ANTARCTIC NON-GOVERNMENT ACTIVITY NEWS
Tourism Industry |
Brief news items on Antarctic and sub-Antarctic
non-government expedition activities.
ANAN 88
Wednesday, 18 December 2002
EDITOR'S NOTE: Season's greetings and best wishes for 2003 to all our readers. We look forward to providing an interesting and useful service to you again next year. We would also like to take this opportunity to thank the many people who have assisted ANAN with information and other support over the past 12 months.
News in this edition:
88-01. Unexpected solo trans-Antarctic flight ends in emergency landing.
88-02. Pioneering tour ship to be retired, larger vessel to take its place.
88-03. Capacity of tourist ships making Peninsula landings continues to grow.
88-04. Damage to tour ship leads to voyage cancellation.
88-05. Situation unclear on hot air ballooning and parachuting plans.
88-06. 'Around Alone' fleet approaching sub-Antarctic waters.
88-07. Decision awaited on storm damaged Basler.
88-08. 'Heavy' ice in Cape Adare region forces ship to divert to George V Land.
88-09. Solo 'wrong way' sailor crossing sub-Antarctic Pacific.
88-10. Mount Shinn third-highest Antarctic peak - but just!
88-11. Whaling protest ship finally heads for Ross Sea.
88-12. New 'pocket-sized' maps of Antarctica, Peninsula region, available.
88-13. Coming Events Relevant to Non-Government Activities.
UNEXPECTED SOLO TRANS-ANTARCTIC FLIGHT ENDS IN EMERGENCY LANDING
[ANAN-88/01]
The pilot of a small, home-built, single-engine aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing on sub-Antarctic Marion Island, 2,180 km south-east of Cape Town, South Africa, in the early hours of 24 November after encountering problems during an attempt to "fly across Antarctica". While the flight had been under development for several years, it apparently did not come to the notice of Antarctic authorities until the aircraft ran into trouble as it flew southwards towards Dronning Maud Land (DML).
Experienced French solo pilot Henri Chorosz (see biographical details below) was in the early stages of a proposed around-the-world flight "via both Poles". The pilot's son, Hervé, told ANAN last week that his father had planned to fly from Cape Town to Christchurch, New Zealand, via the South Geographic Pole (SGP) and the US national program's McMurdo station on Ross Island in Victoria Land where, Hervé believes, the aircraft was to have refuelled en route. While he was not aware of all the details for the flight, he stressed that his father "was meticulous in planning every aspect of the long distance flights [he has] made" in the past, saying that his "outstanding record" of long distance flights, illustrates that. His father, he says, would not have left Cape Town without being sure arrangements were in hand with the fuel needed to complete his journey.
Despite the fact that he had been planning the flight for some years, Chorosz apparently had no contact with Antarctic authorities in his home nation, France. ANAN understands that their counterparts in South Africa, New Zealand and the US were also unaware of the flight, including plans to refuel at Ross Island.
Chorosz's flight comes at a time when Antarctic Treaty nations are examining ways in which non-government activities in the region should be managed (ANAN-84/01, 23 October 2002). That work resulted in part from problems that have been experienced with a number of independent adventurer groups in recent years (ANAN-41/04, 14 February 2001), and has led to calls for a more consistent and internationally coordinated approach to the management of such operations (ANAN-82/01, 25 September 2002).
The 'Glasair' aircraft flown by Chorosz, which was damaged on Marion Island, has a wing span of 11 m and is just 7 m long. It was built in the pilot's garage from a kit and comes with two seats. For long distance operations, however, the second seat and the remaining cabin space are taken up with by auxiliary fuel tank. Fuel is also carried in tanks located along the leading half of each wing. Images of the aircraft type are available on line at: (http://www.newglasair.com/index.htm).
Chorosz commenced his around-the-world flight from Nice, France, on 17 November, and arrived in Cape Town via Niamey, Nigeria, on 19 November after 20 hours in the air. He flew south from Cape Town on the morning of 23 November with enough fuel for 27-28 hours of flight, just enough for the daunting, 7,580-km, flight to McMurdo.
The surface weather chart on the morning of 23 November showed a well-developed high pressure system to the west of the northern part of Chorosz's planned route. South of that system, to the north of DML, moist maritime air was flowing north-eastwards behind a series of cold fronts. In such situations there is a high risk of aircraft icing, particularly in the lower levels of the atmosphere where the 'Glasair' would normally fly. By the time Chorosz reached latitude 60 degrees south, ice had started to build up on his aircraft's wings. The solo flier was forced to descend from cruise altitude to try and find warmer conditions so that the ice could melt, but despite flying at a height as low as 20-30 m above the wave tops for some time, the icing persisted. The aircraft was so badly affected that it almost stalled and Chorosz had to work very hard, and burn a significant amount of fuel, to keep it in the air.
Chorosz elected to head for Marion Island, 1,500-km to the north-east of his position, as he apparently believed there was an airstrip there. It is not known if he considered a diversion to either Russia's Novolazarevskaya, or Japan's Syowa, stations on the coast of DML, as they were closer than Marion at the time.
