NEWS Brief news items on Antarctic and sub-Antarctic non-government expedition activities. (Also produced in Spanish) BULK DISTRIBUTION Dispatched on Wednesday, 22 December 1999 @ 0600 UTC. News in this edition: 11-01. 'Chillout' pair abandon unsupported trans-Antarctic attempt. 11-02. Millennium expedition aircraft arrives in Punta Arenas. 11-03. World Cruise Company commence their large vessel operations. 11-04. WCC landings limited to South Shetlands coastline. 11-05. Conservative approach key to WCC vessel operation. 11-06. Greenpeace harrassing whaling operations north of Enderby Land. 11-07. 'Basler 67' visits South Geographic Pole. 11-08. Singaporian traverse group within 260 km of Pole. 11-09. Climbers en route for Heard Island. 11-10. ANI traverse group between Thiel Mountains and the Pole. 11-11. Study suggests Magellanic penguins adjust to visitos, but more research needed. 11-12. Winds help de la Ferriere make good progress. 11-13. Solo Port Lockroy winterer preparing to depart. 11-14. Polar Skydiving not proceeding with 1999-2000 plans. 11-15. Tour vessel assists Australian program to recover from early season delays. 11-16. Whaling permit revised for Indian Ocean sector operations. 11-17. Coming events. IN READING PLEASE NOTE: This newsletter is being produced in the interest of improved information sharing in the Antarctic community. Inclusion of information in it should not be taken to imply endorsement, by the publishers of ANAN News, of any company, program or associated activity that is listed, nor that the activity has necessarily completed all environmental impact assessments required under the legislation of the 'home' nation. 'CHILLOUT' PAIR ABANDON UNSUPPORTED TRANS-ANTARCTIC ATTEMPT Peter Treseder and Tim Jarvis, who were attempting to trek cross Antarctica unassisted, had to abandon their journey on 19 December just two days after passing the South Geographic Pole (SGP) after finding that fuel had contamination a significant part of their food. The 'Operation 'Chillout pair have now returned to the SGP and are there awaiting the arrival of an aircraft from the commercial air operator Adventure Network International (ANI) to fly them out. The two men had originally arrived at the SGP on 16 December after a 1300 km, forty-six day, trek from Berkner Island at the southern end of the Weddell Sea. Given the weights they were pulling for the trans-Antarctic venture, they made very good time on that leg of the journey, averaging around twenty-eight kilometres per day and beating by two days the previous fastest journey for that route set by a French group of four in the 1998-99 season. Treseder and Jarvis only stayed at the Pole on the 16th just long enough for a brief photo session before setting off almost immediately to resume their journey towards Ross Island. Three days later, they discovered that two of their fuel containers had split making fifteen days of their food rations unusable. Given that they reduced fuel supplies to a bare minimum very early in their trek when they encountered problems, this loss was a major blow. The second leg of their crossing was to have passed over Titan Dome and then down the Shackleton Glacier to the Ross Ice Shelf, and from there 750 km across the shelf to Ross Island. After carefully weighing up their chances of completing their intended journey with reduced supplies, they concluded that it was not possible to complete the journey and that to do so could compromise the safety of not only themselves, but also anyone who might be called upon to assist them. The ANI aircraft is expected to fly the pair from the SGP to ANI's Patriot Hills field camp in Ellsworth Land, and later a Hercules aircraft operated by that company will then fly them to Punta Arenas, Chile. The exact timing of those flights will depend on weather conditions and ANI's overall program committments. An ANI aircraft had been delayed at the SGP for almost a week left there for the Patriot Hills just before Treseder and Jarvis reported their intention to return (see ANAN-11/06 following). Original plans called for Peter and Tim to be carried from Ross Island to Hobart, Australia, at the end of their trek by the tourist vessel 'Kapitan Khlebnikov' . The Australia-based manager of 'Operation Chillout', John Leece, was quoted by a Sydney newspaper as saying that despite the need to curtail the traverse, the pair were in high spirits and that he 'felt confident' they would probably attempt to make the unassisted crossing again in a future season. Peter and Tim are apparently particularly pleased with the setting of the new record time for reaching the Pole, and achieving what they say is the longest unsupported manhaul on record at 1519 km. The British and Australian Prime Ministers, Tony Blair and John Howard, are both Patrons of the 'Chillout' operation, although it is a private venture which depends on corporate