Members of China's 40th Antarctic scientific expedition team get aboard research icebreaker Xuelong at a base dock in Shanghai, east China, Nov. 1, 2023. China's 40th Antarctic scientific expedition team set sail on Wednesday morning, starting a mission expected to last over five months. This is the first time China's Antarctic scientific research mission will be carried out by three ships. Research icebreakers Xuelong and Xuelong 2, or Snow Dragon and Snow Dragon 2, set off from Shanghai, while cargo vessel Tian Hui departed from Zhangjiagang in east China's Jiangsu Province. (Xinhua/Zhang Jiansong)

China's 40th Antarctic scientific expedition team set sail on Wednesday morning, starting a mission expected to last over five months.

This is the first time China's Antarctic scientific research mission will be carried out by three ships.

Research icebreakers Xuelong and Xuelong 2, or Snow Dragon and Snow Dragon 2, set off from Shanghai, while cargo vessel Tian Hui departed from Zhangjiagang in east China's Jiangsu Province.

The team, consisting of over 460 people, will investigate the impact of climate change on the Antarctic ecosystem, as well as Antarctica's role in climate change. They will collaborate with Norwegian and Australian counterparts on cutting-edge research projects.

A new scientific research station will be established along the coastal areas of the Ross Sea during this expedition, becoming China's fifth research station in Antarctica and the third permanent ones, after the Changcheng and Zhongshan stations.

The design of the station's building is inspired by the constellation Crux that used to guide Chinese navigator Zheng He in his voyages. With a floor space of 5,244 square meters, it will be able to support 80 expedition team members during summers and 30 members during winters. The station will monitor and study the atmospheric and marine environment of Antarctica as well as the biological and ecological conditions there.