Posts tagged "antarctica travel"

Antarctic Trips Inspire Tired Travelers

An ever-increasing enterprise in the U.S., is arranging vacations to off the beaten path places, for disenchanted travelers. US citizens have grown tired of visiting the usual locations like Mexico and Monte Carlo. The Caribbean no longer draws those who have cruised there before. They?d like to go somewhere unusual and odd. The trips that are the most off the beaten path are those to Antarctica.

It is easier than ever to get there. Your travel will include a 24 hour airplane ride out of New York, followed by a three day ocean journey leaving from Ushuaia’s little port on South America’s southernmost tip. Because the US Navy has a presence in Antarctica, many tourists feel more safe. Beginning in 1957, the US has held an active base on Antarctica. Several other countries do also. Whether the US Navy is pleased with the great increase in tourism is debated. However, it is a certain fact that knowing the sailors are there in case of emergency calms many tourists? fears. Detailed Antarctic Cruising Tours resources can be found there.

What can travelers do in Antarctica? A great deal of the attraction of Antarctica is the opportunity to take pictures of and study the wildlife of the continent. Seabirds, whales, seals and penguins are among the fascinating creatures you might see on a voyage to Antarctica. There is also some spectacular and unique scenery, including a twelve thousand foot active volcano, whose ice cone spews forth picturesque and photogenic white smoke plumes. This sight alone easily trumps other volcanoes as tourist fare.

It takes a special kind of tourist who’s willing to shell out the $5,000 it takes to reach Antartica by plane and boat.Many who visit are scientists or doctors. However, normal married couples are also known to join in. There have even been a few adventurous grandmothers on some trips. A travel agency spokesperson said there is a huge increase in interest in Antarctica of late. He went on to say that the travel to Antarctica has been so improved that almost anyone could enjoy the splendor now, as opposed to the past, when few explorers could actually experience the continent.

The spokesperson for the USNavy says the only regulations place on tourists is that they need to take safety precautions, be self-reliant, and follow the international rules set for preservation and conservation of Antarctica. Scientists and conservationists are worried about this. Tons of tourists could swarm the continent, littering and harassing the wild life. They could destroy the few historical monuments there. Expert resources on antarctic tours are located on that site.

among these historic places is a the hut at Cape Royds that was the 1907 winter home of one famous explorer and his group which remains just as it was left by them. There are still canned goods in fine shape on the shelves, clothing hanging in the closets and portraits of Queen Alexandra and King Edward VII hanging on the walls. An open edition of a notable European city newspaper can yet be found on the table.

One tourist destination in Antarctica is a hill that gives a magnificent view of the Antarctic Mountain range, which is 900 miles distant but visible with crystal clarity as it looms over the South Pole. Early explorers who reached the south pole were greeted by miles of trackless icy crust. Today, a silver reflective ball tops an eight-foot pole there. The pole has orange and blue stripes like a barber pole.

Sunken Cruise Ship Threatens Environment

The orange colored hull of what was once a cruise liner rose out of the deep icy blue waves reminiscent of to the age of innocence of Antarctica down on its last breath.While perching calmly upon the sunken ship, penguins look at the oil glistening on the surface of the water oblivious to the danger that lurks. Much more of the diesel fuel in gallons unbound in the shipwreck emit the substance gradually after tens of thousands of these have already been cleaned up by the natural process of evaporation.

At the final frontier of this planet, times are rapidly changing. Consistently, bulldozers, amphibious trucks, ships and aircraft are sent in by the countries interested in reinforcing their claims to a portion of this Continent of Ice. With countrywide vigor, they dispatch teams to take on research efforts and create bases as well. Come the weeks of the austral summer week, many groups of well heeled vacationers arrive through cruise ships, military transport planes or supply vessels that are made possible by specialized agencies for travel to marvel at this new area and experience. You’ll get further resources on Antarctic Cruising Tours by visiting there.

Even private yachts and polar skiing expeditions are venturing into the last place on Earth where no passport is needed. Accidents are happening, and in the case of the cruise ship Antarctic wildlife paid the price as a host of legal, environmental and highly political questions are surging up like the hazardous icebergs in Antarctica’s poorly charted seas. No one holds ownership of Antarctica so no laws apply to it, according to the Antarctic Treaty.

The year 1961 saw exactly a dozen nations consenting to let go of territorial claims temporarily for at least three decades so that Antarctica can be able to be a haven of peaceful research efforts.Nations holding only observer status, eighteen of them, have consented to abide by the laws after eight more countries have been granted full voting powers since joining the treaty. Conferences held every two years are exclusive among the treaty nations. A plan was able to be created by the organization and it stipulated that strictly regulated exploration and exploitation can be achieved, on the mineral resources of the entire Antarctica. But then they now see themselves wrestle with concerns from proliferation of stations, marine and air security, medical and rescue areas, up to indemnification issues.

