Year-round "McMurdo Station" (77°51'S, 166°40'E) is the main U.S. coastal station in Antarctica located at the southern tip of Ross Island, about 3,864 km (2,415 miles) south of Christchurch, New Zealand, and 1,360 km (850 miles) north of the South Pole. The original research station was built in 1955-1956, today it is the primary logistics facility for inland stations and field camps, and the waste management center for the U.S. Antarctic Program.