Media Statement
18 October 2016 – for immediate release
Discovering the untold in Antarctica
New Zealand’s Antarctic Research Programme is officially underway for the 2016-17 season with the first of our science
project teams beginning their work on ice this week.
The Antarctic continent has been preserved as a place for peace and scientific research under the Antarctic Treaty for
more than 50 years, however because of its remoteness, its role in the climate system is relatively unknown.
What we do know, is Antarctica’s reach is global. Small changes in its ice sheets have implications to all coastlines
around the world.
This season scientists will be working to figure out how resilient Antarctic life is to a changing environment. Gaining
knowledge about a range of ecosystems in the sea, on land and in freshwater environments that will help future
management and monitoring decisions. We will support work at Bratina Island, and the McMurdo Dry Valleys at Lakes
Brownworth and Lake Vanda.
We are assisting scientists to use an airborne electromagnetic device (the EMBird) slung below a DC3 aircraft, to
measure snow and sea ice thickness in the Western Ross Sea. This will help scientists to understand how cold water
produced under the ice shelf influences coastal sea ice.
In the Friis Hills deep within the Transantarctic Mountains, scientists will drill frozen sediments that were originally
deposited by glaciers. The geological records contained in the sediment cores will provide insight into possible future
response of Antarctica’s ice sheets and glaciers to current climate change.
Scientists will lead research into top predators, oceanography, coastal ecology, climate and soils all in the name of
understanding the past, and using this information to better predict what our future world might look like. Penguins,
volcanos and ice crystals are key features of the world-class science supported by Scott Base and the 100 scientists
working with us in Antarctica this year.
Antarctica New Zealand is committed to a number of long-term monitoring programmes that enable changes in the
atmospheric, physical and biological environments to be determined and assessed. Several of these programmes began in
the early and mid-19th century, resulting in extremely valuable and unique long-term records.
“As a maritime nation New Zealand is directly affected by changing sea levels, changing ocean temperatures, changing
climates, and changing marine ecosystems and fisheries. The Ross Ice Shelf, the largest piece of floating ice on the
planet (the size of France), is on the doorstep of Scott Base, in New Zealand’s backyard. It has retreated and advanced
every 40,000 years or so,” says Professor Gary Wilson, Chief Scientific Advisor to Antarctica New Zealand.
To give context, if all the ice in Antarctica was to melt, sea levels could rise by almost 60 metres, said Professor
Wilson, flooding around 50% of the world’s capital cities. The social and economic impact of this is catastrophic.
Antarctica New Zealand's role in science is to encourage and facilitate the implementation of science projects that
delivers on established themes and priorities; to ensure Antarctic science outcomes are well communicated; and to
provide clear pathways for science findings to influence policy at a global level. The open accessibility of scientific
knowledge enables us to plan to respond to change.
The 2016-17 Antarctic research season marks 60 years since New Zealand’s Scott Base was established. A number of major
outreach events are planned later in the season to celebrate New Zealand’s leadership in Antarctica.
ENDS