Timeline of New Zealand's links with Antarctica
Encyclopedia
History of New Zealand
The history of New Zealand dates back at least 700 years to when it was discovered and settled by Polynesians, who developed a distinct Māori culture centred on kinship links and land. The first European explorer to discover New Zealand was Abel Janszoon Tasman on 13 December 1642...
's involvement with Antarctica.
Eighteenth and nineteenth centuries
1773- 17 January Captain James CookJames CookCaptain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
and the crews of his expedition's ships, Resolution and Adventure, become the first explorers to cross the Antarctic CircleAntarctic CircleThe Antarctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs south of the Equator.-Description:...
1770s – 1830s
- Sealers and whalers arrive in New Zealand
1838–1840
- French and American expeditions, led by Jules Dumont d'UrvilleJules Dumont d'UrvilleJules Sébastien César Dumont d'Urville was a French explorer, naval officer and rear admiral, who explored the south and western Pacific, Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica.-Childhood:Dumont was born at Condé-sur-Noireau...
and Charles WilkesCharles WilkesCharles Wilkes was an American naval officer and explorer. He led the United States Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842 and commanded the ship in the Trent Affair during the American Civil War...
. John Sac, a Māori travelling with Wilkes, becomes the first New Zealander to cross the Antarctic Circle
1839
- The Balleny IslandsBalleny IslandsThe Balleny Islands are a series of uninhabited islands in the Southern Ocean extending from 66°15' to 67°35'S and 162°30' to 165°00'E. The group extends for about in a northwest-southeast direction. The islands are heavily glaciated and are of volcanic origin. Glaciers project from their slopes...
discovered by English whalingWhaleWhale is the common name for various marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale sometimes refers to all cetaceans, but more often it excludes dolphins and porpoises, which belong to suborder Odontoceti . This suborder also includes the sperm whale, killer whale, pilot whale, and beluga...
captains John BallenyJohn BallenyJohn Balleny was the English captain of a whaling schooner, the Eliza Scott, who led an exploration cruise for the English whaling firm Samuel Enderby & Sons to the Antarctic in 1838-1839....
and Thomas Freeman
1841
- Ross SeaRoss SeaThe Ross Sea is a deep bay of the Southern Ocean in Antarctica between Victoria Land and Marie Byrd Land.-Description:The Ross Sea was discovered by James Ross in 1841. In the west of the Ross Sea is Ross Island with the Mt. Erebus volcano, in the east Roosevelt Island. The southern part is covered...
and Mount ErebusMount ErebusMount Erebus in Antarctica is the southernmost historically active volcano on Earth, the second highest volcano in Antarctica , and the 6th highest ultra mountain on an island. With a summit elevation of , it is located on Ross Island, which is also home to three inactive volcanoes, notably Mount...
discovered by James Clark RossJames Clark RossSir James Clark Ross , was a British naval officer and explorer. He explored the Arctic with his uncle Sir John Ross and Sir William Parry, and later led his own expedition to Antarctica.-Arctic explorer:...
1895
- New Zealander Alexander von TunzelmannAlexander von TunzelmannAlexander Francis Henry von Tunzelmann , a New Zealand crew member of on the Norwegian whaling ship Antarctic was part of the first group to set foot on the mainland of Antarctica—at Cape Adare on 24 January 1895....
becomes the first person to set foot on Antarctica, at Cape AdareCape AdareCape Adare is the northeastern most peninsula in Victoria Land, East Antarctica. The cape separates the Ross Sea to the east from the Southern Ocean to the west, and is backed by the high Admiralty Mountains...
1899
- February British expedition led by Carstens BorchgrevinkCarstens BorchgrevinkCarsten Egeberg Borchgrevink was an Anglo-Norwegian polar explorer and a pioneer of modern Antarctic travel. He was the precursor of Robert Falcon Scott, Ernest Shackleton, Roald Amundsen and other more famous names associated with the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration...
, including several New Zealanders, establishes first base in Antarctica, at Cape AdareCape AdareCape Adare is the northeastern most peninsula in Victoria Land, East Antarctica. The cape separates the Ross Sea to the east from the Southern Ocean to the west, and is backed by the high Admiralty Mountains...
. This expedition becomes the first to winter over on the continent
1900s
1902- Scott IslandScott IslandScott Island is a small uninhabited island of volcanic origin in the Ross Sea, Southern Ocean, northeast of Cape Adare, the northeastern extremity of Victoria Land, Antarctica. It is long north-south, and between and wide, reaching a height of and covering an area of...
