A NEWS BULLETIN published quarterly by the NEW ZEALAND ANTARCTIC SOCIETY

A RAW DAY FOR CAMPING A temporary camp by a frozen cirque lake two miles north of the Walcott Glacier, at an altitude of about 2,000 feet. Victoria University of Wellington Antarctic Expedition.

VOL. 2, No. 9 MARCH, 1961 -- AntarcticcL

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--..1~LE. w. • -;;;.,II.A""'''' 81' ..AN _ N Z.r1 S Ibl O' ". ,""" """.' 1 (Successor to "Antarctlc News BuIleftn")

VOL 2, No. 9 MARCH, 1961

Pi Editor: I L. B. Quartermain, M.A., 1 Ariki Road,. Wellington. E.2, New Zealand. Business Communications, Subscriptions, etc., to: Secretary, New Zealand Antarctic Society. p.a. Box 2110, Wellington. N.Z.

earth's geomagn.etic field. The aim is, VETERANS RETURN to measure the effects of atmospheric disturbances at each end of the. geo­ A keen and enel'gtic participant in magnetic lines of foree which girdle Antarctic activities this summer has the earth. Sir Charles worked with been the 73-year-old Sir Charles Mr.. R. D. Evans, at 'Byrd Station, Wright, K:C.;S., C.B., a.B.E., M.C., while New Zealander L. H. 'Martin Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, carried out similar work at Great who,. as 'Co S. Wright, B.Sc., was a Whale River Station in Canada. yo.ung Canadian physicist with Scott's Du·ring hi'S stay at Mc'M.urdo, Sir last exp.edltion. Charles visited Cape Royds' and his old home at Cape Evans, where- he After his return from iMcMurdo was intensely interested in the. work Sound in 1913, young W'right served of the New Zealand Huts Restor.ation with distinction in World War I, as party. He was the p.opular guest of Officer 'Commanding Wireless, II honour at Scott !Base for Christmas Army. From 1919 to 19·29 he was in dfnner. the Adl'niralty Department of Scien­ tific Researc·h and Experiment. iRe Another I'lOted Antal:dic explorer, then became successively Superinten­ research worker and historian to dent of the Admiralty Research La­ visit the MdMUl'do Sound area during boratory, Director of Scientific Re­ 1960)..:61 was Dr. Brian B. Roberts, search, Admiralty, and '0hief' of the seni01' research fellow at: the Scott Royal Naval Scientific Serviee. Polar Research Institute, CambTidge. He. retired in 1947, but almost im­ In 193·7 Dr.RQberts ·Wlj.S zoologist mediately bec.ame Advisor tOl the A.d­ with Rymill's BTitish Gl'ahatn Land miralty on the British Joint Services Expedition, and .he has been engaged MissiQll in Washington. Before his in Antarctic activities of one kind or second "retirement" in 1955 he was anotheT ever since. DT. RobeTts was Director of the Main Physical Labor­ another welcome v.isitor at Cape atory, Scripp's 'lnstitution of 'Ocean­ Evans while the New Zealand paTty ography, California. was at work there. His 'Subsequent exp.eriences in ,the Belling,shausen Retired or not, he is still a member Sea aTea aTe l?ecorded on page 340. of the. Defence Research Board of Canada and acti.velyengaged in re­ search projects. Americans at McMurdo claim rto h.ave seen plumes of steam issuing His. return to the Antal'ctic was at from a crater on top of- the 10,148' ft. the request of the Canadian Defence Mt. 'Ferror on Ross' Island, eady in Research Board in association with the new year. Suoh reports aTe noth­ Stamford University, to carry out re­ ing new: they have 1'>een made ftom seal'ch into the fluctuations of the time to time since· the days' of Scott. 334 'ANTARCTIC March, 1961 AMERICANS COMPLETE MAJOR TRAVERSES Three oversnow traverses and two air-lifted surveys were included in a wide'lpread programme of field work carried out by American teams based on the McMm-do and Byrd Stations during the 1960-61 summer.

ELLSWORTH HIGHLAND ARMY TRAVERSE The first traverse party of the sum­ mer left BYI'd Station on November On January 11, Major Antero Ha­ 14, headed north-east for the BeIlings­ vola, U.S. Army trail expert, arrived hausen Sea, at the Eights Coast. at the South Pole after an historic Led by Dr. 'C. R. Bentley, the party land traverse which began on Decem­ of seven University of Wisconsin glac. ber 8. With him were ten men who iologists and geophysicists is travel­ had become the first Americans to ling in two three-ton Sno-cats and travel overland to the Pole. Their one larger vehicle. Most of the patty's transport was two 38-ton bulldozers supplies and equipment is being car­ and a weasel. ,Starting from Byrd ried in sledges. RoIli-tankers, large Station, they co,'el'ed the 800 miles in tyres filled with fuel, have solved the 3'5 days, which in the words of the problem of carting huge tanks of party's leader, "were uneventful." Cre­ liquid. vasses at one stage of the journey ne· On the first leg of its journey the cessitated an aerial reconnaissance to traverse bisected the first and last track a way for the giant tractors, but legs of the 1957-58 route. This 250­ apart from this it was all "routine." mile section was completed on Decem­ Scientific work and exploration were ber 1. The party then turned north­ jointly dealt with en route. Work in, ward, crossing another leg of the earl­ cluded the study of the profile of the 0 ier traverse on December 11 at 77 25' land mass over which the tractor 0 'S., 100 30' W. Proceeding north­ train moved, together with the record­ ward for about 50 miles, it turned ing of snow temperatures and densi­ east on a tl'ack paralled to the 1957­ ties at various depths, and the taking 58 route. This leg was completed by of seismic observations. Snow grain the end of December, and the party size and stratification were recorded turned north-west toward the southern photographically. Twenty-five snow end of the Hudson Mountains. pits, each about six. feet deep, were Along its route the party was re­ dug along the route to enable the supplied by R4D aircraft from BYI'd scientists with the party to inspect the Station. snow below the surface. The traverse was completed on Feb­ ruary 11 and the party was evacuated Work for the day would begin at by ail' two days later. 5.3'0 a.m., when the equipment was • One of the theories which Dr. Bent­ dug free of drifted snow. Travelling ley hopes to prove by taking seismic at 3 m.p.h., the train travelled until measurements throughout the journey 10 p.m. Stakes were planted at five­ is that a 1600-mile long, 400-mile wide mile intervals, for future snow accu­ trough runs between the Ross and mulation studies. Weather reports Bellingshausen Seas, indicating that were sent out three times daily, and the .Antarctic continent is in fact di­ regular magnetic and altimeter meas­ vided...... urements taken. Pr~vious reac!ings have suggested The tractors, now at the Pole, will that .this is the case. be used in maintaining a snow land- March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 335

ing strip, assisting in station construc­ measured a number o{ glilCiological tion, and retrieving air-delivered movement stakes he had set out on cargo. his 1958 traverse and continued other Rear Admiral D. M. Tyree, com­ studies initiated on this earlier trip. manding officer of the U.S. Antarctic At the Plateau Depot, 7,750 feet force, said in his telegram to Major above sea level, VX-6 aircraft had Havola at the Pole: "I wish I could stored 4,000 gallons of fuel, two tons have had the privilege of greeting you of food, and one and a half tons of at the end of your long, historic trek. explosives for use by the party, which ... The skill and efficiency with arrived at the depot on December 24. which you conducted this hazardous Two days later they began the south­ operation is a matter of great pride ern journey and arrived at the Pole to the entire Task Force. Well done on February 12 after a 65 days' jour· to you and your splendid crew." ney. The route followed was east from The team stopped every 60 miles en Byrd Station past the eastern end of route to deternline the elevation and the Horlick Mountains, and then thickness of the ice-cap to and study south along longitude 78° west for the sub-glacial rock. the Pole. TIns course covered more than 500 miles of previously unex­ WISCONSIN TEAM plored territory. On February 11 a University of The tractors were the heaviest Wisconsin team concluded a three pieces of mobile equipment yet to ar­ months' overland traverse from the rive overland at the Pole. They had U.S. Byrd 'Station travelling 12,000 hauled between them three 20-ton and miles to the University of Minnesota one 10-ton sleds, and two sled-mount­ field camp. Altill1etry readings from ed wannigan huts. A second weasel, the ice-breakers' helicopters were pro­ used on crevasse-detection work, rode vided so that the scientists could aboard one of the sleds. check their instruments for possible errol'. McMURDO-POLE The traverse led by Dr. A. P. Crary, EIGHTS COAST originally intended to leave McMurdo A team of eight, headed by Dr. in mid-October, finally got under way, Gampbell Craddock of the University after a frustrating series of postpone­ of Minnesota, was air-lifted, five from ments, on December 10. The eight Byrd and four from McMurdo Sta­ man party included Sven Evteev, the tions respectively, on December 9, to Russian exchange scientist. an area in from the Eights Coast In the three vehicles carrying the sighted from the air the previous eight men, the lead vehicle carried summer by Dr. Craddock. Here they navigation and communication equip­ established a base camp, including a ment. The second, weighirrg 12 tons, Jall1esway hut, at 73° 29' S., 94° 24' housed the siesll1ic, gravity and mag­ W. at the base of the Jones Moun­ netic equipment and spare naviga­ tains. From here three-man parties tional instruments. The third vehicle, cal;ried out topographical and geologi­ also 12 tons, contained glaciological cal surveys, man-haulirrg fibre-glass apparatus and kitchen facilities. sledges 20 miles to the east and 15 The party followed a safe route miles to the west of the camp, at ap­ through the heavily crevassed areas proximately 60 miles south of the of the Skelton Glacier ""hich had been coastline. marked a few weeks earlier by a heli­ The party spent six weeks in the copter-supported three-man party. On field and were returned to Byrd Sta· the Skelton Glacier Dr, Crary re- tion by R4D aircraft on January 22. 336 ANTARCTIC March, 1961

BY SEA AND AIR T.he only aircraft to remain in the Antarctic during the winter will be As in previous summers, the United two Dakotas, five Otters, and four States bases at :McMurdo, the Pole and BYI'd have been re-supplied by helicopters. ships based on Lyttelton and by air­ SHIP MDVEMENTS craft flying from Christchurch. The "Glacier" left Lyttelton on Novem­ joint U.S.-N.Z. Hallett Station ha;s bel' 28 and reached MeMurdo Sound been serviced by sea, and the AmerI­ on December 5. Other ice-breakers cans have extended most generous as­ proceeding to the ~McMurdo area were sistance in the re-supply of New Zea­ "Edisto " «Staten Island" and "East­ land's Scott Base. wind." , The other vessels operating The first airci'aft leftChristchurch were the cargo vessels "Greenville on October 3, the "Wilhoite" having Victory," "Pte John R. Towle," and taken up her ocean station in sup­ "Arneb," and the tanker "Alatna." port of the flights. Bad weather ser­ Normal ship movements ended on iously interrupted the air programme, March 12 with the departure of the and it was not until November 2 that last vessel, "Arneb", for New Zea­ the ten Globemasters began the con­ land. But two unscheduled sailings centrated hauling of cargo from temporarily re-opened the season. Christchurch to McMurdo. Both "¥0'gs"-6'00-ton oil-storage ves­ This activity was halted again when sels-held fast in the ice, one to the a prolonged radio blackout began on north and one to the south of Hut November 12. All ten C-124's (Globe­ Point, were torn loose from their masters) were loaded and waiting at moorings by bad weather in early Christchurch airport. They had to March. They have been part of the wait till the 19th. On December 1 the McMurdo landscape since they were last Globemaster arrived back at towed to the Antarctic in 1955. ¥og Christchurch, mission completed. 2,544 34, containing some 200,000 gallons tlying hours had moved 2,073 tons of of avgas, drifted to a point two miles cargo and 933 ]!lassengers. north of the ice runway. ¥ og 70 is In January the airstrip began to empty. deteriorate, with potholes and cracks The ice.breaker "Staten Island," on in the ice, requiring continued atten· her way home from the Bellingshausen tion. By February, colder tempera­ Sea, was ordered back to recover the tures helped overcome some of the de­ truant ¥ ogs, and was expected to terioration, but the bay ice had begun reach McMurdo on March 21. to crack and most flight operations were moved to the ski-way on the RESCUE TEAM ice-shelf. Only a few flights from One of the most select groups in the New Zealand, using wheeled aircraft, D.S. Navy is the four-man VX-6 para­ used the bay-ice airstrip in the late rescue team which has made its initial summer months. jump in the Antarctic. The purpose of the team is to pro­ NO MORE FLIGHTS vide a rescue potential for men in difficulties at isolated spots in the con­ With the return .of the Super Con­ tinent. stellation ,to Christchurch from Mc­ The teams-there are as many as Murdo Sound on February 21, flights three in the squadron-receive their to the Antarctic ceased for another training at Quonset Point, their home season. base, during the D:S. summer season. The four SQ.-ton Hercules ski-air­ In August and September the team craft, which carried more than 1,500 deploys ~ Christchurch. ThE para­ tons of supplies in four months to in­ rescue team is one of the first groups land stations, had by then all returned to reach Antarctica in each Deep­ to Christchurch. Freeze operation. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 337

NEW AIR STRIP three-qual'ters of a mile before finally This season a snow compaction coming to earth. No One was ilIl­ team built a runway for wheeled air­ jured. craft on the ice shelf adjacent to the ski-way, in order to provide a run­ BIG FIRE LOSS way not subject to the problems of gradual ice deterioration and the con­ On February 1, fanned by a 26 sequent possible dangers which exist m.p.h. wind, fire completely destroyed at Williams Field, on the bay ice. The two connected 'shop buildings. Nomen new runway was completed in early were injured in the blaze, which was January and tests were conducted. The fought in a light snowfall at 31 deg. compacted runway did not prove as temperature. Damage is estimated at successful as was hoped and other 2,000,000 dollars. methods will be used next summer. The fire started in the parachute The roadways constructed, however, rigging shop near the edge of the have proved very satisfactory and station. Flames almost immediately eliminated many of the difficulties en­ filled the interior of the quonset countered in previous years' air op­ structure and soon spread to the at­ erations. tached electronics shop, which was downwind of the parachute shop. MISHAPS The 525 men of the station, heard the word "Fire" ring out over the On November 2, O. F. John, SW1, camp intercom. system at exactly 10 U.S.N., was killed in a construction p.m. accident. Firefighters arrived almost at once, A series of minor accidents which but were unable b hold back the might easily have been disasters mar­ blaze. Over 100 officers and men fought red the summer's programme. with carbon dioxide, portable fire­ November 25: an R4D collapsed its fighting equipment, and shovelfuls of port landing gear in the Horlick snow. A large storage quonset only Mountains, while landing with a load 20 ft. away was saved by wetting of material for the Ohio State Uni­ down its surface. versity geological party. A second R4D sheared a tail ski while landing supplies for the Ells­ SALVAGED worth Highland traverse. A chain of men salvaged life pre­ Both planes were salvaged. servers, radio equipment, and batter­ December 24: a UC-1 (Otter) came ies from the electronics shop before down meal' the Darwin Glacier. This the fire spread to that area. It began aircraft was recovered two days later to burn itself out just -before midnight. (see fuller story on page 345). A 'The ,fire may have far-reaching ef­ tested runway 2,500 feet long and 60 fects on the r,emainder of this year's wide was marked out on the ice. Near scientific and support programmes the far end a flag marked the spot and has pinched the potential of the where the aircraft would have to be squadron's para-rescue team, a four­ airborne because of crevasses ahead. man especially trained unit. Captain Morrow, the pilot, had the With the destruction of the avionics plane air~borne at the first attempt. shop, it· is no longer possible to re­ Two New Zealanders, Captain Bridge pair aircraft electronics equipment, and Mr. A. R. Scott, assisted in the including installed radar, navigation, salvage opel'ation. and communications gear. Decembel' '25: Another Otter over­ Electronic equipment in Auckland ran the ski-way at Mc'Murdo, collid­ was moved south urgently to l'eplace ed with a snow-bank, bounced into the that destroyed in the fire. The equip­ ail', contacted the ski-way, and again ment had been landed in Auckland became air-borne, continuing for about from the freighter Alameda. 338 ANfARCTIC March, 1<161

