Henrik Bull, the Antarctic Exploration Committee and the first confirmed landing on the Antarctic continent

Polar Record ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew McConville
Keyword(s):  
Ross Sea ◽  
Learned Societies ◽  
Antarctic Expedition ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
The Antarctic

The Norwegian Henrik Johan Bull managed the Antarctic expedition that penetrated the Ross Sea in 1895 and made a landing at Cape Adare, the first confirmed landing on the Antarctic mainland. Bull had attempted to fund the voyage in Melbourne where he had lived since the late 1880s. At that time, Melbourne's learned societies, through their Antarctic Exploration Committee (AEC), were also making strenuous attempts to launch an expedition. The two parties had contact but the differences in their aims resulted in little cooperation. The AEC plans of a joint commercial/scientific expedition with Dundee or Norwegian whalers, and then a joint scientific expedition under Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld, foundered due to lack of funds. The plans to include a scientist, nominated by the learned societies, in Bull's expedition also failed. Instead, Carsten Egeberg Borchgrevink joined Bull's expedition as an ordinary seaman and an occasional scientist. He used this experience to realise his plans to winter on Antarctica. Both Bull and the AEC were important in developing interest in Antarctic exploration and commerce.

Aurora and the Otago Museum: the boundary between Antarctic science and seamanship

Polar Record ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 192-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moira White
Keyword(s):  
World War I ◽  
British Empire ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Weddell Sea ◽  
World War ◽  
Pack Ice ◽  
Antarctic Expedition ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
Museum Staff ◽  
The Antarctic

ABSTRACTSir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition famously did not succeed in traversing the Antarctic continent from the Weddell Sea to the Ross Sea. It was, nevertheless, an enterprise that engaged the interest of New Zealanders and the rest of the British Empire even as World War I was being fought. When one of the expedition ships, Aurora, broke from her moorings soon after arrival in McMurdo Sound and drifted trapped in pack ice for months, the construction of a temporary jury rudder while still at sea enabled her crew to make their way to Port Chalmers, Dunedin for more extensive repairs in 1916. This paper discusses interactions between the Otago Museum staff and the crew of Aurora while she was in port, the offer of the replaced jury rudder to the museum, and reflects on the concerns and interests that might have contributed to the offer and its rejection.

Pathways and timescales of connectivity around the Antarctic continental shelf 

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah Dawson ◽  
Adele Morrison ◽  
Veronica Tamsitt ◽  
Matthew England
Keyword(s):  
Continental Shelf ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Coastal Current ◽  
West Antarctica ◽  
Source Regions ◽  
Freshwater Forcing ◽  
Antarctic Continental Shelf ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
Antarctic Slope Current ◽  
The Antarctic

<p><span xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span>The Antarctic margin is surrounded by two westward flowing currents: the Antarctic Slope Current and the Antarctic Coastal Current. The former influences key processes near the Antarctic margin by regulating the flow of heat and nutrients onto and off the continental shelf, while together they </span></span><span xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span>advect</span></span><span xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span> nutrients, biological organisms, and temperature and salinity anomalies around the coastline, providing a connective link between different shelf regions. However, the extent to which these currents transport water from one sector of the continental shelf to another, and the timescales over which this occurs, remain poorly understood. Concern that crucial water formation sites around the Antarctic coastline could respond to non-local freshwater forcing </span></span><span><span xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span>from ice shel</span></span></span><span><span xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span>f meltwater</span></span></span> <span xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span>motivates a more thorough understanding of zonal connectivity around Antarctica. In this study, we use daily velocity fields from a global high-resolution ocean-sea ice model, combined with the <span>Lagrangian</span> tracking software Parcels, to investigate the pathways and timescales connecting different regions of the Antarctic continental shelf<span> with a view to understanding</span><span> the timescales of meltwater transport around the continent</span>. Virtual particles are released over the continental shelf, poleward of the 1000 <span>metre</span> isobath, and are tracked for 20 years. Our results show a strong seasonal cycle connecting different sectors of the Antarctic continent, with more particles arriving further downstream during winter than during summer months. Strong advective links exist between West Antarctica and the Ross Sea while shelf geometry in some other regions acts as barriers to transport. We also highlight the varying importance of the Antarctic Slope Current and Antarctic Coastal Current in connecting different sectors of the coastline. Our results help to improve our understanding of circum-Antarctic connectivity <span>and the timescales </span><span>of meltwater transport from source regions to downstream </span><span>shelf locations. </span><span>Further</span><span>more, t</span><span>he timescales and pathways we </span><span>present </span><span>p</span>rovide a baseline from which to assess long-term changes in Antarctic coastal circulation due to local and remote forcing.<br></span></span></p>

