ANTARCTIC RESEARCH CENTRE Annual Review 2017 Contents 1 Impacts by the Numbers 2 Director’s Summary 4 Our Mission and Research Approach 6 Major Research Outcomes 12 Other Research Outcomes 19 Science Drilling Office 20 Teaching and Supervision 24 Significant Events 34 Financial Summary 38 Outreach 42 Publications, Conferences and Collaborators 48 Our People This Photo: Drygalski Tongue, Antarctica - Jamey Stutz Cover Photo: Evan’s Heights, Antarctica - Andrew Mackintosh OUR 2017 IMPACTS BY THE NUMBERS McKay Hammer 20 New Zealand the premier award of the New Zealand Geological Society scientists and students was won by Nick Golledge for his publications including a Nature paper which shows that climate change mitigation might save the West Antarctic Ice attended the Past Antarctic Ice Sheet Dynamics (PAIS) Conference in Trieste, Sheet. Italy co-organised by the ARC’s Tim Naish. PAIS is a scientific research programme of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR). ARC the 1st UN $960 thousand dollar 250 25 carbon neutral officials Marsden and government scientists years institute at Victoria ministers Fund awarded of New Zealand University have received to Andrew Mackintosh to anomalous from 25 through Lionel Carter’s understand the effects of rapid glacier advances certified co-authored book that presents a climate change on New Zealand explained for the first time in a countries rainforest synopsis of legal and environmental in the recent geological past. came to our vibrant capital city campus to attend Nature Communications paper by protection aspects of submarine The team also includes ARC’s the International Symposium on the Cryosphere in Brian Anderson, Andrew Mackintosh projects. telecommunications cables on the Shaun Eaves and Lionel Carter. a Changing Climate, hosted by Andrew Mackintosh and others. High Seas. and Victoria University. $7.1 million 29 403.3 media dollars awarded to parts per interviews 43 presentations Tim Naish and an international nd given by ARC given to schools, team from the MBIE Endeavour million 2 ARC staff on Antarctic the public, fund to understand the is the new record level of global atmospheric and climate stakeholders and IPCC impact of sea-level rise on carbon dioxide concentrations from anthropogenic related issues. decision makers New Zealand. The ARC team also includes Nick greenhouse gas emissions according to a new Lead by ARC staff. Golledge, Nancy Bertler, Andrew Mackintosh, and 2017 WMO Greenhouse Gas Bulletin by Nancy Author Brian Anderson. Bertler and colleagues. Andrew Mackintosh was selected for the Special Report on the “Oceans and Cryosphere in a Changing 8 theses Climate”. He joins Tim Naish, metres $389K submitted lead author on the previous by ARC assessment. He will also be drilled Deep South supervised joined by Nick Golledge who National Science Challenge 31publications 370 has recently been selected in through the Ross Ice Shelf in students - one the 2017/18 season using funding to better understand the by ARC PhD and seven 2018. the Hot Water Drill built by our effects of melting snow and ice researchers, including four in the MSc students. Science Drilling Office duo Alex on New Zealand. The ARC team Nature group. Pyne and Darcy Mandeno. includes Andrew Mackintosh, Ruzica Dadic, Brian Anderson, and Huw Horgan. Icons from www.flaticon.com 1 We answer the most important and Trieste, Italy, along with long-term ARC when air temperatures were only urgent science questions by being collaborator and SCAR/PAIS co-chair slightly warmer than today and sea innovative. Our team is increasingly Laura De Santis. I led the International level was significantly higher. DIRECTOR’S SUMMARY using physics and computer modelling Conference on the Cryosphere in a to extend beyond our background Changing Climate in Wellington, with 2018 has already started in a very and strength in paleoclimate studies. colleagues from the International exciting manner. We are beginning to This allows us to also look forward as Glaciological Society, International engage with our new government with well as back, enhancing our ability to Association of Cryospheric Sciences, the goal of helping New Zealand to understand the climate system. We and the World Climate Research build a society that is more resilient are now internationally recognised Programme Climate and Cryosphere to climate change. To that effect, we in a number of fields including ice- project, and an organising committee are working closely with Antarctica climate physics (Ruzica Dadic), ice- of ARC and New Zealand-based New Zealand and MBIE to help shape core climatology (Nancy Bertler), scientists. This conference attracted the new Antarctic science platform, numerical modelling of ice sheets (Nick more than 250 