tag:theconversation.com,2011:/id/topics/australia-and-antarctica-29000/articlesAustralia and Antarctica – The Conversation2023-06-13T20:06:04Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2065312023-06-13T20:06:04Z2023-06-13T20:06:04ZCan next week’s special meeting in Chile break the deadlock over East Antarctica’s marine park proposal?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531542/original/file-20230613-21-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=26%2C0%2C2968%2C1998&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/underwater-world-antarctica-1188050665">Ivan Hoermann, Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Amid the challenges of climate change, resource extraction and pollution, the survival of species and ecosystems depends on setting aside protected areas. But plans to establish marine protected areas in East Antarctica have stalled. </p>
<p>Next week, the 27-member <a href="https://www.ccamlr.org/">Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources</a> will gather at a <a href="https://meetings.ccamlr.org/en/ccamlr-sm-iii">special meeting</a> in Santiago, Chile, to try to break the deadlock. There’s much at stake, given the seemingly implacable opposition from China and Russia. China appears more concerned about fishing for krill than conservation, while Russia’s objections are less clear.</p>
<p>The need for Antarctic marine protected areas was first discussed in response to the <a href="https://www.un.org/en/conferences/environment/johannesburg2002">2002 United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development</a>. The formal plan was adopted three years later, in 2005. While China had not yet joined the commission at that time, it was a member when the commission reaffirmed this commitment in 2011. </p>
<p>These areas were meant to protect a representative suite of Antarctic marine environments, such as unique seafloor communities, deepwater canyons, and highly productive coastal and oceanic food webs. They were to be developed, assessed and agreed on the basis of the best available science. </p>
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<h2>Slow progress on Antarctica’s marine parks</h2>
<p>So far, two marine protected areas have been agreed by the commission: South Orkney Islands Southern Shelf in 2009; and the Ross Sea Region in 2016. Since then, the commission has been unable to agree on any further proposals, including the <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/ccamlr/marine-protected-areas/eampa/">East Antarctic Region marine protected area</a>. This was first proposed by Australia in 2011. It’s the oldest of those proposed but not yet agreed. The commission has also been unable to adopt the research and monitoring plans or the reviews of the existing marine protected areas.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A map showing the proposed East Antarctica Marine Protected Area zones" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">A map showing the proposed East Antarctica Marine Protected Area zones.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/ccamlr/marine-protected-areas/eampa/">Australian Antarctic Division</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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<p>This year, the United Nations agreed to a treaty on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas <a href="https://press.un.org/en/highlights/BBNJ">beyond national jurisdiction</a>. This treaty will be up for adoption at a final conference session on June 19-20, 2023. </p>
<p>This treaty sets a global target of 30% of the global oceans to be in marine protected areas by 2030. This will be the likely yardstick against which the Commission’s future performance will be measured. So far, the commission’s marine protected area achievement is just 4.7% of the area of Southern Ocean that it is responsible for.</p>
<p>Of the 27 member countries of the commission, 21 have formally committed their support for the East Antarctic Region marine protected area. Only China and Russia have repeatedly opposed this and other proposals. They are now challenging the commission’s consensus agreement to establish the marine protected area network in Antarctica.</p>
<h2>The shrinking East Antarctic Region Marine Protected Area</h2>
<p>The proposed East Antarctic Region marine protected area initially consisted of seven distinct areas designed to protect the diversity of environments in the region. Since then, Australia and its partners, now numbering 17, have granted many compromises in the quest for consensus. The number of distinct areas has been reduced to three and fishing is allowed unless explicitly excluded. </p>
<p>To specifically accommodate China’s concerns about future krill fishing, Australia sacrificed the unique and special Prydz Bay region. That’s despite the fact China’s krill fishing aspirations could be more than adequately met from the rest of the region. Nonetheless, Russia and China continue to withhold consensus on this proposal. </p>
<p>Increasingly, the rhetoric opposing marine protected areas is centred around an argument that invokes a “balance” between “conservation” (in this case, the establishment of marine protected areas), and “rational use” (in this case the right to fish). On both legal and practical grounds, the conservation versus rational use argument centres on the very core of the international agreement that covers the oceans of the region, the <a href="https://www.ccamlr.org/en/document/publications/text-convention-conservation-antarctic-marine-living-resources">Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources</a>. </p>
<p>The convention was agreed in 1980 to protect all Antarctic species from potential over exploitation. Its objective was – and remains – clearly centred on conservation in the region. Fishing is allowed, as long as the species and ecosystems of the region are conserved. The convention states that its objective “is the conservation of Antarctic marine living resources”. It identifies those resources as “populations of fin fish, molluscs, crustaceans and all other species of living organisms, including birds” and clarifies that “conservation” includes “rational use”, if such rational use can be conducted with minimal impact on the ecosystem. </p>
<p>In recent years, Russia and China have both argued that there is too much emphasis on conservation. They state that there needs to be a <a href="https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/no-20-marine-protected-areas-antarctica-has-chinas-hand-been-revealed">re-balancing between fishing and conservation</a>. In constructing this argument, they are engaging in a wilful reinterpretation of the convention – and ignoring the significant time dedicated by the commission to fisheries management. </p>
<h2>A reliance on consensus</h2>
<p>The commission, like the rest of the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/index_e.html">Antarctic Treaty System</a>, makes decisions on the basis of consensus. This means that some decisions may take quite some time to be agreed, but the strength of consensus is that all parties are then committed to the final result. </p>
<p>Consensus is built on trust and good faith. But consensus will be undermined when agreement is withheld in bad faith, or used as a means to achieve other objectives. The actions of one or a few that withhold consensus, or who negotiate in bad faith, could, if not confronted, undermine all decision-making in the commission, including decisions on sustainable fisheries. </p>
<h2>Now is not the time for endless compromise</h2>
<p>We must not continue compromising for an apparent “quick win”. The East Antarctic Region marine protected area has been evaluated by the commission’s scientific committee, and the commission has repeatedly reached the point where only Russia and China withhold agreement. It is this behaviour that needs to be explicitly challenged, not the marine protected area proposal itself. </p>
<p>These nations need to explain their specific concerns, and in the spirit of consensus, provide workable alternatives that meet their obligations under the conventions and accommodate the aspirations of all members. </p>
<p>Australia has held many discussions with China and Russia over the years to help resolve their issues. With China, these discussions have been thorough and cordial, and it is clear this nation has a deep and comprehensive understanding of the marine protected area proposal. Several bilateral meetings have also been held with Russia; however, it remains unclear what their specific objections are, particularly as they are no longer fishing. </p>
<p>There are no obstacles to China agreeing to the East Antarctic Region marine protected area proposal now. They have agreed to two large Antarctic marine protected areas in the past. The East Antarctic marine protected area poses no substantive obstacle to China’s aspirations in the region, including their stated desire to harvest krill.</p>
<p>There is much at stake at this upcoming special meeting, including the reputation of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. The protection of the Antarctic requires that a way forward on marine protected areas be found.</p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Marcus Haward receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Blue Economy Cooperative Research Centre.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lynda Goldsworthy and Tony Press do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>China and Russia have been blocking international plans to protect marine life in East Antarctica. Will next week’s special meeting in Chile break the deadlock? Australia hopes so.Lynda Goldsworthy, Research Associate, University of TasmaniaMarcus Haward, ProfessorTony Press, Adjunct Professor, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1776092022-02-23T00:16:37Z2022-02-23T00:16:37ZA krill aquarium, climate research, and geopolitics: how Australia’s $800 million Antarctic funding will be spent<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/447936/original/file-20220222-23-13fxzz3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6858%2C3695&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The federal government’s <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/800-million-strengthen-our-leadership-antarctica">major package of new funding</a> for Australia’s Antarctic program, announced on Tuesday, promises an additional A$804.4 million over the next decade. </p>
<p>The government has also released an update to its <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/site/assets/files/53156/2022_update_20yearstrategy.pdf">2016 Australian Antarctic Strategy and 20-Year Action Plan</a>, which effectively confirmed the existing strategy and outlined specific activities for the next five years.</p>
<p>The funds will allow Australia’s Antarctic scientists to continue undertaking significant, world-class research. They also promise to bring new streams of environmental data into the management of the fragile Antarctic environment.</p>
<p>But the announcement has also immediately been framed as a robust response to supposed Chinese and Russian expansion in Antarctica. </p>
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<h2>How the new funds will be spent</h2>
<p>Australia has a long connection with Antarctica. </p>
<p>It has continuously operated a scientific program on the continent since 1954, when the Australian Antarctic Division established Mawson Station, which is now the oldest continuously operating station south of the Antarctic Circle. </p>
<p>Australia was also an original signatory of the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/antarctictreaty.html">Antarctic Treaty in 1959</a>, an international agreement which continues to govern Antarctica. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/australia-and-antarctic-treaty-system/">Antarctic Treaty System</a> promotes scientific research and cooperation, prevents military and nuclear activities, manages environmental impacts and human activities, governs resources such as fisheries, bans mining, and in general aims to maintain regional peace.</p>
