Keep it green: Scott Base to stay its signature colour

New Zealand's icy outpost at the bottom of the planet is to stay its signature green, following a nationwide vote on what colour a redeveloped Scott Base should be.

The research station, overlooking Antarctica's Ross Ice Shelf, has been coloured a striking lime green – the current shade is Resene's Chelsea cucumber – since 1965.

According to the official story, the original decision to paint the base green – it was once a mixture of orange, red and yellow – aimed to reflect New Zealand's stunning landscape.

But there are plenty of alternate tales: one being that its then-superintendent Bob Thomson remembered a trip to Ireland where he liked the white cottages surrounded by green - and so reversed this for Scott Base.

Of 10,830 Kiwis who took part in a vote on the base's future colour, 4514 chose to keep it green, ahead of 3742 who favoured a "rescue orange" to reflect safety of people and the planet, and 2574 who opted for blue.

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A rendering of the final Scott Base redevelopment which will be in place by 2030. Photo / Supplied, Antarctica NZ

"The colour will link two eras of New Zealand science," said Jon Ager, who is directing the project for Crown agency Antarctica New Zealand.

"The special connection that Kiwis have with Scott Base has been abundantly clear during the vote.

"We will move towards construction knowing people are behind us and, one day, everyone that voted will be able to say: I helped to shape Scott Base."

The vote opened a month ago during the Antarctica-themed Science Week in primary schools, which saw classrooms talking to the Scott Base overwintering crew, learning from polar scientists and undertaking their own experiments.

The new base will set New Zealand's Antarctic programme up for another 50 years, while also supporting more people to carry out science, conservation and heritage projects. Image / Supplied

Votes came in from the length of the country but it was Canterbury – home of the Antarctic Gateway city of Christchurch, and Timaru where the new base will be built – which rallied around the vote, with 2475 people having their say about the colour.

Not far behind, 2037 people adopted Antarctica as their postcode; Auckland contributed 2021 votes, Wellington 1432, Waikato 556 and Otago 546 votes.

The vote allowed Kiwis to be part of the design process during the Scott Base Redevelopment, which will see the current, ageing buildings replaced with a fit-for-purpose base powered by 97 per cent renewable energy.

Last week, Antarctica New Zealand staff themselves were given a glimpse inside the design of the new, $357m base, which is being constructed in sections.

Once complete, 10,000sq m of building will be moved to its location near the original hut Sir Edmund Hillary helped build in 1957.

The new base will set New Zealand's Antarctic programme up for another 50 years, while also supporting more people to carry out science, conservation and heritage projects.