2019 news
![Emperor penguin colony at Auster Rookery near Australia’s Mawson research station.](/site/assets/files/50519/5_rs56445.600x400.jpg)
2019 Antarctic rewind
2019 has been an outstanding year for the Australian Antarctic Program. Read more
![](/site/assets/files/50526/mawson-landing-area.600x400.jpg)
Mawson landing area moves inland
When the sea-ice off Mawson research station can no longer support planes, expeditioners move the landing area 20 kilometres… Read more
![Female antarctic expedition mechanic stands in front of an iceberg](/site/assets/files/50514/4-amy-chetcuti-aad.600x514.jpg)
Take your career south
Do you want a really cool job? Why not head south with the Australian… Read more
![Dr Tas van Ommen in the Basler BT-67 on an ICECAP flight.](/site/assets/files/50506/05c-tas-at-totten.600x514.jpg)
Scientists peer beneath the Antarctic ice sheet to understand future climate vulnerability
A new Antarctic topographic map will help identify which regions of the… Read more
![A collection of fish and other mesopelagic creatures on trays.](/site/assets/files/50502/09-midoc_catch__rowantrebilco.600x514.jpg)
Award for collaborative marine ecosystem research
An Australian-European collaboration to enhance Southern Ocean ecosystem… Read more
![Vibrant artwork on a new Antarctic tractor](/site/assets/files/50498/042a5235.600x514.jpg)
Australia’s artistic Antarctic tractors head south
The designs of iconic Australian artist Ken Done will adorn a new fleet of… Read more
![Graphic of RSV Nuyina in pack ice](/site/assets/files/50493/rs59029.600x514.jpg)
Come aboard Australia’s new Antarctic icebreaker
The Australian Antarctic Program is recruiting science support specialists… Read more
![Two blue coloured sewage treatment plants on the ship.](/site/assets/files/52274/img_5937seweragetreatment.600x514.jpg)
Sailing the green seas
It’s not easy being green but the icebreaker Nuyina project team is… Read more
![Photo of coloured buildings surrounded by water taken from the air](/site/assets/files/50489/rs16644_aerialdavis.600x514.jpg)
Increased commitment for proposed Davis aerodrome
On the 60th anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty System the Federal… Read more
![International flags of the participating nations fly over the Mount Brown ice core drill site](/site/assets/files/50485/rs57925.600x514.jpg)
60th anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty
Antarctic nations around the world are today marking the 60th Anniversary… Read more
![The Australian Antarctic Medal](/site/assets/files/50480/antarctic_medal.600x514.jpg)
Australian Antarctic Medal nominations open
Nominations are now invited for people who have made an outstanding… Read more
![Women in yellow standing in white snow.](/site/assets/files/50477/rs47213_12-gwen-casey-feb-18-19_rgb-lpr.600x514.jpg)
Antarctic Chief Scientist steps down
The Australian Antarctic Division’s Chief Scientist, Dr Gwen Fenton, has… Read more
![Aerial view starboard side Aurora Australis parked at the edge of the fast ice](/site/assets/files/50470/rs17905.600x514.jpg)
Seeking supplementary shipping option
As part of its contingency planning, the Australian Antarctic Division is… Read more
![Photo of men and women standing in front of a green building](/site/assets/files/50474/20191123_1921530.600x514.jpg)
Scientists on the ground of proposed runway site
A team of scientists and technical experts has arrived at Australia’s… Read more
![Australia’s icebreaker Aurora Australis in the sea-ice](/site/assets/files/50467/rs57800-aa-doug-thost-aad.600x514.jpg)
Australia to assist French Antarctic program
The Australian Antarctic Division will provide logistical support to the… Read more
![Leonie Suter in a lab coating sitting at a bench with test tube samples.](/site/assets/files/50463/leonielab_bruce-deagle.600x514.jpg)
Battle of the sexes
In the ‘battle’ to identify the sex of Antarctic krill, scientists have… Read more
![The Buoyant Rover for Under-Ice Exploration (BRUIE) sitting on the ice](/site/assets/files/50459/1_-bruie-nasasmall.600x514.jpg)