<p>Today, Australia operates three year-round scientific stations on the continent and one on sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island. </p>
<p>The new icebreaker <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/nuyina/">Nuyina</a> is crucial to the Antarctic program. It both supplies the stations and conducts essential marine scientific work in the Southern Ocean.</p>
<p>Scientists also conduct their research at the Antarctic Division’s Hobart headquarters. The krill biologists are being promised a new $17.4 million krill aquarium.</p>
<p>Although the government’s announcement is light on specifics, the $804.4 million is divided into diverse areas.</p>
<p>The biggest ticket items are concerned with transport and observational capacity across East Antarctica. These include:</p>
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<li><p>$136.6 million for inland traverse capability, charting and mapping, and “mobile stations”</p></li>
<li><p>$60.6 million for “drone fleets and other autonomous vehicles” and a sensor and camera network called the “Antarctic eye”</p></li>
<li><p>$35 million for longer-range helicopters; and </p></li>
<li><p>$14.6 million for air transport within Antarctica. </p></li>
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<p>Other funds will go to the icebreaker <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/nuyina/">Nuyina</a>, removal of old waste from Australia’s stations and more funding for glaciology and ice sheet research.</p>
<p>The funds will therefore continue well-established scientific activities, as well increase the use of newer technologies to advance the Antarctic program.</p>
<h2>Antarctic science isn’t cheap</h2>
<p>Most of the new funds will support science. Australia is a scientific leader in Antarctica. But science down south costs big money. </p>
<p>Antarctica is enormous and the conditions are harsh.</p>
<p>The inland traverse capability will support the <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/science/climate-processes-and-change/antarctic-palaeoclimate/inland-traverse/">million-year ice core</a> project, crucial for reconstructing Earth’s climate history.</p>
<p>Modern studies of the ice sheet are predominantly done through remote sensing, and the drones and autonomous vehicles might be useful for that. </p>
<p>Massive inland traverses of the ice sheet – which Australia <a href="https://researchnow.flinders.edu.au/en/publications/glaciological-bodies-australian-visions-of-the-antarctic-ice-shee">conducted from the 1960s to 1980s</a> — have been less necessary since the advent of <a href="https://www.antarcticglaciers.org/glaciers-and-climate/glacier-recession/observing-glacier-change-space/">sophisticated satellites in the 1990s</a>. But traverses are still necessary for logistics.</p>
<p>Remote monitoring of bird and animal populations might also increase.</p>
<h2>Geopolitics and Antarctica</h2>
<p>The Antarctic Treaty System allows for any signatory to inspect, unannounced, the Antarctic bases and installations of other signatories. </p>
<p>Until now, this has seen teams of people visit bases, but the innovative use of drones could perhaps make inspections more frequent.</p>
<p>In the context of rising tensions between the West, China and Russia, geopolitics is hard to avoid. But such tensions aren’t new, and the Antarctic Treaty System has operated amid such tensions since its enactment.</p>
<p>Australia has claimed much of East Antarctica as the Australian Antarctic Territory since 1933. Almost no other country ever recognised that claim. And the Antarctic Treaty put all territorial claims in Antarctica into legal limbo.</p>
<p>At the height of the Cold War, Australia was worried about the Soviet Union’s bases. Today, Russia, China, India, Romania, France and Italy all have bases in Australia’s area of interest.</p>
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<p>Prime Minister Scott Morrison <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/press-conference-triabunna-tas">implicitly called out China</a> as not being as committed to protecting the Antarctic environment as Australia and its allies. </p>
<p>Treasurer Josh Frydenburg has <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/the-key-to-protecting-the-future-of-our-planet-governments-800m-antarctic-investment/l88qjo0oq">said</a> some countries (meaning China and Russia) are “increasingly active” in Antarctica. </p>
<p>Are their capacities dramatically increasing? Russia appears to be renewing several of its bases, including Vostok, but there’s no clear evidence they’re dramatically expanding their presence.</p>
<p>China <a href="https://www.comnap.aq/s/China_Antarctic_Station_Catalogue_Aug2017.pdf">has four operational bases</a> (only two are year-round), and a fifth one in the final stages of commissioning. They now have two icebreakers which they deploy at both poles. </p>
<p>But China’s Antarctic capacities are not currently greater than Australia’s or the US. It’s also unclear how much larger the Chinese effort and footprint will get. We need quality, up-to-date information to supplement <a href="https://www.aspi.org.au/report/chinas-expanding-interests-antarctica">older</a> <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/18366503.2019.1589897">analyses</a>.</p>
<p>More concerning than any apparent military buildup in Antarctica is the increase in potential exploitation of fish, including krill. China and Russia appear to be <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/11/countries-fail-to-agree-on-antarctic-conservation-measures-for-fifth-straight-year/">investing heavily</a> to exploit krill stocks.</p>
<p>Another frustration is because the Antarctic Treaty System uses consensus decision-making, China and Russia have successfully prevented major environmental protection decisions over the past decade. </p>
<p>Both continue to <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/11/countries-fail-to-agree-on-antarctic-conservation-measures-for-fifth-straight-year/">prevent the creation of large marine protected areas</a> around Antarctica. And recently they’ve been thwarting new fishing regulations and restrictions.</p>
<h2>Domestic politics also plays a role</h2>
<p>There’s also basic domestic politics at play. Federal Antarctic funds are important to Tasmania and the prime minister has <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/press-conference-triabunna-tas">stressed job creation</a>.</p>
<p>Ever since the Australian Antarctic division moved from Melbourne to Hobart in 1981, the Hobart community and economy has <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353171357_Antarctic_Cities_From_Gateways_to_Custodial_Cities_Report">benefited</a> from Antarctic research.</p>
<p>The multi-government <a href="https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/territories-regions-cities/cities/city-deals/hobart">Hobart City Deal</a>, which began in 2019, had already committed at least $450 million to the creating an Antarctic and science precinct at the city’s waterfront.</p>
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<span class="caption">Will Antarctica be a central arena of competition, or can it remain peripheral, as it has during previous moments of geopolitical heat?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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<p>We will have to wait to see what parts of this announcement really turn into. Will surveillance drones be regularly moving through Antarctic skies and seas? What exactly are “mobile stations” and what they will do? Much is unclear. </p>
<p>The funding also continues a go-it-alone approach, without mention of science diplomacy or major international research projects. Recent <a href="https://www.transparency.gov.au/annual-reports/department-agriculture-water-and-environment/reporting-year/2020-21-16">government documents suggest</a> Australia’s international Antarctic collaborations and scientific publications are trending downwards.</p>
<p>Sadly, Australian-Chinese scientific cooperation, including in the Southern Ocean, is <a href="https://www.aspi.org.au/opinion/csiro-and-china-we-cant-just-go-floe-antarctica">being axed</a> because of “national security concerns”.</p>
<p>Strategic tensions with Russia and China are obviously hardening globally and Antarctica won’t be immune from them. </p>
<p>The question is: will Antarctica be a central arena of competition, or can it remain peripheral, as it has during previous moments of geopolitical heat?</p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alessandro Antonello receives funding from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p>Strategic tensions with Russia and China are hardening globally and Antarctica won’t be immune from them. Can Antarctica stay peripheral, as it has in previous moments of geopolitical heat?Alessandro Antonello, Senior Research Fellow in History, Flinders UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1775482022-02-21T11:34:28Z2022-02-21T11:34:28ZScott Morrison commits $804 million over a decade for the Antarctic<p>Scott Morrison on Tuesday will announce $804.4 million over a decade to strengthen Australia’s strategic and scientific capabilities in the Antarctic. </p>
<p>The funding, including for drones, helicopters and vehicles, will enable Australia’s to penetrate inland areas of its claimed territory of East Antartica previously unreachable. </p>
<p>In strategic terms, Australia has had a watchful eye on China’s increasing involvement in recent years in the Antarctic and in Antarctic politics.</p>
<p>The money includes $136.6 million for inland travel capability, mapping, mobile stations, environmental protection, and other core activities.</p>
<p>Another $109 million will fund drone fleets and vehicles to map “inaccessible and fragile areas of East Antartica”, establishing an “Antarctic Eye” with integrated censors and cameras feeding real-time information back. </p>
<p>It will also purchase four new medium-lift helicopters with a range of 550 kilometres when launched from the RSV Nuyina that will give access to areas which have been beyond reach. Helicopters provide more landing flexibility than fixed-wing aircraft.</p>
<p>The Nuyina was launched late last year, when it was described by the government as “the most advanced polar research vessel in the world”. </p>
<p>Other funds in the package will go into shipping support, marine science (including a new krill aquarium in Hobart), environment management including cleaning up “legacy waste”, research on Antarctic ice sheet science to improve understanding of climate change, and international engagement. </p>
<p>Morrison said the Antarctic investment would support jobs in Australia – with Australian businesses, contractors, medical suppliers and other providers benefiting. </p>
<p>Foreign Minister Marise Payne said the government’s proposed investments “are a clear marker of our enduring commitment to the Antarctic Treaty system, its scientific foundations, and Australia’s leadership within it”.</p>
<p>Environment Minister Sussan Ley said: “When I sit down with world leaders to discuss the Antarctic and the Southern Ocean in the face of increasing pressures, the strategic importance of our scientific leadership is clear.</p>
<p>"We need to ensure that the Antarctic remains a place of science and conservation, one that is free from conflict and which is protected from exploitation.”</p>
<p>Australia was a founding member of the Antarctic Treaty, signed by the Menzies government in 1959.</p>
<p>Seven countries have made territorial claims in Antarctica. Apart from Australia, the others are Argentina, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, and the United Kingdom.</p>
<p>Other countries including China, India, Italy, Pakistan, Russia, Ukraine, and the United States have stations there. </p>
<p>Australia’s claimed territory covers 42% of the continent and includes the vast majority of East Antarctica.</p>
<p>Under the Hawke government Australia together with France led the successful push to have an international agreement reached to prevent mining in the Antarctic. </p>
