A hot air balloon competition called “Grudziadzkie Zawody Balonowe” is held in Lisie Katy, central-northern Poland, 14 May 2021. The compe​tition is held for the eighteenth time. (Photo by Tytus Zmijewski/EPA/EFE)

McMurdo Station is a U.S. Antarctic research centre located on the southern 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, a branch of the National Science Foundation. The station is the largest community in Antarctica, capable of supporting up to 1,258 residents, and serves as the United States Antarctic science facility. All personnel and cargo going to or coming from Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station first pass through McMurdo.

An unmanned Falcon 9 SpaceX rocket lifts off from launch complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Wednesday, February 11, 2015, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. On board is the Deep Space Climate Observatory, which will head toward a solar-storm lookout point a million miles away. (Photo by John Raoux/AP Photo)

Hot-air balloons float over the Oka River during the Russian Sky International Balloon Festival in Ryazan Region, Russia on July 26, 2021. (Photo by Alexander Ryumin/TASS)

A model wears a creation as part of the Prada women's Spring Summer 2023 collection presented in Milan, Italy, Thursday, September 22, 2022. (Photo by Antonio Calanni/AP Photo)

Pfc. Sebastian Rodriguez, machine gunner, Weapons Platoon, Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, Marine Rotational Force – Darwin, fires an M240 machine gun during a night squad-attack exercise, here, May 22, 2013. (Photo by Sgt. Sarah Fiocco/U.S. Marines)

This photograph shows installing of the artwork of Venezuelan-US artist Alex Da Corte titled “Kermit the Frog, Even” at Place Vendome in Paris, on October 19, 2025, ahead of the official opening of the Art Basel contemporary and modern art market. (Photo by Dimitar Photo)

Race winner USA's Mikaela Shiffrin reacts as she is symbolically crowned on the podium after competing in the Women's Giant Slalom on January 24, 2023 in Plan de Corones (Kronplatz), Dolomites Mountains, as part of the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships. (Photo by Marco Bertorello/AFP Photo)