Antarctica receives almost 50,000 visitors a year, if you count both those who disembark and those who sail or over fly the continent without landing. Is it now for the Antarctic Treaty or the governments involved to regulate Antarctic Tourism? Should we start talking about quotas and/or other measures to protect the most pristine region in the world? Photographer, cruise manager and guide Juan Kratzmaier summarizes a conference talk he gave on the topic at the Institute of Marine Sciences in Barcelona for the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) in ...

Over the past month, there has been an unusual abundance of negative environmental news coming from Antarctica. First, at the end of November, a well-tested, ice-strengthened Antarctic cruise ship sank near the Antarctic Peninsula. The 154 people onboard were all safely rescued. The ship sank to the bottom of the ocean, with all the fuel, machinery and furniture that was onboard. The environmental impacts are being closely monitored. However, with today’s technology, there is precious little that one can do to a ship (spilling...

On 23 November, 2007, the M/S Explorer, a well-tested, ice-strengthened Antarctic cruise ship sank in Bransfield Strait near the Antarctic Peninsula. The 154 people onboard were all safely evacuated and rescued. The ship sank in waters 1100 – 1500 m deep, bringing down with it approximately 185000 L of diesel, 24000 L of lubricants, 1200 L of gasoline and all the machinery, equipment and furniture that was onboard. Its environmental impacts are still unknown and are being closely monitored. There are not many options available to clean up oil spills in icy seas. Some of them, such as burning or using chem...

Who says you can't be green in Antarctica? At the Australian Mawson station in East Antarctica, two wind turbines have been generating part of the station’s electricity since 2003. At wind speeds above 12 m/s — a common occurrences during eleven months of the year — the wind turbines are capable of generating 100% of the electricity needed by the station for long periods of time. The wind turbines have led to monthly savings in diesel fuel use of up to 58%. Over 10,000 litres of fuel are saved per month, significantly reducing the emissions of carbon dioxide that contribute to global warming. For more information on renewable power sources tried and tested for the polar regions, check out the ...

Antarctica is managed internationally under the Antarctic Treaty. Each year, countries that have signed the treaty get together at the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM). These meetings bring together a large number of experts, including lawyers, diplomats, scientists and logisticians. This year, the meeting is in New Delhi, India. Naturally, like attracts like, and I’ve been enjoying quite a few discussions with scientists over copious amounts of Indian tea and curry. Scientists who come to the ATCM for the first time definitely find it an eye-opening experience. The discussions at the meeting help you understand why you have to fill in so much paperwork for your research. They also make you realize that your science is only one miniscule elemen...

Tourism is the activity that brings the largest number of people to Antarctica nowadays. It is a topic that is hotly debated at the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting in New Delhi this week. In the last decade, tourism has swiftly emerged as the activity that is bringing the largest number of people to Antarctica. The number of shipborne visitors has increased by four-fold between 1995 and 2005. The 2006/07 season saw the largest tourist vessel ever to operate in Antarctic waters. The Golden Princess carried 3,700 persons: more people than the peak summer population for all Antarctic national programs. Up to now, Antarctic tourism is not regulated. There are some reporting obligations, voluntary guidelines relating to particular sites, and generic environ...

Did you know? - India began active scientific research in Antarctica in 1981. - India currently has two permanent research stations. Dakshin Gangotri was built in 1983 in Dronning Maud Land but is now buried under nice and completely non-functional. The second permanent station, Maitri, was built in 1989, and provides year-round accommodation to 25 people. - India will start building its third research station at Larsemann Hills in East Antarctica, in 2007-2008, propelling India into a small, elite group of countries which run three or more stations in Antarctica. - In recent years, Indian scientists fly from India to Cape Town and then down to Antarctica. They used to sail from Goa in India to Antarctica. The expedition would tak...

Over a pizza with other early career polar scientists at the European Geosciences Union Annual Meeting in Vienna, Rhian and I talked about how difficult it is to conduct outreach to children about climate change. We tell schoolchildren about climate change, how life will be different on a warmer planet and the humungous task we have in front of us to change and "save" ourselves. It’s difficult not to leave them in despair. As Rhian pointed out, some of the children have said, “Yes, we can bike to school, but it’s not going to change anything - the school bus is still going to drive past us!” Local Viennese beer brewed a brainstorming session on how to empower children in the face of climate change. Here are some ideas that we would like to share with you: ...

Contents: 1. Introduction to Monthly Reports 2. Information and Resources on the IPY web site 3. SCAR/IASC Open Science Conference, July 2008 4. Youth Networks FROM: IPY International Programme Office TO: IPY Project Coordinators 1. Introduction Several project coordinators have expressed a desire for more communication from the IPY Office. This IPY Report conveys (we hope) useful and timely information to the Coordinators of each of the IPY Projects. We welcome suggestions for content and improvement. We will send this by direct email from IPO using a Google Group, approximately monthly. Project Coordinators should redistribute these reports among the...

If you wanted to find a place that is the exact opposite of Antarctica, you would be hard pressed to find a place more appropriate than New Delhi in India. It is 32 degrees at New Delhi today and raining. At South Pole it is -49 degrees Celsius and snowing. Not only is the weather different, but the color of the sky and the earth, sounds and smells, and even fashion sense represent two distinct worlds. At the 30th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting in New Delhi this week, delegates have been discussing environmental and legal issues over curry and copious amounts of strong tea. The IPY has also been an important item on the agenda. Yesterday, Professor Chris Rapley made a presentation to update the Treaty parties on the progress of IPY. I also made a presentation, as the...