NASA space robot tested in Antarctica
The Australian Antarctic Program is working with NASA this summer to test… Read more
![The Nuyina’s science tender undergoing sea trials in Norway.](/site/assets/files/50455/science-tender.600x514.png)
Icebreaker’s science tender sea trials underway
Final sea trials for the science tender of Australia’s new icebreaker, RSV… Read more
![AA pack ice](/site/assets/files/50451/20191112-aa-pack-ice.600x514.jpg)
Aurora legacy
Icebreakers hold a special place in the hearts of our expeditioners and… Read more
![A Gulfstream V aircraft flying over mountains.](/site/assets/files/50446/03-gulfstream_nsf-ncar_hiaper_0.600x514.jpg)
Hobart hosts cool cloud workshop
Hobart is hosting some 40 international scientists studying Southern Ocean… Read more
![Two blue whales surfacing in the Southern Ocean.](/site/assets/files/50441/blue-whales-surfaceing_melinda-rekdahl.600x514.jpg)
Blue whales prefer krill tall, dense and shallow
Antarctic blue whales prefer to forage within tall, dense krill swarms at… Read more
![C-17A on the ground at Wilkins Aerodrome](/site/assets/files/50436/20191030-c-17-pilots-2.600x514.jpg)
Delivering the goods
Fresh food, science equipment, medical supplies and machinery are winging… Read more
![](/site/assets/files/52280/20191030-nuyina-drone.600x514.jpg)
Up close with Nuyina
Check out the latest video of the Nuyina under construction at the Damen… Read more
![Photo of colourful flags](/site/assets/files/50428/rs47727_d295.600x514.jpg)
Conservation of Antarctic marine living resources
The meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine… Read more
![The Nuyina docked by a wharf in Romania.](/site/assets/files/50433/dji_0119.600x514.jpg)
Icebreaker’s internal fit-out shapes up
Australia’s new icebreaker RSV Nuyina is looking more like a home away… Read more
![A green bottle on the shore](/site/assets/files/50425/01-message-stella-thomas-aad.600x514.jpg)
Macca’s mystery message
A message in a bottle has been discovered on the shore of Macquarie Island… Read more
![Iceberg floating in Antarctica’s McMurdo Sound](/site/assets/files/50420/mcmurdoiceberg_pho_2017333_lrg.600x514.jpg)
NASA ice mission launches from Hobart
For the first time from Hobart, the Australian Antarctic Program is… Read more
![The two Antarctic barges on the River Derwent](/site/assets/files/50416/img_8016.600x514.jpg)
New Antarctic barges tested on the River Derwent
Antarctic landing barges destined to work alongside Australia’s new… Read more
![Australian Antarctic Division palaeoclimate scientist Dr Andrew Moy examines planktonic and benthic foraminifera shells extracted from ocean sediments](/site/assets/files/50412/12-ngeoandrew_connor-moy.600x514.jpg)
Tiny fossils reveal 25,000 years of Southern Ocean carbon history
A reconstruction of 25,000 years of South Ocean carbon chemistry, using… Read more
![map](/site/assets/files/50409/2019-10-18-11_04_44-ccamlr_boundaries_a4_13580_300dpi_pdf-adobe-acrobat-reader-dc.600x514.jpg)
Nations meet in Hobart to conserve Southern Ocean
The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources… Read more
![Australian Antarctic Program Station Leaders, Finn Taylor, Matt Willliams, Ali Dean and David Knoff at headquarters in Kingston](/site/assets/files/50405/rs65614_dsc_0474-lpr.600x514.jpg)
Cool heads in a cold climate
Australia’s new Antarctic leadership team are prepped and ready for their… Read more
![Scientist looks into ice scanning machine](/site/assets/files/50401/img_3729.600x514.jpg)
Scanning ice cores for climate clues
Antarctic scientists are using a high-tech camera to peer inside ice cores… Read more
![Two groomers preparing the sea-ice ski landing area in front Davis research station](/site/assets/files/50398/2-groomers-in-the-on-pic.600x514.jpg)
Antarctic sea-ice prepared for planes
An Antarctic plane landing area on the frozen ocean is being prepared on… Read more
![Emperor penguin chicks and parents](/site/assets/files/50394/rs14963_2008-09-05-079.600x514.jpg)
Emperor penguins vulnerable to sea ice changes this century
