Heated Clothing System Development

Choosing the best equipment and clothing for a six-month polar expedition in near total darkness amid the harshest conditions on the planet is, not surprisingly, vital to success. There is a huge amount of high-tech clothing options available on the market nowadays, and before we could settle on the best combinations of inner and outer gear for comfort, fit and function at variable work rates during the expedition we had to carry out extensive testing in the lab, cold chambers and in the field. 

 

There was a myriad of different types of clothing that were tested in the cold chamber trials. The images and notes below are representative of the kind of set-up that was on this expedition and what was trialled at the final cold chamber test at Millbrook Proving Grounds. This is not the definitive list. It is the baseline set of equipment which will be adjusted according to personal preferences and circumstance (for example, some people prefer merino base layers over synthetic). During the actual traverse there were variations on the set-up below, and other manufacturers’ clothing became part of the mix. These images also do not cover the additional PPE that will be required for different tasks in and around the vehicle.