Intrepid Casey station expeditioners will battle sub-zero temperatures and darkness when they take part in the 24 hour Cancer Council Relay for Life later this month.
The team of 19 wintering expeditioners will walk, run and ski a 400 metre track of snow and ice around Casey station.
Event organiser and Casey Meteorological Observer Craig George, said it will be both a physical and mental challenge.
“At this time of year the sun sets at 3 in the afternoon and it doesn’t rise again until 10 the next morning, so it will be dark for 19 hours of the 24 hour walk,” Craig George said.
“On top of this May is the coldest month at Casey, and we could experience temperatures well below minus 20 degrees over night,” he said.
The team hope to cover about 120 kilometres during the 24 hour period and will have a treadmill set up inside the accommodation building in case of bad weather.
Casey station Leader Mark Hunt said everyone on station is keen to get involved as Cancer has touched everyone’s life in some way.
“Since Mawson departed Hobart for the Antarctic 100 years ago Tasmania has had a special connection with the continent and we feel very privileged to be down here, so we want to be able to give something back to the Cancer Council of Tasmania and the Tasmanian community,” Craig George said.
The team, calling themselves ‘The Very Long March of the Penguins’, are aiming to raise more than $20,000 for the Tasmanian Cancer Council.