Sea ice needed in the life cycle of emperor penguins is being lost to… Read more
![Two men preparing a piece of technical equipment next to water](/site/assets/files/50390/jonny-1.600x514.jpg)
Mini sub heads south for Antarctic mission
A sophisticated underwater mini submersible designed and built in… Read more
![Satellite image of large iceberg calving off an ice shelf.](/site/assets/files/50387/esa-sentinal1a_amery-berg-after_web.600x514.png)
Gigantic iceberg breaks off East Antarctica
A gigantic iceberg has calved from the Amery Ice Shelf in East Antarctica. Read more
![New Antarctic Arts Fellows, Dr Adam Nash and Dr John McCormick, in the studio.](/site/assets/files/50381/adam_john_studio_capture.600x514.jpg)
Take a virtual voyage south
As Australia’s icebreaker sails south next year, the sights, sounds and… Read more
![three people in an operating theatre with a mannequin](/site/assets/files/50376/img_5298.600x514.jpg)
Surgical tradies scrub up well
Hobart is home to a unique medical training program for Antarctic… Read more
![Minister for the Environment, the Hon Sussan Ley MP, inspecting the completed ice core drill components](/site/assets/files/50371/img_5491.600x514.jpg)
Million year ice core drill at the cutting edge
Australian Antarctic Program technicians are at the cutting-edge of a… Read more
![Expeditioner riding a quad bike in blowing snow.](/site/assets/files/50367/rs22268_quad-010-riding-in-blowing-snow.600x514.jpg)
Are we there yet?
Getting around Antarctica has always been a challenge. New Antarctic… Read more
![men stand to attention in front of flag on rocky coast](/site/assets/files/50359/rs50868_4414-a3.600x514.jpg)
65 years of Mawson research station
Antarctic veterans celebrated 65 years since the opening of Mawson… Read more
![A tractor towing two shipping containers on sleds.](/site/assets/files/50364/1_-the-tractor-towing-the-two-shipping-containers_-it-was-dark-when-we-leftjpg.600x514.jpg)
Journey to Law Dome
Travel with Craig Butsch, Senior Met Observer at Casey research station… Read more
![Daddy Cool 2019](/site/assets/files/50355/20190829-fathers-day-201b9.600x514.jpg)
Daddy Cool!
Australian Antarctic expeditioners are sending love to their Dads from the… Read more
![Through Ice & Fire book cover showing photo of Aurora Australis in sea ice.](/site/assets/files/50350/sarah-lavericks-book-cover_pan-macmillan.600x514.jpg)
New book brings icebreaker legacy to life
The legacy of Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis’s 30 year service in… Read more
![Large diatoms under the microscope.](/site/assets/files/50343/petrou_phytomix.600x514.jpg)
Tiny glass-like plants at risk in acid ocean
Microscopic marine plants encased in glass-like ‘armour’ could struggle to… Read more
![Photo of grey round partially constructed water tank](/site/assets/files/50340/water-tank-shot.600x514.jpg)
Increasing water storage for Davis station
Davis research station will soon have improved water security due to a 50… Read more
![Dana Bergstrom during her first visit to Macquarie Island as a Masters student in 1983, standing beside a rocky outcrop with a penguin.](/site/assets/files/50335/danabergstrom-in-1983-mi_dbergstrom.600x514.jpg)
Microscopic Macquarie Island plant named after Antarctic ecologist
A tiny freshwater plant with glass-like cell walls has been named after an… Read more
![graphic of icebreaker in ice with aurora](/site/assets/files/50330/rs53572_media_render4.600x514.jpg)
Captains announced for RSV Nuyina
Two experienced Captains for Australia’s new icebreaker have been… Read more
![Micrograph of Southern Ocean phytoplankton](/site/assets/files/50325/rs31311_09-phytoplankton-light-micro_harvey-marchant-lpr.600x514.jpg)
From little things big things grow
The solar-powered Southern Ocean food chain is unique, going from some of… Read more
![Wharfside view of RSV Nuyina in Galati.](/site/assets/files/52281/shipside-crop.600x514.jpg)
Portside with Nuyina
Australian Antarctic Division Director, Kim Ellis, toured the RSV Nuyina… Read more
