Exploration of Antarctica is a story that illustrates man's unbridled desire to understand the world around him, a story about fortitude and willingness to take risks. The sixth continent, theoretically located south of Australia and the Americas, has intrigued explorers and cartographers for several centuries. However, the history of Antarctica exploration began only in 1819 with the round-the-world voyage of Russian navigators Bellingshausen and Lazarev. It was then that the development of the vast ice expanse began, which continues to this day.
From time immemorial
Almost two thousand years before the discovery and first exploration of Antarctica took place, ancient geographers were already talking about its existence. Then there were a lot of assumptions about what the distant land was like. The name "Antarctica" appeared during this period. It is first found in Martin of Tire in the second century AD. One of the authors of the hypothesis about the unknown continent was the great Aristotle, who assumed that the Earth is symmetrical, which means that there is another continent beyond Africa.
Legends arose later. On some maps dating back to the Middle Ages, the image of the “Southern Land” is clearly visible, often located separately or connected to America. One of them was found in 1929. Admiral Piri Reis's map, dating from 1513, supposedly contains a very detailed and accurate depiction of the coastline of Antarctica. Where the compiler got the information for his map is still a mystery.
Getting closer
It was not marked by the discovery of the sixth continent. Research European sailors We just narrowed the search range. It became clear that the South American continent is “not attached” to any unknown land. And in 1773, James Cook crossed the river for the first time in history. Arctic Circle and discovered several Antarctic islands, but that was all. One of the biggest events in geography happened about 50 years after that.
The beginning of the journey
The discovery and first exploration of Antarctica took place under the leadership of Thaddeus Faddeevich Bellingshausen and under direct participation Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev. In 1819, an expedition of two ships, Mirny and Vostok, set off from Kronstadt to the South Pole. The first was securely fortified and equipped by Lazarev for navigation in the harshest conditions. The second one was created English engineers and in many respects it was inferior to Mirny. At the end of the trip, he became the reason for the early return of the expedition: the ship fell into deplorable condition.
The ships set sail on July 4 and by November 2 had already reached Rio de Janeiro. Following the planned course, they circled the island South Georgia and approached Sandwich Land. It was identified as an archipelago and renamed Southern. Among them, three new islands were discovered: Leskov, Zavadovsky and Thorson.
Exploration of Antarctica by Bellingshausen and Lazarev
The opening took place on January 16 (27 according to the new style) 1820. The ships approached the sixth continent in an area today called the Bellingshausen Ice Shelf, off the coast of Princess Martha. Before the onset of the Arctic winter, when the weather conditions, the expedition approached the mainland several more times. The ships were closest to the continent on February 5 and 6 (17 and 18).
The exploration of Antarctica by Lazarev and Bellingshausen continued after the arrival of summer. As a result of the voyage, several new objects were put on the map: the island of Peter I with the mountainous, partially ice-free land of Alexander I; Three Brothers Islands, known today as Espland and O'Brien; Rear Admiral Rozhnov Island (today Gibbs), Mikhailov Island (Cornwalls), Admiral Mordvinov Island (Eliphant), Vice Admiral Shishkov Island (Clarence).
The first exploration of Antarctica was completed on July 24, 1821, when both ships returned to Kronstadt.
Expedition contribution
During their research, navigators under the leadership of Bellingshausen and Lazarev circumnavigated Antarctica. They mapped it in total 29 islands, and also, of course, the mainland itself. In addition, they have collected unique century before last intelligence. In particular, Bellingshausen found that salt water freezes in the same way as fresh water, contrary to the assumptions of scientists of that time. The only difference is that a lower temperature is required. The ethnographic and natural science collection, which arrived with the sailors in Russia, is today kept at Kazan University. It is impossible to overestimate the importance of the expedition, but the history of the exploration and discovery of Antarctica has just begun with it.
Development
Each expedition to the sixth continent was a certain feat. The harsh conditions of the icy desert left little chance for people who were ill-prepared or unorganized. Scientists' first explorations of Antarctica were especially difficult because their participants often could not fully imagine what awaited them.
This was the case with the expedition of Karsten Egeberg Borchgrevink. His team made the first documented landing on the shores of Antarctica in 1899. The main thing that the expedition achieved was wintering. It became clear that surviving in the harsh conditions of the icy desert during the polar night is possible if you have a well-equipped shelter. However, the place for wintering was chosen extremely poorly, and the team did not return home in full force.