Origins of the Russian Antarctic expedition: 1819–1821

Polar Record ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 180-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erki Tammiksaar ◽  
Tarmo Kiik
Keyword(s):  
Russian Literature ◽  
Russian Empire ◽  
Russian Government ◽  
The Real ◽  
Antarctic Expedition ◽  
Russian Antarctic Expedition ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Russian Empire ◽  
The Antarctic

ABSTRACTIn 1819, the Russian government launched two expeditions: the first squadron of two ships departed to explore the southern polar areas, and the second set out for the northern polar areas. The expedition to the southern polar areas took place under the command of Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen. Up to the present day, very little information is available, from the Russian literature, about the initiator and main goals of the expedition. At the same time, the travels and main results of the expedition have been widely popularised, but not necessarily accurately, in Russian as well as in English. On the basis of recently discovered documents, this article attempts to establish who the initiator of these Russian expeditions was, how the expeditions were prepared, and whether the main tasks of the expeditions were realised. The conclusion is that Jean-Baptiste Prevost de Sansac, Marquis de Traversay was the initiator of the Russian Antarctic expedition, not the Russian navigators Adam Johan von Krusenstern, Otto von Kotzebue, Gavrila A. Sarychev or Vasilii M. Golovnin as stated in Soviet publications. The real aim of the expedition was to discover the Antarctic continent which would have added glory to de Traversay as well as to Emperor Alexander I and, in a wider sense, also to the Russian empire. All dates are given according to the old style calendar. The difference with the new style calendar is 12 days.

Bird and mammal life recorded during the Antarctic drift of SY Aurora, 1915–16

Polar Record ◽  
1990 ◽  
Vol 26 (159) ◽  
pp. 277-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. D. Shaughnessy
Keyword(s):  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Killer Whales ◽  
Food Items ◽  
Emperor Penguins ◽  
Sea Birds ◽  
Pack Ice ◽  
Antarctic Expedition ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
Blue Whales

AbstractAfter landing the Ross Sea shore party of Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition at Cape Evans, McMurdo Sound, SY Aurora drifted for 313 days between May 1915 and March 1916 in the pack iceof the Ross Sea and Southern Ocean. During the drift A. H. Ninnis maintained observations of the fauna. He was out hunting on the pack ice on at least 86 days to augment the ship's slender provisions, taking 289 penguins, 10 other sea birds and 20 seals. He sighted whales on at least 15 days, including killer whales in July and August and four large whales, possibly blue whales, in November. He also noted birds returning south for the breeding season in spring, progress of moult in emperor penguins, pupping of crabeater and leopard seals, and food items of several seals and seabirds. Most of his report is presented here, edited to improve its readability and remove abbreviations; the text is preceded by a brief summary of the fauna seen and followed by footnotes on some of his observations.

Against all odds: the birth of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition, 1955–1958

Polar Record ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 50-61
Author(s):  
Stephen Hicks ◽  
Bryan Storey ◽  
Philippa Mein Smith
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
The United States ◽  
Weddell Sea ◽  
Antarctic Expedition ◽  
Foreign Office ◽  
Polar Research Institute ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
British Foreign Office ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Antarctic

ABSTRACTWhen the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition 1955–1958 advance party sailed from the Millwall Docks in November 1955, bound for the Weddell Sea, their departure was the product of five years of intensive effort on the part of Vivian Fuchs to achieve the first overland crossing of the Antarctic continent. This paper investigates the many obstacles that had to be overcome leading up to Theron sailing and explains the manner in which they were overcome by the Fuchs-Wordie-Clifford triumvirate. The British Foreign Office was particularly opposed to the expedition with the office's focus on sovereignty rather than science while an alternative proposal from Duncan Carse raised a unique set of difficulties. The withdrawal from involvement by the Scott Polar Research Institute Director, Colin Bertram, indicated further disaffection. Most important, if political and financial goals were to be met, was the need for participation by several Commonwealth countries of which New Zealand was the essential partner. Fortunately, the vigorous efforts of a few Antarctic enthusiasts in New Zealand were successful in moving their government to assert its long dormant position in the Ross Dependency. New Zealand's commitment turned the tide of commonwealth apathy towards the TAE. Although the TAE preceded the IGY, events, including the dominating IGY presence of the United States, caused the two projects to become tightly interwoven. For these reasons the years leading up to the departure of Theron were as intriguing as the crossing journey itself.

