r\\>trJviiJ«»tiuuo A N E W S B U L L E T I N ■I .,'■->: p u b l i s h e d q u a r t e r l y b y t h e N E W Z E A L A N D A N T A R C T I C S O C I E T Y ( I N C ) • *# UNDER SEVEN MOONS: SCOTT BASE IN THE PALE GLOW OF THE ANTARCTIC WINTER MOON. THE MULTIPLE EXPOSURE BY R. K. McBRIDE, WHO WINTERED AT SCOTT BASE IN 1972, HAS CAUGHT THE MOON'S PASSAGE ACROSS THE SKY OVER McMURDO SOUND. SCOTT BASE, WHICH IS NEW ZEALAND'S PRINCIPAL ANTARCTIC STATION- WILL BE 20 YEARS OLD IN JANUARY NEXT YEAR. Antarctic Division, D.S.I.R. Photo Registered at Post Office Headquarters. Vol. 7, No. 10 Wellington, New Zealand, as a magazine. JUNE, 1976 SOUTH GEORGIA SOUTH SANDWICH Is / / \ ■■ > a C ^ c c , R ? - - — — - S O U T H O R K N E Y I s x ' \ ■^<?-""~ . /o Orcadas arg \ ,--'' qanap^. m X J F A L K L A N D I s / « S i g n y I . u . k . X i JSajiae_sA^;_|\|pyolazarevskaya S S B J & m J k SOUTH AMERICA /' yX fBoTQB j S y o w a j a p a n \ A* SOUTH g ,{J /WEDDELL \ f 8A 5x^y» Molodezhnaya vf\ sr\ USSR , ft SHETlANDTkfl*,-ftp / // /Ha||ev u-ii-.. Bab\..S 6 DRONNINGDRONNING MAUD MAII LAND ENDERBY \1 \%C /SEA uk^ COATS tri I / LAND j/General Belcjrano arg / / A \ M a w s o n ANTARCTIC^!^^ v MAC ROBERTSON LAND\ \ aust. /PENINSULA'^" [Filchner. (see map below) C Sobral arc. f , ' d & ^ Davis aust South Pole i? 90-i /-SipleUSA Amundsen-Scott ; queen MARY LAND "Pimy [ELLSWORTH USA / ,);,. U.S.S "l LAND / ° Vo s t O k U S S R . / f n o Casey XBYRDLAND/ffCeS|,e,f^ Jj AUST. ->;':.:< '" \ WILKES LAND " Russkaya 7" • u.s.sr/ n, Scott£b\ou ,\ / 5|N2'^\Vanda n.z. / \ I J^v/VICTORIA .TERRE A 4P&J LAND Y/ADELIE,^ 5 GEORGE V \.<b,u_/Z j.ii •„ / "i5ef|<^->»»i»'\ ^-Dumont d Urville France L e n i n g r a d s k a y a , V / U . S S . R ^ - " " \ / — ' " ' " B A L L E N Y l s \ > / ANTARCTIC PENINSULA 1 Teniente Matienzo arg 2 Esperanza arg. 3 Almirante Brown arg. 4 Petrel arg. 5 Deception arg. 6 Vicecomodoro Marambio arg. p ANTARCTICA 7 Arturo Prat chile 8 Bernardo O'Higgins chile 1000 Miles 9 Presidente Frei chile 0 500 1000 Kilometres 10 Stonington I. uk. 13 11 Adelaide I. uk. ,j 12 Argentine Is uk. q abbreviations. 1 3 P a l m e r u s a . J ARG ARGENTINA AUST. AUSTRALIA 14 Bellingshausen u.s.s.r. r, ' NZ. NEW ZEALAND S.A. SOUTH AFRICA UK UNITED KINGDOM Larsen '■■"; ! USA. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA I c e S h e l f - I ° L 0 0 m U S S.R. UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST ■ . :-;.^ 0 100km REPUBLICS (Successor to "Antarctic News Bulletin") Vol. 7, No. 10 82nd ISSUE JUNE, 1976 Editor: J. M. CAFFIN, 35 Chepstow Avenue, Christchurch, 5. Address all contributions to the Editor. CONTENTS ARTICLES FIRST NEW ZEALAND BASE 314-317 SKELTON SUMMER 331-332 POLAR ACTIVITIES NEW ZEALAND 313, 320 UNITED STATES 312, 313, 318-320 AUSTRALIA 321-322 UNITED KINGDOM 323-325 SOVIET UNION 326-327 JAPAN 328 SUB-ANTARCTIC BIOLOGICAL WORK 329-330 GENERAL THE READER WRITES 333 ■ m\ ANTARCTIC BOOKSHELF 334 OBITUARY 335-336 VETERAN DOG DRIVER 337-338 Millions of tons of krill in Antarctic waters represent the world's largest single remaining unexploited marine resource. Scientists, inter national organisations, and the Antarctic Treaty nations, have recognised that conservation, scientific study, and wise management are necessary if krill are not be go the way of the whale. But resolutions have not stopped exploitation. The Soviet Union and Japan have been harvesting krill for some years. West Germany and Poland have entered the field, Norway is planning a krill expedition, and six other nations are interested. Some of these countries have agreed with the recommendations of the Antarctic Treaty. But resolutions seem to be ineffctive when the stakes are high. JUNE, 1976 WINTER DIARY Record low temperature at South Pole station Winter arrived with a vengeance at the South Pole late last month. On May 28 a record low temperature of minus 102.4 degrees Fahrenheit was recorded at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. This was a record low temperature for May, and broke the record of minus 102.1 degrees on May 18, 1957, when men first wintered at the Pole. Sixteen Americans and two New Zealanders settled in at the Pole Station on February 11 for a winter which, to date, has been the coldest at the South Pole since 1957. On Ross IslandIsland 825825 milesmiles toto thethe mark the first minus 100 