sponsorship for financing. [ANAN-11/01] TO THE TOP 'MILLENNIUM' EXPEDITION AIRCRAFT ARRIVES IN PUNTA ARENAS The Millennium Expedition's Iluyshin 76 (IL-76) aircraft arrived in Punta Arenas, Chile, on 21 December in the lead up to Antarctic operations later in the month. Millennium's program aims in part to support non-government skydiving and hot air ballooning activities at the South Geographic Pole (SGP) in the New Year using the blue ice runway at the Patriot Hills, Ellsworth Land, as a staging point. Despite considerable effort it had not been possible by publication time for ANAN to obtain a detailed up-date on Millennium's planning for the Antarctic part of the expedition, however it appears that the operation is currently close to the revised schedule released via Millennium's web site on 10 December (http://www.nsp.ru/). Earlier this year expedition plans included use of a second aircraft, an Ilyushin 18, however indications are that the operation will in fact only operate with the IL-76. Information is still clouded however as to just what the expedition's program of activity in Antarctica will actually be, with tentative reports from South America and elsewhere suggesting a more truncated program than originally mooted. So far unconfirmed reports suggest that the first IL-76 flight between Punta Arenas and the Patriot Hills will take place on 23 December, with a second flight scheduled for the 28th. The operation of both flights will be subject to weather however. To date this season commercial air operator Adventure Network International, which regularly flies that route, have experienced significant delays due to persistently poor weather since beginning operations in October. Members of the skydiving part of the expedition have been gathering in Santiago, Chile, over the last few days. Reliable reports indicate that the ground crew for the Antarctic jumps will leave there for Punta Arenas on the 23rd, while practice jumps are to be made by the skydivers at a location just outside the Chilean capital on 23-24 December. Advice received by ANAN is that these practice jumps are to be made from 'a large aircraft provided with the assistance of local Chilean jumpers', but precise details are unknown. The skydivers are scheduled to fly to Punta Arenas on the afternoon of 27 December after a press conference in the morning that will involve further skydives, a date that fits with suggestions of a Punta-Patriot flight date on the 28th. Some of the expedition's skydivers undertook high altitude jumps at a location in the north-eastern U.S. in late November. Indications from expedition organisers early in December were that the skydiving drop zone, general operating area, and field camp location at the SGP had been moved some distance away from the U.S. Amundsen-Scott station which is located there, however no precise details are currently available. U.S. authorities are understood to have been concerned for some time that 'Millennium' and other non-government expedition activities in the area have the potential to disrupt carefully choreographed program activities at the station. Amundsen-Scott is particularly busy at the moment for in addition to the activities of almost forty science groups it is in the third of an eight-year, $US127.9M, reconstruction program which is due for completion in 2005. Just over 200 people, or twice the normal summer population, are currently there, and this is placing station facilities under considerable pressure. In addition, resupply and construction needs mean that over 1400 tonnes of cargo has to be flown into the station during the 110 day season, and will require the station to turn around an average of three ski-equipped Hercules flights each working day from McMurdo. As a result of the many factors involved, station personnel are known to be working very long hours to try and ensure program milestones are achieved. [ANAN-11/02] TO THE TOP WORLD CRUISE COMPANY COMMENCE THEIR LARGE VESSEL OPERATIONS New Canadian operator The World Cruise Company of Toronto, says that it expects to carry close to 2200 tourists to the South Shetland Islands region off the north-west tip of the Antarctic Peninsula over the next few weeks on four voyages operated by its two large chartered tour vessels, 'Aegean I' and 'Ocean Explorer I'. The first of the four voyages commenced on 16 December when 'Ocean Explorer I' ('OE-1') left Buenos Aires, Argentina, for the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) and the South Shetlands, while 'Aegean 1' ('AE-1') is to leave Ushuaia, Argentina, on her first Antarctic voyage on 29 December. While significant for the region itself, this season's Antarctic visits by the two vessels are only a small part of what are four month long, seven continent, world circumnavigation operations by the WCC, which commenced in Greece in late November and are due to end there in March next