(formerly Markham Island) was discovered and landed upon by Captain William Colbeck
1910s
1910- Robert Falcon ScottRobert Falcon ScottCaptain Robert Falcon Scott, CVO was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, 1901–04, and the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–13...
leaves for Antarctica from Port ChalmersPort ChalmersPort Chalmers is a suburb and the main port of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand, with a population of 3,000. Port Chalmers lies ten kilometres inside Otago Harbour, some 15 kilometres northeast from Dunedin's city centre....
. Scott's party later died on the return journey after being delayed by a blizzard
1911–1914
- Four New Zealanders (H Hamilton, AJ Sawyer, EN Webb, and LA Webber) are members of Douglas MawsonDouglas MawsonSir Douglas Mawson, OBE, FRS, FAA was an Australian geologist, Antarctic explorer and Academic. Along with Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott, and Ernest Shackleton, Mawson was a key expedition leader during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.-Early work:He was appointed geologist to an...
's Australian Antarctic expedition
1920s
1923- Ross DependencyRoss DependencyThe Ross Dependency is a region of Antarctica defined by a sector originating at the South Pole, passing along longitudes 160° east to 150° west, and terminating at latitude 60° south...
proclaimed on 30 July as a British Territory entrusted to New Zealand
1928
- US Navy Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn ByrdRichard Evelyn ByrdRear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd, Jr., USN was a naval officer who specialized in feats of exploration. He was a pioneering American aviator, polar explorer, and organizer of polar logistics...
leaves DunedinDunedinDunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
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. Establishes base at Little America
1929
- Combined UK-Australia-NZ expedition led by Douglas MawsonDouglas MawsonSir Douglas Mawson, OBE, FRS, FAA was an Australian geologist, Antarctic explorer and Academic. Along with Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott, and Ernest Shackleton, Mawson was a key expedition leader during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.-Early work:He was appointed geologist to an...
; New Zealand members include RA Falla and RG Simmers
1940s
1946- New Zealand joins the International Whaling CommissionInternational Whaling CommissionThe International Whaling Commission is an international body set up by the terms of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling , which was signed in Washington, D.C...
to help oversee whaling in the southern ocean
1949
- First publication of New Zealand Antarctic Society quarterly journal, Antarctic
1950s
1955- August The New Zealand Government decide to establish an Antarctic base as part of its contribution to International Geophysical YearInternational Geophysical YearThe International Geophysical Year was an international scientific project that lasted from July 1, 1957, to December 31, 1958. It marked the end of a long period during the Cold War when scientific interchange between East and West was seriously interrupted...
(1957–58)
1956
- McMurdo StationMcMurdo StationMcMurdo Station is a U.S. Antarctic research center located on the southern tip of Ross Island, which is in the New Zealand-claimed Ross Dependency on the shore of McMurdo Sound in Antarctica. It is operated by the United States through the United States Antarctic Program, a branch of the National...
established; construction of both Scott BaseScott BaseScott Base is a research facility located in Antarctica and is operated by New Zealand. It was named after Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Royal Navy, leader of two British expeditions to the Ross Sea area of Antarctica...
and Amundsen-Scott South Pole StationAmundsen-Scott South Pole StationThe Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station is the American scientific research station on the high plateau of Antarctica. This station is located at the southernmost place on the Earth, the Geographic South Pole, at an elevation of 2,835 meters above sea level.The original Amundsen-Scott Station was...
started
1957
- 20 January Scott BaseScott BaseScott Base is a research facility located in Antarctica and is operated by New Zealand. It was named after Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Royal Navy, leader of two British expeditions to the Ross Sea area of Antarctica...
established in Ross DependencyRoss DependencyThe Ross Dependency is a region of Antarctica defined by a sector originating at the South Pole, passing along longitudes 160° east to 150° west, and terminating at latitude 60° south... - International Geophysical YearInternational Geophysical YearThe International Geophysical Year was an international scientific project that lasted from July 1, 1957, to December 31, 1958. It marked the end of a long period during the Cold War when scientific interchange between East and West was seriously interrupted...
- New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic ExpeditionNew Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic ExpeditionThe New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition describes a series of scientific explorations of the continent Antarctica. The expeditions were notably active in 1957-58 and again in 1958-59. The 1957-58 expedition went to the Ross Dependency and named the Borchgrevink Glacier...
