| News: January-April |
WAKING GIANTS: ICE SHEETS IN A WARMING WORLD27.04.2010On Monday 24 May, 7-8pm in the A2 Lecture Theatre at the University of Canterbury, Robert Bindschadler, NASA Emeritus Scientist, Hydrospheric and Biospheric Sciences Laboratory will present the ST Lee Lecture for 2010. For more information download the pdf here.
ANZAC DAY SERVICE AT SCOTT BASE26.04.2010It may be a long way from New Zealand, but the Dawn Service commemorating Anzac Day has long been held at Scott Base and this year was no exception. The tradition of holding the service at dawn was also maintained. For those living at Scott Base on Ross Island, with declining sunlight hours as it descends into its total winter darkness, it meant that the service was held at 12.30 just as the sun was rising.
The service was held at the flag pole with around 35 in attendance. It included a short history of ANZAC day and the poem For the Fallen, and then the Last post was played through the base PA, echoing atmospherically around the buildings, followed by a minute's silence.
AIR NEW ZEALAND ANTARCTIC SCHOLARSHIP ANNOUNCED22.04.2010Air New Zealand in collaboration with Antarctica New Zealand, the National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research (NIWA), and WWF-New Zealand has announced support for a $100,000 post-doctoral Antarctic marine science scholarship. For more information download the Media release here.
ANTARCTICA NZ CHAIR: DR ROB FENWICK16.04.2010Antarctica New Zealand's Board chair, Rob Fenwick, will today be conferred with the degree of Doctor of Natural Resources, honoris causa, by Lincoln University. Rob is co-founder of Living Earth Ltd, New Zealand's principal commercial compost company. He has had a long association with Antarctica: for nine years until 2007 he was a director and later chairman of Landcare Research, one of several CRIs involved in Antarctic research, and is also former chairman of the Antarctic Heritage Trust. Antarctica New Zealand congratulates him on being awarded this degree.
OWEN MARSHALL: SLEEPWALKING IN ANTARCTICA14 April 2010
New Zealand fiction writer Owen Marshall has had his second collection of poetry published by Canterbury University Press. Titled Sleepwalking in Antarctica the collection contains a number of poems written after Marshall's visit to the Ice in January this year as an Antarctic Arts Fellow. The rest of the poems in the collection, written by the Timaru writer since the publication of his first collection Occasional (2004), are rich in the themes and preoccupations that have made his short stories and novels so admired. Marshall says while he is principally a writer of prose fiction he loves to read poetry and his own poems tend to come in "bursts" while he's working on longer term projects.
MEETING OF EXPERTS ON CLIMATE CHANGE06.04.2010An Antarctic Treaty Meeting of Experts (ATME) on Climate Change is being held in Svolvær, Norway from 6-9 April. The Treaty Parties have requested the ATME to examine:
Antarctica New Zealand's Environment Manager Dr Neil Gilbert, in his role as Chair of the Committee for Environmental Protection, will deliver a keynote address entitled: Managing a Changing Antarctic Environment. It will explore the implications and possible response options for: science, environmental management, national Antarctic Programmes and the Antarctic Treaty System. More information on the meeting and the Antarctic Treaty system can be found here.
EARTH HOUR OBSERVED AT SCOTT BASE29.03.2010As has been the case in previous years, all essential power, including all lights, were turned off at Scott Base on Saturday evening between 8.30-9.30 pm. While some of the winter team were at McMurdo Station, the Fire crew, seen in the photos below, were still on duty. The second photo was taken at the Scott Base sign, and, as even the outside lights were turned off, it's not possible to see the Base behind the team.
SCIENCE AND INFORMATION UPDATE24.03.2010The latest Science and Information Update draws together many useful items: newsletters, conferences, travel grants and fellowships, for those with an interest in Antarctic research. Read or download it here.
NEW ANTARCTIC BASE FOR SOUTH KOREA18.03.2010The position of Christchurch as an Antarctic gateway could be further strengthened by the recent decision of the South Korean Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs to site its second base at Terra Nova Bay in the Ross Sea region.
The selection is based on an analysis of data collected by South Korea's first icebreaker Araon during its three-month exploration around the region and follows the visit of the Araon to Lyttelton in January.
The research base will be 3,300 square metres, and will be located at 74° south and 164° east, in a location near to the Italian base Mario Zucchelli and the German station Gondwana. Construction of the base is scheduled for completion by the end of 2014.
The press release can be found here, and for more information on the visit of the Araon to Lyttelton, see our press release here.
ENVIRO-MARK®NZ DIAMOND CERTIFICATION12.03.2010Antarctica New Zealand is very pleased to have achieved Diamond level Enviro-Mark®NZ certification through an external audit. Both its Orchard Road operations and management of its Scott Base activities were considered for the audit.
For the past few years the organisation has been certified to Gold level. However after significant work in refining its systems and processes, particularly those relating to its Health, Safety and Environment system, it was confident that this level had been surpassed - so confident, in fact, that instead of applying for the next stage (Platinum) it applied for and was successful in reaching Diamond certification. For the Diamond level there is a particular emphasis on documentation of implemented environmental management processes.
Having now reached the highest of the five Enviro-Mark levels, thus establishing its commitment to managing and minimising environmental risks and impacts within a national framework, Antarctica New Zealand will next consider applying for an audit against the international standard for Environmental Management, ISO (International Standards Organisation) 14001. The work already undertaken in gaining the Enviro-Mark Diamond certification, which Antarctica New Zealand also aims to maintain, stands it in good stead for international certification.