year. The World Cruise Company (WCC) is a sister company to Marine Expeditions (ME), an experienced operator of Antarctic tour voyages, being owned by the same principles and sharing office space and some resources in the one building in Toronto, Canada. Formed in late 1997, the WCC's aim is to provide 'round-the-world' (RTW) voyages of a more conventional nature to that of the adventure-type operations Marine provides for tourists in Antarctica, however to two are similar in that there is what WCC says is 'a focus on education, learning and discovery'. Most of the places visited on WCC RTW voyages have the facilities to able to handle large passenger ships, and expedition-type landings are only expected to be made a few times during the whole of the RTW voyages. Cruise holidays are reported by the World Tourism Organisation to be the fastest growing sector of world tourism, and WCC's push into this field is seen by many industry analysts as a further indicator of that trend. 'Ocean Explorer I' ('OE-1') left Buenos Aires, Argentina and visited the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) on the 20th and 21st on the first of her two voyages. She is currently crossing the Drake Passage and expects to operate around the northern part of the South Shetland Islands (SSI) on 24-25 December before heading for Ushuaia, Argentina, where she is due on the 28th. She is to leave there the same day on the second voyage, with operations planned around the SSI on New Years Eve and New Years Day. Return to Ushauia from the second voyage is expected on 3 January, then the vessel will head north up the Chilean coast to Santiago on the next leg of the world voyage. WCC anticipates that around 1210 passengers will be carried by 'OE-1' to Antarctica on its two voyages. The ship is capable of carrying up to 1127 passengers, although company policy is that only around half number will be accommodated while in Antarctic waters. WCC says that the current voyage has a total of 888 people on board made up of 630 passengers, 220 crew and 38 staff. This is believed to be the largest number of people ever carried by a single ship in Antarctic waters. Currently, WCC estimates are that the second voyage will carry around 580 passengers which will mean that all up around 838 people could be on board. 'Aegean I' ('AE-1') is to commence her first Antarctic voyage from Ushuaia on 29 December, operate around the SSI on New Years Eve and New Years Day at the same time as 'OE-1', then return to Ushuaia, on the morning of 4 January. The second voyage is to leave Ushuaia that afternoon, with the second SSI visit planned for 6-7 January. 'AE-1' will end that voyage in Punta Arenas, Chile, and then continue her around the world voyage from there by heading for Chile's Easter Island in the south-east Pacific Ocean. Some 890 passengers are expected to be carried to Antarctica on 'AE-1' over the next few weeks. She can carrying up to 670 passengers although again passenger numbers will be limited in Antarctic waters. Advice from the WCC is that its first Antarctic voyage is expected to carry up to 480 passengers, 38 staff and 220 crew, and the second around 410 passengers, for total 'on board' figures of approximately 738 and 668 people respectively. According to the company most of the passengers being carried this season are from various parts of North America. Canada currently has no formal system for processing and assessing environmental impact assessments (EIA) developed by its companies which plan to operate in Antarctica. Despite this the WCC prepared an EIA for the proposed operations and submitted it for comment to Canadian, U.S. and other government authorities, as well as non-government organisations. It is understood that a number of responses have been received by the company from government and non-government groups from a number of nations. Concern has been expressed in Antarctic circles over recent years about the operation of large vessels in Antarctic waters, and the matter was discussed at the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting held in Lima, Peru, last May-June. Although the WCC has expressed interest in joining the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO), they have not been able to do so as yet because membership of that organisation is limited to companies who operate ships which carry less than 400 passengers. IAATO has discussed lifting this ceiling at its last two annual meetings but voted against any change at its meeting in Hamburg, Germany, last June-July. The WCC is however a sister to long-established operator and IAATO member Marine Expeditions and says that it intends to follow all other IAATO guidelines. WCC says that it expects to operate at least one voyage of a large vessel similar to this year's two to Antarctica each austral summer over the next few years. [ANAN-11/03] TO THE TOP WCC LANDINGS