Category: Polar Workhorse: Hilux in Antarctica
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“Arctic Trucks AT38” by Kurush Pawar was photographed on June 15, 2012 and is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 DEED – Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (source)
Hilux, Today’s Antarctic Transport
Along with Hägglunds (Swedish dual-cab tracked snow vehicles), Sno-Cats, Pisten Bully snow groomers, modified Caterpillar Challenger agricultural tractors, and snow machines (aka snowmobiles, aka skidoos), the Toyota Hilux reliably ferries supplies, transports researchers and support teams, and performs reconnaissance duties. The Hilux provides an uncommonly comfortable ride for the conditions. Toyota Hiluxes travel modest distances…
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“Svalbard Sastrugi Snow” by Bjørn Christian Tørrissen was photographed on September 16, 2023 and is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 DEED – Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International. Photographed on Spitsbergen island, Norway (source).
Polar Workhorse: Hilux in Antarctica
Few places are as challenging to traverse as Antarctica, Earth’s most inhospitable continent. The vast, windswept landscape varies from hard ice to deep snow, with just a few rocky beaches. Fields of jagged ice – starmukha – hide gaping crevasses, some over a hundred feet deep and wide enough to swallow a vehicle. Powdery snow…