What is ANARE?

ANARE (pronounced an-ah-ree) is the acronym for Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions, established in1947 and now known as the Australian Antarctic Division.

ANARE embraced the activities in Antarctica of both government and non-government bodies and individuals, with a central focus on scientific research. Its membership includes:

• Australian government agencies involved with Antarctic research, including the Antarctic Division itself, the Bureau of Meteorology, the Australian Geological Survey Organisation, the Australian Surveying and Land Information Group and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).
• Non-government organisations, including Australian universities and other research institutions as well as foreign research organisations.

All these ANARE organisations have a common interest: exploring Antarctic and subantarctic regions with a view to improving our understanding the processes and resources of this vast region and of what the region can tell us about our planet in general.

Emblems of ANARE

Soon after being appointed Antarctic Division director in 1949, Dr Phillip Law saw the need for a recognisable symbol for the fledgling ANARE. His wife, Nel, was an artist and produced the elaborate circular emblem at left (enlarged at the top of this page). Dr Law described the design thus: “…a circular badge whose centre is the Antarctic Continent with the Australian sector shaded. Surrounding this is an annular set of designs depicting flora and fauna of Antarctica and the subantarctic Islands.”* The elegant Nel Law design has survived as the main emblem of ANARE.

The main ANARE emblem was, in Dr Law’s words, “too complex to reproduce as a lapel badge or as a logo on aircraft, vehicles or flags.” Dr Law saw potential in the leopard seal as a simplified ANARE symbol. “I was struck with the possibility of formalising a sketch of the creature to produce a geometrical pattern of straight lines… I drew it in the national colours of gold and green.”*

In 1986, a new logo was designed for the administrative unit in charge of ANARE, the Australian Antarctic Division.

* From Phillip Law, Antarctic Odyssey, Heinemann, Melbourne 1983

The ANARE Club

The ANARE Club has grown out of this community’s common experience of the Antarctic. Membership of this national organisation with branches in most Australian capital cities is open to anyone who has travelled to Antarctic or subantarctic regions with the Australian Antarctic Program. Established in 1951, the ANARE Club is a rich and continually growing source of Antarctic experience and expertise, as well as providing a social focus for current and former expeditioners. The club’s membership has grown to many thousands of Australians and foreign nationals. Its emblem is the Emperor penguin on a map of Antarctica.

ANARE members gather for midwinter celebrations each year with other Antarctic veterans around the world and expeditioners of all nations. The Midwinter Dinner is is a time-honoured Antarctic tradition.

Antarctic Family and Friends Association

In 1965, Nel Law, wife of the first permanent director of the Antarctic Division, Dr Phillip Law, established the Antarctic Wives’ Association of Australia, to be a social link and source of support for wives of ANARE expeditioners. The organisation is now called the Antarctic Family and Friends Association and is part of the ANARE Club.

The ANARE Club’s address is
The Secretary
ANARE Club
GPO BOX 2534
MELBOURNE 3001