LIMITED TO SOUTH SHETLANDS COASTLINE Landings to be made in the Antarctic from the World Cruise Company's vessels 'Ocean Explorer I' and 'Aegean 1' this season are to be limited to sites around the coast of the South Shetland Islands which have been frequented by tourist operations over the last decade. Both vessels are expected to operate around the South Shetlands for no more than a day and a half during each of the voyages, with total vessel time in the area estimated to be no more than six days for the season. Over New Year, when both vessels will be operating along with up to fifteen other tour vessels in the general area, careful coordination will be required between all ships operating in the region to manage access to landing sites. If weather conditions are suitable landing operations are expected to occur at a maximum of two to three places each voyage, although in order to provide operational flexibility, WCC have nominated some seventeen sites at which landings could be conducted. These include four locations on Deception Island, three on Livingstone Island, five on King George Island, and at Half Moon Island, Greenwich Island (Yankee Harbour), Heywood Island, Penguin Island, and the Aitcho Islands. While the Antarctic Peninsula lies only 100 km away from the SSI on the south-eastern side of the Bransfield Strait, WCC says that they will not undertake landings in that region. Landing plans call for passengers to be transported ashore from the vessels in groups of twelve via inflatable rubber boats in 'standard' expedition fashion, eight of these boats being available on each ship. In order to be able to move 500-600 people at a time between ship and shore safely and efficiently, WCC has established what it describes as 'rigid plans' for landing operations. A thorough set of briefings are to be provided to passengers in the lead up each landing operation, and WCC says that once on shore each boat load of people will receive a final briefing of the Company's requirements. From then until they return to the ship, passenger activities will be 'closely watched and managed' by senior personnel >from WCC sister company Marine Expeditions who have 'significant Antarctic tour experience'. While on shore the tourists will take part in 'guided tours of a limited duration'. WCC stresses that landing operations will comply with IAATO guidelines, including keeping numbers ashore at below 100 at any one time, ensuring inappropriate approaches to wildlife do not occur, and maintaining guide to passengers ratios at or above recommended industry standards. [ANAN-11/04] TO THE TOP CONSERVATIVE APPROACH KEY TO WCC VESSEL OPERATION Neither of the two vessels being operated by the World Cruise Company (WCC) in the South Shetland Islands over the next few weeks has an ice classification, and the company plans to adopt a particularly conservative approach to the operation of its ships while in Antarctic waters. One of the reasons WCC has chosen to operate in the South Shetlands region is that around mid-summer little if any pack ice is normally present in that area, although icebergs and their by-product 'bergy bits' are always present in various concentrations. WCC believes that operation of both vessels in the northern region of the South Shetlands will mean that they are very unlikely to encounter sea ice, while any areas of high iceberg density will be avoided. WCC says that the Captain of the 'OE-1' and the Chief Officer of the 'AE-1' each have significant experience in navigating in Antarctic and Arctic waters. Extra watches will be kept on board each ship by experienced Antarctic navigators and ice pilots. Icebergs will be monitored by radar, and the ship will operate at a reduced speed in order to provide the maximum protection from bergy bits. All four voyages will occur close to mid-summer therefore darkness will not be a problem, although reduced visibility due to weather conditions most likely will. 'OE-1' is 190 m in length, has a beam of 23 m and draft of 8.3 m,is of 20,071 gross registered tonnes (GRT). She is very similar in size to the 'Marco Polo' which U.S. based Orient Lines have operated in Antarctica over five seasons since the 1993-94 season. 'OE-1' is currently registered in Panama, but was built in the U.S. in 1944, and since then has operated under a number of names, including: 'Terrifica', 'Sapphire Seas', 'Emerald Seas', 'Atlantis' 'President Roosevelt', 'Leilani' 'Laguardia' and 'General H. P. Richardson'. She underwent extensive renovations in 1998-99. 