At the beginning of the last century it was achieved South Pole. It was first reached by a Norwegian expedition led by Roald Amundsen in 1911. Soon after, the team reached the South Pole and died on the way back. However, the most large-scale development of the ice desert began in 1956. The study of Antarctica acquired new character- Now it was carried out on an industrial basis.
International Geophysical Year
In the middle of the last century, many countries were aimed at exploring Antarctica. As a result, in 1957-1958. twelve states threw their forces into the development of the icy desert. This time was declared the International Geophysical Year. The history of Antarctic exploration, perhaps, does not know such fruitful periods.
It was found that the icy “breath” of the sixth continent is carried away by currents and air currents far to the north. This information made it possible to more accurately predict weather throughout the Earth. During the research process, much attention was paid to naked indigenous rocks, which can tell a lot about the structure of our planet. A large amount of data was also collected on phenomena such as the northern lights and cosmic rays.
Exploration of Antarctica by Russian scientists
Of course, in scientific activity In those years, the Soviet Union played a huge role. Several stations were founded in the interior of the continent; research groups. Even during the preparation for the International Geophysical Year, the Soviet Antarctic Expedition (SAE) was created. Its tasks included studying the processes occurring in the atmosphere of the continent and their impact on circulation air masses, compilation geological characteristics terrain and its physical and geographical description, identifying patterns of movement of Arctic waters. The first expedition landed on the ice in January 1956. And already on February 13, the Mirny station was opened.
As a result of the work of Soviet polar explorers, the number of blank spots on the map of the sixth continent has significantly decreased. Over three hundred were opened geographical objects such as islands, bays, valleys and mountain ranges. Seismic surveys were carried out. They helped establish that Antarctica is not, as was assumed at that time, a continent. The most valuable information was often discovered as a result of researchers working at the limit of their capabilities, during the most difficult expeditions deep into the continent.
During the years of the most active research in Antarctica, there were eight stations operating in both winter and summer. During the Polar Night, 180 people remained on the continent. Since the beginning of summer, the size of the expedition increased to 450 participants.
Successor
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Antarctic exploration did not stop. The SAE was replaced by the Russian Antarctic Expedition. With the improvement of technology, a more detailed study of the sixth continent has become possible. Research of Antarctica by Russian scientists is carried out in several directions: determining the climatic, geophysical and other features of the continent, the influence atmospheric phenomena on weather conditions in other areas of the world, collection and analysis of data on the anthropogenic load of polar stations on the environment.
Since 1959, when the Antarctic Treaty was concluded, the icy continent has become a place international cooperation free from military activities. The development of the sixth continent was carried out by several countries. Exploration of Antarctica in our time is an example of cooperation for the sake of scientific progress. Russian expeditions often have an international composition.
Mysterious lake
Almost no report is complete without mentioning a rather interesting object discovered under the ice. Its existence was predicted by A.P. Kapitsa and I.A. Zotikov after the end of the geophysical year based on the data obtained during that period. This is a freshwater Lake Vostok, located in the area of the station of the same name under a layer of ice 4 km thick. The discovery was led to by the exploration of Antarctica by Russian scientists. This officially happened in 1996, although already in the late 50s work was underway to study the lake according to data from Kapitsa and Zotikov.
The discovery excited scientific world. Such a subglacial lake is completely isolated from contact with the earth’s surface, and for millions of years. Theoretically, its fresh waters with a sufficiently high concentration of oxygen could be a habitat for organisms still unknown to scientists. Favorable factor is sufficient for the development of life high temperature lakes - up to +10º at the bottom. At the boundary separating the surface of the reservoir and the ice, it is colder - only -3º. The depth of the lake is estimated at 1200 m.
The possibility of discovering unknown flora and fauna led to the decision to drill for ice in the Vostok region.
Latest data
Ice drilling in the reservoir area began in 1989. Ten years later it was suspended at a distance of approximately 120 m from the lake. The reason is the fear of foreign researchers about contamination of the ecosystem with particles from the surface, as a result of which a unique community of organisms may suffer. Russian scientists did not share this point of view. Soon, new, more environmentally friendly equipment was developed and tested, and in 2006 the drilling process resumed.
A number of scientists are quite skeptical about the results, explaining such a diversity of sequences as mud brought in by the drill. In addition, there is a possibility that most of the organisms to which the DNA found may belong have already died long ago. One way or another, research into Antarctica by scientists from Russia and several other countries in the area continues.
