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Map of Antarctica

Background: Speculation over the existence of a "southern land" was not confirmed until the early 1820s when British and American commercial operators and British and Russian national expeditions began exploring the Antarctic Peninsula region and other areas south of the Antarctic Circle. Not until 1840 was it established that Antarctica was indeed a continent and not just a group of islands. Several exploration "firsts" were achieved in the early 20th century. Following World War II, there was an upsurge in scientific research on the continent. A number of countries have set up year-round research stations on Antarctica. Seven have made territorial claims, but not all countries recognize these claims. In order to form a legal framework for the activities of nations on the continent, an Antarctic Treaty was negotiated that neither denies nor gives recognition to existing territorial claims; signed in 1959, it entered into force in 1961.

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Areas in Antarctica: Antarctica

Antarctica

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By Eon
March 6th 2008

After the Storm

Antarctica » Antarctica » Halley Station

Sunset through the Module

Finally the time has come for me to write the final instalment of this seasons work here on the Brunt Ice Shelf at Halley Research Station. I left you previously with the update written while we were waiting out the storm which ended up keeping us cooped up inside for just over 4 days. Day 1 was great, a chance to chill out and relax, catch up on emails, watch a film and generally do nothing for once. Day 2, similar scenario, braving the weather each meal break walking down the rope line so as not to get lost. Visibility [View Full Entry]

By Philandchloe
March 5th 2008

Deception Island (Antarctica)

Antarctica » Antarctica

Weddell seal

Volcanic exploration Deception Island is essentially the rim of a volcano which is hidden under the surface of the water. We arrived very early in the morning in the twilight and the mist. Our first stop was in Whalers bay where until 1931 the Norwegians had a whaling station - it was quite eerie seeing the old whaling boats, buildings and large whale oil tanks appearing from the mist. We took a walk along the bay and up the ridge of the volcano from where we could see out to the open sea. The highlight of the stop though was seeing [View Full Entry]

By saralynn
March 5th 2008

True to its Name: Penguin Island

Antarctica

Next Top Model
Chinstrap Penguin

North of the Antarctic Peninsula, near King George Island, we made our first landing. Had I seen ANY wildlife, no matter the quantity, or species, I would have been happy. Penguin Island did not disappoint us. We saw two (or three) seal species, a Southern Giant Petrel with a chick, and a colony of Chinstrap penguins. Sadly, the first sight upon landing was a number of whale vertebra. It was a reminder that we were entering territory that used to be replete with whales. During our cruise we would struggle to catch a glimpse of any whale species. Penguin Island is [View Full Entry]

By Philandchloe
March 4th 2008

Nico Bay and Dallman Bay (Antarctica)

Antarctica » Antarctica

Ice cold beer

Our 7th and final continent Today we took our first steps onto the actual mainland of Antarctica. In slightly higher winds, it was pretty cold despite our ridiculous number of layers. Here we saw a few fur seals, some skuas and gulls, and yet more penguins (not that we were complaining at all - the penguins are brilliant fun). The beach had thousands of small Bergy Bits (that is the technical term, trust me) which was a sign that this part of the sea was starting to ice over. In the coming weeks, the entire routes through which we have come, [View Full Entry]

By Philandchloe
March 3rd 2008

Port Lockroy and Petermann Island (Antarctica)

Antarctica » Antarctica

Adelie
Our first view of the Adelie penguin when we landed on Petermann island - looks a bit crazee with their staring eyes!

Living in the Antarctic Another day, another thousand penguins. This morning we took the zodiacs to Port Lockroy which is both a large penguin colony and also a British base used as a secret wartime initiative to monitor German shipping movement. (The war even reached as far as far as the continent of ice!). It is now a small museum, post office and shop rolled into one - where 3 British researchers (doubling as postmen, and shop assistants) come out to stay for the summer months. It’s quite a surreal place as there is literally no other human habitation around these [View Full Entry]

By Philandchloe
March 2nd 2008

Danco and Cuverville Islands (Antarctica)

Antarctica » Antarctica

Feeding time
The young ones were exceptionally greedy - never content and would chase their parents back into the water for more food!

Penguins galore AMAZING! What a truly spectacular, fantastic, awesome penguin party! Today we landed twice on the continent of Antarctica - firstly on Danco Island and then on Curverville Island in the afternoon. Arriving via zodiac onto Danco Island was unbelievable. There were simply thousands of penguins upon the hills and down to the rocky beach. Words don’t do the scene justice - the place was entirely unspoilt and the penguins completely uninhibited by our presence - it was really special. [View Full Entry]

By saralynn
February 29th 2008

No Walk in the Park

Antarctica

The Polaris

Arrival to Antarctica is not only cost prohibitive but if travelers-to-be knew beforehand of the discomfort of sailing through the Drake Passage, it may be enough to discourage a few more from making the journey. I boarded the Polaris after a 10-day wait in Ushuaia nearly trembling with excitement. I was only mildly aware that 12 hours later I would be trembling with nausea. Upon boarding the ship and receiving our room assignments we were called to the front room to meet our staff and learn more about our Antarctic expedition. We were all thrilled to hear that on our ship [View Full Entry]

By Weir travels
February 29th 2008

Ice, ice, baby... (1) The highlights

Antarctica » Antarctica

nosy
king penguins on Macquarie Island

Antarctica. The windiest, coldest, highest, driest continent on this planet. The amorphous and largely-ignored white bit at the bottom of the map. The last place on Earth to be conquered by man. The obsession of near-legendary explorers such as Scott, Shackleton, Mawson, Byrd and Amundsen, and the death of many who sought to push the boundaries of man’s survival. A land of 24-hour daylight in summer and incomprehensible endless night in winter. Penguins, seals, whales. And all a very, very long way away. This was always going to be totally different to any other travelling I&rs [View Full Entry]

By Philandchloe
February 27th 2008

ANTARCTICA - it doesn´t get cooler than this

Antarctica » Antarctica

Antarctica
Made welcome by the locals

Gob-smacked What a place!!?! We just got back from the trip of a lifetime - it really was simply amazing. The scenery and wildlife surpassed all expectations by some considerable margin. It felt like we were out in the wilderness with our boat dwarfed by huge icebergs, mountains and glaciers. The penguins are simply awesome creatures, and we saw loads of whales, seals and other sea birds as well. We have created several sections for Antarctica so we elaborate more there - that said, the easiest thing is probably let the photo’s do the talking. Suffice to say this is the [View Full Entry]

By Philandchloe
February 27th 2008

Drake passage crossing and Shetland islands (Antarctica)

Antarctica » Antarctica

All aboard

You call this lucky? Not going to write much here other than to say that the Drake’s passage (the sea between S.A and Antarctica) sucks. The passage is where the Pacific and Atlantic meet and are therefore amongst the stormiest waters in the world. As it turns out we were actually really lucky with the weather and got through relatively unscathed but even then I think it is fair to say that we were all pretty pleased to reach the more sheltered waters around Antarctica. Amusingly, all the passengers basically slept for 2 days having scoffed so many sea-sickness tablets (myself [View Full Entry]

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Travel Blog » Antarctica