'AE-1', is slightly smaller than 'OE I' with a length of 141 m, beam 20 m and draft 6.2 m, while her GRT is 11,563 tonnes. She is of Greek registration, was built in Rumania in 1973, and has previously sailed under the names 'Aegean Dolphin' and 'Narcis'. She was extensively modified in 1998. [ANAN-11/05] TO THE TOP GREENPEACE HARASSING WHALING OPERATIONS NORTH OF ENDERBY LAND The environment group Greenpeace is continuing to protest against whaling operations in the Southern Ocean around Antarctica this season and is using its vessel the 'Arctic Sunrise' to reinforce its views. According to reports distributed by Greenpeace, the four-vessel whaling fleet operated by the Japanese company Kyodo Senpaku Ltd. was found north of the Enderby Land coast on 20 December. Boats from 'Sunrise' have been harassing catching activities over the last few days in the type of operation that has become a Greenpeace trademark, with reports received in the last twelve hours alleging that the factory ship 'Nishin Maru' had deliberately rammed 'Arctic Sunrise', although without causing significant damage. The whaling fleet, which orginal advice suggested would be operating in the Ross Sea this season, had in fact always intended to work in the Indian Ocean region, and the permit issued by Japan on 4 November has since been revised. No independent information is currently available about encounters between the fleet and the Greenpeace vessel, or what the reaction was to it by the whaling fleet or its operators. Greenpeace have not indicated publicly how long 'Sunrise' will continue to shadow the whaling fleet, how long their ship will continue to operate in Antarctic waters, or what its intentions are for the rest of the season. 'Arctic Sunrise' was built in Norway in 1975 as a rig tender vessel. She is of 950 Gross Tonnes, is 50 m long and normally carries a crew of around fifteen, although campaign staff normally bring her total compliment to around thirty people. In past years a single Hughes 500 helicopter has been carried on board the vessel, and this is believed to be the case again this year. The vessel has previously been operated in both Arctic and Antarctic waters by the environmental group. She was first used in Antarctica in the 1996-97 season, working around the Antarctic Peninsula, at the time making the first ship-based circumnavigation of James Ross Island. Major technical problems meant that she was unable to operate for almost nine months from September 1997, but she was used again in Antarctic waters again last December-March on voyages to the Ross Sea and the South Indian Ocean as part of Greenpace's campaign against illegal fishing in the region. [ANAN-11/06] TO THE TOP 'BASLER 67' VISITS SOUTH GEOGRAPHIC POLE Adventure Network International's (ANI) new 'Basler 67' aircraft, which is operating in Antarctica for the first time this austral summer, visited the South Geographic Pole for the first time on 13 December, conducting a resupply for a Singaporian traverse group en route. The aircraft, which was carrying ten people, five tourists, three aircrew and two ANI staffers, subsequently spent five days there as bad weather first at ANI's Patriot Hills field camp in Ellsworth Land and then at the SGP itself, deplayed its departure. The aircraft left the Pole before it was known that trekkers Peter Treseder and Tim Jarvis were returning there. While at the Pole waiting for the weather to improve the ten people onboard camped out on the far side of the station runway from the station. A 'Basler 67' is a completely rebuilt Douglas DC-3 more commonly known as a 'Dakota', an aircraft type that was used in Antarctica for many years in the 1950s and 1960s by a number of national programs. Modification of the DC-3 involves the fuselage being cut in half and extended by some two metres, replacing the old radial engines with two new Pratt and Whitney PT-6 turbines, installing new electrical and hydraulic systems, strengthening the undercarriage, and gutting the cockpit and installing and all-new flight instrumentation. The aircraft that visited the Pole was originally built in 1944 but was certified by U.S. aviation authorities as being at 'zero hours' at the completion of modifications earlier this year. Basler 67s have been purchased mainly by government organisations in a number of parts of the world and the new aircraft provides ANI with an air lift capability between that of the C-130s and Twin Otter aircraft types it has used for a number of years. Also at the SGP at the same time was ANI's Cessna 185 aircraft which had delivered solo French traverser Laurence de la Ferriere there on 23 November. This aircraft has been unable to return to the Patriot Hills because of a propellor problem and is currently waiting delivery of spare parts before it can be flown again. Once the parts are delivered to the Patriot Hills from Punta Arenas, Chile, an ANI aircraft will fly them to the SGP where repairs will be made. The pilot of the 185 returned to the Patriot Hills several weeks ago. ANI and national program air operations in the Antarctic Peninsula, Weddell Sea region have been severely hampered over the past two months by poor weather, with many air-supported programs in that sector reported as being well behind