Hello from the past and a look to the future
Interest in Lake Vostok is also due to the opportunity to study an ecosystem similar to those that could have existed on Earth many years ago, during the late Proterozoic period. Then several global glaciations succeeded each other on our planet, each of which lasted for up to ten million years.
In addition, the study of Antarctica in the lake area, the process of drilling wells, the collection, analysis and interpretation of results may be useful in the future during the development of satellites gas giant Jupiter, Europa and Callisto. Presumably, similar lakes with their own conserved ecosystem exist under their surface. If the hypothesis is confirmed, then the “inhabitants” of the subglacial lakes of Europa and Callisto may become the first organisms discovered outside our planet.
The history of the exploration and discovery of Antarctica well illustrates man's constant desire to expand his own knowledge. Exploring the sixth continent, like the International space station, is an example of peaceful cooperation of many states with scientific purposes. Ice continent, however, is in no hurry to reveal its secrets. Harsh conditions require constant improvement of technology, scientific equipment and often the work of the human spirit and body to the limit. The inaccessibility of the sixth continent to the majority, the existence of an impressive number of gaps in knowledge about it gives rise to many legends about Antarctica. The curious can easily find information about the hiding places of fascists, UFOs and predatory killing people. Only polar explorers know how things really are. Followers scientific versions can safely hope that soon we will know a little more about Antarctica, which means that the amount of mysticism enveloping the continent will decrease slightly.
Antarctica is a continent also known as the South Pole. In many ways, Antarctica is the most unique of the 7 continents. Let's find out all the secrets of Antarctica
Size
Antarctica is geographically unique in that it has no fixed boundaries or fixed size. Although it is the fifth largest continent overall, its exact size in square miles varies depending on the season. The change can be quite dramatic. In summer, the continent is about half the size of the United States. However, in winter, when the usable area expands due to snow and ice, the continent can double in size.
White continent
Antarctica has an abundance of snow and ice. 98% of the continent is covered in ice, and about 70% of the world's fresh water is frozen in Antarctica. No other continent is colder, drier, or windier than Antarctica, greatly expanding the possibilities of explaining yet another unique feature, low population.
No citizens
So hostile is the Antarctic environment that it has no permanent inhabitants. Since no one lives there permanently, there are no countries or governments in Antarctica. This also means that there is no Antarctic money in dollars or coins. However, some people live and work in Antarctica temporarily. These are mainly summer visitors, who tend to be almost exclusively scientists conducting various shapes research. There are more than 60 research stations in Antarctica, and the total number of personnel at these institutions can sometimes reach four or five thousand people. A special international treaty allows anyone to use Antarctica in any for peaceful purposes.
Research projects
The most common types of research conducted by visitors to Antarctica are related to weather. There is a lot of unique information about the weather in Antarctica, particularly its extreme cold. The highest temperature ever recorded in Antarctica is only 7 degrees Fahrenheit, but the coldest ever recorded is -128 degrees Fahrenheit. At this temperature, a steel rod thrown strongly towards the ground will collapse.
Antarctica is also considered best place in the world to collect meteorites that fall to Earth from space. Meteorites are easier to find in Antarctica because they stand out against the snow, and they are not as easily contaminated by terrestrial plants and bacteria, which often break down meteorites for scientific study when they fall on other continents. The most common professions for visitors to Antarctica are meteorologists, glaciologists, astronomers, physicists, oceanographers, geologists and biologists.
Life
While the mainland has no permanent inhabitants, it is home to an amazing diversity of Antarctic wildlife. Penguins and other birds such as the albatross can be found in Antarctica, as well as six types of seals and nine species of whales. Almost all of Antarctica's wildlife is found close to the coast, as high winds and extreme cold make the continent's interior too inhospitable. There are over a thousand species of fungal and lichen plants, but only two types of flowering plants on the entire continent. There are also 700 species of plankton.
If it weren't so cold and covered in ice, Antarctica would be a desert, much like the Sahara Desert in northern Africa, because it has little annual rainfall. However, what small quantity precipitation falls in the form of snow, rarely melts, thereby creating deep and ancient snow drifts. Make no mistake about it, modern Antarctica is technically the largest desert in the world.
With its extreme cold, it is unlikely that Antarctica will ever be densely populated or of much interest to humans, except scientific research. However, the White Continent of Antarctica remains interesting as a beautiful, large and in many ways unique place that is not quite like any of the other 7 continents.