<p>Ley has been pushing for the expansion of marine protected areas but getting consensus is hard, with China and Russia being difficult.</p>
<p>Last year the government abandoned a proposal to build a 2700 metre concrete runway at Australia’s Davis research station, following a detailed environmental and economic assessment.</p>
<p>Ley said then that “higher projected costs, potential environmental impacts, and the complexity of a 20-year construction process in an extreme and sensitive environment, are such that we will now
focus on alternative options for expanding our wider Antarctic Program capability”.</p>
<p>Commenting on the government announcement, Elizabeth Buchanan, lecturer
in strategic studies at Deakin University, told The Conversation the promised investment in drone capability - an ‘Antarctic Eye’ network – was “sorely needed”, and a “solid solution to Australia’s inland traverse challenges”. </p>
<p>“However, this clearly signals Canberra’s move into the grey zone of dual-use technologies - a space in which Russia and China are well versed,” Buchanan said.</p>
<p>But she said “all these new capabilities and technological investments still beg the question - so what? Should Australia find evidence of non-compliance, what does this mean? We can’t enforce or punish in the context of Antarctica, just tar a state’s reputation. </p>
<p>"I am not sure this is enough to make any real impact on long-term Antarctic posturing from states like China.”</p>
<p>Buchanan said it was disappointing to see limited multilateral planning in the government’s new investment program. </p>
<p>“Asset-sharing, such as vessels and aviation infrastructure with like-minded parties or developing Antarctic elements to groupings like the QUAD, or AUKUS, is surely worth consideration. This would be smart policy for the long term.”</p>
<p>“Russian and Chinese Antarctic activity might present challenges, however Australia is both curtailed and restrained by responding or this activity in any substantial way due to a fear of eroding or weakening the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) status quo. It is the ATS which protects and supports the Australian Antarctic Territory.</p>
<p>"Smart Australian policy would be to lead compliance and oversight mechanisms such as inspections or constant aerial surveillance as tabled by Canberra’s new ‘Antarctic Eye’ program – call out and shine light on transgressions.</p>
<p>"But keep in mind the ATS is without enforcement mechanisms, and Russia and China have ‘veto’ rights to stymie real governance progress if necessary.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/177548/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Scott Morrison on Tuesday will announce $804.4 million over a decade to strengthen Australia’s strategic and scientific capabilities in the Antarctic.Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of CanberraLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1395962020-07-17T02:17:42Z2020-07-17T02:17:42ZAustralia wants to build a huge concrete runway in Antarctica. Here’s why that’s a bad idea<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347964/original/file-20200716-33-k4yzs7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=3%2C68%2C1274%2C781&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAD</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Australia <a href="http://epbcnotices.environment.gov.au/_entity/annotation/21cd824e-4f42-ea11-b0a8-00505684324c/a71d58ad-4cba-48b6-8dab-f3091fc31cd5?t=1591849731552">wants to build</a> a 2.7-kilometre concrete runway in Antarctica, the world’s biggest natural reserve. The plan, if approved, would have the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-019-0237-y#Sec8">largest footprint</a> of any project in the continent’s history.</p>
<p>The runway is part of an aerodrome to be constructed near Davis Station, one of Australia’s three permanent bases in Antarctica. It would be the first concrete runway on the continent.</p>
<p>The plan is subject to federal environmental approval. It coincides with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2506-3">new research</a> published this week showing Antarctica’s wild places need better protection. Human activity across Antarctica has been extensive in the past 200 years – particularly in the coastal, ice-free areas where most biodiversity is found. </p>
<p>The area around Davis Station is possibly Antarctica’s <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00025586">most significant</a> coastal, ice-free area. It features <a href="http://epbcnotices.environment.gov.au/_entity/annotation/174a3e6b-4f42-ea11-b0a8-00505684324c/a71d58ad-4cba-48b6-8dab-f3091fc31cd5?t=1594857491287">unique lakes</a>, fjords, <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/geo/opp/antarct/aca/nsf01151/aca2_spa143.pdf">fossil sites</a> and wildlife.</p>
<p>Australia has successfully operated Davis Station since 1957 with existing transport arrangements. While the development may win Australia some strategic influence in Antarctica, it’s at odds with our strong history of environmental leadership in the region.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340290/original/file-20200608-176550-in2d7s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=12%2C198%2C4268%2C2638&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340290/original/file-20200608-176550-in2d7s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340290/original/file-20200608-176550-in2d7s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340290/original/file-20200608-176550-in2d7s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340290/original/file-20200608-176550-in2d7s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340290/original/file-20200608-176550-in2d7s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340290/original/file-20200608-176550-in2d7s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Vestfold Hills, the proposed site of the aerodrome.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nick Roden</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Year-round access</h2>
<p>The Australian Antarctic Division (AAD), a federal government agency, <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/living-and-working/travel-and-logistics/aviation/davis-aerodrome/about-the-project/">argues</a> the runway would allow year-round aviation access between Hobart and Antarctica.</p>
<p>Presently, the only Australian flights to Antarctica take place at the beginning and end of summer. Aircraft land at an aerodrome near the Casey research station, with interconnecting flights to other stations and sites on the continent. The stations are inaccessible by both air and ship in winter.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/humans-are-encroaching-on-antarcticas-last-wild-places-threatening-its-fragile-biodiversity-142648">Humans are encroaching on Antarctica’s last wild places, threatening its fragile biodiversity</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The AAD says year-round access to Antarctica would provide significant science benefits, including:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>better understanding sea level rise and other climate change impacts</p></li>
<li><p>opportunities to study wildlife across the annual lifecycle of key species including krill, penguins, seals and seabirds</p></li>
<li><p>allowing scientists to research through winter.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Leading international scientists <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antarctic-science/article/delivering-21st-century-antarctic-and-southern-ocean-science/A5E6D29C34AA2794140C6B4966E63048">had called for</a> improved, environmentally responsible access to Antarctica to support 21st-century science. However, the aerodrome project is likely to reduce access for scientists to Antarctica for years, due to the need to house construction workers.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347690/original/file-20200715-29-bzldv9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347690/original/file-20200715-29-bzldv9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347690/original/file-20200715-29-bzldv9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347690/original/file-20200715-29-bzldv9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347690/original/file-20200715-29-bzldv9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347690/original/file-20200715-29-bzldv9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347690/original/file-20200715-29-bzldv9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Australia says the runway would have significant science benefits.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Australian Antarctic Division</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Australia: an environmental leader?</h2>
<p>Australia has traditionally been considered an environmental leader in Antarctica. For example, in 1989 under the Hawke government, it urged the world to abandon a mining convention in favour of a new deal to ban mining on the continent. </p>
<p>Australia’s <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-us/antarctic-strategy-and-action-plan/20-year-action-plan/">20 Year Action Plan</a> promotes “leadership in environmental stewardship in Antarctica”, pledging to “minimise the environmental impact of Australia’s activities”.</p>
<p>But the aerodrome proposal appears at odds with that goal. It would cover 2.2 square kilometres, increasing the total “<a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antarctic-science/article/what-is-footprint-in-antarctica-proposing-a-set-of-definitions/7FBDB26F3AF2F5A6C157FCB2E6A2D996">disturbance footprint</a>” of all nations on the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-019-0237-y">continent</a> by 40%. It would also mean Australia has the biggest footprint of any nation, overtaking the United States. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/341090/original/file-20200611-114075-y38ird.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/341090/original/file-20200611-114075-y38ird.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/341090/original/file-20200611-114075-y38ird.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=540&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341090/original/file-20200611-114075-y38ird.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=540&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341090/original/file-20200611-114075-y38ird.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=540&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341090/original/file-20200611-114075-y38ird.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=679&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341090/original/file-20200611-114075-y38ird.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=679&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341090/original/file-20200611-114075-y38ird.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=679&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The contribution of disturbance footprint from countries in Antarctica measured from Brooks et al. 2019, with Australia’s share increasing to 35% including the aerodrome proposal.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shaun Brooks</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Within this footprint, environmental effects will also be intense. <a href="http://epbcnotices.environment.gov.au/_entity/annotation/174a3e6b-4f42-ea11-b0a8-00505684324c/a71d58ad-4cba-48b6-8dab-f3091fc31cd5?t=1594857491287">Construction</a> will require more than three million cubic metres of earthworks - levelling 60 vertical metres of hills and valleys along the length of the runway. This will inevitably cause dust emissions – on the windiest continent on Earth - and the effect of this on plants and animals in Antarctica is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954102019000440">poorly understood</a>. </p>
<p>Wilson’s storm petrels that nest at the site will be displaced. Native lichens, fungi and algae will be destroyed, and irreparable damage is expected at adjacent lakes.</p>