schedule. [ANAN-11/07] TO THE TOP SINGAPORIAN TRAVERSE GROUP WITHIN 260 KM OF POLE Members of the Singaporian 'Antarctica 2000' expedition travelling overland between the Patriot Hills, Ellsworth Land, and the South Geographic Pole (SGP), were reported in an article in Singapore's 'Straits Times' newspaper on 21 December to be within 260 km of their goal. Poor weather and difficult surface conditions experienced over the past week have made progress difficult however and it is not certain at this stage whether they will reach their goal by 31 December as originally planned. Khoo Swee Chiow, Robert Goh, Ang Yau Choon and David Lim Chee Wai, had travelled a total of 684 km towards the SGP by 8 December, at an average close to thirty kilometres per day. The four were resupplied with food and fuel on the 8th by Adventure Network International's (ANI) 'Basler 67' aircraft en route to the SGP. That resupply took place close to the Thiel Mountains and after leaving there the trekkers encountered heavy sastrugi and poor weather which slowed their progress. During the past year the traverse party has trained in Greenland and the New Zealand's Mount Cook area. They spent twenty days in Greenland last May under the tutorledge of Roger Mear who has reached both the South and North Poles on foot. Their training program focussed on glacial travel, and crevasse rescue. Meanwhile, four other Singaporians planning to climb Antarctica's highest mountain, Vinson Massif, left Singapore on 10 December and are now in Punta Arenas, Chile. According to the 'Straits Times' article the four, Mok Ying Jang, Lee Ling Yen, Davie Siew Cheok Wai, and Kuak Nam Jin, are currently awaiting an ANI flight to take them to the Patriot Hills but bad weather there has delayed that operation. If weather and other ANI program support requirements allow, the group expected that they will be flown to Vinson Massif via the Patriot Hills in the next few days. Once there they estimates that it will take them between eight and fourteen days to reach the summit. The group, all of whom had previous climbing experience, prepared for the Vinson climb by scaling Mount Blanc in France in May, climbing in the Cascade Range in the north-west of the U.S. in July, and then joined the traverse group in New Zealand for further training. Funds for both the traverse and climbing parts of the expedition have according to the organisers come wholey from corporate sponsorship. Singapore Prime Minster Goh Chok Tong is patron of the Antarctica 2000 expedition. [ANAN-11/08] TO THE TOP CLIMBERS EN ROUTE TO HEARD ISLAND The four mountaineers who are attempting to climb to the top of sub-Antarctic Heard Island in the south Indian Ocean, left Mauritius on 2 December on board the fishing vessel 'Southern Champion' bound for the island. While the expedition has commencd the climbers, Robb Clifton, Stuart Davies, Matthew Rogerson, and David Tonna, have not yet been landed on the island however. 'Southern Champion' has been conducting fishing operations somewhere south-east of Madagascar for the past two weeks and that activity has priority over the Heard Island deployment. It would appear at this time that the climbers will probably not reach the island and be able to start their climb until the last few days of December at the earliest. 'Southern Champion', a factory stern trawler, is owned by Kallis and France Foods Ltd. of Perth, Western Australia. Built in Italy in 1974, she is eighty seven metres long and has a gross weight of 2,203 tonnes. Normally she carries a crew of just over thirty, although up to fifty-nine people can be accommodated on board. Reports from expedition organisers in Perth indicate that climbing group is due back in Australia around 1 February. If that schedule is adhered to, and given that the journey from the island takes just on a week, this would give them just on three weeks to comple their climb. If successful this will only be the third time that the island's 2745 m summit has been reached. [ANAN-11/09] TO THE TOP ANI TRAVERSE GROUP BETWEEN THIEL MOUNTAINS AND THE POLE The nine-person, Adventure Network International (ANI) guided, 'Ski to the South Pole' traverse which left Hercules Inlet on the coast of the Ronne Ice Shelf on 17 November bound for the South Geographic Pole (SGP), were reported today as having passed the Thiel Mountains. The international group of seven clients supported by two guides were somewhere between the Thiel Mountains and the Singaporian traverse. Given the latest reports available about the Singaporians' progress (see ANAN-11/08 proceeding), this would put the ANI group somewhere between 300 and 400 km from the Pole, with arrival possible sometimes towards the middle of January depending on condiions. No information is currently available to ANAN on the progress being made by the five U.K. women who are also trekking from Hercules Inlet to the SGP. They have been