POLE STATION WEATHEH OUTPOSTS The C-130B Hercules aircraft made The small weather station at the 20 flights to the Pole during the two head of the Beardmore glacier was months 29 October-27 Dec-ember, reopened early in October when two carrying 239 tons of cargo. United States Navy ski-equipped air­ On December 27 the Chapel and craft, a Hercules and a DC-4, landed part of the garage collapsed under on the glacier with supplies and the weight of accumulated snow, caus­ equipment. ing temporary power loss. No one Situated about 300 miles from the was injured and power was restored. American base in McM urdo Sound, Constructed on the surface in De­ on the air route to the 'South Pole, cember 1956, the station is at the the station, which provides additional present time covered by snow up to weather information for Antarctic six feet in depth, with an over-all aircraft flghts, was closed on Febru­ average depth of about two feet. ary 8 this year. Removal of this over-burden began on Three meteorologists sp-ent three or December 1, but the problem was in­ four months at the station living in tensHied by the collapse of Chapel isolation and sending out daily wea­ and garage. The garage had bee,n ther reports. constructed from surplus materials, A second w-eather station, Little while the Chapel was an Atwell hut. Rockford, which was established last year 500 miles from McM urdo, was It is expected that the station will reopened on October 10. Thi,s station be replaced, beginning in Deep Freeze provides weather information for air­ '64. craft flying between M-cMurdo and BYI'd station in 'Marie BYI'd land. BYRD STATION Work commenced on the main tun­ HEAT WAVE nel at the new BYl'd Station, 5.3 nau­ At the beginning of February a tical miles from the old station, on heat wave struck the Ross Sea area. December 12. Five weeks lawr this As BYl'd Station a record tempera­ tunnel and four others had been cut ture of -30 0 F. was recorded on Feb­ and arching over had begun. By the ruary 1. Inside the station, now bur­ end of the season, six of the tunnels ied 'beneath eight to eighteen feet of should have been cut, arched and cov­ snow, leaks developed and the effect ered with snow. However, on Janu­ was described as that of a tropical ary 25,during a white-out, a D-8 trac­ rainstorm. Serious strain was imposed tor fell into one of the already-cut on the buildings, which are now in a trenches, damaging the trench beyond state of semi-disrepair from the use. weight of several years' accumula­ On December 29 the trail was laid tion of snow. out to the auroral sub-station, 40 IT'S RAINING miles from ByI'd, and an air-strip marked out at the sub-station site. At Little Rockfol'd, 'halfway between BYI'd and McMmdo, there was actu­ When completed the new station ally a fall of "Antarctic rain", a mix­ will consist of nine tunnels and a ture of rain and slushy snow. This series of connecting passage-ways. rare phenomenon-rare especially so These tunnels will be roofed, and far inland-was caused by a storm insulated buildings of light construc­ moving inland from the coast carry­ tion erected inside. Completion of ing moist air. The warm conditions the new station is scheduled for 1963. caused the precipitation of near-rain. The old station received only shor­ In the middle of the Hoss Ice Shelf ing and reinforcing of tunnels and a "grasshopper" weather station re­ buildings. corded 42 0 F. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 339 Another American Assault on Stubborn Amundsen Sea On January 29 U.S.S. "Glacier" left Wellington, New Zealand, for another assault on the stubborn ice-jammed Amundsen Sea, which lies to the west of Thurston Peninsula, half-way between Graham Land and the Ross Sea. On board was Captain Edwin A. into the frozen Amundsen Sea. At this McDonald, deputy commander of time the two icebreakers would find Operation Deep Freeze, 1961, and themselves confronted with a sea as leader of the expedition. Her holds yet unpenetrated because of the im­ were packed with scientific equipment posing strength and density of the ice and supplies for the expedition in floes in its waters. the months ahead. Last year the "Glacier" was called In addition to her regular crew away from the Bellingshausen Sea, Glacier was manned by scientists and about 200 miles east of the Amundsen fOl'eignobservers. The powerful ship Sea, to go to the assistance of the Ar­ proceeded 3,000 miles to the south-east gentinian ice-breaker "General San to rendezvous with another Navy ice­ Martin" and the Danish ship "Kista breaker, "Staten 15Jand," along the Dan," when they were caught in the r.orthern edge of the pack ice. ice at Marguerite Bay. Its schedule Meanwhile "Staten Island" had left would normally have taken it into the Lyttelton on January 17 for oceano­ Amundsen 'Sea. graphic work, and the two ",hips met 0 0 SOLID WHITE BARRIER on February 5 in 69 33' S., 106 35' On February 15 it was reported W., and entered the Bellingshausen that the ships had penetrated as far Sea, between the Amundsen Sea and east as possible in exploration of the the Graham 'Land Peninsula. Bellingshausen .Sea and would turn Next day the two icebreakers pene­ west when a 70-knot snow-storm h'ated the pack ice, and worked east abated. along the northern coast of the Thurs­ "Glacier" and "Staten Island" now ton Peninsula. lay at 72 0 28' S., 91 0 42' W., their Landfall Peak was sighted under bows nosed against a solid white bar­ clearing skies on the evening of Feb­ rier of land-fast ice denying any fur­ ruary 6 after the two ships, with ther progress eastwards. "Glacier" in the lead, had rammed For the past seven days the 'expedi­ their way through 150 miles of heavy tion had been working along the Ant­ ice floes. arctic coastline. Excellent weather ha.cl Capt. McDonald directed the two allowed for numerous sci.entific re­ ships to swing to the east along the turns from the previously unknown coastal waters. Depending upon the coast region. ice conditions encountered, the expedi­ Aboard the "'Staten Island" ocean­ tion would head towards the coast or ographers compiled data gained from turn west and head into the Amund­ their continuing studies of the Ant­ sen Sea. arctic waters. Bottom cores, sediment, and surface plankton samples had VIRGIN WATERS been gathered, temperatures had been The aim of the two-ship expedition recorded, currents measured, and was to pash through the pack to th~ water samples brought aboard to be Antarctic coastline at a point off Cape analysed for salinity, dissolved oxy­ Flying Fish and then swing westward gen, and carbon content. 340 March, 1961

CAMPS ASHORE ICE BOUND Surveyors and geologists were flown by helicopters from the "Gla­ It was reported in Christchurch on cier" to establish four field camps February 28 that ice floes from 15 ashore. From these camps the new to 30 feet thick had halted the pro­ 'lands were studied and accurately gress of the two ice-breakers for five positioned for future mapping. days in the Bellingshausen Sea. On February 10 helicopter-borne The last report from the expedition scientists were flown 80 miles inland said that the. ships had entered the to examine five peaks, ancl by chance pack ice en route to the Amundsen came upon the recently abandoned Sea on February 15. Both ships were camp of a University of Minnesota now lying abreast about 200 yards field party. apart' and drifting westward. The s-hips now prepared to enter the "Till ice pressures yield and the as yet unpenetrated waters of the floes part, the expedition can only Amundsen Sea. wait," the report said. Research Party Trapped by Blizzard Four men, three Americans and an First Lieutenants Fluke and Thorpe, English Antarctic veteran, marooned and then Lieutenants Price and Gal­ for three nights and two days by a del', set their fragile craft down on blizzard, were flown to safety by heli­ the 20 deg. rocky slope still lashed copters of the U.S. Navy's Bellings­ by 35-knot winds. hausen Sea expedition. The field party members climbed On Sunday, February 12, the party aboard stiffiy and returned to food had been trapped on the unexplored and sleep in the warmth of their ships. east coast by freezing, hurricane winds As the four men described their 60­ of more than 100 m.p.h. while attempt­ hour ordeal, the strain of the experi· ing to study and survey a rock out­ ence showed on their cracked hands, crop 45 miles from the ice-breakers lips, and black-rimmed eyes. "Staten Island" and "Glacier." "Trouble began on Sunday 10 min­ The winds, so violent that they utes after the helicopter had depart­ snapped ice axe handles, made the ed," Lieut.-Cdr. Peeler said. "From erecting of a tent impossible. the moment it started· we decided Dr. CRUDE SHELTER Roberts would give the orders and we Led by Dr. Brian Roberts, of Great would take them." Dr. Roberts put Britain, the men made their way to the knowledge of years of Arctic and the most sheltered part of the out­ Antarctic experience to use. cropping and built a crude stone wind­ "We were anchoring a canvas wind­ break. screen around our surveying instru­ Aboard the ice-breakers the expedi­ ments," the 48-year-old British scient­ tion could only wait as the buffeting ist said, ('when a blast of wind snap­ winds and snow made rescue impos­ ped the tops of the ice-axe anchors. sible. Twice during the first night The tent poles were gone so we made lines parted and the ships had to be our way into the rocks and with a manoeuvred to avoid ice floes in the great deal of effort erected a small wind-whipped seas. shelter with the windscreen for a By 3 a.m. on February 15 the snow roof," had stopped and the winds lessened. CRAMPED QUARTERS Captain E. A. McDonald, U.S.N., or­ The first night, with the winds still dered the recovery helicopters into the increasing in intensity, three of the air from the "Glacier" and the "Sta­ party squashed into the shelter wedg­ ten Island." ed on top of one another in their M~rch, 1961 ANTARCTIC 341

sleeping bags. Dr. Roberts lay out­ Within minutes the expedition's side in his bag with only l'oom for three remaining helicopters recovered his head in the small wind-break. the men and returned them to their By the second day, the men were ship, A second flight was then launch­ suffering from cramp, having been so ed and retrieved the field party's sur­ long in their cold, confined positions. veying gear. The winds would not permit them to Dangerous ice conditions along the light a stove, so they had no food or coastline forbade the recovery of the vvater, as their rations had long since wrecked helicopter. All useable parts frozen solid. were salvaged before the burnt ma­ "Early on the third morning, with chine was abandoned. the winds dying somewhat, I decided that we should try to erect our tent," Dr. Roberts said, "but in trying to step outside we found ourselves so THOSE PENGUINS cramped and weakened, that, with the exception of Mr. Lepley, we fell flat Here are some more details about on our faces. We were forced to the remarkable penguin trek described crawl back into our shelter.." in our last issue, p. 293, "Penguins' It was an hour later that the party Long Journey." heard the sound of engines and look­ The five Adelie penguins were band­ ed up at the beautiful sight of two ed by Penney, sent by VX6 aircraft to red helic.opters. McMurdo, checked and liberated there by John Dearborn. No trace was seen "We owe our lives to that fine Eng­ until mid-November 1960, when Penney lishman," said Lieut.-'Cdr. Peeler, and reported the return of two of the the other two Americans were quick banded penguins to the colony from to agree. which they had been taken. They are probably not a pail', as they returned SEQUEL on two successive days and both are One of the two helicopters which apparently males. rescued the party later crash-landed and burned on an ice-eapped island off Mr. Penney believes that a third the coast. penguin of the five taken to McMurdo No one was injured in the accident. may also have returned. A bird bu L flames engulfed the engine and which returned to the same nest from adjoining compartments, destroying which one of the five was taken has the Sikorsky craft, which was attach· no band, but shows fresh feather­ ed to the "Staten Island." wearing at the base of the flipper, sug­ The helicopter was flying in com­ gesting a lost band. pany with a helicopter from the "Gla­ The birds must have traversed 2,200 cier" to recover scientific equipment to 2,400 miles, skirting the continen­ still remaining at the inland field tal coast via the pack ice. Itis thought camp. that their homing ability is depend­ The machine caught fire, and while ent upon response to water by water­ the two aviators hovered the craft sky phenomena, and to land by con­ searching for the most suitable landing tinental landmarks. area, an engine cylinder head burst and the helicopter dropped to an icy hillside. ChHean Government obsel'ver on the JUMPED CLEAR United States icebreaker "Staten Is­ The four men leaped clear as the land" this summer is Lieut.-Colonel burning aircraft slid sideways and Hernan Danyau, an intelligence of­ backwards 300 feet down the crevassed ficer in a cavalry division of the Chil­ slope. ean Army. 342 ANTARCTIC March, 1961 KIWI AT THE SOUTH POLE ("Tony" Gow is a young New Zealand scientist from Wellington who for the past three years has worked in the United States and at American stations in the Antarctic.-Ed.)

The following is a short account of This year Rene and I departed on the writer's fourth trip to the Ant­ ,our journey south from Andrews, Ail' arctic 'Continent. I was accompanied Force Base, Maryland, on November on this occasion by a 'Swiss-born me­ 15, and fle,w to New Zealand via Tra­ chanical engineer,IMr. Rel1e Ramseier, vis Airforce Base, California, Hono­ now residing in the United States. lulu, ·Ca·nton Island and Fiji. We Together we earried out studies in spent two weeks in New Zealand or­ snow mechanics at the South 'Pole and ganising shipment of our equipment remeasured a deep drill hole at Byrd and then flew to McMurdo in a C-124 Station. (Glo'bemaster) . We continued our T·he writer's previous experience in flight to the Geographic South Pole the Antarctic may be summarised as (Amundsen-Scott Station) on board follows. While an Assistant Lecturer aC-130 Lochheed Hercules turbo prop in the Geology Department at Victoria ski plane and touched down at the University of 'Wellington, 'I was ap­ pole on December 15. pointed by the Arctic Institute of North America to act as Assistant AT THE SOUTH POLE Glaciologist on a deep drilling ice pro­ The Pole station is situated a;bout ject at Byrd IGY Station during the 9,200 feet above sea level and it took Austral summer of 1957-58. After us two or three days to acclimatise. carrying out preliminary studies on We also found that a few minutes of ice cores from a 1000 ft. drill hole 'I hard manual labour would leave one accompanied the drill rig and equip­ utterly exhausted and -one can only ment on a 650 mile trador swing to wonder how Captain Scott and his Little America V. I then journeyed to ill-fated party, with rations totally the United States on board the Ice inadequate for the purpose, and in Breaker "'Glacier" and continued my adverse weather conditions, ever man­ analysis of the ice cores at the U.S. aged to :haul their sledge to this blea'k Anmy Snow Ice and Permafrost Re­ spot. During our seven week stay search Laboratory (SIPRE) near not a single fall of snow was re­ Chicago, Illinois. corded. Snow equivalent to about 2-3 BACK TO THE ICE in. of rainfa'1l only is deposited an­ I returned to the Antarctic the nually at the South Pole. Nevertheless following summer on a second drill­ the ice is about 9000 feet thick. Tem­ ing prospect that successfully pene­ peratures during the summer hovered tl'ated the Ross Ice Shelf (850 ft.) around the 15° F. mark but rose to near Little America V. In July, 19'1>9, 5° below zero during a heatwave in I assisted in thermal and deforma­ December. The yearly mean tem­ tion studies in a 1400 ft. drill hole perature is about -6'2° F. and the on the northwest Greenland Ice Cap. lowest temperature ever recorded was In December of the same year I super­ 107° below zero late last winter. vised the transport of the drilling equipment from Little America V CAMPS BENEATH THE SNOW (then officially abandoned) to NAF Our studies in snow mechanics were Mc'M urdo and remeasured tempera­ essentially of an applied nature. The tures, indination and closure in the need for constructing new camps both deep drill hole at BYI'd Station. at the 'Pole and at Byrd has become MMCh, 1961 ANTARCTIC 343

fairly acute. The original camps were DOWN THE MINE built on the surface four years ago T·he second phase of our work at and have drifted over to such an ex­ the South Pole was concerned with tent since that several buildings have deformation studies in a 90ft. deep collapsed and others have had to be snow mine that was dug during the a'bandoned. One way ,of overcoming winter of 1957 by members of the first the problem is to erect the buildings party to winter over a:t the Geographic in deep trenches beneath the snow South Pole. The mine was dug pri­ surface and this method known as the marily for glaciological purposes but "cut and ·cover" method has already' the excavated snow was used in the been applied very successfully by the snow melter to provide water for the V.S. Army in Greenland. Very fine camp. We installed gauges for re­ milled snow called Peter snow is used cording vertical and lateral pressure extensively in the construction of these and closure in different parts of the undersnow camps and much of the mine and these will be read periodi­ success 'of the "·cut and cover" tech­ cally throughout the winter by the nique depends on the fact that Peter Ionosphere Physicist. snow becomes quite hard and strong In addition to providing important as it ages. data on deforming processes in low temperature snow (the temperature in 0 THE PROBLEM the mine is equivalent to 90 of frost) the results from the snow mine will The ultimate strength and rate of also give us some idea of the kind of hardening are known to depend great­ deformation to be expected in deep lyon the temperature, but it was not undersnow structures. Much of this known how Peter snow would react to summer's activity has centred around 1Jhe very low temperatures at the reconstruction and shoring up of the South Pole. It was our job to find cache areas. New ablution and latrines out, and to determine the feasibility were erected as well as a communica­ of undersnow construction at the tions shack, and a sick bay complete South Pole. These studies required the with X-ray room, a pharmacy and an preparation of a 'large number of operating theatre. Rhombic antennas fine grained snow samples. The sam­ have been installed to improve radio ples took the form of artificially com­ transmission. padedcylinders, and groups of these samples were periodically crushed and VISITORS their strength determined. We also Of great interest was the arrival in had to investigate the 'influence of early January of the tractor train such factors as temperature, solar from ByI'd Station after a journey of radiation, grainsize, grainshape and 800 miles. This was the first over­ density. For to know that fine milled snow traverse ever made by Ameri­ snow hardens with age is one thing: cans to the South Pole. why it does and how are another. The resupply of fuel and food had To further assist in our study of nearly finished when we left and in a the causes, thin sections were cut month or so Ithis isolated but l1is­ from representative samples and toricoutpost of the farthest south will sliced to paper thickness on a micro­ settle down for the long winter night. tome. These were placed under a microscope to determine the relation­ TO BYRD ship between strength and the num­ We left the South Pole on January ber and size of bonds that had devel­ 22 and flew out from 'McMurdo to oped between snow grains as the BYI'd Station (80 0 S., 120 0 W.) the sample hardened. Results seemed en­ following day. The camp is situated couraging, but have yet to be fuBy at an altitude of 5000 feet and is un­ analysed. derlain by a sheet of ice 8000 feet 344 ANTARCTIC Marc", 1961

thick. We 'have estimated that the suIts have provided us with a much ice at the bottom of the deep drill better understanding of the physical hole (1000ft.) is over 2000 years old. properties of snow and ice, of the 'Temperatures are considerably origins and nourishment of ice caps warmer here than at the South Pole. and their glaciological history. With The mean annual temperature is about continued research under the United _20 0 F. and incredible to relate it States Antarctic Research programme actually ?'ainecl one day early in Feb­ we hope to add still further to our ruary. The temperature on this oc­ knowledge of the problems of this casion rose to 34 0 F., the highest ever White Continent. recorded. As for the camp itself, up to 20 feet of snow has accumulated on the roofs of some :buildings and several have been abandoned for fear of collapse. A new undersnow camp ("New Byrd") is being constructed about six BYRD MEMORIAL miles from the old BYI'd site and it A major step forward was taken is hoped to complete the main com­ toward theerecti'On of the Memorial munication tunnel and four lateral to Admiral Richard E. Byrd in early trenches before winter sets in. These December, when a well-attended and will not be occupied until next season enthusiastic public meeting was held unless a real emergency arises at "Old in Wellington. Cables were received Byrd" in the interim. We spent two from maillY prominent American citi­ clays at "New Byrd" and made some zens, including President John F. Ken­ tests on the hardness of Peter snow. nedy, Admiral Nimitz, Rear Admiral We also inserted dowels in the walls David Tyree, Christian A. Herter, and of three trenches and these will be many members of Congress and lead­ re-measured next summer to determine ing citizens, all sending their warm how much settling and closure occurs wishes for the success 'of the project. in the tunnels. The Honorary Architects submitted sketches and plans, which were wel­ LAB. IN THE SNOW comed by the meeting. An action com­ We concluded our summer research mittee was formed and the whole activities with measurements in the project is now well under way. Work deep drill hole at Old BYI'd. Prior to on the preparation of the site is drilling in December, 1957, a 15ft. planned for the near future. snow la'boratory was excavated be­ Special thanks are due to 'Mr. G. W. hind the drill rig. This has since Markham, Capt. L. D. Bridge and Mr. been used as an emergency cache, and Ralph Wheeler and the members of this year we reopened the laboratory the University expedition for their and set up our instruments to re­ co-operation and 'efforts which resulted measure temperature and closure in in the "Endeavour" arriving with a the drill hole. 'These and previous fine selection of rocks from the results have provided us with valu­ Koettlitz region. These will be an able data on .thermal conditions and interesting feature when incorporated ice flow in the upper layers of a polar in the 'Memorial. glacier. . A subscription list has been opened As an example it might be noted amd those interested in making con­ that the diameter of the hole has de­ tributions or joining the Fellowship creased from 5~in. when first drilled to may communicate with the Secretary less than 1in. three years later. This of the Richard E. Byrd Fellowship, and other information obtained from 24 Trelissick Crescent, Ngaio: 'phone the study of cores and seismic re- 36-635. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 345 SCOTT BASE LEADER INVOLVED IN HAZARDOUS SUPPLY FLIGHT A flight to re-sul>ply the Southern New Zealand Field party near Mount Chdstmas, some 300 miles S.S.W. of Scott Base, on Christmas Eve, nearly ended in disaster. A United States Otter aircraft pi- DESPERATE LANDING loted by Captain Tim Morrow, with At 1.15 p.m. the plane struck the Captain L. D. Bridge, 'Leader at Scott ice, bounced over a 60 foot wide cre­ Base, and two American crew-men on vasse, stluck again, slithered on ice, board, left McMurdo at 9.45 a.m. on twisted, crossed three more crevasses December 24, carrying re-supply and slid to a halt upright as it climbed stores, Christmas delicacies and mail towards the next big crevasse. Thanks as well as a Greenland husky to re- to the masterly handling of the plane place an injured sledge-dog. by Captain Morrow and the kind hand tIn the vicinity of Mt. Albert Mark- of Providence all aboard were unhurt, ham an oil-leak developed, covering though badly shaken. The husky was the starboard windscreen with a fine curled into a tight ball in the furthest dusting of oil, and when only ten corner of the cabin. The aircraft en­ miles from the southern party the gine was completely disabled and the pilot reported that he had a rough- right ski assembly broken. Captain l'unning engine and would have to Bridge, using the aircraft step-ladder, abandon the re-supply attempt. From probed for crevasses, marking out an altitude of nearly 5;000 feet the safe trails and a place for a rescue plane headed back towards McMurdo, helicopter to land. A smudge-pot of passing Cape Selborne at 1.20 p.m. oil, avgas and burnable material was ENGINE TROUBLE put in a biscuit tin to provide a smoke By this time power from the engine signal. had decreased, and air-speed and alti­ RESCUE tude were being lost. In an attempt The aircraft radioed its position to to maintain height the cargo was jet­ McMurdo at 2.9 p.m. and by 3 p.m. tisoned, but the motor began to stut­ a Neptune aircraft and helicopter ter and misfire. Just before a cloud were on their way to the scene. At layer was entered at 1,800 feet Cap­ 4.15 the Neptune circled above the tain Bridge was able to sight the Dar­ cloud-layer. Then minutes later the win Glacier and to :fix the aircraft's "chopper" arrived and picked up the position to within a mile. stranded men and the dog, Sapangark, Air-speed was now down to 40 knots who, usually full of life and difficult with the engine performing alarm­ to approach, was now docile and dis­ ingly. As the aircraft broke through tinctly worried. the underside of the c!oud layer, the MORE TROUBLE Ross .Ice Shelf appeared below, a All was not yet well, however. Un­ mass of rough jumbled ice, crevasses, der a fairly strong westerly drift the pinnacles and occasional small patches helicopter lost direction and in broken 0f snow:. The plane had not cleared cloud got into the area of the Skel­ the vast area where ice from the ByI'd ton Glacier 01' a glacier to the south. Glacier and Barne Inlet flows into Soon it was climbing with mountain the shelf. Captain Morrow called ranges on either side, and was soon through the radio, "Mayday, Mayday. at its maximum altitude of 12,000 No place for wheeled aircraft. Only feet with high peaks still around. Vis­ chopper would get in." ibility was now very poor, with 110 .346 ANTARCTIC March, 1961

