A NASA researcher unexpectedly uncovered a hidden US Army base beneath Greenland’s ice sheet. Chad Greene’s mission to map the ice structure led to the discovery of Camp Century, a Cold War installation buried 100 feet under the ice. The base, known as “the city under ice,” was built over a year from 1959 to 1960, featuring 21 underground tunnels spanning around 9,800 feet.
Utilizing radar imagery from their Gulfstream III aircraft, NASA scientists identified the distinct structures of the base. Alex Gardner, a cryospheric scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), expressed surprise at finding Camp Century, initially unaware of its existence.
The revelation of Camp Century was made possible through the use of Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR), a radar technology commonly used to detect hidden structures worldwide. The base was established following the Defense of Greenland agreement signed by the United States and Denmark in 1951, allowing NATO forces to utilize Greenland facilities for defense purposes.
Camp Century’s construction involved transporting 6,000 tons of material to Greenland, with a challenging 70-hour sled journey from Thule Army Base. Engineers carved out 1,000-foot passageways into the snow and ice, creating wooden buildings topped with steel roofs. The installation was powered by the PM-2 medium-power nuclear reactor.
While scientists at Camp Century conducted geological research, including studying ice cores and soil, the base’s true purpose may have been obscured. Allegedly, the scientific projects served as a cover for Project Iceworm, a US nuclear weapon initiative. The project aimed to house ballistic missiles beneath the Greenland ice, with plans for additional tunnels that could accommodate 600 missiles.
Despite ambitious plans, Project Iceworm was never fully realized, leading to Camp Century’s decommissioning in 1967. The existence of the nuclear weapon project was disclosed by Danish authorities in 1997. Today, Camp Century lies abandoned, gradually being consumed by the ice, with remnants of the nuclear reactor and approximately 47,000 gallons of nuclear waste left behind.
Experts predict that Camp Century’s exposure may occur by 2090 due to the effects of climate change.