Come the austral summer season, over 30 ships scheduled to head to Palmer usher in about a hundred tourists. The wild beast that is tourism is often without a leash. The Science Foundation did not succeed in totally deterring tourists from coming in last year, who they believe to slow down the research operations. The ban was quickly removed as soon as prominent Americans pushed to be informed of how tax dollars are being utilized.If you need more details on antarctica holiday visit there.

Taking care of the needs of other people in the station is one of the station staff, a medical corpsman manning a small room that can fit up to four dozen patients at a time. It is not built for the task of handling maritime catastrophes. A disaster can be avoided if the weather is fair, state the workers at the station. Workers all know that the inflatable open rafts did not have its motors and oars anymore when they examined the sunken cruise ship. They were easily able to be towed to shore with work boats at the station for the day was very pleasant. According to the laborers, things would have been worse should the vessel be overturned or blown out to sea thanks to volatile temper of the weather in Antarctica.

Responding to the threats of the oil catastrophe are the navy and civilian pollution containment team dispatched by the National Science Foundation bringing along 52 tons of specialized equipment with them as they fulfill their task. For the mission, over two million dollars was spent. Chilean and Argentinian navies come to clean up missions and these cost a lot. Lasting until mid March, the clean up did not suffice for the submerged ship still had around 63,000 gallons that couldn’t possibly be reached and pumped out safely and the worst part is that it will keep spilling as the wreckage disintegrates gradually or it could pick up pace as a winter storm causes the ship to break up. It would be much too costly to tow the wreckage, according to experts.

The home of skuas, penguins, cormorants, Arctic terns and many other birds might be affected by the massive oil spill. The bay is frequently passed through by seals and whales. According to most science experts, indirect evidence on deaths of birds and penguins due to oil spill poisoning have been gathered but then as to the extent of the damage, they still have to do more efforts. In the hopes of analyzing the environmental damage caused by the spill and its impact, 15 researchers from Chile, Argentina and America have arrived.There is no guarantee of damages to be awarded and it will take a very long time and process before it is finished.

Only the Antarctic Peninsula and countries like Chile, Great Britain and Argentina can claim damages for United States of America do not own any property rights whatsoever to the area at or around Palmer Station. During the next Antarctic Treaty, Chile will propose an article that will ensure each country will be held financially liable for any damages especially to the environment.Pressing for agreement on cost sharing for the clean up missions along with forming an international coordinating office for emergencies is something being planned by the Science Foundation.

Teeming With Life: Oceans Of Antarctica

You’d be surprised that the farthest southern living animal is actually a pink mite. This tiny creature is only 1/100th of an inch long. This little critter that looks a lot like a spider likes to eat algae and fungi. The tiny mite was found near the South Pole, only 309 miles from it, by a Hawaiian entomologist recently. Lichens have been discovered within 266 miles of the Pole, as well. This is the closest any living organism has ever been found.

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Insects and insect-type life forms are the only kind of animals that live year-round on Antarctica. You’ll need some sort of magnification to see the majority of the 56 species of arthropods that have already been classified on Antarctica. The biggest of these is the horsefly-sized wingless fly, which remains the largest permanent resident of Antarctica.Their lives are paused until the air temperatures reach 32 degrees Fahrenheit, which is the freezing point of water, and they resume their daily activities. You will find info on cruises to Antartica by visiting that site.

A huge conglomerate of living creatures fills the waters surrounding Antarctica. They range in size from microscopic to the biggest on this planet. At one point, scientists used a steel chamber to access the world beneath the water. It measured 6 by 4 feet in size. Six windows gave the professionals a chance to look into the cold water. They could even hear the life beneath the waters because they installed a hydrophone.

While there weren’t many fish in the sea, a 30 foot long jellyfish was detected.The chamber did prove very interesting to local seals. They thoroughly examined the chamber. The hydrophones provided their sounds: chirps, beeps, buzzes and whistles. This was an underwater racket one scientist hadn’t heard previously.

These noises help the Weddell seals to navigate and communicate. It’s possible that the seals can find the food that’s often rare in the Antarctic through this sonar.Sound tracks of these seal sounds are being carefully examined. There are some sounds that we, as humans, can’t even detect because they are beyond our capabilities. If you are in search of info don’t forget to view this resource Antarctic cruise reviews.

Science has yet to figure out how the Weddell seals make these sounds. When they’re underwater, their nostrils and mouths are closed.The deepest a mammal has ever been recorded to dive is nearly 1500 feet; this was a Weddell seal. Their lung capacity is also great, one seal waiting a half hour before needing to emerge from the water.One scientist was able to get samples of a mother seal’s milk. The high fat content, much more than human milk, allows seal pups to be the fastest weight-gainers of all mammals. In just six weeks time, a seal pup can increase its weight by five times.

Scientists dressed in frogman suits, were able to check out the seas round Antarctica. They even found red, among other colored, seaweed growing on the sea floor. Scientists also found red and white species of starfish in addition to large sponges and very long worms.

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