South Africa's Maritime Rescue Co-ordinating Centre was made aware of Chorosz's plight via satellite phone and they contacted Marion in the pre-dawn hours. They also put a 'Hercules' aircraft on stand by in case the 'Glasair' ditched short of the island. On making contact with the aircraft, Marion advised that there was no runway on the island and that any landing would have to be made "on difficult terrain". Chorosz is reported to have responded "that he had no choice" but to put down. In the 2-3 hours before he arrived, the seven personnel on the island quickly marked out a flat, but boggy, area at Macaroni Bay three kilometres south of the station.,
On arrival at the island the aircraft made two runs over the partially flare-marked site before Chorocz, who had just on 100 litres of fuel left, put the aircraft down. The 'Glasair' quickly dug into the soft soil, causing it to flip on its back, and the pilot, who was dazed and had suffered bruising, was quickly pulled from the aircraft.
Chorosz subsequently spent 10 days on Marion until French authorities could arrange transport for him. No ships had been scheduled to visit the island until March next year, but a French Naval vessel took the pilot from the Island on 4 December. He is believed to have arrived back in Reunion sometime in the last few days and is expected back in France in the near future. The 'Glasair' has been secured and its instrumentation removed but it will not be returned to South Africa until May next year. ANAN understands that South African authorities plan to bill the long distance pilot for the cost of "services rendered" during his time on the island, and for the work needed to retrieve the damaged aircraft.
Long-distance flying by solo pilots in small, home-built, aircraft is one of the newer 'extreme sports' to have developed in recent years and there is a small cadre of enthusiasts around the world. Such aircraft have been flown between and across most continents and over the North Geographic Pole (NGP), but the failed attempt by Chorosz to "fly across Antarctica" was a first for an amateur-built aircraft. Whether other small aircraft pilots are planning similar operations in the Antarctic region in the future is not known, however, it remains the only major region of the world that has not been crossed by that class of aircraft.
UK pilot Polly Vacher, who is proposing to fly across Antarctica late next year, is to use a slightly larger single-engine Piper Dakota aircraft for her attempt (ANAN-86/13, 20 November 2002). Details of what arrangements she has to obtain fuel at Ross Island have not yet been made public.
BRIEF BIOGRAPHICAL DETAILS FOR HENRI CHOROSZ
While new to Antarctica, Chorosz is well known in international long-distance flying circles and he holds a number of world records that have been recognised by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale.
A report published in light aviation circles in the US two-and-a-half years ago says that "as a child Henri was inspired by the trans-Atlantic flight of Charles Lindbergh". That July 2000 story goes on to mention his planned "bi-polar flight over both the North and South Poles", which at that time was scheduled for "late 2001", and details his recovery from a "severe icing" situation.
Chorosz's first solo long-distance flight in a small aircraft was along Lindberg's flight path from New York to Paris. Since then he has made "a great number" of similar flights, including from: Dakar in Senegal to Florida in the US (6,800-km); and between the US States of Hawaii and Florida (7,400-km).
The veteran tour ship 'Explorer', which pioneered modern 'expedition-style' tourist visits to Antarctica over 30 years ago, is currently conducting its last season in Antarctic waters. The ship's owner, US-based company Abercrombie and Kent, plans to replace the long-serving vessel in August next year with a newer, much larger ship which is to be named 'Explorer II'.
The present 'Explorer' was built in 1969 by legendary tour operator Lars Eric Lindblad and made its first visit to Antarctica early the following year as the 'Lindblad Explorer'. Lindblad operated the vessel until 1984 when she was purchased by the US company Society Expeditions and became 'Society Explorer'. Abercrombie and Kent acquired her in 1992 and shortened her name.
It is estimated that over the last 33 austral summers, 'Explorer' has conducted in excess of 250 Antarctic voyages. For much of the last two decades the ship has made 9-10 visits to Antarctic Peninsula waters each season, but prior to that its southern season was slightly shorter, each of the voyages was generally longer, and visits to the Ross Sea and other regions were also made.
Abercrombie and Kent, which operates 'Explorer' through its Explorer Shipping Company (ESC), made the decision to look for a replacement for the ship in May this year.
Plans drawn up by ESC in the first half of 2001 called for the ship to be refurbished during the 2002 northern summer. However, the September 11 attacks on the US last year and subsequent business downturn, as well as significant engine problems experienced by the ship at around the same time (ANAN-58/05, 7 November 2001), led to a reconsideration of the company's options. The ship suffered further system problems last month (ANAN-87/07, 4 December 2002).
ESC had four or five options on the table over the northern winter of 2001-02, and the judgement that the vessel should be disposed of and a newer replacement sought was finally made after considerable thought. The decision was said to be "difficult" as 'Explorer' is considered by ESC to be a "robust and wonderful ship [that is] much loved by all".