![Australian doctors must under go an appendicectomy before they can go south](/site/assets/files/50321/appendixwebpic.600x514.jpg)
Operation Antarctic Appendix
A new group of freshly scarred Antarctic doctors, have arrived at the… Read more
![Doctors attend to a simulated car crash victim in a scenario at Arm River in Tasmania](/site/assets/files/50318/img_2940.600x514.jpeg)
Doctors prepare for extreme posting
Tasmania’s rugged wilderness is the perfect training ground for Antarctic… Read more
![Dr Brian Miller listens for whales during a voyage, with a computer screen in front of him showing sounds.](/site/assets/files/50313/brian-miller-rs50115_workstation_elanor-miller_ace-2017.600x514.jpg)
Sound science enhances whale conservation
French oceanographer Jacques Cousteau famously described the ocean as ‘the… Read more
![Diesel generators of the Nuyina.](/site/assets/files/52285/diesel-gen-startup.600x514.jpg)
Diesel generators start up
The RSV Nuyina’s diesel generators started up for the first time this week. Read more
![Milky Way above Australia’s Davis research station](/site/assets/files/50308/milkywayabovedavisrobertisaac.600x514.jpg)
Antarctic lessons for space
Antarctica is the closest you can get to space without leaving Earth. Read more
![new Australian Antarctic Science Council](/site/assets/files/50303/antarctic-science-council.600x514.jpg)
New Australian Antarctic Science Council meets
The newly formed Australian Antarctic Science Council met in Canberra for… Read more
![A green laser probes high-altitude clouds above Davis research station, in a night sky of auroras and stars.](/site/assets/files/50299/davis-29-may-2019-matt-gledhill.600x514.jpg)
Antarctic laser probes ozone-eating clouds
For the first time this Antarctic winter, but a little later than usual… Read more
![Preparing the midwinter swimming hole in the sea-ice, in front of Australia’s Davis research station](/site/assets/files/50295/3_-midwinter-swim-dan-gough-aad.600x514.jpg)
Australians plunge into ice hole in midwinter dark
It’s minus 23 degrees Celsius, dark and you’re standing on the edge of a… Read more
![Former French Prime Minister Michel Rocard with former Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke, signing a book.](/site/assets/files/50258/rs11220.600x514.jpg)
Tribute to former Prime Minister Bob Hawke
The Australian Antarctic Program is today paying tribute to former Prime… Read more
![Two of the tractors ready to undergo a transformation](/site/assets/files/50291/img_5483.600x514.jpg)
Tractor transformation time
Hold still, this won’t hurt a bit! A fleet of tractor transformers are… Read more
![Southern Ocean and iceberg on grey stormy day](/site/assets/files/50287/rs32669_2016-02_k-axis_0474-lpr.600x514.jpg)
World Oceans Day 2019
For World Oceans Day, we ask: how awesome is the Southern Ocean? Read more
![Scientist inside trench with ice drill](/site/assets/files/50282/vas-petrenko-inside-trench-for-4-inch-drill_david-etheridge.600x514.jpg)
World Environment Day 2019
With the focus of this year’s World Environment Day on air pollution, what… Read more
![Expeditioners silhouetted against sunset](/site/assets/files/50275/waiting-for-everyone-to-show-up-nb.600x514.jpg)
Icy Twilight Zone
Australian Antarctic expeditioners are living in the twilight zone after… Read more
![Nuyina in the wet dock in Romania.](/site/assets/files/50270/dji_0015-nuyina-in-wet-dock-3_side-view_crop_rob-bryson.600x514.jpg)
Nuyina in harbour tests
Antarctic icebreaker RSV Nuyina is being put through its paces with a… Read more
![View of a 16.3 metre long barge under construction.](/site/assets/files/50263/p4110007-barge-profile-2_wendy-pyper.600x514.jpg)
New watercraft construction barging ahead
Construction of two ‘heavy lift’ barges for the new Antarctic icebreaker… Read more
![Expeditioners at the polling station on the wharf at Casey research station](/site/assets/files/50254/dsc02560.600x514.jpg)
Democracy in the deep freeze
It takes more than five thousand kilometres of isolation and the long… Read more
