Timeline of New Zealand's links with Antarctica

This is a timeline of the history of New Zealand's involvement with Antarctica.

A map of the Ross Dependency, the part of Antarctica claimed by New Zealand.

Pre 1900s

1838–1840
1895
  • New Zealander Alexander von Tunzelmann becomes the first person to set foot on Antarctica, at Cape Adare.[2]
1899
  • February British expedition led by Carsten Borchgrevink, including several New Zealanders, establishes first base in Antarctica, at Cape Adare. This expedition becomes the first to winter over on the continent.[2]

1900s

1902
  • Scott Island (formerly Markham Island) was discovered and landed upon by William Colbeck.

1910s

1910
1911–1914
  • Four New Zealanders (H Hamilton, AJ Sawyer, EN Webb, and LA Webber) are members of Douglas Mawson's Australian Antarctic expedition.[3]

1920s

1923
1928
  • US Navy Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd leaves Dunedin for the first sea-air exploration expedition to the Antarctic. Byrd overflew the South Pole with pilot Bernt Balchen on 28 and 29 November 1929, to match his overflight of the North Pole in 1926.
1929
  • Combined UK-Australia-NZ expedition led by Douglas Mawson; New Zealand members include RA Falla and RG Simmers.[4]

1930s

1933
  • New Zealand Antarctic Society founded.

1940s

1946
1949
  • First publication of New Zealand Antarctic Society quarterly journal, Antarctic[4]

1950s

1955
1956
1957
  • 20 January Scott Base established in Ross Dependency.
  • New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition (NZGSAE) of 1957–58; named the Borchgrevink Glacier.
  • Hallett Station South of Cape Adare is established as a joint New Zealand-United States operation.[6]
  • Bill Cranfield, John Claydon, and a New Zealand scientist arrived at the South Pole by air aboard a US Navy airplane;
1958
1959
  • 1 December Antarctic Treaty signed with other countries involved in scientific exploration in Antarctica.
  • New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) established an Antarctic Division.[6]

1960s

1964
1965
  • The first flight from New Zealand to Antarctica made by a Royal New Zealand Air Force C130 (Hercules) aircraft
1968
  • Marie Darby becomes first New Zealand woman to visit the Antarctic[8]
1969
  • New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition (NZGSAE) of 1969–70; visited the Scott Glacier and named Marble Peak and Surprise Spur.
  • 12 November South Pole visited for the first time by women – four Americans, an Australian, and New Zealander Pamela Young[6]
  • Vanda Station manned for the first time

1970s

1970
  • Antarctic Amendment Act comes into force.
1972–1974
  • First solo voyage to Antarctica, by New Zealand-born yachtsman and author David Lewis[9]
1974
1975
  • Prime Minister Bill Rowling had a formal proposal made at the Oslo Meeting for Antarctic to be declared a World Park.
1976
  • Thelma Rogers, of New Zealand's DSIR, becomes the first woman to winter over on Antarctica.[9]
1977
  • New Zealand proclaims Exclusive Economic Zone of 200 nautical miles (370 km), which provides for the zone to also include Ross Dependency's waters.[9]
1978
  • 21st Anniversary of Scott Base
1979

1980s

1980
1982
1987
  • Closure of Scott Base Post Office (reopened in 1994)

1990s

1995
1996

2000s

2006
  • October (to January 2007): New Zealanders Kevin Biggar and Jamie Fitzgerald become the first people to walk to the South Pole without the aid of any supply dumps.[10] Their plan to parasail back is abandoned.[11]
2007
  • Prime Minister Helen Clark and Sir Edmund Hillary (aged 87) travel with an official party to Scott Base to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of its founding.
  • 4 June First New Zealand Antarctic Medal (NZAM) awarded to geophysicist Dr Fred Davey.

References

  1. Fraser, B. (ed.) (1986) The New Zealand book of events. Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0-474-00123-7. p. 72.
  2. Fraser, B. (ed.) (1986) The New Zealand book of events. Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0-474-00123-7. p. 73.
  3. Fraser, B. (ed.) (1986) The New Zealand book of events. Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0-474-00123-7. p. 74.
  4. Fraser, B. (ed.) (1986) The New Zealand book of events. Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0-474-00123-7. p. 75.
  5. Fraser, B. (ed.) (1986) The New Zealand book of events. Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0-474-00123-7. pp. 75–76.
  6. Fraser, B. (ed.) (1986) The New Zealand book of events. Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0-474-00123-7. p. 76.
  7. Sinclair, Keith (1976). Walter Nash. Auckland University Press. p. 363.
  8. "Women in Antarctica | NZHistory, New Zealand history online". nzhistory.govt.nz. Retrieved 6 November 2017.
  9. Fraser, B. (ed.) (1986) The New Zealand book of events. Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0-474-00123-7. p. 77.
  10. McNaughton, Maggie (12 September 2006). "Out of the freezer and to the South Pole". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 22 November 2011.
  11. "NZ Herald: New Zealand's Latest News, Business, Sport, Weather, Travel, Technology, Entertainment, Politics, Finance, Health, Environment and Science". The New Zealand Herald.
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