Abercrombie and Kent has entered into an agreement to charter the 133m-long, 12,331 gross registered tonne passenger vessel 'Minerva' for the 2003-04 season from the Atholl Shipping Corporation in the Bahamas. The charter rate has not been disclosed but was said to be "about standard for a vessel of [Minerva's] size". Bermuda-registered 'Minerva' is 60 m longer, and some 10,000 gross registered tonnes heavier than the ship she is to replace (see ANAN-88/03 following). The vessel has a top speed of 16 knots, slightly faster than the Liberia-registered 'Explorer', and has two rather than one propeller.
The newer vessel, which will operate the same type of Antarctic schedules as 'Explorer', has in recent years incorporated 195 cabins for passengers and could carry up to 400 tourists on six decks. Abercrombie and Kent, however, plans to "limit the number of passengers to 199". This is being done in order to preserve "the quality of the ship's program" and to "ensure that landings are not restricted in the Antarctic". That number will mean that the company will now have to operate "staggered landings" in Antarctica in order to keep numbers on shore to 100 or fewer as required by International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators' by-laws. That had not been an issue for the company in the past as the present 'Explorer' only carries 96 passengers.
'Minerva' has been chartered and operated by the Swan Hellenic cruise company since 1996. Its ice-strengthened hull was built and launched in 1989 as the 'Okean' at Nikolayev in what is now the Ukraine, but the vessel was not completed until 1996, with final work being undertaken in Genoa, Italy. Since its completion, 'Minerva' has operated year-round cruises to the Mediterranean, Black Sea, the Middle East, Asia and northern Europe.
Swan Hellenic is scheduled to return 'Minerva' to Atholl Shipping next April and it is to commence with Abercrombie and Kent in August. In the intervening period her owners are to outfit the ship with a dozen inflatable rubber boats, racks and cranes, as well a "proper" embarkation system via which passengers can access the smaller landing craft. It is not known at this time where the work involved will be carried out, or what it will cost.
'Minerva' is currently run by crew and hotel staff that total 157, although the number of hotel staff is likely to be reduced given the smaller number of passengers to be carried it is. As both 'Explorer' and 'Minerva' use the same ship management company, some of the former's Antarctic-experienced officers and crew are expected to be on board 'Explorer II'.
Despite signing a contract for 'Minerva' in 2003-04, Abercrombie and Kent is keeping their options open in the years beyond. Options for 2004-05 are said to include charters of vessels that are currently on the drawing board or under construction, as well as existing ships. The company has no plans though to actually purchase a ship.
'Explorer' has been sold to Kyris Shipping Limited and her future is currently uncertain. Among the possibilities are that she may operate in Norwegian coastal waters, or be converted into a "private yacht".
While there has been considerable discussion in recent years within the Antarctic tour industry about the increase in the number of large cruise vessels that visit Antarctic Peninsula waters (ANAN-81/01, 11 September 2002), there has also been a slow and less obvious rise in the size and passenger capacity of the 'smaller' ships that actually conduct tourist landings in that region. Ten years ago the average capacity of the Peninsula 'landing' fleet was 110: this austral summer it is 140, and preliminary data for 2003-04 suggest that it could then be as high as 160.
Relatively small, 'expedition-type' vessels like the soon-to-be-retired 'Explorer' (see ANAN-88/02 preceding), which were capable of carrying between 20 and 100 passengers, pioneered and dominated the early decades of ship-based tourist visits to the Antarctic Peninsula region. By the mid-1990s, after the early influx of vessels from Russia, about two-thirds of the dozen ships that conducted landings in Peninsula waters carried 20-100 passengers, while less than a third had capacities greater than 100.
In the intervening period those ratios have slowly reversed and ship numbers have also increased. During the current austral summer, nearly two-thirds of the landing vessels operating in Antarctic waters are capable of carrying 100 or more tourists, while the remaining (slightly more than a) third carry fewer than that number. Early estimates for 2003-04, which have yet to be confirmed, indicate that as many as three-quarters of the 'landing' vessels could each carry more than 100 passengers, while the smaller 'expedition' vessels are likely to account for only a quarter of the ships involved.
During the mid-1990s, the then Peninsula fleet of landing vessels had between them a total passenger-berth capacity of close to 1,200. Over the last half-decade that figure has doubled to become 2,423 this austral summer. Early indications point to close to the same number of ships making landings in the Peninsula area in 2003-04, however, their increasing capacity, possibly totalling close to 2,900, could mean an even higher number of berths being available to that region late next year even if the number of voyages does not increase compared with the current season.
Despite the potential for even higher numbers 12 months from now, the actual numbers for 2003-04, and the number of tourist landings made, will of course depend on the ability of companies to attract clients. That in turn is likely to be influenced by external factors such as the world economy and security situations that prevail next year.
German company Hapag-Lloyd Cruises' tour ship 'Hanseatic' had its bridge windows broken by a wave while en route from sub-Antarctic Antipodes Islands to Dunedin, New Zealand, late last week, and electronic instruments on the bridge were damaged. Repairs are currently being made to the ship in Lyttleton, New Zealand, and its scheduled 20 December voyage to southern South Pacific waters has been cancelled.