bl'eak to the east, so the helicopter pilot made for a high snow area and Couzens Memorial landed at 6.45 p.m. at an altitude of 5,500 feet. At a simple but moving ceremony Advice was now radioed from Mc­ at Scott Base on Sunday, February Murdo that assistance and additional 12, a plaque was unveiled by Cap­ avgas would be flown in next morn­ tain L. D. Bridge, in memory of ing. So all hands bedded down for a Lieutenant Tom Couzens, Royal New quiet but cold Christmas Eve. Zealand Armoured Corps, who lost his life when a snow-cat crashed into a HAPPY CHRISTMAS crevasse off Cape Selborne on N0­ December 25 dawned clear and it vember 19, 1959. could be seen that the "chopper" had Some 70 men, including Rear Ad­ landed on a vast area of snow appar­ miral n. M. Tyree, the Commander ently 30 to 40 miles across, surround­ and the Scientific Leader at McMurdo ed by mountain peaks. Soon after 10 D.S. Base, the Commander of VX6 a.m..a rescue helicopter flew in and Squadron, the Captain of D.S.C.G.C. soon the party were drinking coffee "Eastwind," 'Commander R. Humby and eating buns while refuelling took of H.M.N.Z.S. "Endeavour," person­ place. At 1 p.m. Captain Bridge was nel from the D.S. Navy and VX6 delivered to a grinning but relieved Squadron and from "Endeavour," and team of fellow Kiwis at Scott Base, all the New Zealanders at Scott Base, just in time to savour to the full an attended the open-air service, which immense Christmas dinner. was conducted by Chaplain G. An- dress D.S.N. . PERSONNEL The Scripture passages were read Owing to urgent domestic obliga­ by Commander Humby (Paslm 30), tions, Captain L. D. Bridge has had and Rear Admiral Tyree (Romans to return to New Zealand. He has 8:31-39), and the hymn "0 God our been succeeded as Leader at Scott help in ages past" was sung. After Base by Mr. V. E. Donnelly, Adminis­ the dedication and unveiling of the trative Officer, Antarctic Division, D.S.I.R. plaque, which is mounted on a dressed sledge-runnel' standing about three Sgt. L. O. Duff has had to return feet above the ground at the base of to New Zealand for health reasons. the historic Scott flagpole, Captain His replacement as Scott Base me­ chanic is Bridge commended Tom Couzens' fine example of living life to the full and W. R. HARE (23) Milton. Mr. Hare using leisure wisely. Captain Peter is a mechanic by trade, with a wide Hunt read an obituary, the flag was experience in the maintenance of the lowered to half-mast by F /Sgt. W. type of vehicles and generators used Tan, and Ray Logie played the Sun­ at Scott Base. He served as a me­ set call, "Taps". chanic under C'ivil Aviation Adminis­ tration on Campbell Island during There seemed to those present 110­ 1958-59. thing incongruous in the fact that two Mr. W. R. Logie now becomes Sen­ of theScott Base pups played quietly ior Maintenance Officer at the Base. throughout the service at the Ad" Bob Thomson, last year's Scientific miral's feet. Out on the ice the older Leader at Hallett Station and later dogs were strangely quiet. Public Relations Officer at Scott Base, flew to the South Pole on November 12, anticipating a few hours' stay. The A bottle released at Marion Island black-out stopped all flying, and Bob on September 16, 1958, was found at became a South Pole resident until South Brighton Beach, Christchurch, the next flight, eleven days later. New Zealand, on April 15, 1960. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 347 NEW ZEALAND SURVEY PARTIES EXPLORE VICTORIA LAND COAST This summer the topographical and geological survey work in continuation of the New Zealand objective of exploling the whole Ross Dependency area was entrusted to two four-man teams, who between them made an examination of the coast-line of southern Victoria Land between Barne Inlet and Shackleton Inlet. NORTHEHN PARTY beautiful: to the east, rolling hills running down to Beaumont Bay; and The northern party consisted of G. to the west, mountains running up J. 'Matterson (leader and surveyor), to the 11,000 ft. Mt. Albert Markham. D. R Goldschmidt, D. N. B. Skinner One of the sledge dogs was now taken (,geologist), and P. M. Otway. R W. back to Scott Base-a maternity case. Tripv relieved Otway for some days On December 29 a successful air­ in the early stages. There were 18 drop of urgently needed radio bat­ dogs and two sledges. teries and other essentials was made The party was flown by D.S. R4D to the party at Cape Parr. They now aircraft on November 10 to the ice sledged northwards again. By Janu­ movement station at 80 0 S., 167 0 E., ary 20 the two field parties were only on the Ross Ice Shelf, and then sledg­ 50 miles apart in the Cape Douglas­ ed to the mouth of Barne Inlet. Scott Cape Parr area, and moving down to­ Base now had no radio contact with wards the ice shelf. The northern the party for a week owing to the party, after a survey of the coast unprecedented radio black-out which from the ice shelf, ended its work as interrupted all communications. But it had begun by observations of the on the 19th Matterson reported that ice-strain gauge previously set up on they had sledged to the slopes of Cape the 80th meridian, 70 miles out from Selborne, at an altitude of 3,000 feet. the coast. They now moved west and south. Af­ The party was returned to Scott ter crossing a saddle at 6,800 feet Base by two flights on February 6 and over the main range, they were camp­ 7. During their three months in the ed by December 9 eight miles from field, this party had covered 600 miles the coast, and at an altitude of 6,500 by dog sledge and many more on ski feet. The ascent proved a hard pull and on foot. Data for 3,000 square for the dogs and necessitated much miles of country had been assembled. help from the men. The party was Skinner had collected Beacon sand­ now about 240 miles south-west of stone and dolerite samples from Mt. Scott Base and some 90 miles from Eg'erton. A gravity survey of the the southern party. area was carried out, The furthest By December 14 Matterson's party point reached inland was 40 miles had pushed south another 20 miles from the coast and the highest sur­ and were camped 12 miles east of Mt. vey station was at 7,500 feet. Field in a wide, undulating ice and snow covered area at an altitude of SOUTHERN PARTY 3,700 feet. The southern group, Capt. P. Hunt On December 22 the party was l'e­ (leader and serveyor), W. W. Herbert supplied by D.S. Otter plane when (asst. surveyor), M. G. Laird (geol­ camped 30 miles south of Byrd Gla­ ogist), and N. C. Cooper, was flown cier to the east of Mt. Field. The sur­ south from McMurdo in a D.S. Da· roundings here were impressively kota aircraft on November 30, to the , 348 ANTARCTIC March, 1961

north bank of the 12-mile wide Nim­ floor, and then had to climb up once rod Glacier, 82 0 17' S., 162 0 15' E. more towards the high pass which From now on the party relied on dog afforded the only sledgeable route transport-18 dogs and two sledges, through to Beaumont Bay and the with supplies for 25 days. After re­ coast. By the evening they were camp­ connaissance, it was decided to sledge ed ready to receive the Otter air­ westward along the north bank of craft; but next morning brought more the glacier before proceeding to the heavy snowfall and flying was out of north. the question. On December 3, however, a prelim­ Early on December 24 they sledged inary sledge-journey was made east­ on up the valley in order to cross ward and the party camped at the foot some extremely nasty crevasses which of the coastal range, spending two could not be avoided, so as to have days in survey work and a geological them behind the party when the ex­ examination of the rock ridges of the pected supplies increased the sledge Cape Wilson hills. They then turned loads. The re-supply flight had to be west until halted by the impressive abandoned, however, when the Otter Nimrod Glacier Icefield. On December was only 20 miles away (see page 345) 9 a party on foot visited the foot of and the party remained at the camp­ the bluff where it joins the ice-fall, site to await another attempt at re­ and climbed to the top, 6,000 feet in supply. For four days it was either altitude. Six hours were spent here fine at the camp and overcast at Mc­ completing survey observations, while Murdo or vice versa, and it was not Laird found coral fossils and inspected until the 29th that a Dakota got the tnormous bands of marble. through. tHy that time the party's ·On December 13 they commenced food supplies had dwindled to emerg­ the t~phill journey northwards, sledg­ ency stocks of meat-bar, potato pow­ ing over smooth blue ice up a small der and cocoa. tributary glacier. They broke through a persisting cloud at 1,000 feet and HARD GOING sIedged on over hard sastrugi and More snow had fallen during this smooth ice. On the evening of the waiting period and on December 30 it following day they camped 18 miles was hard going to climb with 1,000 lb. north of the Nimrod Glacier at 82 0 sledge load the 600 feet in eight miles 11' S., 160 0 25' E., and approximately to the top of the pass. 4,000 feet above it. A survey station at 3,700 feet seven Having failed to find a route miles beyond the pass was occupied through the main l'ange, the party on January 2, and next day the party now turned eastwards and sledged up­ sledged down into the upper reaches hill in soft snow to their next survey of Beaumont Bay, covering 20 miles station, where two days were lost and dropping 2,500 feet to the shelter through thick cloud and zero visibil­ of the nunataks and low hills ·eight ity. Their first snowfall of the sea­ miles from the coastline. When sur­ son, at approximately 5,600 feet, made vey station K was occupied on Janu­ progress difficult. When the weather ary 4, one of the Northern Party's cleared, the first star observations survey cairns situated on Cape Parr, were made. 30 miles distant, was sighted. On January 5, 'by dropping 300 feet, AN INLAND VALLEY rising 500 feet with full loads and It was not until December 22 that another 350 feet after depot-ing all they .were able to leave the high but one day's supplies, they reached country and sledge down into the in­ a col below Station L at 2,000 feet. land valley to position themselves for More bad weather prevented observa­ the first re-supply. In seven miles tions until January 9. By the after­ they dropped 3,000 feet to the valley noon of the l'Oth the party was camp- March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 349 ed further to the west on the east DOWN THE COAST bank of a new glacier at 8.1 0 33' S., The plane arrived on the 24th. Next 160 0 10' E. At this pomt stars -Nere day the party visited a small island again observed, while Laird and Coo­ 10 miles off the coast and sledged per spent 15 hours climbing the higher back to the base line after taking sur­ ridges. vey observations. They then set off down the coast-line, keeping close in to the rock ridges and cliffs inside "RABBIT WARREN" the coastal crevasses, with one man They now proceeded out on to the continually ski-ing in front, roped on to the maintrace. At a prominent glacier itself, but it was necessary 0 0 to camp outside the bordering cape in 81 42'S., 162 30' E., on the crevasses which could not be 28th, they climbed the 1,000 foot seen in the white-out conditions. g1'anite cliffs to the evenly sloping Mure snow fell, and it was not until peneplain surface on top for another January 17 that they were able to survey station. feel their way through the "rabbit­ They now sledged out on to the warren" crevasses out to the centre ice shelf proper, through the thick of the glacier before turning south line of crevasses, prodding the bridges to sledge laboriously in the deep soft all the way. They r,eached their last snow to the westerll side, below an survey station at 81 0 57' S., 165 0 18' ice-field emanating from the foothills E., on the evening of February 3. At of Mt. Nares. their 29th and last camp, 20 miles from Cape Wilson, they waited for The party ski-ed and climbed up the aircraft to arrive. One beautifully into a higher valLey in poor visibility, clear day enabled stars to be observed roped in pairs for most of the six­ again: this was o_f great value, as mile route. Hel'e they examined more from here one of the survey cairns limestone outcrops. left on the south side of the Nimrod On returning to the camp they Glacier in Decemher 1959 was clearly learned from Scott Base that the next visible. This cairn, only eight feet re-supply was to be made on the 20th, high, was 40 miles distant, Mt. Mark­ unexpectedly early, so that plans to ham, Mt. Christchurch, Mt. Longstaff travel through the mountains to the and other features observed during edge of the plateau beyond had to be the season were also visible. abandoned. They sIedged down the A whole-day blizzard necessitated­ glacier to a spot near the centre and the sledges and tents being dug out away from crevasses to receive the twice. The Dakota itself sat leeside Dakota. News that the re-mpply was a stranded helicopter 60 miles to the postponed and that the party must south for two days before it was able be ready to be lifted back to Scott to shadow it to the Bearclmore Wea­ Base on February 5 necessitated the ther Station on February ls. The air­ omission of the proposed section of craft reached the camp at 2 a.m. on coastline between Cape WiIliam Henry the 9th, and five hours later the party May and Cape Wilson. -So they sledg­ was back at Scott Base. ed back, following their old tracks through the glacier crevasses in white­ The ten dogs flown from Greenland out conditions, and by the evening of were split between the two teams in January 21 were ready to receive the the ratio of six and four, changed half­ aircraft at the mouth of Beaumont way through the season to eight and Bay, 81 0 32' S., 161 0 40' E. But a two. The younger Greenland dogs drift storm developed with the wind were sometimes difficult to handle be­ gusting- up to 50 knots, and continued cause of their abundant energy, and until noon on the 23rd. during the breaking-in period several 350 ANTARCTIC March, 1961 had to be treated for bites. But all GEOLOGY pulled extremely well. Folded greywackes along the coas­ Many specimens of lichens and tal range have been intruded and mosses were collected in various lo­ slightly metamorphised by granite, calities. Further inland, shallow-water sedi· ments, consisting of sandstones, con­ glomerates and thin shale bands, only NEW LAND slightly metamorphosed, predominate. Most of the inland range consists of (Malcolm Laird. geologist with the southern folded limestone strata of varying party, ki ndly sllpplies us \vith the following summaris€·d account of the topography and grade and colour. geology of the Nimrod GIacier-Beaumont Bay al'ea.-·Ed.) In three different localities in this range fossils of the sponge-coral, arch­ Two mountain ranges form the east­ aeocyatha, were found, suggesting a ern and western boundaries of the Cambrian age for the limestones. area. The N.N.W. trending block­ faulted coastal range tilts to the east The limestones of the inland range and border.s the Ross Ice Shelf. This were in many places intruded by dol­ range averages 4,5'00 feet in height, erite, which locally altered the lime­ its highest point being the 6,200 ft. stone to low7grade marble. Limestone Mt. Christmas. Thirty miles inland was also visited near Mt. Nares, on another block-faulted range, also the western side of the glacier re­ tI'ending N.N.W., rises to a maximum ferred to above. Not visited, but seen height of approximately 12,000 feet at a ,distance, were flat-lying Beacon in a peak which lies 24 miles north of Sandstones comprising the summits the Nimrod Glacier. of Mt. Nares and the 12,000 ft. peak mentioned in the first paragraph. A To the west of the coastal range a dolerite sill was seen to cap Mt. Albert faulted depression opens to the north Markham. of the Nimrod Glacier. ,Between this and the inland range is another tilted fault block trending parallel to the ranges. ,us southern end is only ap­ ANTARCTIC FLIGHT proximately 1,000 feet above sea level, but it rises steadly northwards until Six members of the R.N.Z.A.F. Ant­ at its northern end it is nearly 6,000 arctic Flight spent three months at feet above sea level. Scott Base preparing workshop facil­ ities for the introduction of Otter air­ craft in October, 1961. GREAT GLACIERS The party under the command of Two major glaciers, rising from the Flight-Lieut. P. Rule (Gisborne) trav­ Polar Plateau, cut across the area. elled in H.M.N.Z.,S. "Endeavour." Other The southern border comprises the members of the party were FI-Sgt. L. 12-mile wide Nimrod Glacier. It fol­ W. Tarr (Thames), Sgt. R. Fergus­ lows the trend of a major transcurrent son (Dunedin), Corp. A. B. Boag fault which has displaced beds in the (Whangarei) and L.A.C. G. A. Hod­ north with respect to those in the son (Blenheim). south. In the north-west of the area The party packed up the Auster air· a smaller glacier flows eastward from craft used in previous seasons, which the Polar Plateau until in the vicinity now lacks the range for providing air of the peak mentioned above it takes support for New Zealand ground par­ a sharp turn to the N.N.E., discharg­ ties working away from Scott Base. ing into the Ross Ice Shelf immedi­ The aircraft will be Teturned to New ately south of Cape Parr. Zealand later. March, 196\ ANTARCTIC 351 NsZ. University Men Explore Koettlitz Area By R. H. WHEELER (,Mr. Wheeler was a member of the University's 1959-60 party, and led the expedition mounted this summer.) A further ice-free area, this time been before examined as a unit until a series of valleys and ridges rather visited by Victoria University of Wel· than a simple valley, occurs in south­ lington Antarctic Expedition 1960/61 western McMurdo Sound some' sixty -it has been referred to as a foot­ miles south of that described in hills or "Southern foothills" area, but Antarctic, December 1960. This they are separated from the Royal "Koettlitz Area" consists of eight Society Range (as stated) in the north minor valleys separated by ridges of by the ten-mile wide Blue Glacier and 3-5,000 feet which run inland from the its tributaries. These foothills or eastern boundary of the region, the ridges attain altitudes of about 4-5,000 Koettlitz Glacier, and terminate in the feet. The pattern changes in the northern two-thirds of the region on south around Mount Dromedary (8,000 the divide of the Blue Glacier and in feet plus) and Mount Kempe (9,800 the southern section against the scarp feet) for here the country is much of the Royal Society Range (12,000 higher and the valley profiles steeper. feet). The valley floors vary in alti­ The glaciers here descend from the tude from 200 feet to 1,500 feet above Mount Kempe ridge, a continuation of sea level and vary in length from two the Royal Society Range, to converge to seven miles, the average being five on Walcott Bay (opposite Heald miles of ice-free floor from Koettlitz Island). East of Mount Dromedary Glacier "shore" to valley glacier snout. there are eastward-facing cirques The ridges average nine miles from 4,000 feet high which terminate in a shore to the western limits of the bare bench above a spectacular trough, a rock area. The Victoria, Wright and former Koettlitz Glacier channel, Taylor valleys by contrast are which strikes north from The Py­ roughly thirty by eight miles, the first ramid. being the only one to have a valley EXTINCT VOLCANOES system and attains a maximum of Not only is this southern area quite ten miles. alpine in appearance but it also con­ The Koettlitz Area of exposed rock tains another characteristic-a pat­ extends fifty miles 205 0 T. from But­ tern of extinct olivine basalt volcan­ ter Point (south side of Blue Glacier) oes. Few are of regular cone shape almost at right angles to the roughly for most are merely volcanic lumps parallel valley-ridge system which has and have spread scoriacious debris an average strike of 110 0 T. The over areas varying from a few square region has two clear boundaries, the yards (about the area of the average Koettlitz Glacier to the east and to size suburban house) to quite large the west the Blue Glacier for two­ patches of a mile or two across. These thirds of the distance south of Butter latter volcanics are usually multiple Point. The southern third abuts exudations. abruptly against the scarp of the It is quite astonishing to observe RoyallSociety Range. a volcano that has had the energy to The Koettlitz Area is only sixty penetrate thousands of feet of country miles from Ross Island and although rock and perhaps a few hundred feet visited on the periphery by expedi­ of moraine attaining a modest height tions in the last fifty years has never of say twenty feet and having a di- 352 ANTARCTIC March, 1961 ameter of twenty yards. The impres­ of the glacier immediately south of sion is that the basaltic flow having the Walcott Glacier indicate that just "made it" to the surface has tired movement over six to seven weeks and remained content with a modest was about two ems. Although ice heap of blocks and breccia and with debris was found no actual falls were the occasional block of baked moraine observed by V.U.W.A.E. 1960/61, but lifted on top of the mound. Some occasional aircraft-crash-like booms flows have poured downhill like black 'were heard .throughout the Area. It molasses, leaving a trail of lava debris i.s problematical whether the loss of sharp and distinct from the biscuit­ ice from the glacial snouts of the coloured country rock. A few bands minor valleys is more than equal to of brick or scarlet-red enliven the flat the gain by an inch movement per blackness of many of these petty vol­ annum for B-2?! miles wide glaciers canics. They form a kittenish con· appear to lose only a few such slabs trast to the big brothers, Mount Dis­ from their snouts each season-slabs covery and Brown Island, just across of 100 feet by, say, 100 yards wide! the Koettlitz Glacier. The basalt The snouts of the glaciers are vertical flows lie both in and on the local mo­ (as are those of Victoria, Wright raine showing that the vulcanism was and Taylor "dry" valleys) which contemporaneous with at least the last would suggest that the forward move" glaciations of the Koettlitz Area. ment of the ice bodies is less than the Some of the earlier volcanics have loss by snout "calving" or ablation by moraines deposited on them or are heat radiation frol11 the valley walls planed off by actual glacial flows. and tI oors. ADVANCE AND RETREAT The glaciers of the valley and ridge There is bountiful evidence that system of the Koettlitz Area have since the valley glaciers' retreat and failed, perhaps for thousands of years, consequent disconnection with the to be' tributary to the Koettlitz Gla­ Koettlitz Glacier the Koettlitz itself cier and remain as remnants occupy­ has, in a subsequent advance, occu· ing the upper third or quarter of their pied the valleys (a re-entrant phase) valleys against the Blue Glacier di­ before assuming its present shrunken vide; but south of the Walcott Glacier, shape a couple of advances later. which forms the boundary to the sou­ Since the Koettlitz Glacier re-entrant thern third of the the Area, the val­ phase the minor valley glaciers have leys are ice occupied for at least half retreated still more (evidence being their length. However, throughout the terminal moraines of the re-entrant whole Area the intervening ridges are Koettlitz ice being black on the down­ free of permanent ice or snow. Thus, valley sides and being brown from but for the moraine of the valley floors local valley moraine on up-valley side). the "Koettlitz Area" is a continuous The minor glaciers show today (1900­ exposure of rock frolll Butter Point 60) evidence of minor and slow re­ to south of The Pyramid. This rock treat, but there is evidence that just is all basement complex ranging from before attaining this position they did the metamorphics of the Hobbs Gla­ advance a few hundreds or thousands cier area to the higher grade meta­ of yards beyond their present posi­ morphism in the south around Mount tions without removing evidence of Dromedary. The Beacon Sandstone­ the Koettlitz Glacier re-entrant phase dolerite sill, "layer cake" geology (small terminal moraines lie 100 yards (mentioned Antarctic, December 1960) before the Walcott Glacier, the north­ of the Victoria and Wright Valleys, is ern ch'que of Mount Dromedary, missing or eroded from here, but it is Dromedary Glacier in The Pyramid plainly seen in the near-vertical 6-8,000 Trough and the Adams-Miers Gla­ feet backdrop of the Royal Society cier) . scarp to· the west. This markedly Preliminary results of measurement banded scarp and range is also clearly March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 353 ----_._------

