Antarctic History and Politics

The treaty encourages scientific investigation in Antarctica, and regular meetings are held to supplement and update the treaty. One such meeting, held in 1964, resulted in the Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978. Special meetings also resulted in a 1991 protocol for comprehensive environmental protection and a ban on mining in Antarctica.

Antarctic historians divide the history of exploration and discovery on the continent into four main time periods:

1500-1818: Ancient Times and Early Exploration. During this period, the southern landmass emerged from being an idea in the minds of the Greeks, to a serious exploratory destination for the likes of Captain James Cook. Cook, with the crews of the Resolution and the Adventure, was the first to cross the Antarctic Circle. Cook spent three years looking for Terra Australis Incognita, and when he didn't find it (he did find ice, but never landed on the continent) he tried to demolish forever the myth of its existence. Cook got to 71 degrees south before turning north again. Cook's journals reveal awe and some confusion over encountering such masses of ice. The idea of Terra Australis Incognita began with the Greeks, who surmised that because the earth had a certain symmetry, there must be a land mass in the south to balance the Arctic.

1819-1894: Discovery of the Coastline. During this period whalers, seal hunters, and explorers made the first sightings of the continent. The person credited with the first ever human sighting of Antarctica is Russian admiral Thaddeus von Bellingshausen, who saw an ice field at 69 degrees south. Other prominent names from this period include Nathaniel B. Palmer, a 19-year-old member of a large New England sailing fleet that sailed in the Antarctic in 1820; James Weddell, a British sealer, who reached 74 degrees south in 1823; and Charles Wilkes, an American explorer who discovered parts of the coastline south of Australia. During this period islands off of South America, near the main continent, were sighted and mapped, including the South Shetland Islands, the South Sandwich Islands, and the South Orkney Islands. The impetus for further exploration in the region was the discovery that these islands held rich colonies of fur seals--colonies that within only a decade or two were nearly extinguished, sending sealers further into the Antarctic in search of more animals and leading to more knowledge about the continent. The seals and whales were harvested not only for their fur but also for their oil, which fueled the energy needs of much of the world. One of the great expeditions of this period was led by Sir James Clark Ross from Britain. In 1841 he discovered the coast of what came to be called Victoria Land, and the sea that is now called the Ross Sea. He tried to get to the continent itself, but his way was blocked by an ice shelf 200 feet high, now called the Ross ice shelf.

1895-1922: Exploration of the Antarctic Interior. Some historians call this period the age of heroes. It was a time during which men from the United States, Norway, Great Britain, Sweden, Germany, Scotland, and Australia, explored and mapped the interior of the continent. Many accounts of these expeditions have become part of the legend and lore of Antarctica, especially the story of Robert Falcon Scott, the British explorer who died with his fellow expedition members upon their return from the South Pole, having arrived at 60 degrees south on January 18, 1912, only to find that Norwegian Roald Amundsen had already planted a flag there on December 14, 1911. The "race to the pole" continues to generate controversy and Scott's last journals still inspire awe and horror. Other explorers from this period include Ernest Shackleton, one of Scott's companions on his first attempt at the south pole in 1902. Shackleton tried again, unsuccessfully, in 1908 to reach the pole, again in 1914, when he tried to cross the entire continent, and finally in 1922, when he died in his attempt. The story of Shackleton’s 1914 expedition is grippingly told in the book Endurance. Historians say that Shackleton’s third expedition marks the end of this heroic age.

CLICK HERE TO SEE SCOTT'S CAPE EVANS HUT

1923-Present: The Age of Mechanization, Increased Scientific Study and Dawning Environmental Awareness. During this era, motorized vehicles, including cars and airplanes were introduced to the Antarctic. American aviator Richard Byrd is said to be the first to fly over the South Pole in 1929. The use of airplanes brought aerial surveying and more mapping of the interior. In 1947, after World War II, Operation Highjump, organized by the United States Navy, brought more than 4,000 men, 13 ships, and 23 aircraft to Antarctica--more than six times the total number that had ever set foot there.

In 1957, the International Geophysical Year began, with Antarctica the main area of study. During the following 18 months, scientists from 67 countries combined in an ambitious and successful program of cooperation. The number of bases on the continent went from 28 to 40. One of these, the Amundesn-Scott base at the South pole, was built by the U.S. Other bases included those built by the governments of Australia, Italy, Argentina, and Great Britain.

This increased human presence in Antarctica (including a growing tourist presence) gave rise to concerns about the future of the continent, leading to a series of unprecedented political and environmental gestures. In 1959, the Antarctic Treaty was signed in Washington, D.C., erasing any former national claims that had been made to parts of the continent, and ensuring that the continent would be used for peaceful, non-exploitative activities. In 1962, the US installed a nuclear power plant at McMurdo station, which experienced a series of leaks and accidents until it was dismantled in 1972, leaving a polluted land in its wake. Such incidents were part of what resulted in the signing of the Madrid Protocol on Environmental Protection, agreed to after years of lobbying by France and Australia.

Other firsts during the period included the 1935 arrival of the first woman in Antarctica, Caroline Mikkelsen, the wife of a Norwegian whaling captain, who stepped ashore at Vestfold Hills. And in 1978 the first child was born in Antarctica--Emilio De Palma, at the Argentine base.

This year, 1997, marks the final year of official US Navy presence in Antarctica. All operations at McMurdo and at other US stations are being turned over to civilian control.

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