September 25, 2026
Two ski-equipped Twin Otter aircraft spent the 2024/25 austral summer attempting something rarely achieved in Antarctic science: circling an entire continent while collecting critical data from one of the most important, and least visible, boundaries on Earth.
September 24, 2026
Scientists have achieved a major breakthrough in polar biology by capturing the first high-resolution images of living Antarctic fish cells at temperatures close to freezing, opening a new window into how life survives in one of Earth's most extreme environments.
September 22, 2026
A new academic study examining former Antarctic tour guides has reopened a long-running debate over the role of tourism in one of the planet’s most environmentally significant regions, prompting a detailed response from the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO).
Over the past decade, horizon scanning has become one of the most influential tools used by the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) to identify the questions that matter most for the future of Antarctic and Southern Ocean science.
For centuries, one of the most influential geographic ideas about the southern hemisphere rested on remarkably thin evidence. Claudius Ptolemy’s world map, based on knowledge compiled in the second century AD and revived during the Renaissance, depicted the Indian Ocean as a vast enclosed sea, bounded to the south by an unknown landmass.
At China’s Zhongshan Station in East Antarctica, aircraft operating during the 2025-26 season relied on a carefully prepared strip of compacted snow marked by flags and governed by constantly changing weather conditions.
Winter storms in the southern Ross Sea are becoming more frequent and more intense, according to new research from the University of Otago, with implications that extend well beyond meteorology. The findings suggest that changing storm patterns are already affecting sea-ice conditions that underpin scientific operations in one of Antarctica's most important research regions.
September 16, 2026
The waters surrounding the South Orkney Islands have emerged as an important hotspot for recovering whale populations, prompting Antarctic tour operators to introduce a new vessel-speed restriction aimed at reducing the risk of ship strikes.
September 15, 2026
The Mackenzie Polynya, an area of open water or thin ice that persists within the surrounding winter sea-ice pack, forms in Prydz Bay. Although they may appear to be small gaps in the Antarctic sea-ice cover, polynyas play an outsized role in the Southern Ocean system. They are major sites of sea-ice formation, contributing to the production of dense, cold water that helps drive global ocean circulation.
September 14, 2026
Hidden beneath nearly four kilometres of Antarctic ice, Lake Vostok is one of the planet’s most extraordinary scientific targets. Isolated from the atmosphere for millions of years, the vast subglacial lake may preserve a unique record of Antarctica’s environmental history in the sediments that lie on its floor.
September 12, 2026
This annual seasonal transition highlights a growing trend in polar science: the increasing role of autonomous technologies in collecting data from regions where year-round human occupation is costly and difficult. Instruments left behind can continue monitoring atmospheric conditions, glaciological processes and other environmental variables long after field teams have returned home.
September 12, 2026
A vast geological structure hidden beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet is offering scientists a new way to understand both Antarctica’s ancient past and the behaviour of its ice today. The findings may help explain events linked to the evolution of the supercontinent Gondwana and the eventual separation of Antarctica from Australia.
September 11, 2026
Hundreds of circular seafloor features have been found on the sea bed of the Ross Sea, at depths of between 300 and 1,200 meters. Their origin remains uncertain, making them one of Antarctica's more intriguing geological puzzles. Early hypotheses range from fluid or gas-related processes to the interaction of oceanographic and sedimentary forces over long timescales.