![vehicles and expeditioners on ice with mountain in background](/site/assets/files/50251/img_4964-t_-carew.600x514.jpg)
Search and rescue on the ice
When you’re 5475 kilometres from help, you need to know you can rely on… Read more
![Group of expeditioners in snow with messages for Mother’s Day](/site/assets/files/50247/20190508-web-image.600x514.jpg)
Mother’s Day 2019
Despite being a long way from home this Mother’s Day, Australia’s… Read more
![Bow view of Nuyina painted in international orange.](/site/assets/files/52289/nuyina-being-painted_rob-pippin_serco.600x514.jpg)
Readiness testing for Harbour Acceptance Trials
Australia’s Antarctic icebreaker RSV Nuyina is being readied for ‘harbour… Read more
![a dog wearing a vest on Macquarie Island](/site/assets/files/50243/mqi-166.600x514.jpg)
Keeping Macca rodent-free
At the frontline of biosecurity on Macquarie Island is a lively dog called… Read more
![Royal penguins at Macquarie Island](/site/assets/files/50239/mqi-50.600x514.jpg)
World Penguin Day 2019
To mark World Penguin Day this year, we pay tribute to these amazing birds… Read more
![Leslie Russell Blake](/site/assets/files/50233/13-ww1-leslie-blake_charles-sandell.600x514.jpg)
Southern Ocean to the Somme
Today as the sun rises over Antarctica, dawn services at our research… Read more
![Casey station chef, Jordan Smith, puts the finishing touches on a cake in the kitchen](/site/assets/files/50230/img_e1758.600x514.jpg)
The icing on the cake
The wintering chef at Casey research station, Jordan Smith, has worked in… Read more
![Scientists prepare to extract a fast-ice core to characterize sea-ice properties, including ice-crystal structure, salinity, density or chlorophyll content.](/site/assets/files/50226/rs54498_blog-6-taking_cores_small.600x514.jpg)
Australian Antarctic Program Partnership
The Australian Antarctic Division welcomes the opportunity to work with… Read more
![Aerial view of Mawson station](/site/assets/files/50220/rs51431_mawson-station-2017-photographer-dan-suttle-1.600x514.jpg)
Government response to Antarctic inquiry
The Government has responded to recommendations from the Joint Standing… Read more
![Boulders being loaded from a barge onto Aurora Australis](/site/assets/files/50217/katrina-beams.600x514.jpg)
Rocky road from Antarctica to Canberra
Two rocky pieces of the icy continent have arrived in Hobart on the way to… Read more
![A large tractor](/site/assets/files/50214/dsc_9977.600x514.jpg)
Heavy tractors chosen for Australia’s Antarctic inland ice quest
The Australian Antarctic Program has procured five new heavy tractors to… Read more
![Expeditioners in Antarctica](/site/assets/files/50209/rs54381.600x514.jpg)
New Centre for Antarctic, Remote and Maritime Medicine
Highly specialised medical skills honed in the extreme Antarctic… Read more
![Madi Gamble Rosevear working with the team on the Totten Glacier](/site/assets/files/50201/rs63226.600x514.jpg)
Seismic study allows scientists to see below glacier
Australian Antarctic Program researchers have undertaken seismic studies… Read more
![Two men inside a large tent with an ice core drill](/site/assets/files/50205/rs1390_aif_9166-lpr.600x514.jpg)
Work begins on million year ice core drill
Work has started on a high-tech ice drill that Antarctic scientists will… Read more
![The 105 solar panel array installed, with a wind deflector visible down the length of the array on the left side of the building, to minimise the effects of high wind speeds during blizzards.](/site/assets/files/50197/solar-panels-installed-2-doreen-mccurdy.600x514.jpg)
First Australian solar farm in Antarctica opens at Casey research station
The first Australian solar farm in Antarctica will be switched on at Casey… Read more
![The Dash-8 aircraft flies over Macquarie Island’s isthmus as it conducts a Laser Airborne Depth Sounder (LADS) survey.](/site/assets/files/50191/lads-over-mi_vicki-heinrich.600x514.jpg)
Sea floor survey from the sky
Airborne surveyors are helping to map the shallow sea floor adjacent to… Read more
![Jane Allen and Jesse Blackadder in Antarctica](/site/assets/files/50186/rs62226_img_5639.600x514.jpg)
