Antarctic Research Centre

The Antarctic Research Centre (ARC) is part of the School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences at Victoria University of Wellington. Its mission is to research "Antarctic climate history and processes, and their influence on the global climate system.[1] The current director of the Antarctic Research Centre is Associate Professor Robert McKay.[2]

Antarctic Research Centre
Parent institutionVictoria University of Wellington
Established1972 (1972)
FocusResearch in sedimentology, glaciology, paleoclimatology and Antarctic affairs.
DirectorAssociate Professor Robert McKay
AddressCotton Building, Kelburn Parade, Kelburn
Location
Wellington
,
New Zealand
Websitehttps://www.wgtn.ac.nz/antarctic

Directors

History

In December 1957, geology students Barrie McKelvey and Peter Webb along with biologist Ron Balham conducted an expedition to the then unexplored McMurdo Dry Valleys via the Royal New Zealand Navy Antarctic support ship HMNZS Endeavour. This expedition formed the basic for the annual Victoria University of Wellington Antarctic Expeditions, which continue to the present day. Since this first expedition, over 400 staff and students have travelled to the continent.

The Antarctic Research Centre was established in 1972 as a part of the Department of Geology at Victoria University. The institutes first director was Professor Peter Barrett, who remained for 35 years before stepping down from the role in 2007.[4] The centre won the New Zealand Prime Minister's Science Prize in 2020. [5]

Research

Research conducted at ARC focuses on climate change, including the analysis of ocean floor sediment cores and ice cores, and glacial modeling.[1] Researchers from ARC have studied different factors that impact polar ice, including CO2 levels[6][7] and oscillations in the Earth's orbit.[8][9]

Antarctic Expeditions

The ARC conducts annual research explorations, known as the Victoria University of Wellington Antarctic Expeditions (VUWAE), into Antarctica. The first expedition, which explored the McMurdo Dry Valleys, was undertaken on December 30, 1957, by Peter Webb and Barrie McKelvey, two third-year geology students.[4][10] Since then, students and staff have made annual expeditions to conduct research in areas such as glacial history and climate change.[11]

Expedition leaders have named a number of features in the area, including Eureka Spurs and Ghent Ridge.

Researchers that have been involved in VUWAEs include Harold Wellman, who discovered the Alpine Fault.[12]

Expedition reports have been digitised by the New Zealand Electronic Text Collection.[13]

References
  1. "Home - Antarctic Research Centre." Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, 2010. http://www.victoria.ac.nz/antarctic/default.aspx. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  2. Robert McKay, Victoria University of Wellington, 2020. https://people.wgtn.ac.nz/robert.mckay
  3. "Tim Naish - Antarctic Research Centre". Victoria University of Wellington. 15 July 2011. Retrieved 11 Nov 2011.
  4. "History - Antarctic Research Centre." Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, 2010. http://www.victoria.ac.nz/antarctic/about/history.aspx. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  5. The Evolution of Antarctic Research. Victoria University of Wellington, 2020. https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/science/about/news/the-evolution-of-antarctic-research
  6. Gibson, Eloise (July 4, 2009). "Alarm grows over big melt in Antarctica". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
  7. Golledge, N. R.; Kowalewski, D. E.; Naish, T. R.; Levy, R. H.; Fogwill, C. J.; Gasson, E. G. W. (2015). "The multi-millennial Antarctic commitment to future sea-level rise". Nature. 526 (7573): 421–425. doi:10.1038/nature15706. PMID 26469052. S2CID 205246177.
  8. Naish, Tim R.; Woolfe, Ken J.; Barrett, Peter J.; Wilson, Gary S.; Atkins, Cliff; Bohaty, Steven M.; Bücker, Christian J.; Claps, Michele; Davey, Fred J.; Dunbar, Gavin B.; Dunn, Alistair G.; Fielding, Chris R.; Florindo, Fabio; Hannah, Michael J.; Harwood, David M.; Henrys, Stuart A.; Krissek, Lawrence A.; Lavelle, Mark; van der Meer, Jaap; McIntosh, William C.; Niessen, Frank; Passchier, Sandra; Powell, Ross D.; Roberts, Andrew P.; Sagnotti, Leonardo; Scherer, Reed P.; Strong, C. Percy; Talarico, Franco; Verosub, Kenneth L.; Villa, Giuliana; Watkins, David K.; Webb, Peter-N.; Wonik, Thomas (18 October 2001). "Orbitally induced oscillations in the East Antarctic ice sheet at the Oligocene/Miocene boundary". Nature. 413 (6857): 719–723. doi:10.1038/35099534. PMID 11607028. S2CID 4335866.
  9. Patterson, M. O.; McKay, R.; Naish, T.; Escutia, C.; Jimenez-Espejo, F. J.; Raymo, M. E.; Meyers, S. R.; Tauxe, L.; Brinkhuis, H. (2014). "Orbital forcing of the East Antarctic ice sheet during the Pliocene and Early Pleistocene". Nature Geoscience. 7 (11): 841–847. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.719.335. doi:10.1038/ngeo2273.
  10. VUWAE Reunion Programme. Victoria University of Wellington, 2007. http://www.victoria.ac.nz/antarctic/pdf/VUWAE_Reunion_Programme.pdf
  11. nathan, simon (2005). Harold Wellman:a man who moved New Zealand. Victoria University Press.
  12. "Victoria University of Wellington Antarctic Expedition (VUWAE) Reports". nzetc.victoria.ac.nz. Retrieved 2020-05-28.

41°17′23.97″S 174°46′5.56″E

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