(NZGSAE) of 1957–58; named the Borchgrevink GlacierBorchgrevink GlacierBorchgrevink Glacier is a large glacier in the Victory Mountains, Victoria Land, draining south between Malta Plateau and Daniell Peninsula, and thence projecting into Glacier Strait, Ross Sea, as a floating glacier tongue. It was named by the New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition,... - Hallett Station South of Cape AdareCape AdareCape Adare is the northeastern most peninsula in Victoria Land, East Antarctica. The cape separates the Ross Sea to the east from the Southern Ocean to the west, and is backed by the high Admiralty Mountains...
is established as a joint New Zealand-United States operation
1958
- 4 January Edmund HillaryEdmund HillarySir Edmund Percival Hillary, KG, ONZ, KBE , was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953 at the age of 33, he and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers known to have reached the summit of Mount Everest – see Timeline of climbing Mount Everest...
, leading an expedition using farm tractors equipped for polar travel, arrives at the Pole, the first expedition since Scott's to reach the South Pole over land; part of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic ExpeditionCommonwealth Trans-Antarctic ExpeditionThe 1955–58 Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition was a Commonwealth-sponsored expedition that successfully completed the first overland crossing of Antarctica, via the South Pole... - New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic ExpeditionNew Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic ExpeditionThe New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition describes a series of scientific explorations of the continent Antarctica. The expeditions were notably active in 1957-58 and again in 1958-59. The 1957-58 expedition went to the Ross Dependency and named the Borchgrevink Glacier...
(NZGSAE) of 1958–59; named the Mountaineer RangeMountaineer RangeMountaineer Range is the range of mountains lying between the Mariner and Aviator Glaciers in Victoria Land, Antarctica. The seaward parts of the range were first viewed by Ross in 1841, and subsequently by several British and later American expeditions. The precise mapping of its overall features...
. - United States Operation Deep FreezeOperation Deep FreezeOperation Deep Freeze is the codename for a series of United States missions to Antarctica, beginning with "Operation Deep Freeze I" in 1955–56, followed by "Operation Deep Freeze II", "Operation Deep Freeze III", and so on...
starts, based in ChristchurchChristchurchChristchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
1959
- 1 December Antarctic Treaty signed with other countries involved in scientific exploration in Antarctica
- New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial ResearchDepartment of Scientific and Industrial ResearchSeveral countries have organizations called the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, abbreviated DSIR.-United Kingdom:...
(DSIR) established an Antarctic Division
1960s
1964- Hallett Station destroyed by fire. It is not rebuilt but is used as a summer-only base until 1973.
1965
- The first flight from New Zealand to Antarctica made by a Royal New Zealand Air Force C130 (Hercules) aircraft
1968
- Marie Derby becomes first New Zealand woman to work in the Antarctic
1969
- New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic ExpeditionNew Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic ExpeditionThe New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition describes a series of scientific explorations of the continent Antarctica. The expeditions were notably active in 1957-58 and again in 1958-59. The 1957-58 expedition went to the Ross Dependency and named the Borchgrevink Glacier...
(NZGSAE) of 1969–70; visited the Scott GlacierScott Glacier (Transantarctic Mountains)The Scott Glacier is a major glacier, 120 miles long, that drains the East Antarctic Ice Sheet through the Queen Maud Mountains to the Ross Ice Shelf...
and named Marble PeakMarble Peak (Antarctica)Marble Peak is a coastal peak, the twin of O'Brien Peak 2 nautical miles to the southeast and almost the same height, overlooking the head of Ross Ice Shelf about midway between Amundsen and Scott Glaciers....
and Surprise SpurSurprise SpurSurprise Spur is a prominent spur, the northernmost of three spurs on the southwest side of Ackerman Ridge in the La Gorce Mountains of Antarctica. First mapped by United States Geological Survey from surveys and U.S. Navy air photos, 1960-64...
. - 12 November South Pole visited for the first time by women – four Americans, an Australian, and New Zealander Pamela Young
- Vanda StationVanda StationVanda Station was an Antarctic research base in the western highlands of the Ross Dependency, specifically on the shore of Lake Vanda, at the mouth of Onyx River, in the Wright Valley...