<p>Weddell seals breed within 500 metres of the proposed runway site. Federal environment officials <a href="http://epbcnotices.environment.gov.au/_entity/annotation/174a3e6b-4f42-ea11-b0a8-00505684324c/a71d58ad-4cba-48b6-8dab-f3091fc31cd5?t=1594857491287">recognise</a> the dust from construction and subsequent noise from low flying aircraft have the potential to disturb these breeding colonies.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/marine-life-found-in-ancient-antarctica-ice-helps-solve-a-carbon-dioxide-puzzle-from-the-ice-age-141973">Marine life found in ancient Antarctica ice helps solve a carbon dioxide puzzle from the ice age</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The proposed area is also important breeding habitat for Adélie penguins. Eight breeding sites in the region are listed as “important bird areas”. Federal environment officials state the penguins are likely to be impacted by human disturbance, dust, and noise from construction of the runway, with particular concern for oil spills and aircraft operations. </p>
<p>The summer population at Davis Station will need to almost double from 120 to 250 <a href="http://epbcnotices.environment.gov.au/_entity/annotation/174a3e6b-4f42-ea11-b0a8-00505684324c/a71d58ad-4cba-48b6-8dab-f3091fc31cd5?t=1594857491287">during construction</a>. This will require new, permanent infrastructure and increase the station’s fuel and water consumption, and sewage discharged into the environment.</p>
<p>The AAD has proposed measures to limit environmental damage. These include gathering baseline data (against which to measure the project’s impact), analysing potential effects on birds and marine mammals and limiting disturbance where practicable.</p>
<p>But full details won’t be provided until later in the assessment process. We expect Australia will implement these measures to a high standard, but they will not offset the project’s environmental damage.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/341091/original/file-20200611-114102-4kf7wx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/341091/original/file-20200611-114102-4kf7wx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/341091/original/file-20200611-114102-4kf7wx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341091/original/file-20200611-114102-4kf7wx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341091/original/file-20200611-114102-4kf7wx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341091/original/file-20200611-114102-4kf7wx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341091/original/file-20200611-114102-4kf7wx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341091/original/file-20200611-114102-4kf7wx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An Adélie penguin colony near Davis Station.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nick Roden</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Playing politics</h2>
<p>So given the environmental concern, why is Australia so determined to build the aerodrome? We believe the answer largely lies in Antarctic politics. </p>
<p>Australian officials <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/site/assets/files/54470/future_science_opportunities_synthesis_report_final.pdf">have said</a> the project would “contribute to both our presence and influence” on the continent. Influence in Antarctica has traditionally corresponded to the strength of a nation’s scientific program, its infrastructure presence and engagement in international decision-making. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/microscopic-animals-are-busy-distributing-microplastics-throughout-the-worlds-soil-141353">Microscopic animals are busy distributing microplastics throughout the world's soil</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Australia is a well-regarded member of the Antarctic Treaty. It was an original signatory and claims sovereignty over 42% of the continent. It also has a solid physical and scientific presence, maintaining three large year-round research stations.</p>
<p>But other nations are also vying for influence. China is constructing its fifth research station. New Zealand <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/science/113844159/scott-base-rebuild-to-cost-250-million">is planning</a> a NZ$250 million upgrade to Scott Base. And on King George Island, six stations have been built <a href="https://doi.org/10.3402/polar.v31i0.18206">within a 5km radius</a>, each run by different nations. This presence is hard to justify on the basis of scientific interest alone. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/341092/original/file-20200611-114096-1bcyua7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/341092/original/file-20200611-114096-1bcyua7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/341092/original/file-20200611-114096-1bcyua7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341092/original/file-20200611-114096-1bcyua7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341092/original/file-20200611-114096-1bcyua7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341092/original/file-20200611-114096-1bcyua7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341092/original/file-20200611-114096-1bcyua7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/341092/original/file-20200611-114096-1bcyua7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Weddell seal and her pup near Davis Station.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nick Roden</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Getting our priorities straight</h2>
<p>We believe there are greater and more urgent opportunities for Australia to assert its leadership in Antarctica. </p>
<p>For example both Casey and Mawson stations – Australia’s two other permanent bases – discharge sewage into the pristine marine environment with little treatment. And outdated fuel technology at Australia’s three stations regularly causes <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.02.024">diesel spills</a>. </p>
<p>At Wilkes station, which Australia abandoned in the 1960s, thousands of tonnes of contaminants have been <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.12383">left behind</a>. </p>
<p>Australia should fix such problems before adding more potentially damaging infrastructure. This would meet our environmental treaty obligations and show genuine Antarctic leadership.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/139596/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Shaun Brooks receives funding from the the Australian Antarctic Science Program (Project 4565 - Conservation Planning for Antarctic Stations).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julia Jabour does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>It would be the first concrete runway in Antarctica and have the biggest footprint of any project in the continent’s history.Shaun Brooks, University Associate, University of TasmaniaJulia Jabour, Adjunct Senior Lecturer, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1013252018-08-28T20:19:05Z2018-08-28T20:19:05ZSledging songs, penguins and melting ice: how Antarctica has inspired Australian composers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231257/original/file-20180809-30446-cko92d.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Most people will never visit Antarctica but music can evoke the continent in myriad ways.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Photo: Meredith Nash</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>When Douglas Mawson led Australasia’s first expedition to Antarctica in 1911–14, his crew took along a folding organ, a concertina, a flute, a piccolo and a mouth organ, as well as a gramophone, records and a hymn book. </p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231866/original/file-20180814-2900-3evoc8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231866/original/file-20180814-2900-3evoc8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231866/original/file-20180814-2900-3evoc8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=703&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231866/original/file-20180814-2900-3evoc8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=703&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231866/original/file-20180814-2900-3evoc8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=703&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231866/original/file-20180814-2900-3evoc8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=884&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231866/original/file-20180814-2900-3evoc8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=884&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231866/original/file-20180814-2900-3evoc8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=884&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Program for The Washerwoman’s Secret: the first ‘opera’ on the continent.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Courtesy of The Mawson Centre, South Australian Museum. Used with permission.</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>His men’s diaries detail numerous musical activities that took place on board the Aurora and in the huts they built on the ice. Their band – the “Adélie Land Band” – was such a hit that, as Mawson wrote, “Men crawled out of their beds all eager to be in it”.</p>
<p>They even staged the first “opera” on the continent: an original production titled The Washerwoman’s Secret, billed as a “Grand Opera in Five Acts” and performed at Cape Denison, Commonwealth Bay, on 12 October 1912. As biological collector Charles Laseron <a href="https://collection.maas.museum/object/121109">recalled</a>, it had a “complicated and highly dramatic plot”. The expedition doctor, Archibald McLean, reportedly stole the show by dressing like a woman, singing in a contralto register and acting out several awkward “love” scenes. The “arias” sung were original creations, accompanied by geologist Frank Stillwell on the organ. </p>
<p>Mawson’s men also wrote new lyrics for existing tunes to sing for both leisure and while at work (<a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0032247416000255">such as “sledging songs”</a>). These both entertained and boosted morale. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231863/original/file-20180814-2894-1ng74qt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231863/original/file-20180814-2894-1ng74qt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231863/original/file-20180814-2894-1ng74qt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231863/original/file-20180814-2894-1ng74qt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231863/original/file-20180814-2894-1ng74qt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231863/original/file-20180814-2894-1ng74qt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=564&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231863/original/file-20180814-2894-1ng74qt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=564&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231863/original/file-20180814-2894-1ng74qt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=564&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Frank Hurley: ‘A winter evening at the hut’ (1911).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">National Library of Australia, http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-136188901.</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the past 30 years, a spate of professional Australian composers and musicians <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/1031461X.2017.1417456">have also engaged with Antarctica creatively</a>. Interest has no doubt been spurred by the celebration of centenaries relating to the Heroic Age, support for arts residencies as part of Australia’s Antarctic science program, and increased media focus on the continent due to climate change. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/antarctic-seas-host-a-surprising-mix-of-lifeforms-and-now-we-can-map-them-99667">Antarctic seas host a surprising mix of lifeforms – and now we can map them</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The most widely known Australian composition about Antarctica is perhaps Nigel Westlake’s Antarctica suite for guitar and orchestra (1992). Derived from his film score for John Weiley’s 1991 IMAX documentary Antarctica: An Adventure of a Different Nature, the four-movement suite explores some of the film’s primary themes. </p>