temperatures, north 6565 Americans, Americans, 11 11 New New Zealanders, Zealanders, May 23 was the day the temperature and one RussianRussian exchange exchange scientist scientist had had dropped to 100.4deg, and then on May more sunshinesunshine thanthan thethe winter winter team team at at 28 the 1957 record of 102.1 deg was the Pole—the sunsun setset aa monthmonth later.later. broken, the thermometer showing minus But McMurdo Station andand ScottScott BaseBase l()2.4deg. Two Americans of the winter arc not in thethe "Banana"Banana Belt"Belt" whenwhen team joined this year's Club 300 at winter comes. Darkness andand lowlow 11.30 p.m. on May 23, facing the temperatures have have been been accompanied accompanied by by temperature of minus 100.4dcg after a snow and high winds. sauna bath. Since the last flight to the Pole Nearly 20 years ago when the first Station was made on February 11 Americans wintered at the Pole, the meteorological records have been scientific leader, Dr Paul Siple, believed broken there every month. The lowest that the winter night temperatures in temperature for February was minus 1957 might reach minus 120dcg F. He 56.7deg Celsius, recorded on February was proved wrong, but in May the 29. Then temperatures began dropping men at the Pole Station endured 93 steadily each week. The sun set on consecutive hours with temperatures at March 22, when the time-honoured minus 90deg or colder, and at 3 a.m. holiday was observed, and minus 69.4 on May 12 the coldest outdoor temper deg C was recorded in that week. ature (minus 100.4deg) was recorded. When the men at McMurdo Station An unexpected cold snap in September and Scott Base saw the sun drop began with a temperature of minus below the horizon for the last time on 99.7deg on September 11. Minus lOOdeg April 24 the temperature at the Pole was recorded on September 18. and was minus 72deg C, and the month 'the thermometer finally showed the ended with the thermometer at minus record of minus 102.1deg. 69.4deg. Work on equipment outside the station stopped, and the 18 men In 1957 there were no sauna baths or a Club 300 at the Pole Station, but prepared for the months of winter darkness. two men put themselves to a cold en durance test on July 29 when the temper RECORD LOW ature was minus 98.8deg. They decided Outside the geodesic dome which to go outdoors and determine how long houses the station buildings tempera they could endure without seeking tures continued to drop. A temperature shelter. One man wore 261b of clothes, of minus 69.1 deg was recorded on May and the other 271b. They gave up after 21, and then on May 23 the recording three and four hours respectively in was made on the Fahrenheit scale to the darkness and cold. JUNE, 1976 When temperatures start to drop larger ice wharf in Winter Quarters sharply at the South Pole, the men liv Bay. The old wharf, which had been ing there always face living problems. in use for several seasons, was broken Heating, lighting, and plumbing, are up and floated out to sea towards the their main concern, and this year's end of last season. By the end of May team have had to cope with frozen the huge man-made ice cube had reached pipes, and equipment immobilised by a thickness of nearly 5ft. the intense cold. And working in SCOTT BASE temperatures of minus 60 Celsius means frostbitten fingers and noses. Winter darkness and low tempera But living conditions are now more tures arc now the daily experience of comfortable than those in the old the Americans' neighbours over the station. There arc facilities for hill—11 New Zealanders at Scott Base. recreation, and this winter the men In his April newsletter the leader, have been weight lifting, playing pool Hamish Raynham, says that the aver and darts, and taking part in a cooking age temperature for the month was contest. Twilight will start to replace minus 28.4 Celsius, one degree colder the winter darkness early in August, than the previous record of April, 1960. and the sun will return towards the end Before the New Zealanders settled of September. in for the winter—the last five of the Winter at McMurdo Station has been summer support staff left on February marked by the same pattern of falling 12—several New Zealanders made the temperatures and living problems as last helicopter flight of the season to the Pole Station.