THE 98/99 MISSION ANTARCTICA EXPEDITION LOGBOOK REPORTS

The goal of the Mission Antarctica 98/99 season expeditions to Bellingshausen and the Antarctic was to provide the information required to plan the clean up at Bellingshausen Base. A secondary objective is to set the scene, record expedition activity and develop an educational programme based on the intinerary and the scientific research carried out.

OUTLINE PLAN

Two expeditions travelled to Bellingshausen in the period 14 January – 1 March 1999. A survey team travelled by ship to carry out the detailed survey and assessment of work to be done to meet the ultimate objective of Mission Antarctica. The second, media and science, team of six people, on the sailing vessel Pelagic, were concerned with recording the expeditions' work including scientific research, visits to other bases and establishing a pictorial baseline for monitoring climate and other changes. The Pelagic reports which are indexed below began 25 January and concluded on 23 February 1999.

Index of Reports

In chronological order
25 Jan 99 Team B Burns Night on board Pelagic in Puerto Williams
26 Jan 99 First days sailing from Puerto Williams towards Cape Horn. Anchored waiting for a weather window to cross the Drake.
27 Jan 99 Weather window open, departure from Cape Horn and into the Drake.
28 Jan 99 At sea in the Drake passage. Storm coming?
29 Jan 99 So far no storm. Anticipating icebergs.
30 Jan 99 Arrived Bellingshausen amid whales.
31 Jan 99 First impressions at Bellingshausen.
1 Feb 99 Delay in report due to transmission failure. More about Bellingshausen and problems for birdlife caused by human activity. Team A currently on return voyage to Ushuaia.
2 Feb 99 Survey work on Tank Farm beach and visit to Argentinian Base Artigas.
3 Feb 99 Departure from Bellingshausen towards Deception.
4 Feb 99 Bellingshausen to Half Moon Bay. Some notes on Bellingshausen clean up Project.
5 Feb 99 Half Moon Bay to Deception Island. History of Deception Island, a place where the bottom paint of ships can be boiled off by volcanic activity.
6 Feb 99 Deception Island and Tourism.
7 Feb 99 Deception Island to Enterprise Bay
8 Feb 99 Enterprise Bay to Paradise Bay. Links to penguin sites.
9 Feb 99 Paradise Bay and the real meaning of silence. Then towards Vernadsky a Ukrainian Base.
10 Feb 99 Arrived Vernadsky.
11 Feb 99 At Vernadsky.
12 Feb 99 Vernadsky towards Port Lockroy via Cape Renard with German climbers mounting an attempt on a new route.
13 Feb 99 Port Lockroy
14 Feb 99 Saturday night at Port Lockroy. Part 2 of the de Gerlache story.
15 Feb 99 Dorian Cove. Penguin counting is soporific!
16 Feb 99 Melchior Islands waiting for a weather window. About Sir Francis Drake and the Drake Passage and some thoughts on leaving Antarctica.
18 Feb 99 A lumpy start to crossing the Drake.
19 Feb 99 In the Drake approaching Cape Horn.
20 Feb 99 Safely back in the Beagle Channel.
22 Feb 99 Team B safely back in Ushuaia reports concluded.