<p>The opening movement (“The Last Place on Earth”) employs sparse, static textures and dramatic gestures to represent the desolation and grandeur of the ice sheet. </p>
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<p>The second (“Wooden Ships”) is a nostalgic tribute to the pioneering Antarctic explorers. The penultimate movement (“Penguin Ballet”) vividly evokes the fluid, playful movements of penguins underwater. </p>
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<p>The final one opens with a slow, static section titled “The Ice Core” and ends with an uplifting “Finale”, inspired by the optimism surrounding the signing of the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (“Madrid Protocol”) in 1991. Through performances, recordings and broadcasts, Westlake’s suite has encouraged audiences to reflect on Antarctica’s unique environment, the history of human presence there, Antarctic science and the importance of protecting the continent.</p>
<h2>Love, death and serious science</h2>
<p>More recently, Hobart-based composers Scott McIntyre and Joe Bugden produced a chamber opera each to commemorate the centenary of the Terra Nova and Aurora expeditions, respectively.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/antarctica-has-lost-3-trillion-tonnes-of-ice-in-25-years-time-is-running-out-for-the-frozen-continent-98176">Antarctica has lost 3 trillion tonnes of ice in 25 years. Time is running out for the frozen continent</a>
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<p>McIntyre’s <a href="https://soundcloud.com/scott-mcintyre1/fire-on-the-snow-an-opera-in-2-acts">Fire on the Snow</a> is based on Douglas Stewart’s 1941 radio play of the same name about <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/scott_of_antarctic.shtml">Robert Falcon Scott’s final</a>, ill-fated expedition. The chamber opera features, in the composer’s words, “Music devoid of warmth, music that [is] brittle, like ice, the howl of the wind, the slow onset of death”.</p>
<iframe width="100%" height="166" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/158937501&color=%23da352a&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true"></iframe>
<p>Similarly, Bugden’s <a href="http://www.call-of-aurora.yolasite.com">The Call of Aurora</a> is serious in tone. Based on his own libretto, it explores themes of love, death, madness and isolation by focusing on Mawson’s longing for his fiancee, Paquita, his experience of the deaths of Belgrave Ninnis and Xavier Mertz, and his management of the mad wireless operator, <a href="http://mawsonshuts.antarctica.gov.au/cape-denison/the-people/sidney-jeffryes">Sidney Jeffryes</a>.</p>
<p>McIntyre has also produced a series of shorter compositions, including a song cycle, <a href="https://soundcloud.com/scott-mcintyre1/sets/songs-of-the-south">Songs of the South </a> (2014), based on those originally written during the Terra Nova and Aurora expeditions. Two of McIntyre’s songs were inspired by “sledging songs”, while others were derived from songs written by Mawson’s men about Christmas Day and one of the team’s dogs, Basilisk.</p>
<iframe width="100%" height="450" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/playlists/187741962&color=%23da352a&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true"></iframe>
<p>The Australian Antarctic Arts Fellowship scheme has supported classical harpist <a href="https://aliceinantarctica.wordpress.com/explore/videos-from-antarctica/">Alice Giles</a> and sound artist Philip Samartzis on residencies in Antarctica. Giles performed harp music there in 2011 to commemorate the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (her grandfather, Cecil Thomas Madigan, was the expedition’s meteorologist). </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231865/original/file-20180814-2900-17f7nli.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231865/original/file-20180814-2900-17f7nli.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231865/original/file-20180814-2900-17f7nli.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231865/original/file-20180814-2900-17f7nli.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231865/original/file-20180814-2900-17f7nli.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231865/original/file-20180814-2900-17f7nli.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231865/original/file-20180814-2900-17f7nli.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231865/original/file-20180814-2900-17f7nli.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Philip Samartzis in Iceberg Alley (Antarctic Sound), Antarctica, in March 2010.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Photograph by Ian
Aitkinson, used with permission
.</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The sound of ice cracking</h2>
<p>Samartzis’s two fellowships (2009 and 2015) enabled him to document in sound the impact of extreme climate and weather events on Australian research stations in Antarctica and on Macquarie Island, as well as on the icebreaker Aurora Australis. </p>
<p>His suite of compositions “Antarctica: An Absent Presence” (2016) captures a rich variety of sounds including those made by seals, wind, blizzards, ice when it cracks and calves, helicopters, trucks and generators. </p>
<iframe width="100%" height="166" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/217541672&color=%23da352a&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true"></iframe>
<p>Scientific research has proven fertile ground for composers.
Stuart Greenbaum’s choral work Antarctica (2002) uses a text by Melbourne poet Ross Baglin about sea level rise due to the melting Antarctic ice sheet. The music, written for treble choir, two violins and organ, is a poignant elegy to a place (and world) under threat.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-an-alien-seaweed-invasion-spawned-an-antarctic-mystery-99944">How an alien seaweed invasion spawned an Antarctic mystery</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Matthew Dewey’s symphony ex Oceano (2013) was written in response to research on the Southern Ocean undertaken by scientists at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies and the CSIRO. The music takes the listener on a journey, exploring not only the strength of the ocean’s currents and enormity of its scale and influence, but also the microscopic life that lives within it.</p>
<p>The second movement, for instance, is dedicated to phytoplankton – microscopic organisms that produce over half the world’s oxygen. Invisible to the naked eye, they are visible in vast blooms from space. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3m97QwKIbAU?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
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<p>Antarctica: The Musical, which premiered in Hobart in 2016, features music and lyrics by songwriter Dugald McLaren and a book by ecologist Dana Bergstrom (both of whom have spent time there). Focusing on the experiences of a group of scientists living on the continent for a year and the challenges they face, it conveys a strong message of concern for the region’s changing environment.</p>
<p>Most people will never visit Antarctica. It is an inhospitable place at the margins of our world. But music enables audiences to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/1031461X.2017.1417456">come to know the continent</a> as a place of both the imaginary and of urgent, practical scientific work.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/101325/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carolyn Philpott does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Scientific research into the effects of climate change in Antarctica - and its history of intrepid exploration - is inspiring contemporary Australian composers.Carolyn Philpott, Senior Lecturer in Musicology, Conservatorium of Music; Associate Head - Research, School of Creative Arts; Adjunct Researcher, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/617482016-07-17T20:05:15Z2016-07-17T20:05:15ZWhat lies beneath Antarctica’s ice? Lakes, life and the grandest of canyons<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/130653/original/image-20160715-2150-14veaa6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">What lies beneath: bedrock peeks through the Antarctic ice.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Russ Hepburn, Kenn Borek Air</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There are few frontiers in the world that can still be said to be unexplored. One of these <em>terra incognita</em> is the land beneath Antarctica’s ice sheets. Buried under kilometres of ice is a fascinating realm of canyons, waterways and lakes, which is only now being mapped in detail. </p>
<p>There are more than <a href="http://rsta.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/374/2059/20140306.abstract">400 known lakes</a> in this harsh environment, and more are being discovered as technology advances. This water beneath the ice lubricates the interface between the ice sheet and its rocky bed, and thus controls the flow and behaviour of the ice itself. </p>
<p>Under such a large volume of ice, how is it possible for water to exist at all without freezing? The answer is pressure: when a large weight of ice is pushed onto water, it can stay liquid at temperatures well below the normal freezing point. What’s more, the large body of ice actually insulates the bed and protects it from the very cold air temperatures above. </p>
<p>The liquid water is created by heat from the Earth’s interior and from the friction generated as ice flows over the bedrock, which can melt the underside of the ice sheet. It is this water that flows into the subglacial lake basins and eventually into the ocean. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129117/original/image-20160704-18306-1hgdtdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129117/original/image-20160704-18306-1hgdtdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129117/original/image-20160704-18306-1hgdtdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=378&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129117/original/image-20160704-18306-1hgdtdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=378&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129117/original/image-20160704-18306-1hgdtdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=378&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129117/original/image-20160704-18306-1hgdtdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129117/original/image-20160704-18306-1hgdtdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129117/original/image-20160704-18306-1hgdtdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The network of lakes beneath Antarctica’s ice.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AAntarctic_Lakes_-_Sub-glacial_aquatic_system.jpg">Zina Deretsky/US NSF/Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Huge water features</h2>
