Articles & Interviews
Sciencepoles articles look at key findings from a range of polar science and research fields. Our articles RSS feed will inform you when new articles are published on this website.
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The LGP: Using the Victoria Land Coast as a Proxy for Climate Change in Antarctica
19.02.2009
What might happen to terrestrial and marine ecosystems in the Antarctic as climate change progresses is a question that has interested researchers working on the planet's southernmost continent for some time.
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Inauguration of Kunlun Station at Dome Argus
06.02.2009
With the inauguration on Kunlun station at Dome A, it can be said that man has effectively colonized the Earth's last great terrestrial frontier, as well as one of the most remote and inhospitable locations anywhere on Earth.
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Farewell to the Xue Long and Chinare 25
08.01.2009
Today, sixteen days after leaving Zhongshan Station, the Dome A traverse team are over 1,000 kilometres inland, and less than 200 kilometres from Dome A. Having attained an altitude of over 3,500 metres, oxygen levels are already much reduced and the temperature has dropped to below -30 degrees centigrade. Two…
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Indigenous Knowledge and Scientific Data to Improve Climate Change Adaptation Strategies
25.12.2008
As the climate changes in the Arctic, indigenous communities living in the Far North are seeing an impact on the environment around them. As these communities depend heavily on living natural resources such as fish, beluga whale, seals and other animals as a primary source of subsistence, any impact climate…
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Dome A Traverse and Kunlun Station
18.12.2008
This morning, we finally got to wave goodbye to the Dome A traverse team of 28 men. After six weeks of immersion in the 25th Chinese Antarctic Expedition and the emotional speeches and storytelling at the banquet the night before, it was very moving to witness the spontaneous outburst of…
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Frozen Grail: Dome A and the Future of Ice Coring in Antarctica
16.12.2008
Understanding the history of the Earth's climate and atmosphere is not simply an intellectualcuriosity; it is a necessity if we hope to predict and prepare for the impact of human-induced global warming on the global environment.
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Chinese Antarctic Expedition: Antarctica Rules Zhongshan at Last
03.12.2008
In an age of jetting across continents and oceans, oblivious to the forces that lie below us, it feels a little frustrating to be marooned in sea ice, unable to move forward and, at this stage, with little prospect of moving backwards. However, as the days pass, that is what…
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Chinese Antarctic Expedition: Close Call
01.12.2008
It all started in 1910 with Captain Scott and the loss of a tracked vehicle as it was being unloaded from his expedition ship, the Terra Nova. Since then the history of polar research and exploration has been littered with stories of vehicles dropping through sea ice, sometimes with tragic…
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Chinese Antarctic Expedition: Plato and the Future of Astronomy at Dome A
28.11.2008
If Antarctica lives on in our minds as perhaps the most distant and otherworldly of all Earthly environments, than it is all the more remarkable to see how, in recent years, it has itself become a privileged vantage point from which to observe and research other worlds.
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Chinese Antarctic Expedition: So near So Far
24.11.2008
The pursuit of science in Antarctica has always been a human and logistical challenge. Not many fields of research are as dependent on a combination of environmental conditions, human ingenuity, and logistics. There is no easy way to get to Antarctica, and ice - which defines the continent - remains…