deposition. This depositional phase of the Koettlitz tells the story of its most recent advances and due to the astonishing freslmess of even the old­ est moraines in Antarctica this is quite striking. Earlier depositional phases consist of volcanic debris brought down from the volcanoes around and beyond (south-west) of Mount Dromedary. These are fresh-looking with promin­ ent lineation of flow or of settling since partial '01' complete ablation of the ice core and are dotted with lines of almost perfectly circular frozen lakes containing red algae. The surface of these "volcanic" moraines despite. their generally fresh appearance shows that they are indeed old, by the fact that the surface layer is of pebbles and these show wind abrasion by rounding and, less often, faceting. Be­ low this pebble veneer is a "soil" a foot or so deep which in turn rests on ullEorted moraine (sand and boulders) encased in permafrost. Two or three miles inland of the Garwood Valley mouth, at less than 100 feet above sea Sketch of Koettlitz Area. Victoria level, ablation collapse besides a cir­ University of Wellington. Antarctic cular lake revealed a section of mor­ Expedition 1960/61. aine which is still ice-cored. For scale see text. Blue Gl. divide Since its grander years the Koett­ dashed. litz Glacier has decreased in height Ross Is. is forty miles 080 0 T. from (almost to sea level) and retreated al­ Butter Point. most to the ice falls either side of Heald Ishnd. The Koettlitz mOl"aiJles visible from McMurdo Base forty (coast of Walcott Bay and that below miles away on Ross Island and is re­ the Ward Valley portal) in the latest corded in some of Ponting's telephotos. of the depositional phases are brown REMNANT moraines with comparatively little vol­ It seems then, that in a study of canic debris (in that they are post­ the glaciation of the Koettlitz Area, volcanic phase) and are ice-cored. two aspects can be studied; the most Ciiffs, 100 feet sheer with ice and mo­ recent history of the Koettlitz tribu­ raine clearly flank the Upper Alph tary glaciers and the older and again River, a melt stream that was most recent history of the Koettlitz reported flowing- by Griffith' Taylor, Glacier itself. The latter. now is a 1913. This ephemeral 'stream ap­ remnant, lying at sea level north of pears to originate at least as far Healc;1 Island, but evidence of its hav­ south or up-glacier as The Pyramid ing been at least 1,800 feet higher is if not as far around as Mount Drome- present in the benches and stepped . dary. spurs on the eastern end of the valley­ Since the volcanic or black moraine ridge system (the Koettlitz Coast). phase of the Koettlitz Glacier depo­ The lower steps on these spurs descend sition there has been a phase of re­ . into the levels of Koettlitz morainal moval as volcanic debris around The THE- "CHOPPER" BRINGS IN THE MAIL Roger Cooper, lan Willis, 'Ralph Wheeler (leader) and Dick Blank (U.S.A.) catch up on home news at a camp in a typical "Koettlitz" valley. Official U.S. Navy Photograph by G. R. Kessens, U.S.N.

Evening inter-party radio "sked" at V.U.W.A.E. field camp: Mt. Huggins (12,000 ft.). in the background. A snowfall has powdered the normally bare ground. Photo: 'Victoria University of Wellington Expedition. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 355

Pyramid and opposite Heald Island the most interesting phenomenon, the has been removed, and a "clean band" wind speed, was omitted on account of of lighter moraine and country rock the total destruction of the hand ane­ exists down to the present Koettlitz mometer during a gale which also Glacier level. This removal does not badly damaged two tents. extend downstream beyond Ward Val­ ICE BREAKS UP ley mouth suggesting that this remov­ al was a short "sharp" surge of the A 50-knot blizzard which began on Koettlitz Glacier, a surge which did the morning of Friday, February 24, not reach far below the bal'l'ier of touched off a rapid break-up of the Heald Island. ice in 'McMurdo Sound, disrupting the off-loading plans of U.S.S. "Al'l1eb" THE SEASON 1960/61 and necessitating the immediate evac­ The five-man V.U.W.A.E. anived in uation of WiIliams Ail' Field. the area i,n cloud, worked in cloud and "Arneb" broke adrift fro,m the ice left in cloud. This theme was punctu­ to which she was moored, and ve­ ated by occasional days of 'snow, of hicles and equipment on the iC'e near­ wind (up to 70 knots at times) and six by floated away ralJidly on the drift­ beautiful fine days. Only two days ing floes. Desperate efforts by out of the sixty-two in the field were "Arneb" and "Eastwind" retrieved a lost on account of falling snow with D4 tractor, two sledges, an aircraft zero visibility. The area lent itself wing and some cargo, but much was to continuous work, for even with lost, including, it was believed, parts wind or low cloud the rock area was for the nuclear pOWEr plant under still geologically explorable. The geo­ construction on Observation Hill. logists walked at least five hundred miles not taking into account the ex­ DISTURBING MESSAGES tra miles for ups and downs, and many Scott Base offered all possible as­ working days lasted over twenty-four sistance. On Saturday evening three hours in the .field. New Zealanders, the last awaiting re­ Three base camps were established turn to this country, were rushed by and t.he parties moved from camp to tractoroot.rain to the new loading-point camp using their pup tents almost con­ in response to an urgent radio mes­ tinuously-two tents per five men. All sage, but a further break-up made it equipment except that of the three necessary to take them back to Scott base camps was back-packed. Packs Base. On the way, open sea was vis­ with scientific gear, radio, camping ible on the right, alarmingly close to equipment and rock specimens were the long-used flagged route over the knocking around the 70-90 pound mark ice, and the tractor-train veered hur­ and the going underfoot alternated be­ riedly closer in to the land. tween steep bare rock and unconsoli­ By this time the sea was within dated moraine. As a result the team two miles of Williams Field and the was fitter,at the end of January than ice was still breaking up. Scott Base it had been at the beginning of De­ intercepted urgent radio messages cember. It seems V.U.W.A.E. was which indicated the desperate battle luckier than the New Zealand dog being waged to save men and mater· team which sledded 600 miles this sea­ ial. For example: son and spent some twenty-seven days From "Arneb"-"We have broken (out of a field season of 88) in the adrift again." sack in snow conditions despite an From McMurdo -' "The flagged initial first month of fine clear route has developed cracks." weather. "Eastwind" steamed in close.to some Glaciological work was done and a stranded men and warned them by gTavimetric travel'se from Butter loud-hailer: "The flagged road is un­ Point to The Pyramid completed. Me­ safe. Do not return to McMurdo," teorological readings were taken but and told them to raise theh' hands to 356 ANTARCTIC March, 1961 indicate that' they had understood the pIes we1~e obtained over the area be­ message. tween New Zealand and the ocean An American helicopter could be weather station which the ship occu'­ heard circling overhead despite the pies. The D,S. Naval Authorities in blizzard conditions, directing opera­ New Zealand and the ship itself pro­ tions. The New Zealanders at Scott vided the utmost co-operation and Base followed these dramatic develop­ assistance. On February 23, two New ments with absorbed interest, and with Zealand oceanographers sailed from admiration. The New Zealand "pas­ 'McMurdo Sound on D.S.S. "Edisto" sengers" were finally embarbed on the to work with the D.S. Hydrographic 27th. Office oceanographer on board in the OOEANOGRAPHY north-western sector of the Ross Sea. During this Antarctic summer sea­ son 'a number of separate oceanogra­ YOUR OPPORTUNITY phic investigations have been made. FOR The principal of ~hese has been the thtee-month long investigation of the ANTARCTIC WORK c'urrents and hydrology in McMurdo The Antarctic Division D.S.I.R. are Sound by a team led by Alex Gil­ wanting a young lady to fill the mour. This has produced some very position of Clerical Assistant in the fine continuous series of current ob­ Divisions Office in Wellington. The servations ancl has greatly extended work is interesting and varied in the the work initiated two winters ago. administrative details of Antarctic activities. Applications can be sent Currents have been measured with to the Administration Officer, An­ meters arid by reco1'ding the induced tarctic Division, P.O. Box 6022, electrical cUl'l'ents bet\\;een two elec­ W'ellington, or telephone 48-650 trodes. The oceanographic party of Ext. 863 for an interview. two was augmented by three of the winter party personnel f1'om Scott Visitors to the Ross Dependency Base and received' considerable help this summer included some of the from these extra hands. youngest men ever to go to the Ant­ A progranune of photography of ice arctic. Two New Zealand volunteer conditions from Arrival Heights was naval reservists, Malcolm and Tony kE:pt 'up during the party's stay at Frith, aged, 19 'and, 17 respectively, Scott ,Base,. sailed, on: "Endeavour" during her Circumstances prevented the pro­ three months' southern cruise. George gramme of, sampling on Macquarie Knowles, a 17-year-old Hutt Valley Rise' a'nd Balleny to Scott Island Rise, High School boy and the son of Com­ planned for the voyage south, bei.ng mander L. C. Knowles, D.S. Naval carried out. To support the current Attache" travelled south on American measurements in McMurdo Sound an ships for a short visit. extensive series of hydrological sta­ ICE BLOCR MOVES tions was occupied in McMurdo Sound Some five years ago a section of and in the western Ross Sea by an the Ross Ice Shelf about 100 square oceanographic party augmented by miles in area broke off and lodged in those \\rho had travelled south on "En­ the 10-mile wide strait between Beau­ deavour". This operation was success­ fort Island and Gape Bird. When "En­ fully concluded and the opportunity deavou'r" entered McMm;

The ward-room of Scott's hut at Cape Evans restored. Scott's cubicle beyond wall on left: door of Ponting's dark-room rear centre: laboratories at back on the right. . Pholo: L. B. Quartennain. tion that one of them found a sheet party. This would appeal' to be the of paper bearing a rough drawing of original of the meteorological record a cross and the very inscription so referred to in the "Letter to the Edi­ keenly desired. Another rather mov­ tor" by Mr. F. Loewe in the Decem­ ing piece of writing was what seems ber "Antarctic". It is curious, if so, to have been a "notice"-author un­ that the two sets of observations known- should have turned up, 44 years after "Please leave the dishes clean. Re­ their recording, a few months apart, member, you are going out full, but one in Australia and one in the spot the man coming in has an empty where the records were noted down. belly." At the head of the bunk occupied in Perhaps some reader can throw 1912 by Day and in 1916 by Richards, light on the writer of this notice. was found another black note book Picking away cautiously where ap­ containing the diary of a sledge jour­ parently a shelf had collapsed under ney made in early 1915 by Richards the weight of snow, spilling its con­ ( ?), Ninnis and Hooke. tents onto the floor, where they had long since become frozen into a mass GALLEY AND LAts. of ice, the leader dug out what at first So much was dug out of the con­ looked like a curved piece of coal aboul; cealing ice that it was possible to re­ six inches long: but as he was about store Tom Clissold's galley to Eome­ to throw it out with the rubbish, thing like the appearance of a going some slight resemblance to a book concern; and the same could be said caught his attention. Careful de-icing of the laboratories at the other end did reveal a book, a black note book of the hut, where the tables and containing the roughly-noted meteoro­ shelves again groan under the weight logical observations of the 1915-17 of bottles-many of them stilI holding 360 ANTARCTIC March,' 1961 the original contents-and scientific HALL£TT RE'SCUE apparatus. The air-pump ~nd petrol engine of Scott's day are stIli there. The V.S.S. Staten Island" evacll­ Some previous visitors to the old ated a construction mechanic frol11 huts forgetting the "atmosphere" Hallett Station on December 14. created by genuine relics i~l such his­ On December 12 the "Staten toric shrines, have taken away sev­ Island," while underway. from Lyt­ eral :;:Iedges. But a few more were t1eton with supplies for McMurdo, re­ found by the restoration party and ceived the message that a Seabee had carefully dug out of the ice. These suffered a mild stroke. The icebreaker al'e now, and, one hopes, will remain immediately headed for Hallett Sta­ where they ought to be-in the huts tion, which was 130 miles off the 'where the men lived who used them. ship's course to McMurdo. The breaker moved through five-tenths ice coverage from three to seven feet AS IT ONCE WAS thick and reached a point twenty miles off the coast from the station Visitors have frequently been taken on the morning of December 14. to Cape Royds on V.S.-helicopter L.T.J.G. J. C. Thorpe flew the ship's flights from McMurdo, but not many larger helicopter the remaining twenty to Cape Evans, since it has been diffi­ miles to the station. cult to get in and virtnally impossible Two V.S. Navy doctors went along to see very much even when an entry to attend the stricken Seabee. The could be made. But now the old hut ship's smaller helicopter stood by in of so many memories is fully revealed, an air-rescue capacity. Once the heli­ 100kinO' much as it must have looked copters were back on the ship with 50 ye::rs ago, save that the clothing their passenger, the icebreaker headed hanging on the bunks and walls is for N.A.F. McMurdo. the dirty, dilapidated clothing of men who for two years suffered great pri­ STAFF FOR 1961 vations. There is the table round Three New Zealand scientists will which Scott's officers gathered for carry out auroral, geological, ion?­ their meals, and the chairs on which spheric physics, seismic and cosmIC they sat: here is the ramshackle bunk ray observations. Three V.S. me­ which Oates built-only held up, it teorologists and three Naval aer?­ would seem, by being nailed to one of O'raphers will make daily upper all' the others: and there by contrast is ~nd surface weather observations and the elaborately fitted double bunk of an auroral physicist will be engaged Nelson and Day, with its shelves and in the study of auroral and ail' glow dl'awers and carved "bed posts". observations. A doctor and six other Scott's own cubicle is there, and the Naval personnel will run the station. table at which he wrote. And across The medical officer, Dr. Kelly, is also from it is the cold corner where Lieu­ Station Commander, and the Scientific tenant Evans and Dr. Wilson lived, Leader this year is an Amel'ican, R. with rolls of cotton wool and a book Titus. ~, on mineralogy-and an Emperor pen­ 1 guin in perfect preservation. And Ponting's darkroom is still well stock­ opportunity to revisit the scene of ed with. chemicals, trays, measuring their youthful adventures and to eX­ glasses and tripods: the restoration perience the joy that Sir Charl~s party .remembered it was very cold Wright so obviously felt when he VIS­ even in 'his day and Jid not disturb ited the hut at Cape Evans during the magnificent icicles. the later stages of the excavation, and One hopes that many of the veter­ stood beside the bunk which he had ans still with us will be given the occupied 50 years before. March, 1961 ANtARCTIC 361