Important facts about Antarctica
This continent gets its name from a Greek word that means "opposite the north", which is very literal given its location right around the world from North Pole(Arctic). The existence of Antarctica was only suspected by scientists until 1820, when it was discovered during exploration of the area. The South Pole is located on the continent of Antarctica and was discovered in 1911.
Geography of Antarctica
Antarctica is covered with ice sheets. If the climate were to warm to the point where the ice sheets melted, it would raise ocean levels by 200 feet (60 m) worldwide.
Antarctica has the highest average height any continent on Earth.
The continent is surrounded on all sides by the Southern Ocean.
90% of all ice on Earth is in Antarctica and 70% of all fresh water. This amounts to about 30 million cubic kilometers (6,810,622,337,000,000,000 gallons) of ice.
Less than 5% of Antarctica is not covered by ice. Most The continent is covered in ice that is more than 1 mile (1.6 km) deep.
Antarctica is very large area sushi. She's more than European continent, and twice the size of Australia.
The white background of Antarctica's ice and snow makes it much easier to find meteorites. Additionally, there are very few plants to hide them.
During the winter, the continent of Antarctica nearly doubles in size as sea ice begins to form around coastlines. This ice forms and then melts every year as the seasons change in Antarctica.
Antarctica is believed to be responsible for one of the largest icebergs on record. In 2000, a giant piece of ice the size of Delaware (United States) broke the Ross Ice Shelf. It had an area of more than 4000 square meters. Miles (11,000 sq. km).
Antarctic climate facts
Even though Antarctica contains 70% of the planet's fresh water in the form of ice, it is still considered a desert region ( arctic desert more specific) since it receives less than 6.5 inches or (166 mm) of precipitation annually,
The seasons in Antarctica are opposite to most places on Earth. Summer falls between October and February, and winter falls from March to September.
This continent is the driest, highest, windiest and coldest of all the others. Antarctica has winds that will reach over 180 mph (300 kph) on a sustained basis.
There are areas of Antarctica that are so comparable to areas on Mars that NASA has used these areas to test equipment for spaceflight.
Average temperature March to September (winter) is -60 °C (-76 °F). The average temperature from October to February (summer) is -31 °C (-23 °F). The record low temperature in Antarctica is -89.6°C (-129°F).
The biggest dangers to people in Antarctica, other than cold temperatures, are not what you think. Fire is extremely dangerous in Antarctica due to very dry conditions. It's almost impossible to stop the fire.
The journey that a snowflake takes before becoming an iceberg is over 100,000 years.
Antarctica was not always a cold, windy, desert. If you go back 50 million years, you'll find greener forests, more diverse land animals, and many more birds. Fossils have been found in Antarctica to prove that this continent was once very lush in animal and plant life.
Facts about Antarctic victims
Antarctica's cold, windy and harsh climate keeps wildlife to a minimum. However, there are a limited number of insects and birds that call the continent home.
Antarctica is the only continent on earth that does not have native ant species.
Antarctica is home to several marine animals such as seabirds, penguins, seals, squids and whales. Most animals that survive in Antarctica share a common characteristic. They have thick layers of living fat (insulated fat) to keep them warm. Some species have a few centimeters to survive.
Land-based wildlife is very rare in Antarctica. The largest land creature is actually an insect. The wingless midge is only half an inch (1.5 cm).
Only one warm-blooded animal remains all year round in Antarctica. An Emperor Penguin Sticks to the Most Unforgivable Winter on Earth to Care for Its Children Without Food!
The neighboring oceans of Antarctica are home to some of the coldest adapted animals on Earth. There are several species of fish that live in the waters near Antarctica that thrive in 0°C water.
Facts about the location of Antarctica
The continent of Antarctica is the most southern continent in the world. This of course means that you can also find the South Pole (the most southern point planets).
The continent is the largest wilderness on the planet.
The most big hole V ozone layer falls over Antarctica, which means that more radiation reaches this continent than any other.
You won't find any Eskimos or polar bears in Antarctica, which are located on the other side of the world in the Arctic.
Antarctica covers an area of over 5 million square miles (13 million sq km).
American John Davis is believed to have been the first to set foot on the continent in 1821.
Antarctica is mainly visited for scientific research. The only commercially viable industry found on the continent is fishing. There are also 50,000 thousand tourists who make their way to the continent every year.
The countries of Argentina, Australia, Chile, the United Kingdom, Norway, France and New Zealand have filed claims to the Antarctic continent. It is not surprising that many countries do not recognize this. The Antarctic Treaty was created in light of this fact, which does not grant any country's claims to the continent, so it can continue to be used for science by many countries around the world.