More information on Enviro-Mark®NZ, marketed and supported throughout New Zealand by Landcare Research can be found here.
ANTARCTIC SEASON CLOSES05.03.2010The 2009/10 Antarctic summer season closes today with an Australian Airbus A319 flight to Pegasus Runway. This season has seen 59 C-17 flights, 7 RNZAF Hercules flights and two successful trials of the RNZAF Boeing 757. Aimed to operate along with the Hercules, the B757 may prove a more efficient method of transporting passengers, and takes about half the time that the Hercules does. The next flight, a winter fly-in (Winfly) will not take place until mid-August.
SCIENCE AND INFORMATION UPDATE23.02.2010The February 2010 Science and Information update is now available. It has a number of reminders including: closing date for Scholarship applications, Data policy feedback; information on an interim bidding round, and Canadian collaborations. Read or download it here.
THE FIRST SUNSET OF 201022.02.2010As the 2009/10 Antarctic season draws to a close, with the last flight only two weeks away, the sun has set for the first time in about four months.
LAST LIGHT: PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOYCE CAMPBELL20.02.20102006/07 Antarctic Arts Fellow, Joyce Campbell is showing two collections of work at the Christchurch Art Gallery, Last Light and LA Botanical. The daguerreotypes of Last Light are the results of her trip to Antarctica. The exhibition runs from 20 February to 9 May 2010. For more information visit the Christchurch Art Gallery website.
CAPE HALLETT STATION REMOVAL COMPLETE17.02.2010With the arrival of the MV Italica at Lyttelton today, the removal of rubbish from Cape Hallett Station is complete. Over 30-31 January the remnants of the US/NZ Hallett Station were removed by helicopter to the MV Italica. Some of the items removed earlier have found a permanent home at Canterbury Museum. The current load of 18 000kg, the bulk of it comprising steel from the large fuel tank, completes the removal of all traces of the station which was operational between 1957 and 1973.
Clean-up began in 1984 and in 2001 a joint US/NZ team carried out an environmental site assessment, which led to a multi-year remediation plan for the station site and surrounding area. More information on Cape Hallett Station can be found here.
LOOK SOUTH WITH CLARE PLUG15.02.2010Antarctic Arts Fellow Clare Plug's Look South exhibition has now opened at Te Manawa, Palmerston North and runs until 5 April. The exhibition comprises 30 textiles and banners, Clare's artistic response to her 2006 Antarctic experience.
NZ AIR FORCE B757 SECOND ICE FLIGHT TRIAL09.02.2010The New Zealand Air Force will be conducting a second trial flight of their B757 aircraft to McMurdo Sound, Antarctica on Wednesday. The return flight will take approximately 8 ½ hours including a refuelling stop at the Pegasus Ice runway. For more information download the Media release here.
ANOTHER ANTARCTIC-INSPIRED BLOG03.02.2010It seems that more and more people are keen to share their Antarctic science and experiences on-line. Dave Collett who works for Land Information New Zealand has written a blog for the past two seasons, and, along with many photos to see, it can be read here. His previous season's blog is here.
IPY POLAR SCIENCE CONFERENCE29.01.2010To celebrate and publish early results from the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007-2008, a major polar science conference is to be held in Oslo, Norway from 8-12 June 2010. This will be the largest polar science meeting ever held, and more than 60 countries will participate in the conference, including at least 14 participants from New Zealand. For more information on New Zealand's involvement in the International Polar Year, go to Antarctica New Zealand's IPY website. Visit the IPY Polar Science Conference website here.
ON-LINE BLOGS, PODCASTS AND DIARIES25.01.2010Two more Antarctic blogs have come to our attention. The first is written by Matthew Wood who recently launched a podcast and accompanying blog on Antarctic science. These have been produced in association with the Antarctic Research Centre at Victoria University and the Royal Society Science Media Centre. The podcasts are approximately 15-minute, interview-based summaries of interesting scientific research that are suitable for a layperson audience. To read the blog, visit Journeys to the Ice.
The second is Gateway Antarctica (University of Canterbury) student, Matthias Wagner's (hand)-written diary kept during his 2-week visit to the Ice as part of the Post-Graduate Course in Antarctic Studies, in late December 2009. You can read it here.
SCIENCE AND INFORMATION UPDATE22.01.2010The first Science and Information update for 2010 contains much useful and interesting information, including the Draft Scientific Data Policy which is now available for comment. Read or download it here.
ANTARCTIC RESEARCH PROGRAMME HISTORY18.01.2010Graeme Connell who was a member of the New Zealand Antarctic Research Programme team over the 1968-69 summer season is writing a book about his adventures that year. He also has a blog with reminiscences from 40 years ago. Read the blog here.
ANTARCTIC YOUTH AMBASSADOR12.01.2010Natalie Miedema, the 2009 Antarctic Youth Ambassador travels to the Ice today. During her time at Scott Base she will assist with environmental monitoring at the wind farm site on Crater Hill, amongst other projects. She will be writing a blog during her visit and will return from Antarctica on 22 January. You can read her blog here.
KOREAN ICEBREAKER VISITS LYTTELTON08.01.2010Lyttelton will be the first port of call this summer for Korea's new Icebreaker the Araon. The 6950-ton ship which has recently been launched will be conducting sea trials in the Ross Sea in January 2010. The media release can be downloaded here. |