<p>A tour around this subglacial landscape would take you first to the largest lake under the ice: <a href="https://theconversation.com/life-in-lake-vostok-the-link-between-antarctica-and-extra-terrestrials-5334">Lake Vostok</a>. At 12,500 square kilometres and with an average depth of 430 metres, Lake Vostok is the world’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_lakes_by_volume">sixth-largest lake by volume</a>, but as it lies beneath some 3.5km of ice, it’s not easy to visit.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/130652/original/image-20160715-2127-1om2vay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/130652/original/image-20160715-2127-1om2vay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130652/original/image-20160715-2127-1om2vay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130652/original/image-20160715-2127-1om2vay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130652/original/image-20160715-2127-1om2vay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=639&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130652/original/image-20160715-2127-1om2vay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=639&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130652/original/image-20160715-2127-1om2vay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=639&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">You can’t see it, but it’s there: Lake Vostok’s location in East Antarctica.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">NASA</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Using ice-penetrating radar and seismic techniques, scientists have mapped Lake Vostok to understand its origins. They have found that it may be up to <a href="http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.earth.33.092203.122725">15 million years old</a>. The lake has circulation patterns driven by <a href="http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v416/n6878/abs/416307a.html">freezing and thawing</a> of the overlying ice, and even has small <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2001GL013230/full">lunar tides</a>. </p>
<p>Lake Vostok was discovered decades ago, but what is thought to be the <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2085523-huge-never-before-seen-lake-spotted-hiding-under-antarctic-ice/">second-largest</a> lake under the ice sheet was first observed only this year. It is in Princess Elizabeth Land, East Antarctica, known as the “last pole of ignorance” because until recently it was virtually unmapped. </p>
<p>This region is also home to a <a href="http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-world-s-grandest-canyon-may-be-hidden-beneath-antarctica/">huge canyon system</a>, which extends all the way from the ice sheet interior to the coast. The system is as deep as the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-grand-canyon-changed-our-ideas-of-natural-beauty-56204">Grand Canyon</a> but 100km longer. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129113/original/image-20160704-18294-jk91l5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129113/original/image-20160704-18294-jk91l5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129113/original/image-20160704-18294-jk91l5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=578&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129113/original/image-20160704-18294-jk91l5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=578&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129113/original/image-20160704-18294-jk91l5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=578&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129113/original/image-20160704-18294-jk91l5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=726&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129113/original/image-20160704-18294-jk91l5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=726&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129113/original/image-20160704-18294-jk91l5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=726&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Map of subglacial lake locations and ice thickness.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">NSIDC (Blakenship et al., 2009; Smith et al., 2012)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Dynamic environments</h2>
<p>So far our tour has focused on the central regions of Antarctica, where ice and water are relatively stable. In contrast, at the ice sheet’s dynamic edges near the coast we find fast-flowing regions called ice streams. Many of these have subglacial lakes in their catchments. </p>
<p>Tens to hundreds of kilometres in length, these lakes are short-lived, growing and draining over a period of just a few years. Evidence of this drainage process comes from <a href="http://rsta.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/374/2059/20140306.abstract">satellite measurements</a> of the height of the ice sheet. The surface can be seen to rise and fall, as the lake swells and then ebbs away again. </p>
<p>So far, <a href="http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=1&fid=8745189&jid=ANS&volumeId=24&issueId=06&aid=8745187">at least 130</a> of these “active” lakes have been discovered. More are being found every year.</p>
<p>One example is <a href="http://www.nature.com/news/lakes-under-the-ice-antarctica-s-secret-garden-1.15729">Lake Whillans</a>, in West Antarctica. Covering about 60 square km, it’s small in comparison with the gigantic Lake Vostok, but is by no means insignificant. In January 2013, a US research expedition drilled into the lake, extracting clean samples that were later found to contain <a href="http://www.nature.com/news/lake-drilling-team-discovers-life-under-the-ice-1.12405">microbial life</a>. </p>
<p>Such life thrives in this harsh environment without sunlight for photosynthesis. Instead, the microbes depend on the oxidation of methane and ammonia, derived from sediments that are hundreds of thousands of years old. This momentous discovery of life in such a harsh and unforgiving environment may provide scientists with critical information on the development of marine life cycles.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129116/original/image-20160704-18317-1tazckp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129116/original/image-20160704-18317-1tazckp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129116/original/image-20160704-18317-1tazckp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129116/original/image-20160704-18317-1tazckp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129116/original/image-20160704-18317-1tazckp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129116/original/image-20160704-18317-1tazckp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129116/original/image-20160704-18317-1tazckp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">First view of the bottom of Antarctica’s subglacial Lake Whillans.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">NASA/JPL-Caltech/Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Loose underpinnings</h2>
<p>The water beneath the ice creates a mysterious and fascinating subglacial world, but it is also important because it lubricates the bed of the ice sheet and controls how fast the ice can flow. Where there is sediment under the ice, liquid water can make the ground unstable, while in other areas high pressure allows the ice to float on a pillow of liquid water. In both cases this reduces the friction at the base, allowing the ice to flow faster. </p>
<p>As scientists, we want to predict <a href="https://theconversation.com/cold-and-calculating-what-the-two-different-types-of-ice-do-to-sea-levels-59996">how the ice sheet will react</a> to a warming climate. To do that, it is essential to pin down the role of water in the current flow rates of Antarctic ice. These fascinating lake and canyon features are therefore not only intriguing, but also play a crucial part in the future of the icy continent.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/61748/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christine Dow receives funding from the University of Waterloo and from a Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) fellowship.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Felicity Graham is funded by the Australian Research Council Special Research Initiative for Antarctic Gateway Partnership.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sue Cook works for the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, which is funded through the Australian Government Department of Industry and Science.</span></em></p>Buried beneath kilometres-thick slabs of ice are rivers and huge lakes - some of which are teeming with microbes that thrive in a world without light or oxygen.Christine Dow, Assistant Professor of Glaciology, University of WaterlooFelicity McCormack, Ice Sheet Modeller, Antarctic Gateway Partnership, University of TasmaniaSue Cook, Ice Shelf Glaciologist, Antarctic Climate & Ecosystems CRC, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/599962016-07-12T19:41:14Z2016-07-12T19:41:14ZCold and calculating: what the two different types of ice do to sea levels<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126463/original/image-20160614-12948-157moyq.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Knowing where the ice comes from can help work out what it will do to sea levels.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>It was back in 250ʙⅽ when Archimedes reportedly stepped into his bathtub and had the world’s first <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eureka_(word)">Eureka</a> moment – realising that putting himself in the water made its level rise. </p>
<p>More than two millennia later, the <a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/07/recent-antarctic-sea-ice-growth-boosted-by-la-ninas/?comments=1">comments sections of news stories</a> still routinely reveal confusion about how this same thing happens when polar ice melts and sea levels change. </p>
<p>This is in marked contrast to the confidence that scientists have in their collective understanding of what is happening to the ice sheets. Indeed, the <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_Chapter04_FINAL.pdf">2014 Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change</a> reported “very high confidence” that the Greenland Ice Sheet was melting and raising sea levels, with “high confidence” of the same for the Antarctic Ice Sheet. </p>
<p>Despite this, commenters below the line on news stories frequently wonder how it can be true that Antarctica is melting and contributing to sea-level rise, when satellite observations show Antarctic ice expanding.</p>
<p>Unravelling the confusion depends on appreciating the difference between the two different types of ice, which we can broadly term “land ice” and “sea ice” – although as we shall see, there’s a little bit more to it than that. The two different types of ice have very different roles in Earth’s climate, and behave in crucially different ways. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126202/original/image-20160610-29209-17b9pep.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126202/original/image-20160610-29209-17b9pep.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126202/original/image-20160610-29209-17b9pep.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126202/original/image-20160610-29209-17b9pep.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126202/original/image-20160610-29209-17b9pep.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=467&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126202/original/image-20160610-29209-17b9pep.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=467&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126202/original/image-20160610-29209-17b9pep.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=467&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sea levels rise when ice resting on land, <em>grounded ice</em>, melts (often after forming icebergs). Floating sea ice that melts has a very important role in other areas of our climate system.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Land ice</h2>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/ice-sheets">Ice sheets</a> form by the gradual accumulation of snow on land over long periods of time. This “grounded” ice flows in glaciers to the ocean under the influence of gravity, and when it arrives it eventually melts. If the amount of ice flowing into the oceans is balanced by snowfall on land, the net change in global sea level due to this ice sheet is zero. </p>
<p>However, if the ice begins to flow more rapidly or snowfall declines, the ice sheet can be out of balance, resulting in a net rise in sea level. </p>