Antarctica's unique dry climate and slow-moving ice allow scientists to carve out chunks of ice called "cores." They are removed like a plug of ice, which is essentially a time capsule, allowing scientists to look at climate, geological phenomena, pollution and more over thousands of years.
Antarctica hosts an annual sporting event called the Antarctic Ice Marathon. This is a 62-mile (100 km) running track along the ice near the South Pole.
Who discovered Antarctica
In 1772, James Cook from England became the first famous person, which crossed the Antarctic Circle, which is at latitude 66.5°S.
In January 1820, two British sailors, William Smith and James Bransfield, sighted the Antarctic Peninsula, and in November of the same year, an American, Nathaniel Palmer, also saw the continent. John Davis, another American, was the first to land there on February 7, 1821. This early research was the result of ships hunting seals.
During the period 1830-32. British navigator John Biscoe also visited the continent. In the 1830s and 1840s, knowledge of Antarctica increased Russian expedition under the leadership of T. T. Bellingshausen; American six-ship expedition of 1840 under the command of Charles Wilkes; the French expedition of 1840 led by Jules S. S. Dumont D'Urville; and the British expedition led by Sir James Ross in 1841-43.
Antarctica was neglected until whalers showed interest in the region. A British team led by Norwegian naturalist Carsten E. Borchgrevink established the first wintering base on the continent in 1899.
Between 1907 and 1909, Sir Ernest Shackleton of Great Britain commanded the expedition that discovered the Southern magnetic pole, climbed Mount Erebus, one of the tallest volcanoes in the world, and was within 100 miles of the South Pole. The pole was first obtained on December 14, 1911 by Roald Amundsen from Norway, and Robert F. Scott from Great Britain arrived a month later on January 18, 1912. During this period, expeditions from nine countries visited Antarctica.
In the 1920s, airplanes began to be used for reconnaissance. Sir Hubert Wilkins of Great Britain was the first to fly over the continent, in 1928, and on November 29, 1929, Americans Richard E. Bird and Bernt Balchen flew over the pole. Lincoln Ellsworth, another American, made the first continent-wide flight in 1936, and Sir Vivian Fuchs of Great Britain was the first to make a full land crossing in 1957-58.
The discovery of Antarctica and scientific exploration of the continent in the 1930s led to international rivalry with a number of countries laying claim to parts of the continent. Some of the claims overlap. The United States made no claims or recognized the interests of other countries. Large permanent scientific stations and valuable scientific data was collected.
In conclusion about Antarctica
The South Orkney Islands have or had British and Argentine stations; the Weddell Sea has stations in the UK, USA and Argentina; on Palmer or the Antarctic Peninsula, in South America, there are stations in Argentina, Chile and Great Britain; Marie Bird Land has United States stations; Ross Ice Shelf and Ross Sea, on Pacific Ocean, have stations in the United States and New Zealand; Wilkes-Land, Australia, has stations in France, Australia and the United States; American mountain range, Indian Ocean, has stations in Australia, China and Russia; Dronning Maud Land, From the Atlantic, has stations in South Africa, Germany, Japan, India and Russia.
At the South Pole is the Amundsen-Scott Station in the United States. In 1959, the 12 countries participating in the International Geophysical Year from July 1957 to December 1958 signed the Antarctic Treaty. It provides for freedom of movement and scientific cooperation and prohibits military operations and nuclear explosions in this area.
James Cook was the first to suggest existence in the cold south of the continent. However, very difficult ice conditions did not allow it to reach the shores of the continent. This was done on January 16 (January 28), 1820 by a Russian expedition led by Thaddeus Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev.
After this, the study of the coast of the continent and its interior began. Numerous studies were carried out by English expeditions led by Ernest Shackleton (he wrote the book “The Most Terrible Campaign” about them).
In 1911-1912, a real race to conquer the South Pole began between the expeditions of the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen and the Englishman Robert Scott. Amundsen was the first to reach the South Pole; a month after him, Robert Scott's party arrived at the cherished point and died on the way back.
From the middle of the 20th century, the study of Antarctica began on an industrial basis. On the continent, various countries are creating numerous permanent bases that conduct meteorological, glaciological and geological research all year round.
In total, there are about 45 year-round scientific stations in Antarctica. Currently, Russia has five operating stations and one field base in Antarctica: Mirny, Vostok, Novolazarevskaya, Progress, Bellingshausen, Druzhnaya-4 (base).