The New Zealand team reached Hallett on October 30, reports Peter AT CAPE ADARE Martin. "Almost a week ago," he wrote on !November 12, "the first eggs Two New Zealand scientists, Brian began to appeal' in the penguin col­ E. Reid and Dr. Colin Bailey, spent ony. At present, according to biol­ three weeks in January at Cape ogist Brian Reid, we have about 150,­ Adare, the historic site of man's first 000 penguins around us. We have recorded landing on the Antarctic con­ also had the odd visit from the Em­ tinent (Bull and others in 1895) and peror penguin. The sea-ice in Hallett of the first planned wintering over Inlet is now getting very thin and on Antarctic soil (Borchgrevink's the expected break-up in a week 01' so party in 1899-1900). will terminate all flights in from Mc­ The New Zealanders' purpose was Mm'do Sound. Assisting Brian Reid to make a further study of the hab­ with his ·biological work this summer its of the Adelie penguins, of whom is Dr. Cotin Bailey from last season's Mr. Reid estimates there were half Scott Base party." a million at Cape Adare at th~ time WEATHERBODND .of their stay. They were flown in to Scott Base reported on March 6 that the nttle beach by helicopter from the transport ship D.S.S. "Arneb" and D.S.C.G.C. "Eastwind." The two ml:!n the icebreaker D.S.S. "Edisto" were made careful counts of the penguins weatherbound off Hallett Station. On in the various "colonies". 'We now Saturday evening the commanding have the basis for future study of this officer of the station, Lieut. Cdr. rookery''', said Mr. Reid. Any signifi­ Kelly, was unable to leave "Arneb", cant changes in population can. now while the senior scientist, R. Titus, be noted. was stranded on "Edisto". The wind was gusting to 50 knots. Cape Adare lIved up to its windy While this would not be considered reputation and at times the winds strong by some New Zealand stand­ picked up rocks and hurled them ards; the snow that this southerly through the tents. "It was the incon­ wind blows up from the head of the venience of being literally 'rocked' to bay, as well as the sub-zero tempera­ sleep," said Mr. Reid, "that made us tures, is i;iufficient to paralyse unload­ decide to dig out one of the old nuts". ili g operations and is (l.efinitely un­ There have been three huts at Cape safe for helicopters to fly in. Adare, all close tDgether on "Ridley Beach". Borchgrevink's ten-man party erected two: one of these, how· Dr. Giovanni Brunelli Bonetti is "a passionate ever, has long been a near-ruin. The collector of naval stamps" and \\ ants pictures (post-card size) Hud technical and historical in­ third hut was erected by the northern formaiion about the ships reproduced on the party of ScoWs Last Expedition under Falkland Islands Dependencies stamps of 1954; John Biscoe. Trepassey. Wyatt Earp, Eagle, V. A. Campbell in 1911. It was not Penola. DiscovE'ry, William Scoresby. Discov­ well constructed and is now in ruins. ery If, Endurance, Deutschland. Pourquoi Pa::; 'f Francois, Scotia, Antarctic and Belgica. Borchgrevink's living hut, a solidly He will be grateful "for every bit of infor­ mation" and will be glad to pay what is constructed building 15 ft. by 15 ft., ne€de(1. His address is Via Francesco Moro- was found filled with hard-packed si ne 12 Ven€'zia-lido. Italy. snow, which the two New Zealanders dug out. In the process they Jound The first Brazilian scientist to visit foodstuffs such as cans of pea soup the Antarctic is Mr. Rubens Villela, and tins of chocolate, and numerous an American-trained meteorologist, other relics of Borchgrevink's party. employed by Rio Airlines. He travelled There were scientific journals dating on D.S.S. "Glacier" on the An1l111 d­ back to the mid 1800's. sen Sea voyage. Reid and Bailey visited the gl'ave 362 ANTARCTIC MarctJ, 1961 FRENCH BASE IN ADELIE LAND TO BE REBUILT The eleventh 'French Antarctic Expedition will concentrate on preparations for an extensive building programme and for inland journeys during the 1961­ 62 summer.

The 31 members of the 1960-61 This year's party expects to supple­ French team gathered at Hobart when ment its rations by using the sweet the expedition ship "Norsel" arrived fish found in Antarctic water, which there on December 18. Twenty-five requires special cooking to be really of them had reached Fremantle in palatable. The Frenchmen are taking' the liner "Himalaya" on December 5 radishes and lettuce, "which, it has and had then continued to Hobart. been found, can be grown successfully On "Norsel" were six other men, in­ under electric heat. cluding the leadel' of this year's win­ tering team, Dl'. Fernand E. Digeon "NORSEL'S" LAST VOYAGE (35). Eighteen of the party will spend "Norsel" sailed from Hobart on the year' in Adelie Land. The ten December 26 and was expected to re= scientists among them will study the tUl'l1 about the end of February. This ionosphere, meteorology, geology, au­ will be her last Antarctic voyage, as rora, seismology and ecology and a the vessel is regarded as too small psychologist will study the behaviour for the purpose. A heavy gale, which of the men. lasted 22 hours, slowed down the ves­ "Norsel's" captain,T. Torgersen, is se1"s speed, but she arrived at Du­ making his seventh voyage to the Ant­ mont d'Urville Base during the night arctic, five of them for French expe­ of January 2-3 after a rough voyage. ditions. "Norsel" has a crew of 16. The new team reported the base to be On 'board, besides supplies, are a heli­ "impeccably clean" and greatly im­ copter, three snow tractors, and a proved. They received a "first class special boat for hydrogTaphical work. welcome" from the old campaigners. Among the passengers was 22-year­ For the first time, a French ex­ old Martial Monbeig-Andrian, who pedition includes a trained psycholo­ won a competition, the prize for which gist among its members. He is Dl'. was a trip to Adelie Land. The Amer­ Francois Perrier, a highly qualified ican observer for the voyage is Cap­ 29-year-old who normally works in a tain WiIliam Watkins, Jr. big Paris hospital. He will study the "Norsel" arrived back at Hobart reaction of the men to the abnormal on February 10 after a six days' rough conditions of an Antal'ctic base, and voyage. will report to the authorities respon­ SUMMER PLANS sible for the choice of future teams. Weasels will be used to lay depots In addition to the usual programme to the south in preparation for an of scientific research, the following extensive interior exploration to be topographical programme is planned: carried out by the next expeditIon. A detailed survey of l'I1e des Pet­ rels (on which Dumont d'Urville Base is located) and the Pointe Geologie of Nicolai Hanson, on the plateau moraine: above the cape. The metal plaque on A bathymetric survey to the west of the iron cross marking the grave l'lIe des Petrels in preparation for l'eads: "N. Hanson, zoologist, Norge, the setting' up of an unloading pon­ 28/10/1899. 28 years". toon. March, 1961. ANTARCTIC 363

BUILDING PROGRAMME The old Dumont d'Urville Station, THE WHALERS constructed for the I.G.Y. period, is As the result of talks in Tokyo in no longer adequate, and a new per­ December between representatives of manent station is to be built north of Australian and Japanese whaling in­ the present site, on the summit of the terests, Japan has agreed to. re­ island. There will probably be a strict humpback whaling operatIOns science block comprising several la­ in no. 4 area of the Antarctic to two boratories, some detached: a dormitory days instead of four next season. This, block: mess-room and a central gen­ says the Australian Primary Industry erator-room. The old buildings will Minister, could have great importance be used as store-rooms. for the whaling industry in Western The projected :surveys are in pre­ Australia, which depends for its sup­ paration for these new installations. plies of humpback whales on those Meanwhile, this season, it was pro­ which migrate each year up and down posed to erect two un-heated shelters, the west coast to the summer feeding a building to house the new 35mm. grounds in Antarctic No. 4 area. panoramic camera, and a seismogra­ Other pelagic whaling countries phic hut. A "laboratory caravan" were being notified of this decision, used on the International Glaciological said the Minister. Expedition in Greenland has been re­ conditioned and is being taken to Ade­ lie ):.,and for use by the biologists. WHALES GET WISE' MORE VEHICLES Captain I. J. Kleyn, of the Dutch refinery ship Willem Barendsz said Three weasels used in the Antarctic at Capetown that the whales are in 1956 have been reconditioned. In using tactics reminiscent of wartime preparation for the extensive scien­ shipping convoys. tific field programme envisaged for They have discovered that they have 1962 a fuel depot is to be established better chances of escape if the schools between 100 and 200 kilometres from scatter when they are attacked. the Base in the direction of the de­ "There was a time when we could activated 'Charcot Base. be fa·irly certain of capturing a school A helicopter platform 4 x 4m. is to at a time," he 'said. "These days, the be constructed which will permit heli­ animals hear the chasers approach_ copter landings even under 'tempest ing and scatter in all directions at conditions. high speed. They do sharp turns and With the heavy building programme sometimes come up astern of the for next year in mind, 20 collapsible chaser. bunks are being taken to Dumont "Whales have become increasingly d'Urville so that the garage can be conscious of the presence of danger, quickly converted into a dormitory. and the successive generations seem Four boats have also been taken to to inherit caution." the Base three (Christiane, Evelyne and Chri~tel) for hydrographic work, coastal ecology and as a helicopter­ team respectively, arid one (Annie) for unloading hydrographer's appara­ tween the 9th and 16th October, five tus on rocky islets and coasts. All the volunteers under Dr. Dumas took part craft are specially strengthened in a programme of medical research. for working amongst ice and rocks, They camped in tents at the Nunatak and are particularly seaworthy. 1500 metres from the base. The seismologists' shelters were AT DUMONT d'URVILLE flooded follOWing a heavy snowfall on Spring activity began early. Be- the 7th and 8th of December. 364 ANTARCTIC March, 1961 ',TWO SHIPS CARRY OUT RELIEF OF AUSTRALIAN STATIONS

Two chartered vessels, "Magga Dan" and "Thala Dan," were used by the Australian National Antarctic Research Expedition (ANARE) from Novemb~r to February to effect the relief of the stations at Mawson, Davis, Wilkes and Macquarie Island.

The first station relieved in the NEW WEATHER STATION 1960-61 season wasWilkes, where the ON CHICK ISLAND "Magga Dan" arrived on January 2, Extremely difficult pack ice condi­ bringing the new party, led by Neville tions 11ampered the establishing of Smethurst. Leading the expedition Australia's second automatic weather was 'Mr. P. G. Law, D,irector of the station at Chick Island, a rocky out­ Antarctic Division of the Department crop close to the edge of the continent. of External Affairs. Law an<;l·a party It is south of Western Australia, and of six on the launch "Macpherson Rob­ 320 miles east of Wilkes station. The I J ertson" went 13 miles along, the coast first Australian automatic weather to land on Ardery and Pedersen Is, station on the Antarctic coast was set lands. ' up at Lewis Island three years ago. The "Magga Dan" ,approached the ",Magga Dan" left Wilkes in the late Chick Island area on February 18. afternoon Of Thursday, January 12, Mr. Law and Captain Pedersen made bound'for Fremantle. About an hour a reconnaissance of the area in a before midnight the ship entered the "Bell" helicopter. A useful open pack ice through which she ploughed water lead of a few miles was found until stopped early on January 13, in otherwise impenetrable ice. The 55 miles north of Wilkes. She finally ship, however, was closed in by the reached Fremantle on January 22 with ice as it proceeded and twice stuck the party under Hany Black, who fast, with the result that it had to be had wintered at Wilkes during 1960. winched out backwards, using anchors. It took six hours to travel two miles. A further open lead was closed by the SECOND VOYAGE pressure of the ice. The ship was again held fast still some miles from After a two-day turn around a large accumulation of majestic "Magga Dan" sailed again for Ant, grounded bergs known as the "Dalton arctica on January 25 carrying 26 pas­ Icebel'g Tongue". sengers, of whom 11 were a section The 19th was a day of anxiety with of the party to man Mawson Station fluctuating fortunes. A further re­ during 1961 and 15 others were connaissance by helicopter enabled the travelling on the ship during her two ship to. reach the iceberg tongue pro­ months' voyage of exploration and truding 60 miles from the coast, but research. Mr: Law was leader of the five miles of unbroken ice, formed last party aboard the ship again on' this winter, baned the way to Chick Is­ voyage. "Magga Dan" this time car­ land. It was decided to airlift by ri~d a Beaver, two float-planes and t'Wo helicopter the entire new station, in­ Bell helicopters. She first made for cluding prefabricated hut, aerials and 'Mawson and then sailed in an'easterly generator, if the ship could be brought direction along the ed'ge of the Ant­ to the ice edge. The ship stuck fast arctic Continent. once more. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 365

BUIJ"DING BY HELICOPTER bled radio mast into a vertical position A later message from the "Magga on its base. ... Dan" said: . "February 22 saw all construction "On Monday, February 20, at 4 and installation completed. Testing a.m., after an 'hour's struggle, we was carried out on the equipment, freed our ice,gripped vessel and traced which wBr' measure barometric pres­ our steps to the iceberg tongue where sure, ail' temperature, wind speed and the ice had opened up overnight. Our direction, and transmit the results au­ luck changed from that point. We had tomatically by radio every six hours to a fast easy run through water cov­ Wilkes which will re-transmit it to ered by newly frozen ice, with no Australia. pack ice, between icebergs until 9 a.m. "The ship now moved out to open when the ship tied up alongside the water and the Beaver made a photo­ edge of unbroken shore (fast ice) six graphic reconnaissance flight of 150 miles north of Chick Island. miles of the coast east of Chick 'Is­ "We flew in 'by helicopter to sur­ land." vey the site of the new station. The A Canberra message dated Febru­ island comprises two rock outcrops ary 28 stated that "Magga Dan" had connected by sea ice protruding from been held fast by -converging pack ice the edge of the continental ice. Sur­ and giant icebergs off Chick Island, roundings are bleak and desolate. but had broken free. "Helicopters now began to airlift 10 tons of equipment and 20 men to Chick NEW LANDINGS Island. As the cargo was unloaded from the ship onto the ice, men un­ On March 3 '~Magga Dan" pushed packed crates and carried the con­ south along the meridian of 159 0 E. tents 20 yards to the helicopter ice near the boundary between Australian port, where cargo was either lashed on Antarctic Territory and the Ross De­ the sides of the machines 01' hoisted pendency. in a sling hanging from underneath. 'The ship used its searchlight "At Chick Island, the -helicopters throughout the night. Next morning landed the cargo on a snow slope from the Antarctic continent was visible which the men carried it up over rocks 50 miles away, with many high snow­ and ice to the summit of a rocky ridge covered mountain peaks. By 5.30 p.m. about 60 yards long and 40 feet high. "Magga Dan" was jammed immovably Some heavy loads were landed direct­ in heavy floes where she remained lyon the summit. overnight. In the morning two "Parties worked building the hut, helicopters carried a geologist and a assen,bling masts and aerials, erect­ geophysicist to land them on a 3000 ing a large tripod tower carrying ft. peak. the heavy wind generator, installing By noon the ice relaxed its grip and batteries and electrical equipment, and allowed the ship to reach open coastal mounting meteorological instruments. waters at the ice edge on the far side When work ceased at 7 p.m. the heli­ of Davis Bay. The helicopters return­ copters had made more than 50 trips. ed to the ship at 2.30 p.m. with geo­ logical specimens and magnetic obser­ THE ACROBATIC "CHOPPER" vations. High winds forced the "February 21 again was perfectly abandonment of plans to make further fine, and work continued steadily. This exploration flights. was the helicopters' day. They made 'The reconnaissance showed a very over 80 flights between 5.30 a.m. and interesting coastline of rock Ibluff, ice 7.30 p.m. and performed feats such as slopes and glaciers. 'Inland, about 20 lowering a heavy radio cabinet direct to 30 miles from the coast, and to the through a hole in the roof into the east, there were seen some impressive hut, and directly lowering an assem- peaks, some 8,000 feet or higher. 366 ANTARCTIC March, 196/

"THALA DAN" from the rocky hills on shore, but was prevented from approaching any near­ Meanwhile at Davis Station "Thala er by solid fast ice attached to the Dan" had arrived on January 21. On shore and dotted with iceber·gs. At the 16th she had called at the Rus­ that point astronomical observations sian Mil'l1Y base. 30 men flew to the wel'e taken on the fast ice a quarter base and were detained there over of a mile from the ship. The position night by a storm. Unloading was com­ of a shore feature was then calcu­ pleted by the morning of the 26th lated by triangulation. and that afternoon "Thala Dan" sailed for Mawson with the remainder of the The ship then pushed out to sea 1961 wintering party. At Mawson through the belt of heavy pack ice a major construction programme was past immense icebergs up to eight undertaken, and also at the ice field, miles long. She then probed further 10 miles further south. east. At the third probe a pool of open During February, landings on the water was found stretching ·down the Enderby Land coast, 400 to 500 miles coast of an unnamed peninsula into an west of Mawson, revealed that the excellent wide bay full of ice'bergs tentative coast line shown on existing which originated from a very active maps will need to be moved up to 14 glacitr in the south-east corner. miles south. Thi.re were several miles of rocky In addition to the direct participa­ hills with a reddish tinge along the tion of Americans in this programme southern shore of this bay. "Thala there was another instance of the in­ Dan" was moored to the edge of the ternational co-operation characteristic ice shelf in a very small sheltered of recent activity in Antarctica. Aus­ cove. Here observations were made, tralians on "Thala Dan" and Japan­ whenever the weather permitted, at ese further west on "Soya" exchanged all points within a 12 mile radius and weather and ice information. wherever accessible in a motor launch. In order to reach the coast "Thala After completing their work on Dan" 'had to penetrate vast fields of February 24, the party set out for heavy pack ice with varying degrees of Mawson to pick up the remainder of success. At 'her furthest west she the group and return to Australia via reached a point which was 18 miles Heard and Kerguelen Islands. Mawson Blizzard Wrecks Aircraft

