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Ice Station (novel)
Encyclopedia
Ice Station is Australia
n thriller writer Matthew Reilly
's second novel, released in 1998.
' s plot follows the events that occur in the wake of the disappearance of a diving team (they are attacked by elephant seals) at the remote Wilkes Antarctic research station. A team of Force Reconnaissance Marines
led by Lieutenant Shane Schofield
, nicknamed "Scarecrow" because of eye injuries he sustained in Bosnia, is dispatched to secure the station, where they learn the scientists at the base had discovered something made of metal buried within layers of ice hundreds of millions of years old. As Schofield's Marines set about securing the station, they must deal with French paratroopers posing as researchers, traitors within the unit looking to make sure only certain people know of the discovery, a team of British SAS
operatives sent to the station, and Sarah Hensleigh, a member of ICG resident within the research team who has already killed one of her co-workers.
What is believed to have been an alien space craft is revealed to have been a prototype of the B-7A Silhouette, a stealth bomber constructed by Entertech, the losing tenderer in the bid to construct the original stealth project. Using a plutonium core, the plane is able to render itself invisible to the natural eye at a distance by artificially bending light around itself i.e. a cloaking device. Schofield and the survivors use the aircraft to make their escape to the USS Wasp
. The plane is destroyed by Schofield himself after a British nuclear missile launched by a Eurofighter Typhoon
removes any trace of the ice station and the events that unfolded there, while evidence comes to light of a conspiracy within the United States government known as the Intelligence Convergence Group, a clandestine US body involving the Joint Chiefs and the National Reconnaissance Office
which seeks to preserve US military and technological dominance.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n thriller writer Matthew Reilly
Matthew Reilly
Matthew John Reilly is an Australian action thriller writer. His novels are noted for their fast pace, twisting plots and intense action.- Biography :...
's second novel, released in 1998.
Plot summary
Ice StationUnited States Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance
The Force Reconnaissance Companies , are one of the United States Marine Corps's special operations "capable" forces that provide essential elements of military intelligence to the command element of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force ; supporting the landing or joint task force commanders, and...
led by Lieutenant Shane Schofield
Shane Schofield
Captain Shane Michael Schofield, USMC is a fictional character, whose exploits form the basis of a series created by the Australian author, Matthew Reilly. He appears in Ice Station, Area 7, Scarecrow, Scarecrow and the Army of Thieves and the spin off Hell Island...
, nicknamed "Scarecrow" because of eye injuries he sustained in Bosnia, is dispatched to secure the station, where they learn the scientists at the base had discovered something made of metal buried within layers of ice hundreds of millions of years old. As Schofield's Marines set about securing the station, they must deal with French paratroopers posing as researchers, traitors within the unit looking to make sure only certain people know of the discovery, a team of British SAS
Special Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
operatives sent to the station, and Sarah Hensleigh, a member of ICG resident within the research team who has already killed one of her co-workers.
What is believed to have been an alien space craft is revealed to have been a prototype of the B-7A Silhouette, a stealth bomber constructed by Entertech, the losing tenderer in the bid to construct the original stealth project. Using a plutonium core, the plane is able to render itself invisible to the natural eye at a distance by artificially bending light around itself i.e. a cloaking device. Schofield and the survivors use the aircraft to make their escape to the USS Wasp
USS Wasp (LHD-1)
USS Wasp is a U.S. Navy multipurpose amphibious assault ship, the tenth to bear the name, the flagship of the Second Fleet and the lead ship of her class. She was built by the Ingalls Shipbuilding division of Litton in Pascagoula, Mississippi. The Navy-Marine Corps team's newest amphibious warship...
. The plane is destroyed by Schofield himself after a British nuclear missile launched by a Eurofighter Typhoon
Eurofighter Typhoon
The Eurofighter Typhoon is a twin-engine, canard-delta wing, multirole combat aircraft, designed and built by a consortium of three companies: EADS, Alenia Aeronautica and BAE Systems; working through a holding company, Eurofighter GmbH, which was formed in 1986...
removes any trace of the ice station and the events that unfolded there, while evidence comes to light of a conspiracy within the United States government known as the Intelligence Convergence Group, a clandestine US body involving the Joint Chiefs and the National Reconnaissance Office
National Reconnaissance Office
The National Reconnaissance Office , located in Chantilly, Virginia, is one of the 16 U.S. intelligence agencies. It designs, builds, and operates the spy satellites of the United States government.-Mission:...
which seeks to preserve US military and technological dominance.
Characters
This is a list of Schofield's Marines:- Buck 'Book' Riley - Schofield's close friend who also lead Scarecrow's rescue mission in Bosnia, fed to killer whales by BrigadierBrigadierBrigadier is a senior military rank, the meaning of which is somewhat different in different military services. The brigadier rank is generally superior to the rank of colonel, and subordinate to major general....
Trevor Barnaby of the Her Majesty's Special Air ServiceSpecial Air ServiceSpecial Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
who had never previously failed a mission. - Robert 'Rebound' Simmons - A young marine, the teams abseiler, he escapes the Ice Station with the remaining scientists to McMurdo Ice Station.
- Gunnery Sergant Scott 'Snake' Kaplan - A member of the Intelligence Convergence Group (ICG) along with Montana. Snake, an experienced soldier, betrays the team early in the book and is later killed by Schofield.
- Oliver 'Hollywood' Todd - Hollywood is killed by a fragmentation grenade.
- Lance Corporal Elizabeth 'Fox' Gant - A young female corporal, Gant is one of the few survivors.
- Augustine 'Samurai' Lau - At the start of the book, Samurai is mortally injured by the French, and later is suffocated by Snake while in a coma.
- Mitch 'Ratman' Healy - Killed by the French early in the book.
- Georgio 'Legs' Lane - Team's medic, killed by the French then eaten by killer whales.
- Gena 'Mother' Newman - An older female soldier, Mother survives but loses a leg to a killer whale.
- Morgan 'Montana' Lee - An ICG member along with Snake, betrays the team late in the book.
- Jose 'Santa' Cruz - Killed by Montana late in the book.