an Automatic Weather Station (AWS) on the sled to collect wind speed and direction data during the journey. These data will support the project and help build predictive models and bulletins for the expedition team.
- Cosmic Ray Detection (University of Alcalá)
Lead researcher: Juan José Blanco
The Space Research Group from the University of Alcalá will map natural radiation along the Wind Sled’s route using a muon detector previously tested during the 2016 Ice Summit expedition. Data collected will support both the study of radiation environments and the assessment of the Wind Sled’s viability as a platform for systematic Antarctic observations.
- MEDA Sensors (INTA – University of Alcalá)
Lead researchers: Miguel Ramos and Eduardo
The Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) sensors, developed by the Astrobiology Center (CSIC–INTA) and the University of Alcalá, are scheduled to travel to Mars on the 2020 mission. These include radiometers and air temperature sensors aimed at both sky and ground. MEDA characterizes atmospheric dust (size distribution, shapes, phase function, etc.) and tracks weather-related changes, as well as pressure, air and ground temperatures, humidity, wind, and UV-visible-IR radiation. Antarctic testing is critical to assess their performance under extreme conditions.
- SENTINEL (IDAEA-CSIC)
Lead researcher: Jordi Dachs
The SENTINEL project from the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (CSIC) investigates the presence of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the Antarctic ecosystem. It aims to understand how these pollutants reach and accumulate in polar regions. During the expedition, samples of air, snow, and soil will be collected and later analyzed. SENTINEL previously took part in the 2011–12 Wind Sled expedition, and its findings have already been published.
- SOLID (Signs Of Life Detector) – Astrobiology Center (INTA-CSIC)
Lead researcher: Víctor Parro
SOLID is a Spanish-developed instrument designed to detect extraterrestrial life using antibody microarrays that identify biochemical compounds from soil or liquid samples. Fully automated and portable, it detects bacteria and viruses through reactive sensors. This expedition will test its capabilities by sampling Antarctic ice.
- Antair (University of Alcalá)
Lead researcher: Miguel Ángel de Pablo
This project will study air temperature changes along a transect crossing Antarctica from the coast to the central plateau. While past studies have relied on satellite imagery and static weather stations, dynamic transect data has never been collected. Antair aims to fill this gap. Because the route intersects with several research stations, data will be calibrated with those static sources. The Wind Sled allows for dynamic measurements, offering unique insights previously limited by logistical challenges and lack of mobile platforms.
- Deliquescence Experiment on the Antarctic Ice Sheet
Lead researcher: Alfonso F. Dávila (Postdoc at NASA)
This experiment tests whether liquid water can transiently form in common salt (NaCl) through deliquescence under the extremely cold, dry conditions of the Antarctic ice sheet—conditions analogous to those on Mars. Salt rocks have been shown to enable liquid water activity in very dry environments like Chile’s Atacama Desert. The hypothesis is that deliquescence could also occur in the ice sheet. Sensors measuring humidity, temperature, and electrical conductivity embedded in salt substrates will collect data every 15 minutes, helping to understand how water may exist in extreme environments, including on Mars.
- GESTA – European Space Agency (ESA)
Lead researcher: Javier Ventura-Traveset
ESA’s GESTA (Galileo Experimentation & Scientific Tests in Antarctica) project includes data collection using two receivers—one from GMV and another developed by ESA. GMV’s receiver will assess the reception of Galileo satellite signals in Antarctica, while ESA’s receiver will study ionospheric luminescence phenomena such as scintillation, which produces southern auroras. Both receivers will share a single antenna, but not operate simultaneously.
- Climate Change (University of Maine, USA)
Lead researchers: Paul Mayewski and Andrei Kurbatov
The University of Maine’s Climate Change Institute will study ice cores to investigate climate history. Using a specialized drill, researchers will extract one-meter-long cores from depths up to six meters. These cores will be analyzed for chemical elements, particles, gases, and microbial content. This shallow-core sampling will also test the Wind Sled’s potential as a mobile research platform in East Antarctica. Paul Mayewski is one of the most prominent scientists in polar ice core research, with over 50 expeditions to polar regions.
HELIOS (University of Valencia)
Lead researcher: Manuel Porcar Miralles
Sponsors
The HELIOS project aims to identify microorganisms with potential applications in biotechnology. Over the past few years, HELIOS has focused on solar panels, which tend to host similar microbial communities regardless of latitude or location. These communities are made up of extremophile microbes. The project has developed a strain of Pseudomonas from samples collected on photovoltaic surfaces. The Unexplored Antarctica 2018–19 Windsled expedition presents a unique opportunity to study these extremophile communities in remote Antarctic regions, thanks to the solar panels installed on the sled, which will serve as “extremophile traps” along the route.
The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation has been dedicated to environmental protection for the past 12 years, focusing on combating climate change, promoting sustainable development, protecting biodiversity, and advancing clean energy and responsible water management. This year, it is one of the main sponsors of the Unexplored Antarctica 2018 Windsled expedition—an essential contribution that reflects its commitment to clean energy and polar science.
The Foundation, which opened a delegation in Spain in 2016 led by Carol Portabella, has been very active internationally since its creation. It works to engage citizens, politicians, scientists, and economic stakeholders in protecting nature—our shared human heritage. Its three core goals are: limiting the impact of climate change and promoting renewable energy, safeguarding biodiversity, and protecting water resources while fighting desertification.
To date, the Foundation has supported more than 340 initiatives by public and private organizations, including four in Spain, in the fields of research, technological innovation, and sustainable practices. The Unexplored Antarctica 2018 expedition marks its first involvement in a polar project.
Prince Albert II met Ramón Larramendi at the South Pole in 2009, when Larramendi was leading the South Pole Without Limits expedition and the prince was visiting the White Continent—a region that has long fascinated him.
The Foundation’s sponsorship of the expedition was officially announced in May 2018 at the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Madrid, in the presence of its representatives.