Australians working at Mawson The 'blizzard was one of the worst suffered a severe loss when two of ever experienced at Mawson, and was their aircraft were destroyed in a associated with a deep depression in blizzard on December 9. The only the Southern Ocean. The barometer consolation is that loss of life and fell to 27.9 inches. Hurricane force serious injury to personnel have not winds bore down on Mawson and the accompanied the blizzard which des­ ice plateau behind the station. Gusts troyed the Dakota and Beaver air­ at Mawson were as high as 116 m.p.h., craft. with the wind blowing for hours at about 80 m.p.h. Up on the ice plat­ :Messages from Mawson had to be forwarded over makeshift aerials eau nearby, at the airfield, they were erected after the permanent radio estimated to be even higher. Some aerials had 'been destroyed by the idea of the force of the hurricane is great force of the storm. given by the fact that during the March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 367

attempted rescue operations, men The large plane was near the top of were lifted bodily into the ail' and an ice cliff 350 feet high and over­ thrown yards away to slide helplessly looking the sea ice below. It was ovel' the ice until rescued. Only the wedged in a crevasse and had its prompt action of men in holding on tD undercarriage and starboard wing .. each other prevented others being smashed. The fuselage, including the blown away with the wrecked parts of tail section, and the port wing were the Beaver aircraft which they were not nearly so seriously damaged. Valu­ trying to save. Nothing further able navigational and other instru­ could be done without clearly jeopard­ ments were removed and taken to ising the lives of the men. Mawson 'by dog sledge. PLANE DISAPPEARS It is hoped that if the ice cliff does The Dakota earlier in the year had not brea'k away in the meantime, by weathered winds of 110 m.p.h. The 'May next year 'when the sea ice is most thorough methods of tie-down firmer a further salvage operation will were devised and were still operating lead to recovery of the remaining when the blizzard struck. The front larger components of the aircraft. tie-downcllible of the Dakota broke inside the ice where it was secured. MAWSON The fifteen-ton cable sheared at the After the change of personnel on junction to the undercarriage, and October 22, Camp 26, or Binders' both seven-ton wing tie-down cables Base, in the southem Prince Charles failed. 'The Dakota disappeared and Mountains, approximately 350 miles was not found until two days later. south of Mawson, was occupied by The Beaver was not large enough to Ruker, 'Collins, Bird, Kellas and Zak­ bl'eak its cables; the tie-down lugs on haroff. Binders' Base is a lonely out­ the aircraft broke and the men then post at the foot of the mountains, most had the painful experience of watch­ of the time hidden in dense snowdrift, ing helplessly while the plane itself with temperatures between minus 20 disintegrated. The wings pulled out and 40 degrees Fahrenheit and with from the wing roots and the rear the sun providing continuous light fuselage fractured. Back broken and 24 hours a day. wings torn apart, the plane rapidly broke up. The workshop caravan on INTO THE FIELD the airfield broke its guys and was On 'October 27 at 8.30 p.l11., with blown away. the temperature at minus 42 degrees, At Mawson, lumps of ice bombard­ geologist Ruker headed his dog team ed the huts. Forty-four gallon drums for the mountains north of the Fisher of fuel left their stack and careered Glacier. He was followed ,by Collins down to the rocks at the edge of the and Bird, acting as wireless operator harbour. The blizzard was accom­ in the Weasel. They mapped and panied by very strong drift and wet named mountains never before visited. snow. Sleet transformed the rocks at They covered 230 miles and returned the' station into an ice rink, so slip­ to Binders' Base after 30 days, travel­ pery that Cl'ampons were needed to ling over heavily crevassed areas of enable the men to move safely from blue ice and soft snow, in low tem­ hut to 'hut. peratures and icy winds. Sometimes A search for the Dakota was made they were handicapped by fighting immediately there was some modera­ dogs and mechanical troubles, and at tion of blizzard conditions. Even then one time the weasel broke the surface, the search parties were working in showing a bottomless crevasse. They winds of 40 m.p.h. The aircraft had were just clinging to the edge and it been carried a distance of ten miles required hours of hard work to bring to a point eight miles west of Mawson it to safe ground again. The work Station. resulted in a complete geological sur- 368 ANTARCTIC March, 1961 vey of 'Mounts Rymill, Seddon, Dum­ riggee! early and were certainly mett, McCauley and Scherger. Mount needed. Rymill was climbed and a cairn A Russian plane from Lazarev, de­ erected on its summt. layed at .soya Base for several days, In the meantime, Kellas and Zak­ landed near "Rumdoodle" on Febru­ haron remained at Binders' Base, ary 2l. manning A.N.A.R.E's first inland After a delay due to the weather, meteorologieal station supplying Maw­ the Rumdoodle-Framnes Mountains son and Australia with important wea­ party of four left on March 1 with a ther information and at the same time "snowtrac" weasel and two sledges. linking Mawson with the field party. One day Kellas registered four feet DAVIS of snowfall in 24 hours. All were re­ turned to Mawson on November 30 Davis witnessed the slow arrival of except Ruker who returned on a flight Antarctic summer, bringing with it on December 4. occasional above freezing tempera­ hues and great changes in local snow and ice conditions. LIVING OFF THE LAND By December 20 most ,of the Vest­ On November 15 the Beaver left fold Hills area was now completely Mawson with Kichenside, Kirkby, Fel­ free of snow, but the immediate sta­ ton and Dyer to carry out a survey tion area remained partially drifted programme in Enderby Land and over. The main living huts, though Amundsen Bay. At the same time not covered to roof level, were still this was a test as a survival exercise, hidden from full view, but the out­ depending on tents and field rations, lying huts were clear of snow. supplemented by fish, penguin eggs, penguin and seal meat, all caught by BLIZZARDS the party. They completed the en­ tire programme in twelve days and dis­ After the middle of October Davis covered two new Emperor Penguin experienced three severe blizzards: rookeries. October 29-'31, maximum wind gust In the meantime, seven other mem­ 96 knots; November 11-12, maximum bers of the Antarctic flight, under wind -gust 64 knots; December 9-10, the command of Bloomfield, took the maximum wind gust 91 knots. The Dakota to Davis and completed the last of these, occurring at the time of photographic programme in that the disastrous blizzard at IMawson, area. was particularly unpleasant at Davis, On N ovembel' 27 a Russian aircraft due to large volumes of drifting sand under the command of 'Capt. Pimenov, which were blown from snow free brought 16 Russians, led by Dr. Korot­ areas near to the plateau edge. This kevitch, the Russian expedition leader, blizzard, however, effected the long to Mawson. They only intended to awaited 'breakout of sea ice and, be­ refuel at Mawson but weather condi­ cause in this way it disposed of all tons delayed their departure until rubbish accumulated during the last November 29. It was a very pleasant ten months, it could be said to have visit and enjoyed by .everyone. been a welcome iblow. No major dam­ On December 6 Collins, Merrick age was caused by any of these and Kellas connected Mawson with a blizzards. meltwater lake situated in West Bay The disappearance of sea ice tem­ and everything that could hold water porarily stopped visits to island pen­ in the camp was filled. guin rookeries, but it was hoped that Most of the gear was safely stowed the motor boat would soon be in oper­ before the first blizzard, which raged ation. The use of tractors is once again from February 16 to 21, reaching a restricted to the station area and dogs peak of 116 m.p.h. "Blitz lines" were are out of a job until next year. M~rch, 1961 ANiARC'rIC

During their final three 01' foul' two flights 'being carried out in the weeks all the boys devoted their ener­ Davis area. gies towards those jobs necessary to During the last month before relief prepare the station for the change­ the Davis men were forced to cut over. Continuous daylight lent itself their meteorological programme seri­ well to outside work but fluctuating ously by reducing radiosonde and ra­ temperatures and wi11dy conditions win balloon flights to once every five hampered exterior painting. and ten days respectively, these bal­ loon flights having been previously daily events. Such measures were VISITORS brought about by deterioration of a October 24 saw the r,eturn of the percentage of the radio-sonde bat­ . Dakota to Davis with seven of teries for which there were no sub­ R.A.A.F. Antarctic Flight and surveyor stitutes. However, visual balloon Kirkby, only to be grounded by bad flights to some extent filled the gap. weather and engine trouble for over On February 16-18 Davis gave its a week. The aircraft returned to new team their first taste of Ant­ Mawson on November 1 for an engine arctic weather with winds of 82 m.p.h. change. During the third week of Apart from downed power lines there November the Dakota again returned was no damage. The Gardner Island to Davis with Dr. Newton as pas­ snow petrel nesting sites were visited senger. This stay was a short one, only during the month. Australians from Wilkes SIta'lion Explore New Land A small party of Australians left The group of five men was led by Wilkes Station on November 15, and H. Black, officer-in-charge of Wilkes by the end of the month were 180 miles station. The other members of the south of S2 at an estimated altitude party were Campbell, Lunde, Harrop of 7,000 feet. and Butling. The small train of Four blizzards, including one which vehicles consisted of a snocat, two brought a glaciological field party to weasels, a caravan and five sledges. a standstill for a week, did not daunt ON THE ICE CAP the five men of this field party. It re­ It was found that the surface of the turned to its base after a month in the ice cap rises steeply; fifty miles inland field, where it carried out a detailed it is 3,780 feet above sea level. More programme of ice and snow measure­ than three quarters of this altitude is ments over a distance of 230 miles made up of solid ice overlying the due south towards the centre of the rock below. Antarctic plateau. A further 180 miles inland the alti­ UNKNOWN LAND tude, 7,050 feet, is nearly doubled. The party's traverse took it through Over this last stretch of the journey, previously unexplored territory to a solid timber markers, seven feet high point over 7,000 feet above sea level, and surmounted by a pennant, were and on the 69th parallel. At their driven into the ice at intervals of one farthest postion inland, the men en­ mile. These mile posts served to flag tered the land of the midnight sun. a safe route into the interior for fur­ Despite continuous light, the men had ther exploration. At these points an no difficulty in sleeping, after long altitude reading was made and three and sustained battles against the wind samples of snow taken. and the cold; temperatures were as At intervals of five miles the depth low as minus 54 degrees Fahrenheit. of the snow was recorded, as well as 370 AI'-IfARCTIC March, 1961 the direction and height of the sas­ departure of the party before ap­ trugi. In the "ice desert" these are proaching and eating the scraps of comparable to, but on a smaller scale food left behind. than, the sand dunes in the land des­ NEW PARTY erts. The Wilkes party had to nego­ tiate sastrugi up to four feet high, a The 1961 party took over the sta­ very formidable obstacle to both trac­ tion on January 11. After three weeks -, tors and men in strong winds and everyone settled into steady routine. severe cold. The station was much larger than everyo.ne expected, with a well-equip­ FEATURELESS LAND ped library, kitchen, science block, Navigation was also very difficult garage, plumbing shop, comfortable because of two factors. Firstly, there mess, recreation room and sleeping was the complete absence of exposed quarters. rock 01' distinct surfaces features such Everyone worked long hours. Hick­ as hills 01' mountains. Secondly, dur­ ey (plumber), supervised the erection the expedition there occurred the long­ of new fire and store huts. The met. est and most intense magnetic dis­ section, under Brackenridge (U.S. turbance experience during the year in Met.), assisted by Harrigan (U.S. Antarctica. Met.) , Paish, Stadler and Hemphill The magnetic "storms" played (D.S. Tech.), launched radio equip­ havoc with the magnetic compass, ped balloons daily to check on upper while persistent cloud greatly restrict­ winds, etc., as well as doing spheric ed the use of astro-compass and sex­ and routine met. observations. tant to determine the position of the party. The magnetic disturbance also DAILY PAPER hampered radio communication with Stansfield (radio supervising tech­ the base, there being six days of total nician) was busy installing a new radio blackout. transmitter. The radio section, which In spite of all these difficulties the also includes I'adio supervisor Cord­ mission was highly successful from well, radio officers Hogan and Church, a scientific point of view and of con­ is editing a daily paper, "The Sun", siderable interest to the men. 'Stakes boasting a circulation of one copy, de­ for later measurement of the melting livered by dog sledge. It is read of the ice were planted. Observations eagerly each !light and includes world included measurements of the density and local news. of the snow and the temperature, The scientific programme includes hardness and layering of earlier s,now, glaciology, seismology and magnetism, now compressed into the solid ice be­ ionospherics and auroral study, seis­ low. The latter required digging pits mic field work (determination of ice and boring holes in the ice. Surface thicimess), and marine biology (by meteorological readings were made Americans 'Vilson and Saunders, who five times daily. have already caught several new The men were treated to some spec­ species) . tacular optical displays in the skies There was exceptional thawing of above. Of special int-erest were the snow and ice around the camp in Feb­ solar haloes, solar arcs, "mock suns" ruary, providing a good chance to re­ and mirages. cover valuable American equipment The party observed birds inland and clean up. A safe landing and which have not been found so far from take-off was made by the Beaver sea­ the coastal nesting areas: at 60 miles plane from "Magga Dan", bringing inland, Antarctic petrels, grey pet­ equipment and main press. rels, snow petrels and storm petrels A scientific seismic survey for 250 were seen. At a distance of 200 miles miles south commenced on February from Wilkes station the men saw 27, with SaVell on ice plateau for three three skua gulls calmly awaiting the weeks. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC :i71

SUMMER ACTIVITIES O'F RUSSIAN ANTAftCT'IC EXP'EID1I'TIOIN During' the Antarctic summer Soviet explorers and scientists have carried out an extensive prog'ramme of sea and air travel and a number of over-snow traverses, in addition to the routine station work and the annual relief of the bases.

The diesel-electric vessel "Ob," car­ trid Coast. The site is on rock free rying members of the sixth Soviet from ice and snow. Close at hand are Antarctic Expedition, entered Lenin­ surfaces suitable for an aircraft land­ grad Bay on the Princess Astrid ing strip. Coast, Queen Maud Land, on Decem­ In all, nearly 1,000 tons of cargo had ber 11, after a difficult voyage of 5'5 to be ferried from the "Ob" to shore days, and dropped anchor four miles for the setting up of the new station. north of Lazarev Station. The pene­ On the 12th Korotkevich, Driatsky and tration of the pack this year proved Gerbovich, the new station comman­ "especially ticklish," reported a cor­ der, flew in to the site. The new sta­ respondent on the vessel. tion has been named Novolazarevskaya A few days earlier, "Ob" was met (New Lazarev). 300 miles out by an IL-12 aircraft of In the late evening of December 13, the polar aviation division. On board in bright sunshine, a "Penguin" over­ was the leader of last year's expedi­ snow vehicle was off loaded and set tion, Korotkevich. The aircraft, which out to mark a route into the interior. had been carrying out a reconnais­ This was followed a few hours later sance flight, dropped a message bag by a tractor train of four tractors containing information on ice condi­ dm'wing loaded sledges led by V. Ger­ tions. bovich. After about a week "Ob" The day before the ship's arrival, sailed for Mirny. the Lazarev Base Leader, Dubrovin, It was reported on December 19 that examined the proposed off-loading the first load of stores had been de­ area in a G.A.Z.-47 vehicle. livered at the new site. Radio con­ Unloading of equipment for the geo­ tact was being maintained with both logical party under' Prof. M. Ravich Lazarev station and the "Ob". began at Lazarev Station the follow­ No plans were announced last year ing day. This team flew to the hills for a trans-Antarctic expedition. to carry out a scientific programme. A Moscow report, dated February NEW LAZAREV 21, says that the new station is lo­ cated 7'0 0 45' S., 11 0 58' E. Lazarev station, which is at pre­ sent situated on the ice shelf, will this The staff will continue the pro­ season be shifted 25 miles inland to gramme of observations conducted for the foot of the Queen Maud Moun­ two years at the coast Lazarev sta­ tains. An aerial survey of the region tion. Regular observations have start­ will be made first to determine the ed already. best site for the new station. An air­ The new station will be the main field capable of taking heavy wheeled scientific and operational base for So­ aircraft is planned. viet scientists to carry out a broad A site for the new station had al­ range of studies in the poorly explored ready been selected at Schirmacher areas of Queen Maud Land. The old Oasis, 50 miles from the 'Princess As- Lazarev station will soon be closed. 372 ANTARCTiC March, 196 I

The new station is housed in four trench through the ice, 130 meh'es expedition buildings and also has gla. long and 2 metres deep. Men hewed ciological, aerological, magnetic and the ice with axes and picks, and cut actinometric buildings fitted out with through it with a frame saw. At last modern scientific equipment and in­ water trickled through the channel in Rtruments. a tiny stream. To direct the main A group of 12 experienced Polar stream of the water through the chan­ explorers, headed by Vladlas Gervo­ nel it was necessary to raise the level vich, who has taken part in two drift­ of the lake. We decided ·to construct ing expeditions in the Arctic, will a dam to block the turbulent stream. operate the station. Once again men lowered themselves into the icy water. On the bottom of this "river" we placed large rocks. ALL HANDS rrOTHE PUMPS We had to cart many tons of them (tIn an article published in "Vodny before the level of the water in the Transport" on January 28, Gerbovich lake began to rise. Finally the vol­ describes a crisis which was as un­ ume of water passing throllgh the expected as it was serious.) channel increased, and the flow over the building site ceased. "Antarctica is unpredictable and full of surprises. To the south of the sta­ "With feelings of deep satisfaction tion, 300-500 metres above it, stands the men gazed at the stone wall, about a glacier. Suddenly, quite recently, 15 metres long, jutting out from the there burst forth fron1 this spot tor­ water. When the tension of these rents of water which had accumulated hours of action had abated, looking at from the thawed snow in the hills. one .another we noticed tired weather­ The small hollow above the station beaten faces, cracked and bleeding turned into a huge reservoir. The fingernails, and bruises on hands level of the water rose 7 metres. numbed by the icy waters. But no­ body complained. The station had been "All hands to the pumps! One group saved, the threat of :flooding fore­ discovered an ice-coffer-dam in which stalled." a channel could be constructed to re­ lease the water from the lake. A party collected building materials and EARLIER JOURNEY eE{uipment and brought them to the danger spot. Several men began dig­ More details are now available of ging trenches on the building site to the extensive journeys mentioned in collect water there in case it rushed our last issue. towards the station. By 9 a.m. the On October 24 twelve men under B. water had risen another 2 metres. Krasnikov, in charge of the transport Turbulent streams carrying lumps of division, left Mirny in three tractors, ice, snow and rocks, rushed to attack each towing a large sledge loaded with the station. Men were knocked off diesel fuel and food supplies, headed their feet by the icy water, a sharp for Vostok Station 78° 27' S. 106 0 52' wind blew, but no one flinched. Scien­ Eo), 880 miles from Mirny. The ex­ tists, building labourers and transport pedition planned to visit the de-acti­ drivers fought selflessly against the vated stations Pionerskaya, Vostok I elements. Thanks to prompt action, and Komsomolskaya, all of which were the building materials and ,equipment manned during at least part of the were rescued, and the water spread. I.G.Y. period. Seismic soundings were ing over the territory was merged into made en route to determine the thick­ a single stream. ness of the ice cap. "Our efforts were then concentrated With the Soviet party was Gilbert 011 .constructing the channel in the Dewart, the American exchange scien­ ice coffer-dam. We had to cut a tist who wintered at Mirny while Moreh, 1961 ANTARCTIC 373

