History & Heritage

Tasmania’s geographic relationship with Antarctica spans at least 600 million years. The two landmasses were initially united, either near or across the Equator, in the super-continent known as Gondwana.

Tasmania’s ancient physical links with the Antarctic are paralleled by its historical associations, which date back to 1777 when Captain James Cook sought refuge on tranquil Bruny Island, off the coast of Hobart, after circumnavigating Antarctica.

Over 200 hundred years later Tasmania’s association with Antarctica has strengthened considerably. Hobart houses the scientific headquarters for many national Antarctic research institutions and supplies the Australian, French and Italian bases on Antarctica. Antarctic ships from the US, China and Russia also visit Hobart’s deep water port. Most recently Hobart was awarded the contract for the Australian Antarctic Air Link.

Geological Links  

During the Cambrian Period 500 million years ago, Antarctica was in the tropics and as warm as it would ever be. It was covered with the ancient forerunners of the existing cool temperate rainforests of Tasmania, New Zealand and South America.

Enormous changes were occurring 45 million years ago (during the Tertiary Period) when the Southern Ocean cooled to 12°C (about 55°F). The main reason for the cooling was the opening of the gap between Tasmania and East Antarctica and between South America and the Antarctic Peninsula. This created deep-water circulation in the Southern Ocean south of Tasmania, cutting Antarctica off from the warm subtropical waters. The East Antarctic ice sheet grew to about its present size by the Tertiary Period, however, west Antarctica was still just a series of glaciers rather than a complete ice cap.

There is evidence that the climate then varied dramatically. Scientists believe that the Antarctic ice sheet probably took on its present form towards the end of the Tertiary Period (around 2 million years ago) 

Early Exploration

Timeline of European exploration in the Antarctic region:

1832	1830s	1840s	1899	1912
John Biscoe’s British expedition sailed from Hobart in the Tula and the Lively. The expedition circumnavigated the continent and returned to Hobart.	In the late 1830s Dumont d’Urville’s French expedition sailed in the Astrolabe and the Zelee to the coast of George V Land.	In the early 1840s James Clark Ross took a British expedition in the Erebus and the Terror to the coast of George V Land and then to the Ross Ice Shelf.	Carsten Borchgrevinck took a British expedition in the Southern Cross and reached the Ross Ice Shelf.	In March, Roald Amundsen’s party returned after reaching the South Pole and cabled the news from the Hobart Post Office.

 

Scientific Links  

Australia has had a continuous scientific presence in Antarctica since 1954 when the Australian National Antarctic Research Expedition established the Mawson base on the coast of MacRobertson Land, Antarctica. Scientists from Australia and other countries combine exploration of the Antarctic region with research into glaciology, meteorology and cosmic ray physics, among other things. Australia maintains two other bases on Antarctica, Davis and Casey.

The great continent of Antarctica can be reached by sea or, more recently, by air. Those taking the sea route brave the high winds and waves of the Southern Ocean, not to mention the freezing temperatures. Australia’s Antarctic vessel, the Aurora Australis, is registered in Hobart – Tasmania’s southern capital city – and can often be seen in port. It is strengthened for work in ice and is used for marine science research and to carry supplies to Antarctica. When the pack ice prevents ships from reaching the shore, supplies are unloaded onto the ice and hauled or driven to shore. The pack ice, at almost two metres (6.5 feet) thick, acts like reinforced concrete.

Hobart is the centre of scientific research and environmental programs encompassing the Antarctic as well as the Pacific, Indian and Great Southern oceans. Over 65% of Australia’s scientists specialising in Antarctic science and research live in the greater Hobart area. The Australian Antarctic Division Headquarters and the CSIRO Marine Research division are located in Tasmania’s south.

The island’s role in Antarctic research is reinforced by the presence in Hobart of the headquarters of the international Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) and the Institute of Antarctic and Southern Ocean Studies (IASOS), based at the University of Tasmania.

For more information
Antarctic Division
CCAMLR
IASOS