Project Boreas was a study conducted between 2003 and 2006 by the British Interplanetary Society to design a station on the Planum Boreum at the Martian North Pole.
Concepts for polar bases had been discussed in earlier papers [2][3] The station was designed with the assumption that it would be occupied by 10 people.
It is likely that in the coming decades robots will explore the Martian polar caps, which were first observed by Italian astronomer, Giovanni Cassini in 1666.
The crew of the station were envisaged to carry out diverse scientific studies in geology, geophysics, climatology, and astrobiology.
One particular advantage of humans was perceived to be their ability to run a laboratory in which complex and analytical tasks can be undertaken in polar science and exploration.
The design study considered that the retrieval of a core into the polar ice cap would be one of the primary objectives of Pole Station.
The study carried out a trade off analysis of power, thermal control and other parameters to provide a basis for the architectural design.