<p>But this influence on sea level is only really relevant for ice that is grounded on land. When the ice sheet starts to float on the ocean it is called an “ice shelf”. The contribution of ice shelves to sea-level rise is negligible because they are already in the sea (similar to an <a href="http://www.physlink.com/education/askexperts/ae389.cfm">ice cube in a glass of water</a>, although the ocean is salty unlike a glass of water). But they can nevertheless play an important role in sea-level rise, by governing the rate at which the grounded ice can discharge into the oceans, and therefore how fast it melts.</p>
<h2>Sea ice</h2>
<p>When viewed from space, all polar ice looks pretty much the same. But there is a second category of ice that has effectively nothing to do with the ice sheets themselves. </p>
<p>“Sea ice” is formed when ocean water is frozen due to cooling by the air. Because it is floating in the ocean, sea ice does not (directly) affect sea level. </p>
<p>Sea ice is generally no more than a few metres thick, although it can grow to more than 10 metres thick if allowed to grow over many winters. Ice shelves, on the other hand, are hundreds of metres thick, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxfORXWph2Q">as seen when an iceberg is created and rolls over</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IxfORXWph2Q?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">A big breakup.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the ocean around Antarctica, almost all the sea ice melts in the southern hemisphere spring. This means that every year an area of ocean twice the size of Australia freezes over and then melts – arguably the largest seasonal change on our planet. </p>
<p>So, while ice sheets change over decades and centuries, the time scale of sea ice variability is measured in months. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MLCfF7BLii4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Antarctic sea ice grows and shrinks dramatically over the course of the year. These changes do not directly affect sea level. Land ice changes are slower but do affect sea levels, at least until the land ice becomes afloat.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The seasonal cycle of Arctic sea ice is much smaller. This is because the Arctic retains much more of its sea ice in the summer, and its winter extent is limited by land that surrounds the Arctic Ocean.</p>
<h2>What is happening to land ice?</h2>
<p>The two great ice sheets are in Greenland and Antarctica. Thanks to <a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/338/6111/1183">satellite measurements</a>, we now know that since the early 1990s both have been contributing to sea-level rise.</p>
<p>It is thought that most of the Antarctic changes are caused by seawater melting the ice shelves faster, causing the land ice to flow faster and hence leading to sea-level rise as the ice sheet is tipped out of balance.</p>
<p>In Greenland, both surface and ocean melting play important roles in driving the accelerated contribution to sea levels. </p>
<h2>What about sea ice?</h2>
<p>Over the last four decades of satellite measurements, there has been a rapid <a href="http://www.the-cryosphere.net/9/269/2015/tc-9-269-2015.html">decrease and thinning</a> of summer Arctic sea ice. This is due to human activity warming the atmosphere and ocean. </p>
<p>In the Antarctic there has been a modest <a href="http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_Chapter04_FINAL.pdf">increase</a> in total sea ice cover, but with a complex pattern of localised increases and decreases that are related to changes in winds and ocean currents. What’s more, satellite measurement of changes in sea ice thickness is much more difficult in the Antarctic than in the Arctic mainly because Antarctic sea ice has a lot of poorly measured snow resting on it.</p>
<p>The Southern Ocean is arguably a much more complex system than the Arctic Ocean, and determining humans’ influence on these trends and projecting future change is challenging. </p>
<p>Observations of the changes happening in the Arctic and Antarctic reveal complex stories that vary from place to place and over time. </p>
<p>These changes require ongoing monitoring and greater understanding of the causes of the observed changes. And public confusion can be avoided through careful use of the different terms describing ice in the global climate system. It pays to know your ice sheets from your sea ice.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/59996/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matt King receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Department of Environment.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ben Galton-Fenzi works for the Australian Antarctic Division. He receives funding from the Department of the Environment.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Will Hobbs is employed by the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, and receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p>Polar ice isn’t all the same - it can be divided roughly into “land ice” and “sea ice”. What matters most for sea levels is how much ice slides off the land and melts in the sea.Matt King, Professor, Surveying & Spatial Sciences, School of Land and Food, University of TasmaniaBen Galton-Fenzi, Senior Scientist, Australian Antarctic DivisionWill Hobbs, Physical Oceanographer, Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/595222016-07-07T20:04:43Z2016-07-07T20:04:43ZWhy Antarctica depends on Australia and China’s alliance<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129640/original/image-20160707-30680-1wh16gi.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The Chinese icebreaker Xue Long sails from Fremantle Harbour on its way home from Antarctica.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AXue_Long%2C_Fremantle%2C_2016_(01).JPG">Bahnfrend/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Antarctica’s early history was marked by national rivalries – think of Britain and Norway <a href="http://www.rmg.co.uk/discover/explore/race-south-pole-1911">racing to the South Pole in 1911</a>. But since the signing of the <a href="http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/81421.pdf">Antarctic Treaty</a> in 1959, collaboration has become more important than competition. And the relationship between Australia – Antarctica’s biggest territorial claimant – and China, the emerging superpower, is among the most crucial of all.</p>
<p>One of Australia’s key aims, as set out in its <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-us/antarctic-strategy-and-action-plan">Antarctic Strategy and 20 Year Action Plan</a>, is to strengthen the existing Antarctic Treaty system, by “building and maintaining strong and effective relationships with other Antarctic Treaty nations through international engagement”. </p>
<p>As Australia’s largest trading partner and a significant player in Antarctica, China is a crucial nation with which to engage if Australia is to meet its objectives. This raises the question of how the two countries might fruitfully cooperate in Antarctica over the next 20 years.</p>
<h2>Existing ties</h2>
<p>China began its first scientific expedition to Antarctica in 1984. It now has four Antarctic bases, two on Australian-claimed territory. </p>
<p>Australia and China’s Antarctic ties have thus been evolving for more than three decades, with a focus on science, logistics and operations. Bilateral relations seem to have strengthened in recent years. </p>
<p>In 2014, President Xi Jinping <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/18/xi-jinpings-tasmania-visit-lacking-congruity-full-of-strategy">visited Hobart</a> and signed a <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2014/australia-and-china-strengthen-antarctic-ties">memorandum of understanding</a> with Australia to collaborate in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. </p>
<p>Last year, Australia’s <a href="http://acecrc.org.au/">Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre</a> signed an agreement with its Chinese counterpart, the <a href="http://english.nmefc.gov.cn/">National Marine Environmental Forecasting Centre</a>, to develop new forecasting methods to aid the challenging task of navigating Antarctic sea ice. </p>
<p>February 2016 saw the inaugural meeting of the <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2016/australia-hosts-antarctic-talks-with-china">China-Australia Joint Committee on Antarctic and Southern Ocean Collaboration</a>, which arose from the 2014 agreement. </p>
<p>But it has not all been smooth sailing. China has strongly opposed Australia’s <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/law-and-treaty/ccamlr/marine-protected-areas">proposal</a> to establish a network of marine protected areas off East Antarctica. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=437&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=437&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=437&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=550&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=550&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=550&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Proposed marine parks off East Antarctica.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Australian Antarctic Division</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Australia is also concerned about China’s presence in Antarctica. For example, a <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/foreign-affairs/china-poses-threat-to-treaty-in-antarctica/news-story/efcd075cb0412cd8386ad75eafb6ea91">news article</a> at the time of Xi’s 2014 visit suggested that “China may eventually try to overthrow the Antarctic Treaty system underpinning Australia’s claim to 43% of the frozen continent”, while <a href="https://theconversation.com/in-conversation-on-antarctic-sovereignty-full-discussion-28600">questions have been asked</a> about the scope of China’s mining ambitions on the frozen continent. </p>
<h2>Potential future collaborations</h2>
<p>There are several reasons, however, to expect that China and Australia can put aside their diplomatic differences in pursuit of Antarctic science. </p>
<p>First, it seems more likely that China will continue to endorse the <a href="http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/81421.pdf">Antarctic Treaty</a> than to undermine it. As a rising power, China has growing interests in the Southern Ocean but it has no territorial claim in Antarctica. It would certainly not be at the front of the queue in the ensuing land grab if the treaty were to end. </p>
<p>Realistically, China should therefore continue to support the treaty, under which the seven existing national claims (plus any prospective claim by the United States, which has a <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/geo/plr/support/southp.jsp">research base</a> at the South Pole) are suspended.</p>
<p>This logic is backed up by China’s behaviour with regard to the even more politically fraught North Pole. By becoming an <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/16/world/europe/arctic-council-adds-six-members-including-china.html?_r=0">observer of the Arctic Council</a>, China has opted to embrace rather than challenge the current Arctic regime, despite the <a href="http://www.rcinet.ca/en/2016/05/08/why-canada-cant-have-the-north-pole/">jockeying among Arctic nations over territorial rights</a>.</p>
<p>Second, to maintain Australia’s leadership and excellence in Antarctic science, it will need to collaborate with industry and other nations. As an economic powerhouse, China has both the funding and the technology to deliver things like <a href="http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/weapons/news/a18867/china-launches-new-icebreaker/">icebreaker ships</a>, a well as a keen interest in Antarctica, which should extend to long-term scientific collaborations. </p>