Hapag-Lloyd says that passengers and crew on board 'Hanseatic' were not in danger at any stage and that the ship reached Dunedin without further incident after the wave had struck. The vessel's 20 December sailing, which involved visits to sub-Antarctic islands south of New Zealand, Peter I Island in the south-eastern Pacific, and the Antarctic Peninsula, was to have ended in Ushuaia, Argentina, on 15 January.
Once repairs have been completed the ship is to sail direct from Lyttleton to Ushuaia without passengers. 'Hanseatic' is then scheduled to conduct three voyages to the Falkland Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula in the period between 15 January and 17 February. Hapag-Lloyd expects the 15 January voyage to proceed on time. What will then be her last voyage of the current Antarctic season is to visit the Peninsula, the South Orkney Islands and South Georgia, before finishing in Cape Town, South Africa on 9 March.
Hapag-Lloyd's other Antarctic tour vessel the 'Bremen' suffered similar bridge damage early last year while en route from South Georgia to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (ANAN-42/02, 28 February 2001).
Media reports from Russia suggest that a private expedition from there is to conduct parachuting from a hot air balloon somewhere in the Antarctic in the next few weeks. Despite the reports, no details of the logistics involved are available, nor is it clear just where the proposed activity is to take place or if the expedition has yet left Russia.
According to television and newspaper reports in St Petersburg earlier this month, what was called the 'Antarctica - World Continent Expedition' (AWCE) was to leave there on 7 December. AWCE's aim was said to be to fly the "first Russian hot-air balloon ever to have flown in the Antarctic", and to conduct parachute jumps from it.
Alexander Begak, the expedition's leader, was quoted as saying that his group would make "the first ever parachute jump from a balloon at the South Pole". It is not known whether he was referring specifically to the South Geographic Pole (SGP) or if he was talking in general geographic terms. Parachuting from a hot air balloon has, however, been conducted before at the SGP (ANAN-14/02, 2 February 2000).
According to Begak, members of the AWCE have in the last few months spent a week "developing low-pressure, high-altitude, parachute procedures" on 5,633-m Mount Elbrus" in south-west Russia (the SGP is at 2,835-m), and two weeks training at Russia's "Gagarin Space Centre's survival department" in Moscow. These comments point to the SGP as possibly being the target site for the proposed ballooning and parachuting activities.
In addition to the ballooning and parachuting, Begak also said that his group plans to "bring a stone" from Antarctica for use as the foundation marker for a "chapel [that is] to be built in [St Petersburg] in memory of polar explorers".
The twelve boats of this year's 'Around Alone' yacht race left Cape Town, South Africa, on 14 December and are expected to enter sub-Antarctic waters north-west of the Crozet Islands in the next few days. The event's organiser, the UK-based company Clipper Ventures, currently anticipates that the first boats in the fleet will arrive in Tauranga on the north-east coast of New Zealand around 11 January after a three-week passage across sub-Antarctic waters.
The fleet was originally expected to get under way from Cape Town on 1 December, but bad weather on the second leg of the around-the-world event led to the decision to delay the start for two weeks (ANAN-86/15, 20 November 2002). The first boat arrived in Cape Town from Torbay in the UK on 13 November, and the last on 8 December, less than a week before the start of the current leg.
Half the yachts in the fleet are 20-m craft and the others are between 13 and 17-m. Their skippers come from Australia, Belgium, Bermuda, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, the UK, and the US. Yachts in the 20-m class are 'Hexagon', 'Bobst Group Armor lux', 'Solidaires', 'Pindar', 'Tiscali' and 'Ocean Planet', while those in the smaller class are 'Spirit of Canada', 'Spirit of Yukoh', 'Bayer Ascensia', 'BTC Velocity', 'Tommy Hilfiger' and 'Everest Horizontal'.
The shortest route between Cape Town and New Zealand is the Great Circle (GC), but should the fleet follow that course they would encounter significant amounts of Antarctic pack-ice and icebergs. For safety reasons therefore, Clipper Ventures has established Southern Ocean way points that the yachts must use. That not only reduces the chance that the yachts will encounter icebergs, but it also keeps the fleet closer to established rescue services should assistance be required.
'Around Alone' officials have been liaising with both the South African Maritime Rescue Co-ordinating Centre and the Australian Maritime Rescue Centre in the lead-up to the race to determine contingency and rescue plans for the Southern Ocean portion of what is, all-up, a five-leg, single-handed, around-the-world race. Under international agreements the two centres between them are responsible for developing and coordinating search-and-rescue (SAR) responses across the large areas of the Southern Ocean that the 'Around Alone' fleet will pass through in the next month.
Australian authorities, who had to mount two rescues deep in the Southern Ocean well south of their country the last time that the 'Around Alone' event was run (in 1998-99), recommended that the boats stay further north than the GC route (ANAN-79/03, 14 August 2002). As a result, on their way from South Africa to New Zealand, the 12 yachts are required to pass north of the Kerguelen Islands, and above a line drawn east-west along latitude 46 degrees south between longitudes 105 and 120 degrees east.