Antarctica calling all artists
Artists looking for the ultimate inspiration are encouraged to apply for… Read more
![Four women standing at the stern of a ship](/site/assets/files/50171/rs59484.600x514.jpg)
Pioneering work of female scientists reflected in Macquarie Island lakes
Several lakes on sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island have been named after the… Read more
![Four Adélie penguins near the Casey station sign.](/site/assets/files/50182/footprint-antarctica_john-cadden-rs56052_img_0551.600x514.jpg)
Ice-free areas are hot property in Antarctica
The principle of ‘location, location, location’ is as important in… Read more
![a drone photographs a blue whale](/site/assets/files/50177/blue-charlotte-boyd-cxb_0266.600x514.jpg)
Technology provides new insights to Antarctic blue whales and krill
Innovative technologies, including drones, shed new light on the… Read more
![A jade green and white striped iceberg](/site/assets/files/50167/rs586_striped-jade-iceberg_steve-nicol_2006.600x514.jpg)
New clue in jade iceberg mystery
Researchers have a new hypothesis that could solve the century-old mystery… Read more
![This infographic provides a snapshot of biodiversity protection in Antarctica.](/site/assets/files/50161/infographic-snapshot-of-biodiversity-protection_correct-font.600x514.jpg)
Enhancing biodiversity protection in Antarctica
A review of Antarctic Specially Protected Areas (ASPAs) has found that… Read more
![Monitoring fuel pump at Casey station](/site/assets/files/50156/monitoring-fuel-pump-at-casey-by-todor-iolovski.600x514.jpg)
New funding for upgrades of Antarctic research stations
More than $450 million will be invested over the next ten years to upgrade… Read more
![The Nuyina’s two 55 tonne cranes are in place and the bridge windows installed.](/site/assets/files/52292/img_4036.600x514.jpg)
Nuyina’s internal fit-out
Despite blowing snow and temperatures as low as −10 degrees Celsius… Read more
![AAD Director Kim Ellis presents Casey station leader Christine MacMillian with a commemorative poster](/site/assets/files/50152/img_6629.600x514.jpg)
50 years of history at Casey research station
Antarctic expeditioners celebrated the 50th anniversary of the opening of… Read more
![A tractor blowing an arc of snow](/site/assets/files/50148/img_3406.600x514.jpg)
Ice runway reopens
Flights into Australia’s Wilkins Aerodrome in Antarctica resumed… Read more
![A 3D model of a live krill swarm 400 metres long, 200 metres wide, and 100 metres deep](/site/assets/files/50142/3d-model-krill-swarm-400m-long-200m-wide-100m-deep-aad.600x514.jpg)
Giant krill swarms in 3D
For the first time on an Australian research vessel, giant krill swarms… Read more
![Kim Ellis outside building](/site/assets/files/50138/dsc_9848.600x514.jpg)
New Director for the Australian Antarctic Division
The new Director of the Australian Antarctic Division, Kim Ellis, takes up… Read more
![Marcus Salton chisels a thick sample of very hard mumijo off rocks outside a nest cavity in the Masson Range near Mawson research station.](/site/assets/files/50135/p1000503.600x514.jpg)
Fossilised spit captures birds’ Antarctic history
Fossilised layers of spit, or ‘mumijo’, at snow petrel breeding sites, are… Read more
![Expeditioner demonstrating the signed cricket bat in use](/site/assets/files/50131/01_-1988-signed-cricket-bat.600x514.jpg)
Search for story behind mystery Antarctic cricket bat
A cricket mystery story is unfolding in Antarctica this Australia Day… Read more
![Graphic comparing adult blue whale with length of three standard buses](/site/assets/files/50126/20191501-blue-whale-comparison2.600x514.jpg)
Antarctic krill, blue whales and the power of poo
The most comprehensive scientific voyage ever undertaken to study the… Read more
![Aerial view of icebreaker Nuyina alongside a wharf in Romania.](/site/assets/files/52299/2018-12-24-full-view-of-ship-alongside-wharf-copy.600x514.jpg)
Superstructure blocks in place
All the major superstructure blocks on Australia’s new Antarctic… Read more