Sven Evteev wintered with the Ameri. autumn. It had broken away from cans at McMurdo. the parachute and gone deep under The train advanced over 93 miles the snow. We had tried to get it out during the first five days, and the at the time, but after digging a pit scienists made gravity and glacio­ more than 13 feet deep, we hadn't logical observations at five points. been able to find it. We had plenty Komsomolskaya was reached by a of oxygen then, so had given up dig­ new route after 44 days, and the snow ging, merely covering the pit with dug away so that an inspection of tarpaulin and putting up a marker­ the power plant could be made. Land­ in case of emergency. ing strips Were levelled for aircraft "The missing cylinder was over a from Mirny. It was reported on No­ mile from the station. It seemed out vember 14 that an Ll-2 had landed of the question to get to the spot in near the tractor-train to pick up one such weather and in the darkness of' of the expedition members, Maksakov, the polar night, but finally a way was who had developed acute appendicitis. found. He was operated on at Mirny. LIGHTING THE WAY "A guide rope was stretched to the CRISIS AT VOSTOK excavation by the light of torches. Twelve Russians at an Antarctic re­ Then we began to lug over equipment search station experienced the coldest little by little, especially anythingthat \;\reather ever recorded on earth late would burn; provision boxes, rags, in August. The thermometer showed spare clothes, used lubricants and oil. a temperature of minus 88.3 degrees "A huge camp fire burst into flames Centigrade, or nearly 191 degrees of the next day. Using it as a source frost. \ of light and heat, we pitched a large Vasily Sidorov, chief of the Vostok tent over the shaft. Inside, our me­ station, described in an article in the chanics installed a cast-iron stove. "Soviet Weekly" the effects of the With the exception of three who re­ low temperatures, and how a critical mained at the station all of us had situation was overcome. moved to the tent. Work was soon humming. "At that temperature diesel fuel be­ NO CYLINDERI comes a sticky mass, anti-freeze cry­ "After Si{) hours of continuous work, stallises and metal become brittle. So the shaft was about 50 feet down­ it is not perhaps surprising that after but there was no cylinder. The gen: three days of these very low tempera­ eral enthusiasm was appreciably lag­ tures, the bed-plate of our main diesel ging. generator cracked and left our re­ search station dependent on the quite "Then J:vanov and Nikolayev sud­ denly signalled to be lifted up the inadequate output of one emergency generator. shaft. Everyone looked down and saw their smiling faces. Nikolayev was "Our research programme was in holding a piece of rope-the end of danger oud our living quarters were which had been attached to the cylin­ becoming very cold. We had to put der. Everyone got down to it with things right at any cost. The diesel redoubled energy. was taken off the bed-plate, but we "The shaft was 58 feet down before could not weld the crack because there we discovered what we were looking was not enough oxygen for the weld­ for. That was a moment of triumph ing unit. for everyone! "Thanks to the oxygen, we were able OXYGEN WANTED to weld up the crack in the bed-plate "After a short conference, we de­ and on the fourth day after the break­ cided to dig out an oxygen cylinder down the main diesel was in operation dropped from a plane the previous again." . 374 March, 1961

4 February. So the 111 tons of goods JAPAN'S LAS'T YEAR were supplied to Showa Sbtion in full. The 1960 wintering team of 14 AT SMOWA men and nine dogs (including the fa­ mous Taro) returned in "Soya" in Undaunted by the tragedy of Mr. excellent ,health and with their valu­ S. Fukushima's loss, the wintering able scientific data. team at 'Showa Station carried out The new 1961 wintering team of 16 I its scheduled tasks successfully. men had by this time begun work. Mr. Among them several inland trips were 'M. Murayama (42) is leader and 'Mr. l included. In November and December, Z. -Seino (39) sub-leader and meteor­ Dr;. T. Tor'ii and six men made a long ologist. There are eight other scien­ journey to "1937 'Mountains", first tists (three meteorologists, two geo­ found on February 6, 1937, by a Nor­ physicists, a glaciologist, a geomor­ wegian party from the air. Dr. Torii phologist and a biologist), a doctor, a reported that the range extends from radio officer, two engineers, a cook 71 ° 43' S., 35° 44' E., north for about and a handyman. 50 kilometres. It consists of seven Of these Mr. 'Murayama, lMr. Se'ino mountain groups 1,700---'2,300 metres and Mr. Arakane, an engineer, have above sea-level. The highes,t, about already experienced a former winter­ 2,700 metres high, was climbed and ing. The subjects of scientific re­ was named Fukushima-Dake, i.e., search are meteorology, aurora, and Peak Fukushima, after the first vic­ night air-glow, cosmic rays, ionos­ tim of J.A.R.E. 'The party carried phere, geomagnetism, geomorphology out mapping and other geomorpho­ and glaciology. Meteorology of the logical, geological and glaciological upper atmosphere by Lewin-sonde will researches. be emphasized. Inland surveys with snocats, including one as far as 80° RELIEF S. over 1,000 kilometres, are also The "Soya" left Tokyo on Novem­ scheduled. This wintering team has ber 12. She departed from Capetown the largest scale ever under·taken by on December 28 and reached the pack­ the Japanese Antarctic Research Ex­ ice line, about 50 kilometres N.E. of pedition: although it will :be the last Showa Station, on January 7. After one. reconnoitring ice conditions, she made a heli-port on a large ice-floe about FIRST WOMAN 110 kilometres N. of Showa Station. On board "Magga Dan" when she Here, from the 10th to the 13th, 42 left Fremantle on January 24 for flights Iby 'Sikorsky S-58 helicopters Mawson, was 'Mrs. P. G. Law, wife of were carried out. During this period the Director of Antarctic Division. the memorial service for the late Mr. She is expected to be the first Aus­ Fukushima, whose body has not been tralian woman to see the Antarctic found in spite of continuous search, mainland, but previous expeditions was held on the hill near the station; have taken women scientists to the 1 and two memotial bronzes, the in­ research stations at Heard and Mac­ r scriptions on which had been written quarie IsIands. by Dr. Hasegawa, his teacher at Kyoto FIRST INDIAN, I University, Dr. Kaka, former chair­ An Indian naval officer, meteorolo­ man of the Japanese Science Council, gist Lieut. Ram Charan, accompanied and Dr. Tatsumi, leader of the 1959­ the party on the "Magga Dan", to 60 Expedition, were placed on the Wilkes Station in late December and Kern (stone mound) 2.5 metres high. early January. Transport operations then con­ Lieutenant Charan, 30, a meteor­ tinued: 47 flights from 20 to 26 Janu­ ological officer, 'went on the trip as an ary, and nine more flights from 3 to observer for the I11dian Government. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 375 SOUTH AFRICANS PROBE SOUTHWARDS FROM SANAE BASE Nearly 800 miles were covered by sledging parties of the 1960 South African National Antarctic Expedition. In "Newsletter" issued by the South two bays and an inlet which has no African Weather Bureau, J. J. la name on the map. Also we made mag­ Grange, the South African expedition netic observations in five spots, took leader, 1960, gives an inte:resting des­ 16 soundings in 16 snow pits, 58 cription of a September field journey. meteorological readings and additional pressure readings in 37 spots, enabling ALONG THE COAST us to calculate altitude above sea level. "The day before yesterday, I myself "We have been able to carry out and Victor von Brun returned after plenty of observations of the surface having been away for 17 days to the of the snow. This varies in character sea coast in the north. Generally from place to place, depending mainly speaking, we had bad weather. The on the wind and the general situation. average temperature was minus 26°, In some places snow accumulation sometimes as low as minus 40° C The amounts to one inch per year, in other wind velocity was on an average 20 places to more than six feet. All along knots, but sometimes reached gale the coast there are crevasses in the force up to 70 miles per hour. Never­ ice and we examined some of them theless, we were able to travel 163 km. They are mostly from one to three by dog sledges. feet wide and depth varies from a few "The most surprising thing was the feet to more than 30 feet. open water all along the sea coast. "We were glad to get home again to The cold air above the warm water our comrades and happy to again have causes heavy fog just as in an im­ room to move around. The climax was mense pot of boiling water. 'Sometimes probably reached on ·the first day, the fog was thin and we could see the August 29, when at 3 p.m. we erected heavy pack-ice. Apart from an oc­ near the small pyramid-shaped tents casional small iceberg that had run of our camp a little flagpole in the aground there were no icebergs. Un­ snow and hoisted for the first time doubtedly these will appear again in officially the Union flag in Ant­ the summer when the ice becomes war­ arctica." mer and softer and breaks up. In two spots lonely emperor penguins were SOUTHERN JOURNEY sitting on the sea ice but no seals The main journey was the one by showed themselves. Hannes la Grange (leader) and Vic­ "In the spot where we had come tor van Brunn (geologist) to the south­ ashore, which was more than 30 feet west and south of the base during the high, the drifting snow had piled up period October 31 to December 7. to such an extent that it now formed a Unfortunately the weather during sloping wall at an angle of 35 degrees. November was ,extremely poor and We went down that slope by sledge they had only about fi~e days of fine and across the ice in the bay, which weather. The first 60 miles was easy is some feet thick, until we reached going but after that crevasse fol­ the entrance of the bay. We took the lowed crevasse over extensive areas. necessary measurements and surveyed After five days they reached the the area, enabling us to draw a map first nunatalc. Their excitement was of a considerable part of it, including O'reat as this was the first time that 376 ANTARCTIC March, 1961 they had pnt foot on soUd Antarctica. RELIEF SHIP ARRIVES To make it even more interesting they found lichens and the nesting places The relief ship "Polarhav" arrived of snow petrels here. From here they on December 26. The "Polarhav" went on to Boreas and Passat nuna­ had, on its southward voyage, circum­ taks, thus linking np with the area navigated Bouvet Island for mapping covered by the N.B.S. (Maudheim) purposes. They had reasonably good Expedition (1949-52). An interesting weather and the voyage through the feature was the deep windscoop that ice was fairly easy until they arrived formed around practically all the at 66° S., 08° W" where they encoun­ nunata'ks visited. tered extremely heavy pack ice and were stuck on several occasions. Additional stores for 1961 were TOUGH GOING taken to the old expedition buildings, On several occasions they had to but all the stores for 1962 to the site "lie-up" due to white-outs and bliz­ of the proposed new station which will zards. On the 22nd and 23rd a wind of be about 12 miles to the north. Ofr­ about 120 knots tore the sides of the loading was carried on on a 24-hour tent, bent the aluminium poles, tore day pattern. In the meantime the some items from their pickets and 1960 expedition was gradually re­ blew them away. Fortunately it was placed by 1961 members. Of the 1960 possible to repair the tent but on expedition only Dick Bonnema is stay­ December 1 it was ripped open again ing on for another yeal·. The 1961 on three sides; then they realized that 'expedition, consisting of 11 men, has it would not stand up to another bliz­ J·ohann van de Westhuizen as leader. zard. Before the ship left all stores had been Twice during the joul'l1ey they pick­ transported to the old 01' the new up supplies from the previously laid bases. depot 40 miles south of S.A.N.A.E. The "Polarhav" returned on Janu­ Base. On December 7 (the same day ary 9 and after an easy voyage (be­ on which the relief ship left Cape ing stuck in the ice for a few hour·s Town) they returned to base after only) and smooth seas without any­ having covered 351 miles and having body suffering from sea-sickness ar­ done glaciological, meteorological, geo­ rived in Cape Town on January 20. magnetic and biological observations. A geological survey, including cartog­ On both the outward and homeward raphy and collection of paleomagne­ voyages meterological, sea-ice, bio­ tic samples was also carried out. Some logical and hydrographical observa­ 22 major nunatak areas were visited. tions were made. A bathythermo­ Different types of lichens were found graph was used to measure sea water ,. on most of the nunataks. Of interest temperatures to several hundred feet. J will be that in this area the snow petrel chickens were already fully In the meantime fieldwork at grown while in December "the Bei­ S.A.N.A.E. has been in full swing. gian Expedition on their sledge jour­ From the 19th to' 24th January a ney still found fresh snow petrel eggs. depot was laid by tractor 80 miles to One of the nine huskies was lost dur­ the south and on February 3 the geol­ ing this jouney. ogist and the surveyor set out by dog team. On the second day out on the jour­ new the radio receiver broke down but 'The latest news is that the new they decided to go on rather than re­ magnetic and optical theodolite huts turn for a spare set. After two weeks have been installed and that a lonely the transmitter also broke down, so penguin has arrived at S.A.N.A.E. that for most of the time there was (20 miles from the sea) on January no radio contact with the base. 10 and is now moulting. ANTARCTIC 377 BELGIAN ROI BAUDOUIN BASE CLOSES DOWN The Belgian Station in Queen Maud Land 70 0 26'S. 24 0 18' E. between the Japanese and South African bases, has been closed as part of the current economy drive of the Belgian Government.

The supply vessel "Erika Dan" PACKING UP reached Leopold III Bay on January Meanwhile at the Base itself last 10. She had sailed from Zeebrugge, years' winter party carried on with Belgium, on Decem!ber 9, 1960. the unhappy task of dismantling and packing the equipment which was to SUMMER PROGRAMME be taken back to Belgium. Blaiklock The summer party, under Cdt. Li­ (veteran of the Commonwealth Trans­ botte, comprised three teams handling Antarctic Expedition under Fuchs) photogrammetry, ice-drilling and and Van Autenboer returned on the oceanography. 20th after a foul' months' dog sledg­ The photogrammetric team was ing journey in the mountain area. severely handicapped through the non­ Transport and loading operations availability of the Otter aircraft. were hampered by the almost constant Nevertheless a reduced programme of break-up of the ice forming the air photography was carried through "quay". Every day opened up new with the help of the small Cessna cracks in the ice. On 12 days out of plane. 23 the ship had to break out to the The dl'illing programme was spon­ open sea and then -begin the intermin­ sored by EURATOM, the Italian Na­ able process of re-mooring all over tional Committee for Nuclear Energy, again. It is calculated that some 120 the University of Pisa, and the "Uni­ square kilomehes of ice broke out versity Libre" of Brussels. Picci­ from the bay during the loading oUo and Giot, both members of the period. 1957-58 Belgian expedition under Cdt. de Gerlache, were assisted by another Belgian, four Italians and a Swede. PLANS DISRUPTED Their quarters had been prepared by In order to speed up proceedings it the wintering party in the emergency was decided to push through the pro­ shack at the base, fitted out with neon gramme planned for the two days, lighting and thermostatic heating. January 30 and 31, in a non-stop day The team's task was to collect ice and night operation. However, this samples from a depth of at -least 100 plan was thwarted by a blizzard which metres in order to examine their nu­ made out-of-doors work impossible and clear physics. Actually, a depth of again drove "Erika Dan" out to sea. 117 metres was attained. After the storm it was found that the On "Erika Dan" in Breidbay the slope from the ice-shelf to the sea oceanographers studied marine mi­ had disappeared, leaving a sheer ice crobiology, ichthyology and botany. A cliff from 8 to 10 metres in height. wider range of marine fauna was col­ The only chance of completing the lected, the physical characteristics of loading was to use a new loading point the sea were studied and bathymetric in Glacier Bay. measurements were obtained over an This entailed making a new trail of area of more than 200 square kilo­ about 10 kilometres. Extreme caution metres. was necessary, this being a potentially 378 ANTARCTIC March, 1961 NEW F.I.D.S. BASE ES'T'ABLISHED After two bad i~e years which prevented the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey ships from relieving the southern bases, conditions have improved; R.R.S. "John Biscoe" succeeded in establishing a new base (T) on Adelaide Island on February 3 and was expected to reach Stonington Island (Base E) about the end of February. Adelaide is a mountainous island "Kista Dan" was beset for 13 days about 70 miles long and 30 miles wide and had great difficulty in reaching rising to between 4,000 ft. and 7,000 open water-even .with the assistance ft. The ·new base has been estab­ of the icebreaker D.S.S. "Glacier". lished on the east coast at about 67 0 The s'ituation had been still worse in 40' S. From it, field 'parties ~vill com­ 1959 (it was, in fact, the worst ex­ plete the survey of the island, and the perienced by F.LD.·S. in 16 years of base 'Will a-Iso be used as a supply cen­ operations) and Base E had conse­ tre from which men and stores can :be quently been closed and the men flown further 'South. The two Otter evacuated by air via 'Base Y. For­ aircraft arrived at Adelaide from tunately for all concerned, conditions Deception Island on February 9, and are very much easier this season and are now ferrying stores to Fossil there is every hope of the relief be­ Bluff at 71 0 20' S., 6'8 0 17' W. in ing completed satisfactorily. George VI 'Sound. This is the site chosen for the advance base from RELIEF 01" OTHER BASES which it is hoped to explore Alexander The "Biscoe" is agaIn being assisted Island and the areas lying to the south by the second F.LD.S. ship, RRS. and east of it. "'Shackleton," and by the charter ship R.RS. "30hn Biscoe" was last re­ "Kista Dan." Six bases (A. ·B. D. F, ported .to be within 20 miles of Base G and H) were relieved before Christ­ E, and as the intervening fast ice mas, and the "Shackleton" returned was showing signs of 'breaking up 'it to the Falklands while the "Biscoe" should be possible for the ship to reach anchored off 'Base G, King George Is­ the ·base. It was while attempting to land. Both ships then visited South relieve Base E last year, that the Georgia, after which the "Biscoe" crevassed area. The 'Cessna constant­ putting the vehicle out of action. The ly flew over the route and the heavy load had then to be man-handled by tractor trains were preceded by dog the expediton members. "Erika Dan" teams. was in danger of being frozen in be­ DANGER TRAIL fore the operation was completed, and Within two hours two dog teams, a the plane, three sno-cats, muskeg and muskeg and two sno-eats drawing three loaded sledges were moved well sledges reached the ice in Glacier back from ice edge in the hope that Bay by the one practicable slope. It the vessel might be able to return took the first two vehicles an hour and later and retrieve them. a half to cover the final hundred All personnel were a:board by 9 p.m. metres to the ship. They had to work and the ship reached open water. Next from floe to floe on beams thrown morning an attempt was made to save across the cracks. the vehicles, now floating on broken Shortly after the final closing of up ice, but only the "Cessna" was res­ the base the last train and the Cessna cued before the ship once more had to reached the new loading point. The seek open water. On February 2 course vehicles had to approach the ship one was set for Capetown, where the ex­ at a time. Then the forward tracks pedition arrived a week later, reach­ of a sno-cat jammed between two floes, ing Ghent, Belgium, on March 5. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 379

