New satellite images suggest that Beijing is expanding its footprint in Antarctica with the resumption of construction on a fifth polar station, located on Inexpressible Island near the Ross Sea. According to a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the new station could function as a spying operation, potentially collecting signals intelligence from US-allied Australia and New Zealand, as well as telemetry data on rockets launched from recently established space facilities in the two countries. Beijing currently has four stations in Antarctica, all of which are due to be expanded. While the US still has the largest presence on the continent, China’s is rapidly growing. The Chinese Communist Party has stated that its expeditions to Antarctica are for research purposes only, but the US Department of Defense has said that they are designed to develop “dual-use technologies, facilities, and scientific research” aimed at improving the People’s Liberation Army’s capabilities.