8 June: His Majesty the King visited the ATCM

King Carl Gustaf was clearly interested in what he saw and heard during his visit to the ATCM. Delegates seemed equally delighted - like press photographers they flocked around His Majesty when he was being guided through the conference venue after listening to the SCAR lectures. He saw Fred Goldberg's photographic exhibition on Nordenskjöld's Antarctic expedition in 1901-03 as well as a presentation of the Magic Planet (see yesterday's entry in the Conference Diary).

The King is fascinated by the nature and climate of the polar regions and has himself been on Svalbard. Only a few days ago he and the Crown Princess also took part in a scientific symposium on board the icebreaker Oden, which has taken part in a number of polar expeditions.

Reformed SCAR wants to help us understand the history and future of the earth

SCAR stands for the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research, and this organisation acts as an advisory body in the research field at the annual Antarctic Treaty Conferences. SCAR has just undergone a process of reform to enhance its position for the future. Professor Jörn Thiede introduced the lectures by talking about SCAR's main objectives and vision.

"Antarctica may be the coldest, windiest and least populated place on the planet, but the continent is still an important part of the earths ecosystem and climate," said Professor Thiede. "Not least in the field of climate research, the Antarctica ice mass acts as a fantastic archive to drill in, so as understand changes in the climate up to 800 000 years ago," he continued.

The many major lakes hidden under the ice layer are another exciting research area, according to Jörn Thiede.
"These lakes contain organisms that have not seen the sun for tens of thousands of years or perhaps even millions of years. The challenge is to find methods for investigating them while leaving their isolated ecosystems undisturbed at the same time."

SCAR's renewed organisation has the goal of being the leader in coordinating and conducting research projects in Antarctica. SCAR is focusing research on five main areas, including climate research and the underground lakes motioned above. Read more on SCAR's website (see external links).

Antarctica is being invaded by alien species

"Charles Darwin is supposed to have said that biological diversity is like a gigantic chess game with the earth as the chess board. The problem is that we humans are gradually changing the board and introducing new players through our impact on the climate among other impacts." This was the view expressed by Steven L Chown, who held the second SCAR lecture on Wednesday.

Professor Chown, who originally comes from South Africa, is an expert on biodiversity in Antarctica. He spoke with great commitment about all the animals and plants that live on and around the continent, despite the extreme climate. He also highlighted two issues as particularly important for Antarctic flora and fauna.

"It is absolutely crucial for SCAR and member states to continue to inventory exactly what species are found in Antarctica and the seas around the continent. Without knowing this, region by region, we will be unable to develop methods to preserve them," says Professor Chown.

The second key factor for the future is to try to control the inflow of alien species. These are plants and animals from other parts of the world that are brought to Antarctica, both by natural means - borne by winds or birds - but also by "unnatural means" via ships' ballast water or via the clothing and equipment of researchers and tourists. Why is this a problem? Professor Chown gave the following answer.

"Because as the climate in parts of Antarctica gets milder it will be easier for alien species to survive there and, at worst, to out-compete the original animals and plants for all time to come."