returned to the Falklands while the was reported on February 22 to be "'Shackleton" landed a gravity-survey on the way home. party at several points on the :South Georgia coast. She then proceeded F.LD.S. MAN KILLED to the ,south Sandwich 'Islands, arriv­ It is with great regret that ,we re­ ing there on January 8. In the next port the death of Roger Filer, at three days landings were made on six Base H, Signy Island, on February of the islands; the g-ravity survey 13. He failed to retul'll to the base party carried out its programme and after going out on a short 'bird-watch­ also collected rock samples which in­ ing excursion, and was later found by cluded orientated specimens for palae­ a search party to have fa:llen over a omagnetic studies. Gravity measure­ cliff. He appeared to ,have been killed ments were also taken at Elephant instantly. He had already served one Isla,nd and on small islands east of year at Signy, studying seal and bird J olnville Island. populations, and was due to spend a During the season the "Shackle­ second year there. ton" ha's also made numerous voyages He will be greatly missed -by aU towing a seaborne magnetometer in who knew him. He -has been buried continuation of the investigation of at Signy. the S'Cotia Arc 'begun last year. :She FIELD WORK has also spent some time in hydro­ graphic and land survey on the east October and November, 1960 side of J oinville Island. In the course A number of parties from Hope of this work she touched an unchart­ Bay (D) were again in the field ed reef but passed safely over into simultaneously, surveying in the 'Mt. deep water without major damage. Bransfield ,and Pl'ince Gustav Chan­ nel areas and occu-pying the View The "Biscoe" left the Fal'klands Point hut intermittently. Parties also again 'in mid-January and sailed down re-stocked the east coast depots as the west coast of Graham Land. She far south as 60° 15' 'S., in preparation was joined by the "Shackleton" at the for further sledging journeys. Argentine Islands (F) on the 27th At the same time two parties tra­ and then 'Proceeded south to Adelaide velled 430 miles from 'Stonington Is­ Island to :find a site for the new ibase. land. One travelled southeast to Cape "Shackleton" also continued south­ Hink'S on the east coast and set up 35 wards and succeeded .in getting into trigonometrical stations to fill in the Base W on the Loubet Coast, picking gaps in the ex'isting (1947-50) sur­ up equipment which was left there vey; the other also travelled south­ when the base was eva'cuated in 1959. east carrying out physiological ex­ She then surned northwards and ar­ periments and collecting rock speci­ rived back at the Falklands on Feb­ mens. The parties returned to base ruary 11. together on November 20, having 'The "K:ista ,Dan" arrived at the spent six weeks in the field. Falklands on January 3, having sail­ A number of short journeys were ed from 'Southampton on December 3. undertaken from the Argentine 'Is­ She called at the 'South ,shetlands, lands. A seven-man survey party and South Orkneys and 'South Georgia, two geoIogists worked on the main­ and then entered the Weddell Sea, land east of the Penola Strait, while arriving at Halley Bay ('Base Z) on a third party tried unsuccessfully to January 29-only e'ight days a.fter find a route up on to the plateau. A leaving South Georgia. The relief was number of other localities were also completed in record time by February visited. The local magnetometer sur­ 3 and the ship returned to South vey was continued. Georgia without difficulty. She reach­ Surveyors .from Base G worked in ed the Falklands on February 15 and the centre and south of King Geol'ge 380 March. 1961 ANiARCTIC

Island, providing additional ground 10 miles of the mountain because of control for the existing ail' photog­ the difficult surrounding tenain. raphy. The geological 'Survey of the "Protector's" expedition put ashore island has also 'been completed and the early in Decem:ber. It comprised a base wiIl be closed this season. naval officer and 14 Royal Marine Seal counts and tagging and ornith­ other ranks under the leadership of ological work were continued on the Captain V. N. Stevenson, R.N. They west coast of Signy Island by relays made their landing at Cape Durnley of men from Base H. on the south-west coast of South Short journeys were also under­ Georgia about 10 miles from Mount taken from Halley Bay to repeat and Paget. extend the local magnetic survey. After three days' difficult climbing Routine scientific observations have over heavily crevassed and glacial continued without interruption at all territory, an assault party compris­ bases. ing Captain 'Stevenson, Lieut. Cdr. MOUNT PAGET CLIMBED 'M. K. Burley, and Corp. B. Todd, suc­ A climbing party, landed by heli­ ceeded in scaling the west peak, a copter from 'BM.S. "'Protector", the height of 9565 feet. Royal Navy's ice patrol ship in the The team descended some 2000 feet Antarctic, scaled the hitherto un­ the same evening and after spending climbed Mount Paget, highest 'moun­ the night in a pit dug in the 'snow tain in South Georgia. Two previous rejoined the remainder of the expe­ expeditions had faHed to get within dition the following morning.

The Reader Writes Sidelights of Antarctic Research (Letters of approximately 500-600 words are invited from readers who have observed some little-known facet of Antarctic life or who have reached conclusions of interest on some Antarctic problem of interest to the informed layman.-Ed.)

THE KILLER WHALE spiration for the painting. Unfor­ tunately the account has Ibeen used Sir,-During the last few years I as a basis for second and third-hand have discussed with a number of Ant­ accounts in later books and it is diffi­ arctic people the aggressiveness of the cult to decide where truth finishes and killer whales. It has been difficult to imagination begins. Then there is the find many accurate first-hand accounts account in "Expedition South" by W. of attacks by killer whales and I EIlery Anderson, of killer whales liv­ .: would be most interested to read, via ing in a pool with penguins and seals. the columns of thi'S very fine journal, I will admit the circumstances were a of any first-hand observations on the little unusual, but at least the occasion hunting habits of these whales. has oeen well documented. We are all familial' with the famous So, all you Antarctic veterans, tell painting of Ponting being pursued the world about your killer whale over the ice floes. His (Ponting's) ac­ escapes! count of his apparently nanow escape ARNOLD J. I-IEINE is very dramatic and makes a very N.Z. Geological Survey, good story. No doubt it was the in- Lower Hutt. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 381 ARGENTINE STATIONS RELIEVED DUling last year the Argentine stations occupied were Orcadas, Decepcion (Deception Island), Melchior, Esperanza (Hope Bay), all in the Graham Land general area; and the General Belgrano and American-established Ellsworth stations in the Weddell Sea.

The Navy-operated stations "Almir­ "Bahia Agui.rre". Some of the per­ ante Brown" and "Teniente Camara" sonnel left for Ushuaia on January did not operate throughout 1959 and 18 on a D.C.-4 aircraft, and will be 1960, but are occupied during the sum­ taken on to the base site on "Bahia mer seasons. The General San Mar­ Aguirre". tin Base did not operate in 1960, and The Chief of the Argentine General will not be re-occupied owing to the Staff and the head of the Antarctic' projected installation of a new base Division of the Army High Command on Robertson :Island in the Weddell also left for Ushuaia on January 19 Sea. en route to inspect army bases in the SCIENTIFIC PLANS Antarctic. The Argentine Antarctic Institute plalmed to send three groups of scien­ RELIEF OPERATIONS tists and technicians to work in the This season's relief operations of Antarctic Peninsula and South Shet­ the Argentine Antarctic bases were land ;rslands. Biological studies pro­ under the command of Captain Luis jected included studies of algae mi­ H. Iriart. The ships involved were: crofungi, bacteria and the fertility of "General San Martin," ice-breaker. seeds of Antarctic plants. Geological "Bahia Aguirre," transport. studies and the gathering of paleo­ "Punta Ninfas," oil-tanker. magnetic samples were also envisaged. "Chiriguano," survey vessel. The "General San Martin" con­ Two Beaver aircraft were employed tinued to operate the equipment for as well as two S·55 helicopters ann measuring cosmic rays already used two P.B.M. seaplanes. during the campaign of 1959-60. Operations were due to commence on November 15 when "Bahia NEW STATION Aguirre" and "Chiriguano" were The Argentine Army and Navy will scheduled to leave Buenos Aires for co-operate to establish the new base, the South Shetlands. probably on Robertson Island, but In view of last summer's difficul­ possibly instead on Larsen Island if ties, it was arranged that if ice con­ this is found more convenient. The ditions in the Weddell Sea prevented base is to be named Teniente (Lieu­ the ice-breaker from reaching the sta­ tenant) Benjamin Matienzo, after an tions in this area (Ellsworth and Gen­ airman from Tucuman (an Argentin­ eral Belgrano) the personnel would ian province) who was frozen to death be evacuated by aircraft operating in May, 1919, while attempting to from HaUey Bay and as far south as cross the Andes by plane, In com­ practicable. mand of the .new base will be Cap­ However, the "General San Martin" tain 1. Carro, formerly leader at succeeded in reaching General Bel­ Esperanza. The command is to be grano base on December 31. The mili­ held by Army and Air Force officers tary personnel on duty here could not in successive years. be relieved the previous summer ow­ Material for the construction of the ing to ice conditions. The ice-breaker base has already been transported on had to navigate for eight days in ice the "General San Martin" and the before it reached the base. 382 ANTARCTIC March, 1961

were some digestive-tract problems. The isolation, said Dr. Antinucci,. did ELLSWORTH not cause any special Psychological phenomena. Radio contact with On December 31 the Argentine ice­ friends and amateur radio enthusi­ breaker "General San Martin" arrived asts was a great aid to morale. Dr. at Ellsworth Station to relieve the Antinucci stated that workers inside party established there in February only needed food providing about 1959. 2,500 calories, but for work outside, The 24-man party could not be re­ with temperatures falling to _56 0 C., lieved during the 1959-60 summer as about 6,000 calories were necessary. the "General San Martin" was turned During the two years the party ac­ back by heavy ice conditions. Among cumulated roughly 200,000 photo­ the men compelled to remain a fur­ graphs. ther year was American meteorol­ ogist Floyd J ohnson. The new party numbers 31, and is PUBLISHED IN NEW under the command of Lieut. F. Areta. ZEALAND Four Americans, three meteorologists NEW ZEALAND I.G.Y. ANTARC­ and an auroral physicist, will partici­ TIC EXPEDITIONS, SCOTT BASE pate in the programme. The scien­ A1\T]) HALLETT STATION: T. Hath­ tific work for 1960 embraced the same erton, N.Z. Dept. of Scientific and In­ objectives as in 1959, within the limi­ dustrial Research Bulletin 140. Gov­ tations imposed by the impossibility ernment Printer, Wellington, N.Z., 132 of relieving the personnel during the pages ill. Price 15/-. 1'959-60 summer. Projects involve Dr. Hatherton was chief scientist of research in aurora, cosmic rays, geol­ the New Zealand expeditions during ogy, ionospheric physics and meteor­ the LG.Y. period. In this volume he ology. sets out "to provide a unifying review of the activities of the expeditions and THOSE TWO YEARS a summary of the results of the scien­ tific investigations." Some sections At a press conference in Buenos have been written by the scientist Aires on January 26, Captain J. more particularly concerned with the Suarez, Station leader at Ellsworth discipline under consideration. Dr. during 1959-1960, spoke of the two Hatherton has done his "unifying" consecutive years during which the and "summarising" well. The result one group occupied the station. The is that this is not only an indispensable living-quarters, workshops, labora­ book for the reader who wishes to get tories and stores, he said, are buried his particular interest into perspective, beneath two to three metres of snow. but because of its well written narra­ There are 17 inter·connected buildings tive passages and effective illustra­ and five electric generating units. tions, maps and diagrams, it is also a The plans formulated for the first fascinating volume for the layman year, he said, were completely ful­ "interested" in the Antarctic who filled, but in the second year lack of wishes to learn what he can about material made it necessary to cut the significance of the scientific work down on some observations. Neverthe­ which has been and is being carried less, effective work was carried out in out there. meteorology, radiation studies, aurora, GRAVITY OBSERVATIONS IN spectrography, photometry, iono­ THE WRIGHT VALLEY AREA, VIC­ sphere, cosmic rays and biology. TORIA LAND, ANTARCTICA: C. The general average blood pressure Bull. In :N.Z. Jnl. of Geology and of the staff was low, but their general Geophysics, Vol. 3, No. 4, November health was "magnificent." There 1960. March, 1961 ANTARCTIC 383 News' from Sub-Antarctic Islands KERGUELEN When the ship returned to Mel­ (France) bourne on December 17 she also had H-BOMB TEST? on board thirteen members of last Considerable interest and some year's wintering over party. alarm was aroused in Australia by the announcement in the mass-circula­ RABBITS! tion Paris newspaper "France-Soil''' on January 17 that France's first hy­ Mr. P. G. Law, who supervised the drogen bomb would be exploded not change-over, said that the island is in the Sahara Desert ,but in the Ker­ over-run with rabbits which threaten guelen Islands. The Kerguelens lie to destroy all the flora and to under­ only 2,900 miles south-west of Perth, mine parts of the island. Their ex­ and only 400 miles from Australia's termination presents a problem. "Poi­ Heard Island,. where the station is son is out because of the danger to at present not manned. other animals and birds, and the cli­ Dr. Jacka, physicist with the Ant­ mate is too cold to spread the myxo­ arctic Division of the Department of matosis germ. We would not have External Affairs, is reported as say­ enough bullets to shoot all the rab­ ing that in the event of an H-bomb bits that are popping up out of the being exploded on Kerguelen, nuclear ground." fall-out would almost certainly move According to the new leader, S-tean, towards Australia. But, he added, Macquarie Island lost no ,time in in­ he did not think there was any reason troducing to the 1961 party its many for special alarm. Australian scien­ capricious moods. "In this our prom­ tists say that radio-active fall-out in ised land," he writes, "winds do blow the southern hemisphere is at present at 100 m.p.h., it is always foggy and much below the fall-out rate in the does get into sealed containers, the northern hemisphere, where in some sio:al wallows do stink and the surf areas the rise in fall-out level has does produce waves 70 feet high: it caused concern. does hail, rain and snow; and we do The French Embassy in Canberra occasionally see the sun." clenied that there is any truth in the December was a month of hard "France-Soil''' report. work and long hours, but lots of fun. The construction programme progress­ ed very rapidly, but it was heart­ MACQUARIE ISLAND breaking to see the last completed Nis­ (Aust.) sen huts, two 1,000-gallon tanks and When "Magga Dan" left Melbourne another building swept away by hur­ to relieve Macquarie Island on Novem­ ricanes. bel' 29, two Australian boy scouts, January was a month of achieve­ Douglas Lyons (19) of Hobart, and ment and an easing of pressure of Peter Bronson' (17) of Brisbane were work. One of the Nissen huts was on board. This is the third year that completed and the remaining two al­ scouts have accompanied the relief most so. "Our radio hut is complete team. and the painting is progressing rapid­ Foul' women also tl'avelled on the lyon all these new structures," re­ vessel: Miss Elsie Wollaston (botan­ ports Stean. ist), Miss Isobel Bennett, and Miss "Field trips are in progress almost Hope Macpherson (marine biologists), continuously. The weather has not and !diss Ann Savours, polar histor­ been quite so inclement and we have ian from the Scott Polar Research In­ had some drifty periods of sunshine stitute, Cambridge, England. and wind below gale force. The seal j84 ANTARCTIC March, 1961 population is deserting us for the 'sea to rise, but very soon that was over and is being replaced by the vanguard wh,en the water pipe became blocked. of huge sea elep'hants.The nights are Everything that could go wrong wish­ closing in and we now have about ed us a loud "good morning" on Sep­ sev.enteen hOU1'S of daylight." tember 8. Of our meteorological in­ Biologically, the ibiggest jo'b was struments, -Mike's anempmeter decided to census the giant petrel rookeries it was too tired to keeP hold of its and to band all chicks. The whole screw, and a hundred and' one 1l100:e island was worked over in typical trifling ,things. When George and I Macquarie Island weather, and about had stopped, up the dam (for which we 2800 chicks leg-ringed. had to walk ·a distance of four miles McNally mad.e the interesting dis­ and back again) it was just time for covery that rockhopper penguin breakfast. When the water was l'lllll­ cllicks, which, at this stage, huddle ning again one could heal' the follow­ together in cl:eches for warmth and ing conversation: protectiOll, are fed olfly by their own "Hurrah, the ,vater is through parents. These, somehow recognising again." their own chicks, drive off any others "What's the use of that? Now we that come out of the creche in the hope have to wash again!" of an extra meal. "The met. boys have settled down to their very important job of main­ CAMPBELL ISLAND taining Macquarie Island's fame for (New Zealand) having the world's worst weather." Since the annual servicing in N0­ vember 19,60, the new expedition team RELIEF VOYAGE has settled ·down well and work has­ M.V. "Magga Dan'" sailed from proceeded on the new power-house to Melbourne on November 29. A pro­ accommodate the new Lister genera­ gramme of constructional work was tor sent down at the servicing. The undertaken. A party was to be landed power-house is virtually complete ex­ at Green Gorge to carry out measure­ cept for the pourimg cl the concrete ments of high frequency radio noise. floor. With the 1960 party relieved, the ship The next building project to be was expected to return to Melbourne stal-ted shortly is the addition of two on about Decembel' 15. bedrooms to the main hostel building, The hut at Bauer Bay is "the ans­ following whfch a b9at-shed will be wer to every expeditioner',s dream": constructed to house the new launch it has two pneumatic mattresses and which has already proved its useful­ it's transportable ("one man and a ness in transpQrting: a scientific skua can move it") -'being 3ft. by 4ft. party and matel'ials ashore from and 3ft. high! H.M.N.Z.S. "Endeavour". The sci-en­ tific party consisted of botanists and geologists frem D.S.I.R. arrived on MARION ISLAND JallHlary 1 and used the old Tucker (S. Africa) Cove Camp, leaving the Island on the W. A. v.an Huyssteen describes in V.S.S. "Wilh@ite" on January' 30, for the, Weather Bureau's "Newsletter" Dunedin. how The expedition members are enjoy­ SPRING COMES TO MARION ing rambles at week-ends when the On September 7 everything indi­ wild life on the Islands, is studied, cated that spring was'really coming. note made and photograp11S taken: The temperature started to rise and it The weather has been the usual mix­ was constantly raining. During one ture COii,mon to Campbell .Island with night we had almdst, foUl' inches of snow and hail showers 'al'l'eady: in the rain. Our hO'!les were just beginning p.arly days of 'March. The New Zealand Antarctic Society is a group of New Zealanders, some of whom have seen Antarctica for themselves, but all vitally interested in some phase of Antarctic exploration, development or research. You are invited to become a member. BRANCH SECRETARIES Wellington: Box 2110, Wellington. Canterbury: G. King, 80 Slater St., Christchurch, N.E.1. Dunedin: J. H. lVIcGhie, Box 34, Dunedin.

\\ THE ANTARCTIC TODAY" This volume is out of print, but a limited number of the follow- ing separate sections is available, the stapling slightly rusted: Ionosphere Research (J. W. Beagley). Meteorology (A. R. Martin). Marine Biology (R. K. Dell). Aurora Australis (1. L. Thomsen). The Nations in the Antarctic (recent Australian, South African, French, etc., exploration by leading experts in the countries concerned) . These separates are available at a cost of four shillings each from the Secretary, N.Z. Antarctic Society.

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