Three stations are in a mothballed state: Molodezhnaya, Russkaya, Leningradskaya.
The rest no longer exist: Pionerskaya, Komsomolskaya, Sovetskaya, Vostok-1, Lazarev, Pole of Inaccessibility.
From 1957 to 1959, the International Geophysical Year took place, 65 countries agreed to send expeditions to Antarctica, build scientific stations and conduct various studies. More than 60 research stations have been built in Antarctica. Scientists from many countries around the world work there. In 1959, an international treaty on Antarctica was signed, according to which it is prohibited to build industrial and military facilities there. The entire continent is available to scientists for research, which is why Antarctica is called the continent of scientists.
The first Soviet expedition to Antarctica was led by Hero of the Soviet Union M.M. Somov. At the beginning of January 1956, the flagship ship of the expedition, the diesel-electric ship Ob, under the command of Captain I.A. Mana approached the Helen Glacier in thick fog and passed through a narrow passage between icebergs east of the mouth of the glacier into Depot Bay of the Davis Sea.
The search began for a site to build a research station. A suitable location was found in the Haswell Island area.
In mid-February 1956, the grand opening the first Soviet observatory on the coast of Antarctica. The observatory was named “Mirny” - in honor of one of the ships of the First Russian Antarctic Expedition of Belingshausen - Lazarev. From the first days of the existence of the Soviet base, scientific research began in all planned areas. The coast where the expedition settled was called the Coast of Truth.
Scientists have proven that Antarctica was previously a green city. And under the ice there are mountains, valleys, plains, former river beds, bowls of former lakes. Millions of years ago there was no eternal winter on this earth. Here the forests rustled warmly and greenly, tall grasses swayed under the warm winds, animals gathered to drink on the banks of rivers and lakes, birds fluttered in the sky.
Scientists suggest that Antarctica was once part of a giant continent called Gondwanaland.
A few months later, the expedition undertook a sleigh-caterpillar voyage into the depths of “ white spot” East Antarctica and organized the inland station “Pionerskaya” 370 km from the coast, at an altitude of 2700 m above sea level. On this slope of the glacier dome, even in the best weather, a smoky wind blows, sweeping the snow.
The second Soviet Antarctic expedition led by A.F. Treshnikova moved even further into the continent. Researchers came to the South Geomagnetic Pole and, at a distance of 1400 km from the coast, at an altitude of 3500 m above sea level, built a permanent scientific station “Vostok”. Everything necessary for the life and work of polar explorers is delivered from their homeland by several ships; in addition, winterers have tractors, tractors, airplanes, and helicopters.
Thanks to the AN-2 light aircraft and the MI-4 helicopter, which helped quickly reach any point on the coast, geologists studied short time dozens of rocky mountains - nunataks protruding from the ice sheet, surveyed the Mirny rocks and the Banger Hills oasis and its environs. Biologists flew over many coastal islands by plane, describing the flora and fauna of these areas.
The vegetation here is lichens, mosses and blue-green algae. Antarctica lacks land mammals, winged insects and freshwater fish.
More than 100 thousand penguins nest near Mirny, many petrels, skuas, and seals and leopard seals live in the waters.
The third Soviet Antarctic expedition worked during the International Geophysical Year. By this time, two more stations had been built - “Komsomolskaya” and in an area of relative inaccessibility - “Sovetskaya”. 24-hour atmospheric monitoring was organized at the stations. Our planet's Pole of Cold was discovered. It is located near the Vostok station. The average monthly temperature in August is noted here - 71 C and recorded minimum temperature- 88.3 C. At such temperatures, the metal becomes brittle, diesel fuel turns into a dough-like mass, kerosene does not flare up, even if a burning torch is lowered into it.
During the work of the Fourth Soviet Antarctic Expedition, there was also work new station“Lazareva” on the shore of Queen Maud Land, but later it was rewritten 80 km inland and called “Novolazarevskaya”. The participants of this expedition made a sleigh-caterpillar trip from the Vostok station to the South Geographic Pole.
In October 1958 Soviet pilots On an IL-12 plane they made a transcontinental flight from Mirny, through the South Pole, to the American McMurdo base, located near Ross Island. This was the first Soviet aircraft over the South Pole.