scientists from 25 which may support and guide Antarctic Golledge), modelling and monitoring countries to our capital city university. research for a decade or more. In of glaciers (Brian Anderson), glacier Lionel Carter gave four keynote talks February, Rob McKay, returned from geophysics (Huw Horgan), glacier on oceanography and marine cables in the Ross Sea, where he was co-chief and ice sheet chronologies (Shaun 2017, while Peter Barrett chaired his scientist of IODP Expedition 374, the Eaves), paleoceanography and marine final meeting of the award committee first coring mission in this region in cables (Lionel Carter), as well as the for the Tinker-Muse Prize for Science more than 40 years. In March, Nick sedimentology and geochemistry that and Policy in Antarctica. Increasingly Golledge was selected as an IPCC is our backbone (Bella Duncan, Warren our mid-career researchers are also Lead Author, one of five scientists from Dickinson, Gavin Dunbar, Rob McKay leading in international science Victoria to join the Sixth Assessment Hughes Bluff, Antarctica and Tim Naish). The innovation and coordination and engagement – in Cycle – a remarkable recognition of Photo: Andrew Mackintosh productivity of our academic staff 2017, Nancy Bertler co-chaired the quality of climate science at our would not be possible without the the ‘Great Antarctic Climate Hack’ university. I look forward to telling these outstanding support provided by our workshop at Scripps Institute for stories and more in our 2018 Annual Centre Manager Michelle Dow, and Oceanography in San Diego, while Review. The Antarctic Research Centre (ARC) is who secured a 7-million-dollar resources. This is the first time that the lately, by our new administrator Dao our newest Associate Professor, Rob one of the most visible and influential project from the MBIE Endeavour New Zealand community has received Polsiri. McKay, chaired the Australasian centres of excellence at Victoria Fund to provide improved sea-level umbrella funding to support this International Ocean Discovery University of Wellington. Supporting rise projections for New Zealand, societally-relevant work, and our team Our Science Drilling Office led by Alex Programme (IODP) Regional Planning the high-profile Antarctic science that to better anticipate and manage includes Ruzica Dadic, Brian Anderson Pyne along with Darcy Mandeno are Workshop in Sydney, Australia. we are renowned for has always been impacts. This project involves many and Huw Horgan from the ARC, and internationally recognised for their challenging. It requires creativity, researchers from across New Zealand, scientists from the Universities of innovation. In 2017, as part of the I am proud of our students, who international coordination and including Victoria University, GNS Otago, Canterbury, NIWA, Bodeker NZARI-funded research programme each year complete their doctoral perseverance – and this year we have Science, NIWA, the University of Scientific Ltd., and Aqualinc Research led by Christina Hulbe at University of and master’s degrees, and move succeeded in attracting more than Otago, Auckland University, and a Ltd. Otago, they developed a new hot water on to excellent research jobs, while eight million dollars of new funding. large team of international experts. drilling system and used it to penetrate generating world-class publications, We are proud of our reputation, which It also includes representatives from Staff in our Centre have a common through 370 metres of the Ross Ice giving outstanding conference talks, has developed over more than forty regional councils, so that scientists goal – to understand the impact of Shelf. With the support of Antarctica and attracting funding of their own. years, and continues to grow. In 2017 have the most relevant information climate change on Antarctica and New Zealand, this allowed a group of This year Bella Duncan completed her we published 31 papers in outstanding about infrastructure near sea level, and New Zealand, and to engage with scientists from multiple institutions PhD on fossil biomarkers and past international journals, including four science is fed into policy. society. Even though we are broad in to explore the ocean cavity beneath Antarctic climates, and she is now publications in the Nature group. our approach and background, we are the ice shelf. Gavin Dunbar from the working as a postdoctoral fellow in Our academic staff have received In addition to Tim’s success, a team united in purpose, and our Centre is a ARC used this opportunity to sample our Centre. Dan Lowry won the 2017 awards, and prestigious international led by myself, Shaun Eaves and Brian harmonious and intellectually vibrant sediment from the ocean floor, which Antarctica New Zealand Sir Robin