Those latter two points have been designated in order to keep the boats within 1,800 km of Australia's southern coast. At that distance, Royal Australian Air Force PC-3 'Orion' aircraft are able to search or 'loiter on station' for 3-4 hours, whereas at 60 degrees south that waiting time would be less than one hour. The 46-degree line also makes any ship-based SAR from Australia more straight-forward to mount.
Over the next month, should one of the race boats experience serious problems on the way east, the nearest member of the fleet at the time would normally be asked to respond to any request for assistance. If other support is required, then aircraft of the South African and Australian air forces could, between them, drop supplies to a boat in trouble or person in a life raft along most, but not all, of the route. Air drops in the region around 1,000 km either side of Kerguelen may, in most circumstances, be beyond aircraft range.
In the last week of their 13,300-km journey to Tauranga, the boats of the fleet may pass near the 26-m yacht 'Adrien' which is currently headed westwards across sub-Antarctic waters as part of an attempt at a new solo, 'wrong way' around-the-world record (see ANAN-88/09 following).
Leg four of the 'Around Alone' race is due to leave New Zealand on 2 February. On their way to Cape Horn the yachts will be required to stay north of a line along latitude 55 degrees south between longitudes 120 and 130 degrees west. No air cover will be available over most of that route and the fleet will have to provide self-cover should any problems occur.
Storm damage suffered by the 'Basler 67' aircraft at the Patriot Hills in Ellsworth Land last month has rendered it unserviceable for the remainder of the 2002-03 austral summer. The aircraft still lies where it was damaged and discussions between its owners and their insurers are believed to be continuing.
US-based tour operator Adventure Network International (ANI), which was chartering the aircraft from the Canadian company Enterprise Air, told ANAN last week that the Basler had been damaged in late October in winds that reached 80 knots. The wind apparently caused tie down points on the aircraft to break and the Basler moved, seriously damaging its skis and undercarriage (ANAN-86/01, 20 November 2002).
ANI, which has been operating into and from the Patriot Hills for 18 years, says that that area experienced "exceptionally high" winds in late October and early November. They not only damaged the Basler but also delayed early season Iluyshin-76 flights into the Patriot Hills from Punta Arenas, Chile.
At the time the Basler was damaged, ANI's only other aircraft at the Patriot Hills was a lone Twin Otter, but a second has since joined it there (not a single Otter as previously reported by ANAN), as has the company's Cessna 185, which returned to Antarctica after a major overhaul in Canada during the year.
As a result of early season delays, flights to emperor penguin colonies in the south-eastern shore of the Weddell Sea from the Patriot Hills had to be cancelled. Tourist flights to the South Geographic Pole were also affected, the air operator only flying its first group of tourists there on 5 December, nearly three weeks later than planned.
Despite the problems, SGP trekkers have been deployed and resupplied, climbers have been delivered to Vinson Massif and elsewhere in the Sentinel Range, and other programs have been supported. The flight rate is believed to be increasing, however, as the weather improves and the pre-season program is now understood to be generally back on track, although minor damage to the rear loading ramp of ANI's chartered Ilyushin-76 intercontinental aircraft in early December also caused problems.
According to ANI's Managing Director, Anne Kershaw, loss of the Basler this season is a hindrance but she does not expect inland flight operations this season to be significantly hampered. "The Basler is an excellent aircraft" says Kershaw, "particularly for depoting fuel at locations distant from the Patriot Hills", but "we have conducted inland operations with two Twin Otters and the Cessna for many years, and while things are a little more complicated now, we are confident we can complete all the programs we have planned".
ANI has dropped plans to conduct air operations in the Dronning Maud Land region in 2003-04. Kershaw says that the proposed program there was cancelled by the clients involved, and not because of problems with the Basler.
Although discussions on the future of the Basler are continuing, the status of another inoperable aircraft in Antarctica is unclear. The rumoured operation by a Russia-based group to retrieve the Antonov-3 (An-3) aircraft stranded at the SGP since last January (ANAN-84/05, 23 October 2002), has so far not eventuated. Such a venture would have to commence by the first week of January if the work needed to recover the aircraft is to be completed before winter conditions are likely to return to the high plateau in early February.
Heavy ice in the area north of Cape Adare and the Balleny Islands forced the small 37-m expedition ship 'Sir Hubert Wilkins' to divert to George V Land last week. Current plans call for the ship to support diving and filming operations in the Commonwealth Bay area before another attempt is made to approach Cape Adare later in the month.
'Sir Hubert Wilkins' left Hobart, Australia, on 2 December after a delay that resulted from additional work being needed to ready the ship for sea and the need to wait for a camera to be delivered. The voyage is being "sponsored" by the Japanese television company NHK for a month-long diving and 'natural history' filming program in the pack-ice region near Cape Adare (ANAN-85/04, 6 November 2002).
