Saga Book

Proceedings of SaGAA 2011 14 and 15 January
National Conference on
SCIENCE & GEOPOLITICS OF ARCTIC & ANTARCTIC

Book of Papers
Contents
Session I : Changing Global Positions and Legal Framework of the Polar Realms
Governing Antarctica: Contemporary Challenges and the Enduring Legacy of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty Prof. Klaus Dodds ................................................................................................................................. 6 Emerging Science-Geopolitics Interface in the Antarctic: The Indian Challenge Prof. Sanjay Chaturvedi ........................................................................................................................ 16 Antarctic Continental Shelf and the Law of the Seas: A Future Winter of Discontentment? Dr S. Rajan ............................................................................................................................................ 32 India in Arctic and Antarctica and its Geopolitical Significance Rasik Ravindra ...................................................................................................................................... 40 Protection of the Arctic Region: Are there some Lessons to Learn from the Antarctic Treaty System and International Law? Dr. Luther M. Rangreji ......................................................................................................................... 240
Session II : Atmosphere and Microbial Research in the Polar Realms

Changing Climate and Microbial Resources in Polar Realms Dr P. A. Loka Bharathi ......................................................................................................................... 48 Aerosol properties over coastal Antarctica during Southern Hemispheric Summer: Scavenging by Snow and Possible Climate Implications Dr S. Suresh Babu, Dr Jai Prakash Chaubey and Dr K Krishna Moorthy ........................................52 Ozone Hole over Poles: Current Status Dr S. L. Jain ........................................................................................................................................... 58 Marine Biodiversity Variation in the Low-Latitude Region Possible Impact of Polar Climatic Perturbations Dr A. D. Singh ....................................................................................................................................... 66
Session III : Adventure, Tourism and Geopolitics in Polar Realms

Polar Expeditions Becoming an Industry? Urmi Popat ............................................................................................................................................ 74
2 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
The Largest International Team of Women ever to Ski to the South Pole Reena Kaushal Dharamshaktu ............................................................................................................. 82 The Geopolitics of the Arctic and Antarctic and Environmental Norm of Resource Uses Ramanuj Kaushik and Kumar Veer Dhirendra ................................................................................... 86
Session IV : Climate Change, Geology and Mapping of Arctic and Antarctic

Monitoring of Wildlife along the Princess Astrid Coast, East Antarctica and its Conservation Implications Dr Syed Ainul Hussain ......................................................................................................................... 98 Survey of India & Indian Scientific Expeditions to Antarctic Dr Swarna Subba Rao and Sunil Kumar Mehta .................................................................................. 106 Quantitative Studies of Sea Ice Melting Rates in the Antarctic using SSM/I Data Dr I. M. L. Das, Dr Amitabh Mitra, Dr Abhinav Srivastava, Dr Mihir Kumar Dash, Dr Sandip R. Oza and Dr N. K. Vyas .................................................................................................................... 118 Glacial and Fluvial Environments of the Ny-Alesund Region, Arctic Dr Dhruv Sen Singha and Rasik Ravindra .......................................................................................... 124
Session V : Atmospheric, Oceanic and Microbial Research in Arctic and Antarctic