underway since late November. [ANAN-11/10] TO THE TOP STUDY SUGGESTS MAGELLANIC PENGUINS ADJUST TO VISITORS, BUT MORE RESEARCH REQUIRED A study of a Magellanic penguin colony at Punta Tambo, Argentina, reported in the latest edition of the publication 'Penguin Conservation", suggests that that species is capable of adjusting to the presence of human visitors without apparent long-term effects. While interesting and much needed research however, researchers working in the field have warned that more work is needed to ensure the mechanisms at work are sufficintly understood and can be applied to management of penguin colonies. The study was conducted by Dr Brian Walker of the University of Washington in the U.S. Over 40,000 tourists each year visit the colony studied, many times more than the number who visit penguin colonies anywhere in the Antarctic or sub-Antarctic. Walker found from measurements of the penguin's physiology and observations of their behaviour, that birds who had no previous exposure to visitors were more highly stressed by those visits than were those used to the presence of humans. His observations indicate however the the 'inexperienced' penguins eventually over time adjust to the presence of humans, showing behaviours similar to those had previously encountered tourists. Researchers in this field have stressed the relatively limited scope of the work undertaken to date, that the findings may not necessarily be applicable to all penguin species, and there are other impacts humans might have on colonies, such as pollution, habitat destruction and the spread of diseases. The report on the Punta Tambo study can be found on pages 24-25 of 'Penguin Conservation', Volume 12 (2). [ANAN-11/11] TO THE TOP WINDS HELP DE LA FERRIERE MAKE GOOD PROGRESS The latest report available from lone trekker Laurence de la Ferriere indicated that on 16 December she was some 614 km from the South Geographic Pole (SGP) and that wind conditions had allowed her to make good progress by using parasails over the previous nine days. Over that period she was able to travel at close to fifty kilometres per day, a rate which is essential if she is to reach Concordia station at Dome 'C' on 31 December as previously planned. Earlier that week when using her larger, twenty-four square metre parasail, the wind rose suddenly and she was forced to let the sail go in order to avoid injury. It was however recovered intact a few kilometres down wind. More recent reports from the expedition's headquarters indicate that Laurence has been having trouble with blisters on her feet but that she is in good spirits and keen to continue the journey. The Frenchwomen's aim is to travel the 2,500 km from South Geographic Pole (SGP) to the French station Dumont d'Urville on the coast of Adelie Land via Concordia station at Dome 'C'. [ANAN-11/12] TO THE TOP SOLO PORT LOCKROY WINTERER PREPARING TO DEPART Australian Trevor Robertson, who this year wintered at Port Lockroy in the Antarctic Peninsula on his twelve metre yacht 'Iron Bark', is preparing to leave there as soon as ice conditions allow. Trevor is believed to be the first person to winter at Lockroy since the British closed their station there in 1962. While confirmaation is not available, reports indicate that once free of the ice at Lockroy he intends to travel south along the Peninsula during the rest of the austral summer before finally leaving Antarctica sometime in February. Two other Australians, Jim and Yvonne Claypole, wintered in Antarctica in a private capacity in 1999. They were located on the other side of the continent from Robertson, spending the year at Commonwealth Bay, George V Land. Jim and Yvonne are due to return to Australia in late January on board the yacht 'Spirit of Sydney'. The yacht left Hobart, Australia, on 18 December bound for Commowealth Bay where if conditions allow she is expected to arrive early in the New Year. [ANAN-11/13] TO THE TOP POLAR SKYDIVING NOT PROCEEDING WITH 1999-2000 PLANS Polar Skydiving Ltd. (PSD), the U.K. based company formed last July to offer commercial sky diving at both the North and South Geographic Poles (SGP), is not proceeding with its plans to conduct jumps at the SGP this season. PSD's owner Mike McDowell, told ANAN recently that while there had been insufficient interest for the current season, the company intends to continue to offer such opportunities to select groups of experienced skydivers over the next few years. The skydiving company's operation is based around logistics provided by commercial air operator Adventure Network International (ANI). McDowell is ANI's President however the PSD operation has been established as a separate entity. [ANAN-11/14] TO THE TOP TOUR VESSEL ASSISTS AUSTRALIAN PROGRAM TO RECOVER FROM EARLY SEASON DELAYS The tour vessel 'Akademic Shokalskiy' (Heritage Expeditions), transported nine expedition staff from Australia's sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island to New Zealand in late November, a move which contributed to the recovery of Australia's 1999-2000 research program after early season delays which resulted from a medivac operation at Mawson station in Mac.Robertson Land early in the month. Australia's national program icebreaker, 'Aurora Australis' was conducting an early season voyage to Mawson, and Davis station in Princess Elizabeth Land, in late October to deploy summer personnel and carry out the annual resupply of Davis. Following the ship's departure >from Mawson en route for Davis, a Mawson expeditioner suffered injuries when an all-terrain vehicle fell into a crevasse. An operation was carried out on the injured person at Mawson, however it subsequently became necessary to return the patient to Australia, and 'Aurora' suffered a nine day delay in carrying out that task. Due to the need to return 'Aurora' as close as possible to schedule in order to support a number of key science programs on time later in the season, operations personnel at the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) were forced to make a number of changes to overall season support plans. Utilisation of the 'Shokalskiy', which had been due to visit the island around 25 November since late last year, to transport personnel from Macquarie Island was one of the solutions found which helped to ease the problems being experienced. The AAD acquired the berths from Heritage Expeditions at a rate commensurate with normal tourist passenger fares. The unplanned support provided by 'Shokalskiy' was different from that undertaken by Supernova Expeditions' 'Kapitan Khlebnikov' (KK) which was chartered pre-season by the Australian Antarctic Division for a single voyage to changeover personnel at, and deliver bulk fuel to, Casey station in Wilkes Land. KK left Hobart, Australia, on 11 November, visited Macquarie Island before successfully undertaking the work at Casey, completing the charter in Hobart, Australia, on 2 December. KK's visit to Macquarie Island was not planned pre-season but was another part of changes made by the AAD in response to medivac-related delays. [ANAN-11/15] TO THE TOP WHALING PERMIT REVISED FOR INDIAN OCEAN SECTOR OPERATONS The whaling fleet operated which was reported last month to be en route to the Ross Sea region to conduct whaling, is to work in the Indian Ocean sector of the Southern Ocean from early January until mid-April 2000. The announcement last month that the fleet would work in the Ross Sea caused surprise amongst industry observers. Japanese whaling operations for most of the last decade have rotated between the Ross Sea and the IOS from one austral summer to the next, and as the Ross Sea area was worked in 1998-99 operations in the southern Indian Ocean this summer were expected. Apparently the fleet had always intended to work in the southern Indian Ocean however the original advice promulgated by Japan inadvertently contained incorrect coordinates. According to the revised permit issued by the Japanese Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), the four-ship fleet can catch Minke whales in waters south of Latitude 55°S between Longitudes 35° an 140° East except where national 320 km Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) are involved. Those Longitudes stretch roughly from Japan's Showa station on the coast of Dronning Maud Land, and the French station Dumont d'Urville in Adelie Land, and are centred on the Prydz Bay, Kerguelen, regions. The only EEZs involved are those around Australia's Heard Island and that of its territorial claim in Antarctica. This season's fleet, which left the south-eastern Japanese port of Shimonoseki in early in November, is reported as consisting of the factory ship 'Nishin Maru' of 7,575 gross tonnes, and three catcher ships with a gross tonnage of between 720 and 812 tonnes. Pictures of the fleet are currently available at: http://www.greenpeace.org/~oceans/whales/gallery.htm. The special permit issued by Japan for the operation states that the vessels can catch up to 400 Minke whales, but goes on to say that up to 440 of this species can be taken if it is necessary. While the MAFF permit covers a large area, research papers produced in recent years indicate that most Munke whales are likely to be caught within a well-defined strip inside 150 km of the Antarctic coastline over the continental shelf. This is because Minke whales tend to favour the area south of the pack ice edge, which during the first three months of most years is in most areas quite close to the coast. On 20 December the fleet was encountered by the vessel 'Arctic Sunrise' some 500 km north-north-east of Proclamation Island, Endery Land, in Longitudes 56° East. [ANAN-11/16] TO THE TOP COMING MEETINGS 25-28 June 2000. IAATO annual meeting. Hobart, Australia. [ANAN-11/17 ] TO THE TOP ##