India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences launched the 41st Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica (41st ISEA) in November 2021. The first batch of 23 scientists and support staff has reached the Indian Antarctic station Maitri.
- The expedition has 48 members leaving for over winter at Antarctica and on return the vessel brings back the members of 40th expedition.
- Four more batches will be landing in Antarctica by air using DROMLAN facility and onboard chartered ice-class vessel MV Vasiliy Golovnin by mid-January 2022.
Key points:
i.The 41st Expedition is made up of 2 Programmes:
- Geological exploration of the Amery ice-shelf at Bharati Station.
- Reconnaissance surveys and preparatory work for drilling 500 metres of ice near Maitri.
ii.The ice core drilling will be done in collaboration with the British Antarctic Survey and the Norwegian Polar Institute.
iii.The National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa, an autonomous institute under the Ministry of Earth Sciences manages the Indian Antarctic programme.
Members:
The 41st expedition is led by,
- Dr Shailendra Saini, Scientist National Centre for Polar & Ocean Research (Voyage Leader)
- Huidrom Nageshwar Singh, Metrologist, India Meteorological Department (Leader, Maitri Station)
- Anoop Kalayil Soman, scientist Indian Institute of Geomagnetism (Leader, Bharati Station)
Background:
India’s Antarctic Expedition began in 1981 bound by the rules of Antarctic Treaty System, which India signed in 1983. It is a multi-institutional program to build a Scientific Research Station at Antarctica.
India’s bases at Antarctica:
There are three permanent research base stations in Antarctica, named Dakshin Gangotri (1983), Maitri (1988) and Bharati (2021). Currently, Maitri and Bharati are fully operational.
i.Dakshin Gangotri – India’s 1st scientific base station in Antarctica established in 1983 as a part of Indian Antarctic Programme.
ii.Maitri – This is the 2nd permanent research station which is also known as the Friendship Research Center, launched by India in 1988.
iii.Bharati – This is the 3rd permanent and active research station in Antarctica established in 2012.
Recent Related News:
The 40th Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica (40-ISEA) hosted by the Ministry of Earth Sciences successfully returned to Cape Town on April 10, 2021, after completing a journey of 12,000 nautical miles in 94 days, including stopovers
About National Centre for Polar & Ocean Research (NCPOR)
Director – M.Ravichandran
Headquarters – Vasco-da-Gama, Goa
About Ministry of Earth Sciences
Union Minister – Jitendra Singh
Headquarters – New Delhi, Delhi