At the end of 1959, during the Fourth Soviet Antarctic Expedition, researchers made an outstanding trip on all-terrain vehicles. This hike took place in the most difficult sector of Antarctica along the route Mirny-Komsomolskaya-East-South Pole. On December 26, 1959, a Soviet train of all-terrain vehicles arrived at the Amundsen - Scott station, where the Soviet polar explorers were warmly greeted by the Americans. The participants of the trip made a traditional trip around the world earth's axis, which only took a few minutes. During this trip, our scientists measured the thickness of the ice sheet using the seismoacoustic method. It turned out that under the Vostok station the thickness of the glacier is 3700 m, and at the South Pole - 2810 m; from the Pionerskaya station to the South Pole there is a vast subglacial plain lying at sea level. It was called the Schmidt Plain - in honor of the famous Soviet polar explorer Otto Yulievich Schmidt. The results of research by scientists from different countries around the world were combined into one common system. Based on them, maps of the subglacial relief and thickness of the Antarctic ice sheet were compiled.
International cooperation allows us to unite the work of scientists and contributes to a better study of the nature of Antarctica. On American station"Amundsen" - "Scott", for example, Soviet scientists often visit and work, and on Soviet station"Vostok", located at the South Geomagnetic Pole, is where American scientists spend the winter and work.
Now reaching the South Pole is a relatively simple matter. American researchers are always here, dozens of planes fly here every year, correspondents, congressmen and even tourists fly here.
Soviet expeditions go to Antarctica every year. New stations were built - “Molodezhnaya”, “Bellingshausen” in West Antarctica, “Leningradskaya” on Victoria Land, not far from the Ross Sea.
The richest are gathered scientific materials. For example, seismic observations made it possible to register earthquakes on the Antarctic continent, albeit very weak ones.
Mariners have repeatedly tried to find Antarctica, but for a long time none of them succeeded. World trip English navigator James Cook in 1772-1775 was largely devoted to the search for Antarctica. In January 1774, having encountered a solid ice barrier through which it was impossible to break through, he stopped further searches and turned back. A year later, Cook was again in Antarctic waters, but did not find the Antarctic continent. Thus, Cook questioned the very possibility of the existence of the Antarctic continent and argued that the area lying beyond the Antarctic Circle was useless for humanity.
Cook's erroneous conclusions significantly slowed down further searches for Antarctica. After his voyages, for almost half a century no expeditions were sent to Antarctica for such a purpose.
Cook's erroneous conclusions slowed down further searches for Antarctica
It was Russian navigators who managed to refute Cook’s claims, discover Antarctica and begin the era of scientific exploration of the new continent. Russian nautical scientists - Kruzenshtern, Sarychev, Golovnin and others have repeatedly expressed the idea that Cook's conclusions are erroneous and argued that the continent exists.
It was Russian navigators who managed to discover Antarctica
It was they who initiated the Russian expedition to search for Southern mainland. The naval commanders' proposal received the approval of Alexander I in early February 1819.
An expedition on December 22 and 23, 1819 discovered three small volcanic islands. Moving further to southeast, the ships reached the “Sandwich Land”, opened by Cook. It turned out to be an archipelago, behind which Bellingshausen left with some changes the old name - the South Sandwich Islands. Russian sailors were the first to establish their connection with other islands and rocks of the South-West Atlantic and pointed out the presence of an underwater ridge between them.
The priority of the discovery of Antarctica by Russian navigators has been recognized
Over the next two months Russian sailors several more times they approached the shores of Antarctica. On August 5, 1821, the expedition returned to Kronstadt. The priority of the discovery of Antarctica by Russian navigators was recognized by Western European researchers.
In 1820–1821, English and American fur hunting ships were close to the Antarctic Peninsula. But the real breakthrough came between 1838 and 1842, when three expeditions from different countries were able to land on the territory of the ice continent for the first time and conduct large-scale and interesting scientific research.
Our expedition in 1819 discovered three volcanic islands
A French expedition under the command of Dumont-D'Urville landed on the territory of the so-called Adélie Land, and also discovered Louis Philippe Land, Joinville Land and Clary Land. The Americans, under the command of Charles Wilkes, dubbed the territory they discovered Wilkes Land. The third hero was the Englishman J. Ross, who named the land area he discovered in honor of his queen - Victoria Land; he also managed to walk along the giant Ross Ice Shelf for the first time, and calculated the location of the South Magnetic Pole.
In 1959, twelve countries of the world, including the USSR, USA, France, Norway, Argentina, South Africa and others, signed the Antarctic Treaty. The treaty proclaimed freedom of scientific research and the use of this region only for peaceful purposes. Antarctica became the first continent in the world to ban all military activities, it is called the continent of peace and international cooperation.