The ship reached the pack-ice some 500 km north of the Balleny Islands on 9 December after a good passage southward, however, the ice conditions they were experiencing and the latest ice analysis from the US National Ice Centre led to the decision to defer the attempt to reach the islands. It was later decided to head for Commonwealth Bay as the ice in that direction looked more manageable, and shallow water dives could be made close to shore near Cape Denison at the head of the Bay.
After a three-day push through ice the ship reached Commonwealth Bay on 13 December and a landing was made at Cape Denison the next day to visit Sir Douglas Mawson's historic 1911-14 expedition huts.
The visitors were shown around the site by the nine-person Australian national program group that has been there since early November undertaking conservation and other work (ANAN-84/08, 23 October 2002). Later that day, diving and filming operations were commenced around icebergs in the vicinity of the Mackellar Islands which stretch a few kilometres northward from Cape Denison.
Ocean Frontiers, the Australian company that operates Sir Hubert Wilkins, is currently hoping that ice conditions in the Cape Adare region will improve in the next two weeks so that their ship can make a second attempt to reach that area.
US tour company Quark's tour ship 'Kapitan Khelbnikov' visited Commonwealth Bay on 5 December but was unable to make a landing due to 50 knot winds. 'Khlebnikov' is currently conducting a westwards circumnavigation of the Antarctic continent (ANAN-50/02, 4 July 2001), and is currently cruising in the Prydz Bay region of East Antarctica.
SOLO 'WRONG WAY' SAILOR CROSSING SUB-ANTARCTIC PACIFIC
[ANAN-88/09]
A solo sailor is currently headed westwards across South Pacific sub-Antarctic waters as part of an attempt to set a new time for a single-handed, non-stop, 'wrong way' sail around-the-world. Frenchman Jean-Luc Van den Heede, who rounded Cape Horn on 7 December, is expected to pass well south of New Zealand and Australia over the next three months as he travels into the prevailing winds en route to the Cape of Good Hope.
Only three single-handed sailors are known to have completed the 'wrong way around' journey which starts and finishes in Europe, and involves travelling south via the Atlantic Ocean, Cape Horn, sub-Antarctic waters, the Cape of Good Hope, and then northwards up the Atlantic.
The first two voyages were by the UK sailors Chay Blyth, who did it in 1970 in 292 days, and Mike Golding in 161 days in 1996. The current record is held by Frenchman Phillippe Monnet whose time two years ago was 151 days, 19 hours and 54 minutes. Van den Heede is aiming to beat Monnet's record by at least 10 days, and he therefore must re-cross the start line by the end of March next year if he is to achieve that goal.
Van den Heede is sailing a 26-m, 30-tonne, aluminium-hulled yacht named 'Adrien'. He says that the craft has been built "very strongly" in order that it can deal with the severe battering he expects to experience in the Southern Ocean. 'Adrien' has five separate communications systems on board, a standard Inmarsat 'B', a 'mini M', two standard Cs, and an Iridium telephone.
'Adrien' rounded Cape Horn just under 34 days after crossing the start line at the south-western end of the English Channel on 3 November, a time that is four days faster than that achieved by Monnet. In the 10 days since the Horn, Van den Heede has managed to hold on to that lead despite difficult conditions at times.
During the first week after rounding the Horn, a series of low pressure systems swept across 'Adrien' producing winds of 50-60 knots at times. Despite this, the skipper appears to be happy with his progress., At the present time he is some 3,100-km west-north-west of Cape Horn in latitude 53 degrees south. His average westwards speed since leaving the Horn has been seven knots, although the boat has been making much better time than that through the water.
Since the Horn, Van den Heede has been working slowly 'equatorwards' as he heads westwards in order to stay north of ice which is thought to lie in around longitude 125 degrees west. Last week's US National Ice Centre analysis for the South Pacific region suggested that the edge of the main sea-ice region is down at around latitude 68 degrees south, however, bands of ice and icebergs have, in recent years, been reported from open ocean areas in those longitudes by ships and yachts (ANAN-66/05, 13 February 2002).
If he is able to meet the timetable he has set himself, Van den Heede should pass south of New Zealand around 6 January, just north of Kerguelen in the first week of February, and the Cape of Good Hope towards the end of that month. If conditions permit, his plan is to sail westwards in the band between latitudes 50 and 55 degrees south, before moving further northwards to pass around southern Africa into the Atlantic.
It is possible that he might pass in the general region of some of the yachts in the 'Around Alone' fleet as they head for New Zealand in early January (see ANAN-88/06 preceding), although the chances that he or the fleet will sight each other in the vast Southern Ocean are small.
This is Van den Heede's second attempt at the 'wrong way' solo record. In 1999 he had to abandon his first bid after his yacht 'Algimouss' was damaged by an unknown floating object, and started taking water, west of Cape Horn. Prior to that he has sailed single-handedly around-the-world four times, coming third, second and third respectively in the 1989-90, 1992-93 and 1994-95 Vendee Globe events, and second in the 1985-86 BOC Challenge race (which is now the 'Around Alone' race).