Progress report on the Antarctic ice sheet

Polar Record ◽  
1960 ◽  
Vol 10 (64) ◽  
pp. 3-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. de Q. Robin
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Great Depth ◽  
Progress Report ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Past ◽  
History Of ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
The Antarctic

The art, science and sport of conducting scientific traverses across the Antarctic continent has advanced so rapidly during the past decade that we are making considerable progress towards understanding the main characteristics of that continent and its ice mantle. Many reports of recent work are provisional, so some changes of detail in the following account may eventually prove necessary. Nevertheless, some major features are now well established, such as the great depth of the subglacial floor to the east of the Ross Sea, and the observations that show considerable sections of the rock of East Antarctica† to be above sea level. On the other hand, the past glaciological history of the continent and the state of the present mass balance of the ice sheet still need much more investigation before we can be satisfied with the answers. The continued activity in Antarctica should result in our knowledge of the continent advancing much further during the coming decade.

scholarly journals Antarctic atmospheric boundary layer observations with the Small Unmanned Meteorological Observer (SUMO)

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 969-982
Author(s):  
John J. Cassano ◽  
Melissa A. Nigro ◽  
Mark W. Seefeldt ◽  
Marwan Katurji ◽  
Kelly Guinn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Atmospheric Boundary Layer ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
The United States ◽  
Free Atmosphere ◽  
Stable Conditions ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
Entire Depth ◽  
The Antarctic

Abstract. Between January 2012 and June 2017 a small unmanned aerial system (sUAS), known as the Small Unmanned Meteorological Observer (SUMO), was used to observe the state of the atmospheric boundary layer in the Antarctic. During six Antarctic field campaigns, 116 SUMO flights were completed. These flights took place during all seasons over both permanent ice and ice-free locations on the Antarctic continent and over sea ice in the western Ross Sea. Sampling was completed during spiral ascent and descent flight paths that observed the temperature, humidity, pressure and wind up to 1000 m above ground level and sampled the entire depth of the atmospheric boundary layer, as well as portions of the free atmosphere above the boundary layer. A wide variety of boundary layer states were observed, including very shallow, strongly stable conditions during the Antarctic winter and deep, convective conditions over ice-free locations in the summer. The Antarctic atmospheric boundary layer data collected by the SUMO sUAS, described in this paper, can be retrieved from the United States Antarctic Program Data Center (https://www.usap-dc.org, last access: 8 March 2021). The data for all flights conducted on the continent are available at https://doi.org/10.15784/601054 (Cassano, 2017), and data from the Ross Sea flights are available at https://doi.org/10.15784/601191 (Cassano, 2019).

scholarly journals Antarctic atmospheric boundary layer observations with the Small Unmanned Meteorological Observer (SUMO)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
John J. Cassano ◽  
Melissa A. Nigro ◽  
Mark W. Seefeldt ◽  
Marwan Katurji ◽  
Kelly Guinn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Atmospheric Boundary Layer ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
The United States ◽  
Free Atmosphere ◽  
Stable Conditions ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
Entire Depth ◽  
The Antarctic

Abstract. Between January 2012 and June 2017 a small unmanned aerial system (UAS), known as the Small Unmanned Meteorological Observer (SUMO), was used to observe the state of the atmospheric boundary layer in the Antarctic. During 6 Antarctic field campaigns 116 SUMO flights were completed. These flights took place during all seasons over both permanent ice and ice free locations on the Antarctic continent and over sea ice in the western Ross Sea. Sampling was completed during spiral ascent and descent flight paths that observed the temperature, humidity, pressure and wind up to 1000 m above ground level and sampled the entire depth of the atmospheric boundary layer as well as portions of the free atmosphere above the boundary layer. A wide variety of boundary layer states were observed including very shallow, strongly stable conditions during the Antarctic winter and deep, convective conditions over ice free locations in the summer. The Antarctic atmospheric boundary layer data collected by the SUMO sUAS, described in this paper, can be retrieved from the United States Antarctic Program Data Center (https://www.usap-dc.org). The data for all flights conducted on the continent are available at https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601054 (Cassano 2017; https://doi.org/10.15784/601054) and data from the Ross Sea flights, are available at https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601191 (Cassano 2019; https://doi.org/10.15784/601191).

scholarly journals Sensing Antarctica

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 182-198
Author(s):  
Fernanda Codevilla Soares ◽  
Andrés Zarankin
Keyword(s):  
Comic Books ◽  
Collaborative Work ◽  
Antarctic Expedition ◽  
Antarctic Continent ◽  
The Antarctic

Full of superlatives, the Antarctic continent has been represented as the most desert, coldest and wildest location of all places on earth; an apt location for archeology, a discipline often associated with adventure. To reflect on these considerations and critique the traditional ways of presenting Archaeology and Antarctica in science, LEACH-UFMG has proposed an alternative mediation that encourages communication with both. Using exhibits, plays, comic books, sticker albums, among others, the idea is to use the elements that normally make Antarctica and Archaeology interesting for people without, however, oversimplifying. Specifically in this paper we will report an experience that we had at Espaço do Conhecimento UFMG which was a sensorial exhibit, resulting from the collaborative work of Mediantar (Antarctica Medicine), Mycoantar (Antarctica Microbiology) and “White Landscape” (Antarctic Archaeology and Anthropology) projects, all carried out by UFMG. This exhibit called “Antarctic expedition” was on display from December 7th 2017 to May 20th 2018 and was visited by 30573 people.

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