Currently, about 50 states have signed the Antarctic Treaty.
2008 marked 50 years of active research in Antarctica. Many states have created scientific stations on the mainland (Argentina, Great Britain, Germany, China, Russia, USA, Chile, etc.). USSR in different times built several stations, for example Vostok, Mirny, Komsomolskaya, Novolazarevskaya, Pionerskaya, Molodezhnaya. At the geographic South Pole, the southernmost Antarctic station, Amundsen-Scott (USA), is constantly operating. During this time, several targeted international studies polar regions(International Polar Years). This was the polar year 2007/2008, the purpose of which was to study global climate change Earth.
In the coming years, the Belarusian Antarctic station “Mount Vechernyaya” will be created 18 km from the Russian Molodezhnaya station.
Scientific research is supported by the International Environmental Fund. Meteorological, oceanographic, biological, space, astronomical, and medical research are the main areas of scientific research in Antarctica. Antarctica - natural laboratory for complex geographical and other studies. The main goal of modern research is to determine current and assess future climate changes, the state of environment and the consequences of these changes for Antarctica, developing proposals for nature conservation in a changing climate.
Changes natural environment Antarctica can influence the development of the world economy. According to certain scenarios, as a result of climate change, the ice sheet of Antarctica may melt, which will lead to the flooding of many developed areas of the Earth. Various countries are studying the problem of the ozone layer, atmospheric processes and their influence on the formation of the Earth's climate. Valuable natural resource is fresh water ice sheet. Given the intense pollution of land surface waters, the ice of Antarctica may become the only source of clean drinking water on Earth.
Subglacial Lake Vostok has been isolated from the rest of the world for about a million years and is the object of study by scientists. Studies of ice samples from different depths of the Antarctic glacier at the Vostok station, obtained during deep drilling, allow us to study the history of climate formation over the past hundreds of thousands of years.
Over half a century of research, more than 100 Belarusian polar explorers have visited Antarctica. They participated in all allied expeditions to the South Pole. In November 2006, Belarusian researchers as part of the 52nd Russian Antarctic Expedition organized a field scientific base in the area of Vechernyaya to support the research of Belarusian scientists. Here, every year, near the Russian Molodezhnaya station, Belarusian scientists conduct research on the mainland under a special program.
Antarctic Nature Conservancy
The nature of Antarctica is very susceptible to even minor human impacts. Poor species composition animal and flora coastline, close natural connections between certain types in harsh climatic conditions, they require careful treatment of nature on the part of humans. In the coastal part of the continent, permanent and seasonal scientific stations arose, for the service of which air and land transport routes were developed, aviation and sea ports. They arrive on the continent every year sea vessels with provisions and scientific equipment, fuels and lubricants, aircraft with a replacement crew of expeditions.
Active economic activity could greatly affect the nature of Antarctica and cause significant changes in the Earth's climate. Some large states decided to create international tourist routes. In some years, up to 5 thousand tourists visit Antarctica during cruises.
The most significant problems are air pollution, as well as pollution of the station area solid waste, recycling and removal of this waste.
The Antarctic Treaty prohibits any military activities nuclear tests and waste disposal.
There is an international ban on the extraction of minerals from the depths of Antarctica. New Zealand proposed the establishment of an Antarctic natural park with an area of about 12 million km2.
The problem of ozone layer depletion is one of the current problems modern research of Belarusian polar explorers. The ozone layer absorbs some solar radiation and protects all living things earth's surface from dangerous influence ultraviolet radiation. The destruction of the ozone layer is manifested in the appearance in the ozone layer of the atmosphere of areas with low ozone content - “ozone holes”, which are associated with changes in the Earth’s climate. These fluctuations are especially noticeable in Antarctica. This cannot but worry humanity. Since 1988, research has been carried out on the ozone layer over Antarctica. Accepted International convention for the protection of the ozone layer.
Intensive krill fishing creates the problem of optimizing the catch and preserving the food supply for the animal world in Antarctica, its reproduction and maintaining a balanced ecosystem in coastal zone Antarctica. Despite Antarctica's remoteness from major industrial centers and sea transport routes, there is a problem of pollution of Antarctic waters and coastal pollution. At large research stations, waste processing and disposal facilities are being created.
Antarctica is a natural laboratory for studying global climate change on Earth. The processes taking place in Antarctica inevitably affect the nature of the entire planet.