Further details of Van den Heede's venture and daily up-dates of his position are available on line at: http://www.vdh.fr/gb/.
MOUNT SHINN THIRD-HIGHEST ANTARCTIC PEAK - BUT JUST!
[ANAN-88/10]
Mount Shinn in the Sentinel Range of Ellsworth Land has been confirmed as the third-highest peak in Antarctica, following a series of measurements made on its summit on 1 December. The determination of the peak's height, which is believed to be accurate to within centimetres, was made from the field by accessing a new, 'on-line' computing system via satellite telephone.
Mountaineers Damien Gildea from Australia and Rodrigo Fica from Chile were flown into the Patriot Hills in Ellsworth Land on 18 November by US-based tour company Adventure Network International (ANI) from Punta Arenas, Chile, and on to ANI's base camp for climbs of Vinson Massif the next day.
The pair finally reached Shinn's summit early on the morning of 1 December after a seven-hour trek and climb from Vinson Massif's Camp 3. For Gildea it was his second time on the mountain, a similar attempt being thwarted 12 months ago by bad weather and other factors (ANAN-84/14, 23 October 2002).
Gildea, who is an experienced mountaineer, said that the climb up Shinn was "harder and steeper" than he had imagined; the latter part of the ascent involving moving up an ice-slope of 50-60 degrees. Near the summit itself there was "unstable ice" and he later described the descent of it "as one of the scariest things" that he has ever done.
Once on the summit the two climbers set up a 3-kg, 'Trimble 5700' dual-frequency Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver and stayed there for seven hours recording signals, that length of time being needed to fix the height of the summit to within one metre.
Fortunately, the weather stayed fine during that time, images taken on the summit showing a near cloudless day, although the temperature was a cool minus 30 degrees centigrade and there was a 10 to 15-knot wind. A small tent was erected on a flattish area about five metres below the summit for shelter: this helped make Gildea and Fica's long wait reasonably comfortable.
After their descent to ANI's Vinson base camp, a lap-top computer was used to prepare the data for dispatch via an Iridium satellite phone to the 'AUSPOS' web site that was set up and is run by Geosciences Australia, an Australian government agency in Canberra. 'AUSPOS' is a free service that works from anywhere in the world via a satellite telephone and produces survey results to within centimetres, provided the quality of the collected data is good.
The 'AUSPOS' on-line service, which is also being used by Australian national program personnel working in the southern Prince Charles Mountains of Mac. Robertson Land this austral summer, analysed the data and computed Shinn's summit as being 4,660.5 m above sea level, some 140 m lower than original estimates.
Mount Shinn thus remains shorter than Vinson Massif and Mount Tyree, but only just beats nearby Mount Craddock into third place, the latter at the moment officially being 4,650-m high. Vinson Massif is expected to be climbed by around 80 people during the current austral summer, while a small group of 3-4 is planning an attempt on Mount Tyree's north-west face early next month (ANAN-87/09, 4 December 2002).
WHALING PROTEST SHIP FINALLY HEADS FOR THE ROSS SEA
[ANAN-88/11]
The anti-whaling protest ship 'Farely Mowat' left Hobart, Australia, on 14 December for the Ross Sea waters where it plans to challenge the operations of a Japanese whaling fleet. It is anticipated that the ship, which is operated by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS), will spend most of January in southern waters, although exactly how long the vessel is able to remain away from port is not clear.
'Farely Mowat' was re-positioned to Hobart from Auckland, New Zealand, prior to heading south for the Ross Sea (ANAN-87/03, 4 December 2002). The Australian port is slightly closer to the region where the whaling fleet has been given a permit to operate in 2002-03 by the Japanese government. The fleet operates under the formal title of the Japanese Whale Research Program in the Antarctic (JARPA).
The SSCS vessel should reach the north-western part of the permit area in the next day or so. Precisely how personnel on the ship plan to find the whaling fleet has not been revealed, although the ocean region in which they will have to search during the early part of the season should be limited by the presence of heavy sea-ice in the Ross Sea region.
Last week's analysis by the US National Ice Centre suggests that in the western half of the permit area the northern limit of ice of nine to ten tenths concentration was at around latitude 65 degrees, while in the east it was between 68 and 70 degrees south. Whales are more likely to be found along the northern edge of the pack-ice zone, and the fleet is therefore unlikely to push too far south into heavier ice regions until late in January. Despite that, the region in which they will have to search remains very large.
While 'Farley Mowat', which is ice-strengthened, can work in ice covered waters, her ability to push through sea-ice is likely to be limited. The ship was carrying three large inflatable rubber boats on deck when she left Hobart and they could be used in any protest action that occurs, in a similar way to Greenpeace's actions against whaling vessels in the past (ANAN-64/05, 16 January 2002).