<p>Third, Australia wants to maintain its leadership in environmental stewardship of Antarctica. One current hurdle seems to be China’s opposition to Australia, France and the European Union over the planned marine protected areas off East Antarctica. As the world’s <a href="ftp://ftp.fao.org/FI/STAT/summary/a-0a.pdf">largest fishing nation</a>, China’s reluctance to support “no-take zones” is hardly surprising. </p>
<p>Nevertheless, this issue could potentially be converted from obstacle to opportunity, perhaps by Australia inviting Chinese scientists to conduct joint scientific research in these areas of the Southern Ocean. This would not only improve understanding of unknown marine ecosystems, but would also be a useful way for Australia to exert diplomatic “soft power”.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Antarctica is increasingly attractive to the more affluent of China’s tourists.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ATourism_in_Antarctica_(Cuverville_island).jpg">Butterfly voyages/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Finally, Australia has its own economic interests in Antarctica, such as sustainable fishing and tourism. Meanwhile, ever greater numbers of Chinese tourists are venturing abroad, with visits to Australia <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/annual-chinese-visitor-numbers-exceed-1-million-for-first-time-20160111-gm3shn.html">passing the 1 million mark last year</a>. With Antarctica now also on the radar for China’s richer tourists, Australia could not only benefit economically but must also work closely with China to develop regulations that prevent this nascent industry from damaging the Antarctic environment.</p>
<p>All of this means we can reasonably expect Australian-Chinese ties to grow ever closer over the next two decades – even in the world’s remotest place.</p>
<p><em>This article is part of a series on Australian science and diplomacy in Antarctica. Look out for more articles in the coming days.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/59522/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nengye Liu does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Australia and China both have a keen interest in the frozen continent. And while they don’t agree on everything, there is great scope for scientific collaboration.Nengye Liu, Senior Lecturer in Law, University of New EnglandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/620502016-07-06T20:05:29Z2016-07-06T20:05:29ZWhy Australians should care about the South Pole<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129505/original/image-20160706-789-1usj3rn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C131%2C1024%2C579&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Australia (whose flag is pictured on the right) is one of several countries with a big stake in the South Pole.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ACeremonial_South_Pole.jpg">Josh Landis/US NSF/Wikimedia </a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Earth’s geographic poles have been making a lot of news lately. Canada is looking to <a href="http://www.rcinet.ca/en/2016/05/08/why-canada-cant-have-the-north-pole/">make a claim on the North Pole</a> within the next couple of years, arguing that the pole (along with a large slab of the Arctic seabed) falls within the limits of its continental shelf, despite similar existing claims by Denmark and Russia.</p>
<p>The pole, however, seems to have its own view on this. Scientists <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2083481-why-the-north-pole-is-now-slowly-moving-towards-london/">recently reported</a> that, having drifted towards Canada’s Hudson Bay for many decades, it has abruptly changed direction and is now headed for London.</p>
<p>It comes as a surprise to many people that Earth’s geographic poles move at all. We tend to think of them as stationary, the points where all the lines of longitude meet. Ninety degrees north and south, however, are defined as averages of the poles’ actual positions over a particular period.</p>
<p>If defined as the places where the Earth’s rotational axis meets its surface, the geographic poles are constantly on the move, with a periodic, spiral motion as well as a <a href="http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/2/4/e1501693">linear one</a>. This happens because our planet is not, as we might like to imagine, a perfect sphere, but in fact is rather lumpy. Seasonal displacement of air and water on its surface, as well as changes within its mantle, contribute to the shifting of its axis and hence the movement of the poles.</p>
<p>The distances involved are not large – the linear drift can be measured in centimetres per year – but they are revealing. The North Pole’s lurch towards London, <a href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/04/160408-climate-change-shifts-earth-poles-water-loss/">scientists suggest</a>, is a result of recent melting of glacial ice and the emptying of underground aquifers for water supplies.</p>
<p>A century ago humans had barely managed to reach either pole; now, it seems, we have inadvertently managed to move them. Our decisions and actions are more closely connected with these symbolically most remote of places than we might imagine.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129341/original/image-20160705-19088-lpktem.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129341/original/image-20160705-19088-lpktem.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129341/original/image-20160705-19088-lpktem.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=352&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129341/original/image-20160705-19088-lpktem.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=352&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129341/original/image-20160705-19088-lpktem.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=352&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129341/original/image-20160705-19088-lpktem.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129341/original/image-20160705-19088-lpktem.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129341/original/image-20160705-19088-lpktem.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Windswept and remote, but still claimed by six countries.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ASastrugi.jpg">Bill McAfee/US NSF/Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The ‘other’ pole</h2>
<p>In humanity’s thinking about the Arctic and Antarctic regions, the South Pole has long been the underdog. Due to the cartographical convention that defines north as “up”, we think of it lying under us, hidden away at the very bottom of the planet.</p>
<p>As I discuss in my book <a href="http://www.reaktionbooks.co.uk/display.asp?ISB=9781780235967">South Pole: Nature and Culture</a>, the place conjures ideas of remoteness, isolation, hostile weather, tragic explorers, altruistic scientists and even extreme tourists. But we rarely consider it in political terms.</p>
<p>The 1959 <a href="http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/81421.pdf">Antarctic Treaty</a>, which declared the continent a place of peace and science and put national claims on hold, seemed to leave behind the imperial ambitions that produced the “race to the pole” in the early 20th century. And while Antarctica’s potential mineral resources are an <a href="https://theconversation.com/in-conversation-what-does-the-future-hold-for-antarctica-28607">ongoing source of concern</a>, the South Pole, sitting atop almost 3km of ice, is not an obvious place to drill.</p>
<p>Now occupied by a large scientific research station, where (among other activities) astronomers use giant telescopes to study cosmological events, the South Pole is often assumed to be a politically neutral place, immune to the clamour going on in the north.</p>
<h2>Polar positions</h2>
<p>Why, then, should Australians care about the South Pole? Surprisingly, the pole featured in the celebrations that marked the nation’s federation in 1901. A spectacular pantomime entitled <a href="http://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/C399348">Australis</a>, performed in Sydney over the summer of 1900-01, imagined a future in which Australia annexes Antarctica and takes as its capital the “City of Zero” sitting exactly at the pole – a satirical wink to the rivalry at the time between Sydney and Melbourne for the honour.</p>
<p>Although this unlikely future did not come to pass, Australia does indeed have a claim on the pole – or rather, a fraction of it. Although the pole is not the geographical centre of the continent by any means, the various wedge-shaped territorial claims – including Australia’s – meet there, like pieces of a meringue pie with the pole in the middle. The only exception is Norway’s claim, which has an undefined southern limit – ironically enough, given that Norwegians were the <a href="http://www.coolantarctica.com/Antarctica%20fact%20file/History/roald-amundsen.php">first to set foot at the pole</a>.</p>
<p>The scientific base at 90ºS – the United States’ <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/geo/plr/support/southp.jsp">Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station</a> – thus sits across six territorial claims. This is a highly strategic position for a nation that recognises none of the existing claims but reserves the right to make its own in the future.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129343/original/image-20160705-789-mdfmoz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129343/original/image-20160705-789-mdfmoz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129343/original/image-20160705-789-mdfmoz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=740&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129343/original/image-20160705-789-mdfmoz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=740&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129343/original/image-20160705-789-mdfmoz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=740&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129343/original/image-20160705-789-mdfmoz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=930&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129343/original/image-20160705-789-mdfmoz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=930&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129343/original/image-20160705-789-mdfmoz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=930&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Antarctic territorial claims.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AAntarctic_Region.png">CIA World Factbook</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Connecting Australia to the pole</h2>
<p>Australia’s claim to 42% of Antarctica is also, then, a claim (indeed, the largest of any nation) on the South Pole – if it makes any sense to claim a percentage of what is, after all, technically a dot. </p>
<p>Our domestic politics, such as the recently announced <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-us/antarctic-strategy-and-action-plan">Australian Antarctic Strategy</a>, which confirms our continued interest in the region and includes plans for greater access to the continent’s interior, are thus inextricably connected to the site sometimes described as the last place on Earth.</p>
<p>While the South Pole may not be subject to the contemporary claim-making that besets its northern cousin, this symbolic heart of Antarctica remains a deeply political place and one that Australians – both those keen to maintain our claim and those who believe that all territorial claims there are misplaced – should know and care about.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>This is the first in a series of articles on Australian science and diplomacy in Antarctica. Look out for more in the coming days.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/62050/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Elizabeth Leane receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p>It’s one of the remotest places on Earth and yet is still claimed by six nations – including Australia.Elizabeth Leane, Assoc. Professor of English and ARC Future Fellow, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.