Royal Mail Installs King Charles III Postbox at Rothera Research Station in Antarctica
A small bright red Royal Mail 'lamp' postbox featuring the King Charles III cipher has been installed outside the Rothera Research Station in Antarctica, replacing the previous postbox bearing the Elizabeth II cipher. Kirsten Shaw, who is the station's post office lead and recipient of the Fuchs Medal (2022), arranged for the postbox by writing directly to the king.
The new postbox will serve as a collection point for staff mail and postcards and is housed in the Discovery Building, which is the station's newly established scientific support and operations hub. According to Royal Mail, mail remains an important connection for staff in Antarctica, helping maintain traditions especially during Christmas.
Mail collections in Antarctica occur about three to four times per year. All mail traveling northbound from the continent must transit through the Falkland Islands via shipments on the RSS Sir David Attenborough or British Antarctic Survey (BAS) aircraft. The next scheduled northbound mail shipment from Rothera is on 22 January. Mail sent on that flight will go to the Falkland Islands; if the most recent ship didn’t call at the Falklands, then no mail was sent on that trip.
Stamps issued in Antarctica are less expensive, with the cost to send a letter to the UK being 87 pence. There is also an informal system used by field parties to send mail, which includes attaching a letter to a fuel drum airdropped into Antarctica.