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 LewisDavid Henry LewisDavid Henry Lewis, DCNZM was a sailor, adventurer, doctor, and Polynesian scholar. He is best known for his studies on the traditional systems of navigation used by the Pacific Islanders...
1974
- December Joint NZ-France expedition makes first ascent, and descent into crater, of Mount ErebusMount ErebusMount Erebus in Antarctica is the southernmost historically active volcano on Earth, the second highest volcano in Antarctica , and the 6th highest ultra mountain on an island. With a summit elevation of , it is located on Ross Island, which is also home to three inactive volcanoes, notably Mount...
- Antarctic Museum Centre opened at Canterbury Museum
1975
- Prime Minister Bill RowlingBill RowlingSir Wallace Edward Rowling, KCMG , often known as Bill Rowling, was the 30th Prime Minister of New Zealand. He was in office for just over a year, having been appointed Prime Minister following the death of the highly popular Norman Kirk...
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
1977
- New Zealand proclaims Exclusive Economic ZoneExclusive Economic ZoneUnder the law of the sea, an exclusive economic zone is a seazone over which a state has special rights over the exploration and use of marine resources, including production of energy from water and wind. It stretches from the seaward edge of the state's territorial sea out to 200 nautical...
of 200 nautical miles (370 km), which provides for the zone to also include Ross Dependency's waters
1978
- 21st Anniversary of Scott Base
1979
- The Mount Erebus disaster: an Air New ZealandAir New ZealandAir New Zealand Limited is the national airline and flag carrier of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, New Zealand, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 26 domestic destinations and 24 international destinations in 15 countries across Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania, and is...
DC-10 crashes and 257 people die
1980s
1980- New Zealand is signatory to the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, which comes into effect in 1982
1982
- 20 January Robert MuldoonRobert MuldoonSir Robert David "Rob" Muldoon, GCMG, CH served as the 31st Prime Minister of New Zealand from 1975 to 1984, as leader of the governing National Party. Muldoon had been a prominent member of the National party and MP for the Tamaki electorate for some years prior to becoming leader of the party...
becomes the first Prime Minister of New ZealandPrime Minister of New ZealandThe Prime Minister of New Zealand is New Zealand's head of government consequent on being the leader of the party or coalition with majority support in the Parliament of New Zealand...
to visit Antarctica - June Antarctic Treaty nations meet in WellingtonWellingtonWellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
to discuss the exploitation of Antarctica's minerals
1987
- Closure of Scott BaseScott BaseScott Base is a research facility located in Antarctica and is operated by New Zealand. It was named after Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Royal Navy, leader of two British expeditions to the Ross Sea area of Antarctica...
Post Office (reopened in 1994)
1990s
1995- Closure of Vanda StationVanda StationVanda Station was an Antarctic research base in the western highlands of the Ross Dependency, specifically on the shore of Lake Vanda, at the mouth of Onyx River, in the Wright Valley...
1996
- Antarctica New ZealandAntarctica New ZealandAntarctica New Zealand is an Institute set up by the New Zealand Government in 1996 to manage its interests in Antarctica and the Ross Sea. As well as providing logistics support to a large scientific programme, it also runs bases such as Scott Base...
established on 1 July to manage the Government's interest in Antarctica
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. Their plan to parasail back is abandoned.
2007
- Prime Minister Helen ClarkHelen ClarkHelen Elizabeth Clark, ONZ is a New Zealand political figure who was the 37th Prime Minister of New Zealand for three consecutive terms from 1999 to 2008...
and Sir Edmund HillaryEdmund HillarySir Edmund Percival Hillary, KG, ONZ, KBE , was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953 at the age of 33, he and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers known to have reached the summit of Mount Everest – see Timeline of climbing Mount Everest...
(aged 87) travel with an official party to Scott BaseScott BaseScott Base is a research facility located in Antarctica and is operated by New Zealand. It was named after Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Royal Navy, leader of two British expeditions to the Ross Sea area of Antarctica...
to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of its founding. - 4 June First New Zealand Antarctic MedalNew Zealand Antarctic MedalThe New Zealand Antarctic Medal was created 1 September 2006, as a New Zealand Royal Honour to replace the British Polar Medal.-History:The Polar Medal was instituted in 1904 and awarded to those who had made notable contributions to the exploration and knowledge of Polar Regions and who, in doing...
(NZAM) awarded, to geophysicist Dr Fred Davey.