OUR PROJECTS
How are changes to the unique East Antarctic environment impacting on the everyday lives of penguins?
The calving off of a huge part of the Mertz Glacier has resulted in an enormous iceberg becoming land locked in Commonwealth Bay blocking the Adelie penguins’ access to their food and breeding grounds. Have they adapted to their new environment?
Your contribution will help the Foundation to mount a science mission to Commonwealth Bay to monitor that penguin colony.
Where are the whales?
Protect the endangered Blue Whales and understand how and where they feed on Antarctic krill and the fundamental role that this pivotal relationship plays in enhancing Southern Ocean productivity.
Blue Whales are the largest animals to have ever existed on our planet and yet they are very hard to find in the vast Southern Ocean. This summer
Your donation will help the Foundation support tracking of these majestic creatures through acoustic technology and visual surveys.
The Totten is melting faster than most glaciers, why and what is the impact on global sea level rise?
The largest glacier in East Antarctica is the Totten. It is twice the area of the State of Victoria and contains enough ice to raise global sea levels by about three metres if it all melted.
Satellite images have shown that the Totten has been thinning faster than its neighbouring glaciers. Recent observations reveal lakes underneath the ice. How will that impact the Totten Glacier’s behaviour.
Your donation will support sensor technology and inform models on temperature and glacial movement and the impact on global sea level rise.
Winter in Antarctica holds a multitude of scientific mysteries, what is happening at the darkest, coldest time of year?
Most research in Antarctica is undertaken over summer when there is a lot of day light and transport in and out of is possible. Winter in Antarctica brings new opportunities for the intrepid scientist. The long dark nights provide excellent conditions to study the upper atmosphere and to study the frozen ocean above and below the ice. The thicker ice enables inaccessible locations on the Antarctic coastline.
Your donation can enable a salary for specialist post-doctoral researcher to spend up to a year at one of Australia’s Antarctic Research stations, to learn more about what’s hiding in the dark.