A total of eight whale-related ships will be operating in the Ross Sea region this austral summer. In addition to the SSCS's vessel and the JARPA fleet, two other Japanese ships that are operating under contract to the International Whaling Commission (IWC) are to continue a long-term survey of Minke whale numbers and related research work in that region in January and February. The 'Shonan Maru' and 'Shonan Maru 2', left Hobart on 17 December at the start of this season's South Ocean Whale and Ecosystem (SOWER) cruise. The voyage, which is being conducted for the twenty-fifth straight year, is to follow a set survey route in the area south of latitude 60 degrees south between longitudes 160 degrees east and 140 degrees west (ANAN-62/09, 19 December 2001).
These two ships, which each have four researchers from a number of nations and a crew of 17 on board, are currently due back in Hobart on 3 March.
NEW 'POCKET-SIZED' MAPS OF ANTARCTICA, PENINSULA REGION, AVAILABLE
[ANAN-88/12]
Two new 'pocket-sized' maps of Antarctica and the Antarctic Peninsula region were released late last month by the British Antarctic Survey. The colour productions, which also contain basic information on both areas, are suitable for use by tourists and other laypersons such as school children who are studying Antarctica.
The 1:10 million-scale map of the Antarctic Peninsula shows the location of year-round and some summer stations in both that region and along the south-eastern coast of the Weddell Sea. It also shows the position of historic sites and monuments throughout that region. The map of the continent is presented at a scale of 1: 25 million and shows its broad-scale topography and the location of year-round stations that currently operate on or near the continent.
The maps, which fold down to a size of 150 by 105 mm, sell for the equivalent of $US1.50, and can be obtained from the Map Order Department at Edward Stanford Limited in London, England (email: sales@stanfords.co.uk). Their catalogue numbers are 111596 (Antarctica) and 111598 (Peninsula).
COMING EVENTS RELEVANT TO NON-GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES
[ANAN-88/13]
Please forward notice of events via e-mail to: tourism@aad.gov.au. Up-dates are made to ANAN's web site at http://www-old.antdiv.gov.au/goingsouth/tourism/Research/BibConf/Confer/default.asp as soon as new information comes to hand.
YEAR 2003
3 March (King George Island, Antarctica)
Sixth Antarctic Marathon and Half Marathon (see ANAN-68/09, 13 March 2002).
Contact: marathon@shore.net (Thom Gilligan).
5-8 May (Seattle, United States).
IAATO annual meeting.
Contact: iaato@iaato.org (Denise Landau)(invitation required).
9-20 June (Madrid, Spain)
Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting XXVI.
8-11 July (Brest, France)
COMNAP XV (including the sub-committee on Tourism and Non-Government Operations).
Contact: jsayers@comnap.aq (Jack Sayers).
18-20 September 2003 (Cambridge, U.K.)
Conference on the future of South Georgia (see ANAN-77/07, 17 July 2002).
Contact: David.Rootes@polesapart.org or rwburton@ntlworld.com.
24 November (Queen Mary and Dronning Maud Land regions).
Total solar eclipse (See ANAN-79/09, 14 August 2002).
YEAR 2004
Sometime around mid-year [Dates to be set] (Christchurch, New Zealand).
IAATO annual meeting.
Contact: iaato@iaato.org (Denise Landau)(invitation required).
November-March 2005 (Single-handed Around-the-world via the Southern Ocean)
Vendee Globe 2004 Yacht Race (see ANAN-79/11, 14 August 2002).
November-March 2005 ('Wrong way around' yacht race via the Southern Ocean)
BT Global Challenge Yacht Race.
March-May 2005 (Circumnavigation of Antarctica).
Antarctica Cup yacht race (see ANAN-79/11, 14 August 2002).
YEAR 2005
November-March 2006 (Around-the-world via the Southern Ocean)
Volvo Ocean Yacht Race.
Next edition issued on Wednesday, 1 January 2003 @ 0600 UTC.
Deadline for items: Sunday, 29 December 2002 @ 2359 UTC.
ANTARCTIC NON-GOVERNMENT ACTIVITY NEWS (ANAN)
IN READING PLEASE NOTE: This newsletter is produced in the interest of improved information sharing in the Antarctic and sub-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 concerned.
Links provided in ANAN stories are working at the time of first publication.
AVAILABLE ON LINE TWENTY-FOUR HOURS A DAY:
ANAN archive (including this issue with its built in links):
http://www-old.antdiv.gov.au/goingsouth/tourism/News/default.asp
Coming events related to non-governmental activity:
http://www-old.antdiv.gov.au/goingsouth/tourism/Research/BibConf/Confer/default.asp
Links to tourist industry web sites:
http://www-old.antdiv.gov.au/goingsouth/tourism/Industry/default.asp
EDITOR: Dave Moser (David.Moser@aad.gov.au).
POSTAL: Australian Antarctic Division, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia 7050
TELEPHONE: +61-3-6232-3347 (2200-0600 UTC).
FACSIMILE: +61-3-6232-3357.
RESEARCH/WRITING: Martin Betts (Martin.Betts@aad.gov.au)
TELEPHONE/FACSIMILE: +61-3-6267-4790 (2200-1100 UTC).
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© Commonwealth of Australia 2002
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