The Antarctic Snow Cruiser (ASC) was designed to facilitate transportation during the United States Antarctic Service Expedition (1939 – 1941) but ultimately failed to achieve its goals.
The ASC was developed under the leadership of Rear Admiral Richard Byrd, a renowned American explorer, with Dr. Thomas Poulter serving as the second-in-command.
Poulter returned from the 1934 Antarctic expedition with the idea of a massive transport vehicle to aid in exploring the region. He envisioned it as an unstoppable machine capable of traversing vast icy expanses, especially under harsh weather conditions.
On April 29, 1939, Poulter and the Research Fund of the Armor Institute presented their plans to officials in Washington D.C. This fund provided an estimated $150,000 to support the ASC. The construction began on August 8, 1939, and lasted for 11 weeks.
The design of the Antarctic Snow Cruiser (ASC). Photo: Rare Historical Photos
Specifically designed to navigate crevasses, the vehicle featured elongated ends and retractable wheels. It measured 17 meters in length, 4.6 meters in width, and weighed approximately 20 tons, accommodating 4 to 5 people for a year with food, fuel, and equipment.
In addition to living quarters, the vehicle housed a scientific laboratory, a darkroom for photo processing, an engine room, and a small machine shop. Each wheel had a diameter of 3 meters, weighed 318 kilograms, and was made from a special rubber that did not crack even in extreme cold conditions.
Each wheel could be independently controlled by its own motor, allowing the ASC to maneuver through difficult terrain and cross crevasses up to 4.5 meters wide. The vehicle had an average speed of 16 to 21 km/h, with a maximum speed of 48 km/h. The upper deck was spacious enough to carry a small aircraft.
The driver and the commander would sit in a raised control room at the front of the vehicle. Below the control room, under a narrow walkway, were the engine room, the snow-melting system, generators, pumps, and winches. Just in front of the front wheel was the engine room containing two Cummins diesel engines with a power output of 300 horsepower.
The massive vehicle traverses the streets before resting in Framingham, Massachusetts, in 1939. Photo: Rare Historical Photos
On October 24, 1939, the ASC roared to life for the first time at the Pullman Company, south of Chicago. From there, drivers took the new vehicle across the Midwest. They tested it on sand dunes along Lake Michigan, north of Indiana, and then drove through Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. During the journey, roads were closed to traffic because the massive vehicle required both lanes to maneuver. This caused significant traffic jams and attracted large crowds of onlookers.
Eventually, the ASC arrived in Boston, Massachusetts, and departed for Antarctica on November 15, 1939, aboard the USCGC North Star. According to the plan, the vehicle was supposed to reach Antarctica and monitor the auroras. However, in early January 1940, upon arriving at the Little America base in Whale Bay, Antarctica, the vehicle encountered numerous issues.
The expedition team had to build a wooden ramp to get the vehicle off the ship. While descending, one wheel broke the ramp. The expedition team cheered as Poulter maneuvered the vehicle off the ramp, but fell silent when it could not move through the snow and ice.
The large, smooth, non-tread tires were designed for a type of swamp vehicle. Now, they sank nearly 1 meter into the snow, spinning freely and making it almost impossible to advance the vehicle. The expedition team attached two spare tires to the front wheels and put chains on the rear wheels, but this did not resolve the traction issues.
They later discovered that the tires provided more traction when moving in reverse. As a result, the longest journey the vehicle accomplished was 148 kilometers—moving entirely in reverse. On January 24, 1940, Poulter returned to the U.S., leaving F. Alton Wade in charge of part of the expedition.
The ASC was abandoned in Antarctica on December 22, 1940. Photo: Rare Historical Photos
Despite being fundamentally a failure, from traction issues to a weak engine, the vehicle remained a solid base for living and working full-time. The engine coolant circulated through the cabin’s structure, effectively warming the interior despite the harsh freezing conditions. Scientists conducted seismic experiments, measured cosmic rays, and collected ice core samples while living on the vehicle.
Poulter hoped to return to Antarctica and equip the ASC with improved components, but with the onset of World War II, the U.S. focused its budget on the war effort. The vehicle was abandoned at the Little America III base on December 22, 1940. The last time the vehicle was found was in 1958, when an international expedition “unearthed” it from 7 meters of snow, still intact as left by the original expedition team.
Subsequent expeditions have not found any traces of the ASC. It is likely that the vehicle lies at the bottom of the Southern Ocean or is buried deep beneath the snow and ice. The ice in Antarctica continues to move, and the ice shelf is constantly advancing into the sea.
