Empire Antarctica: Ice, Silence & Emperor Penguins

This is Gavin Francis's account of a year as base camp doctor in Antarctica

Gavin Francis spent fourteen months in one of the remotest places in the world: Halley, a research station in Antarctica. Storm-locked and frozen, it is said to be easier to evacuate a casualty from the International Space Station than it is to bring someone out of Halley in winter.

In the icy emptiness of Antarctica, where one misstep outdoors can mean death but the confined corridors of Halley can drive you mad, Gavin challenges himself to thrive at the ends of the earth. In the penguin colonies, a species utterly adapted to the harsh environment, he finds community, inspiration and joy. Filled with stories of early travellers, the sparse beauty of the place, auroras, clouds, stars, sunlight, darkness, ice and snow.