Stable Isotope and Salinity Variations in the Southern Indian Ocean Dr Rengaswamy Ramesh, Dr Rohit Srivastava, and Dr Maruthadu Sudhakar ................................ 132 Suspended Particulate Matter In Southern Ocean An Approach to Understand Source and Processes Prof. G. N. Nayak and Participants ..................................................................................................... 142 Biodiversity and Biotechnological Applications of Psychrophiles Dr S Shivaji ............................................................................................................................................ 152 A Review of Meteorological Observational Programme of India Meteorological Department in Antarctica Dr R. P. Lal ............................................................................................................................................ 164 Changing Relationship Between Centers of Action and Indian Monsoon Dr Nityanand Singh, Ashwini Ranade and Dr H. N. Singh ............................................................... 176 Space Weather Studies of Ionosphere in Arctic Region Prof. A.K. Gwal and Dr Himanshu Chaurasia .................................................................................... 180 Study of GPS derived Total Electron Content and Scintillation Index Variations over Indian, Arctic and Antarctic Stations Prof. A. K. Gwal, Dr Purushottam Bhawre and Dr Azad Ahmad Mansoori ..................................... 224
Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
Session: 1
Changing Global Positions and Legal Framework of the Polar Realms
Governing Antarctica: Contemporary challenges and the enduring legacy of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty
of London. He is author of five books including Pink Ice: Britain and the South Atlantic Empire (I B Tauris 2002) and Geopolitics in Antarctica: Views from the Southern Oceanic Rim (Wiley, 1997).
Klaus Dodds, Professor of Geopolitics at Royal Holloway, University
This paper considers the governance of the Antarctic in the light of the fiftieth anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty in December 2009. Created in the midst of the Cold War, this treaty provided a mechanism for governing the Antarctic. Science and international collaboration were central to this new regime. Over the next five decades, the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) has expanded as new legal instruments were developed and entered into force including the Protocol on Environmental Protection. New issues such as fishing and tourism along with an expanded membership have transformed the politics of Antarctica. Current controversies involving illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing, the law of the sea and the creation of the coastal state, tourism and whaling will continue to provoke serious challenges for the governance of Antarctica.
Introduction
In December 2009, a so-called Antarctic Treaty Summit, hosted at the Smithsonian Institution, will consider the achievements, enduring legacies and future lessons of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty. In the aftermath of the International Geophysical Year (1957-8), 12 participants (often called the original parties) led by the United States negotiated a treaty, which transformed the legal, political and scientific status of the frozen continent and surrounding Southern Ocean (Beck 1986, Joyner 1998, Collis and Dodds 2008). Signed on 1st December 1959, the Treaty declared that in the interests of all mankind [sic], Antarctica would be demilitarised and
denuclearized. The disposal of radioactive materials was also prohibited. Science lay at the heart of the Treatys ethos regarding peaceful co-existence and the free exchange of information. The Treaty entered into force in 1961 and the treatys participants effectively managed Antarctica on behalf of the international community. A great deal has changed since those early days when the Cold War still mattered greatly in shaping the international relations of the superpowers and their allies. In 2009, there are now 47 parties to the Antarctic Treaty (the latest was Monaco in May 2008) and every inhabited continent has now a representative although Africa is poorly represented with only
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one member, South Africa. The Antarctic Treaty is routinely described as being at the cornerstone of a system of governance alongside a host of other legal instruments and institutions that shape the governance of Antarctica. The Antarctic is no longer politically remote and scientists, fishing personnel and tourists have all travelled to the continent and surrounding ocean. The fastest growing category of visitor is the tourist especially via ship and due to the automation of equipment the number of scientists based in the region may well decline notwithstanding the enhanced levels of activity during the International Polar Year (2007-9). As this paper will demonstrate, the globalization of Antarctica has also brought to the fore a host of issues that simply were not on the diplomatic radar screen in the autumn of 1959. In the longer term, this will test the veracity of the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) and its capacity to secure a not only a regional model of governance but also to retain legitimacy beyond the membership (Stokke and Vidas 1996). The Antarctic is increasingly implicated in wider circuits of ideas, commodities, industries and technologies (Hemmings 2007). legal status quo associated with the Antarctic Treaty were ever to collapse. Japan, by virtue of the post-war Peace Treaty, is explicitly prevented from making any territorial claim. The original non-claimants present at Washington DC in 1959 have never acknowledged the validity of the seven existing territorial claims. Article IV of the Treaty declared that the territorial question would put to one side in order to secure scientific and political co-operation. No party has, by signing the Treaty, either endorsed or revoked the legal status quo ante. The claimant states have shown little willingness to dispense with their claims because Article IV does not demand it. However, Article IV and the promotion of science more generally provided a mechanism for co-operation along with other elements such as Article V banning nuclear explosions and testing (and disposal) even if within Article V it is acknowledged that this is a prohibition contingent on wider international agreements. The Treaty also states that the parties are acting on behalf of the interests of all mankind [sic] and the continuance of international harmony. The Treaty also declared that it would further the purposes and principles embodied in the Charter of the United Nations. This was, in part, considered to be important in order to prevent more substantial United Nations involvement. India has raised the question of Antarcticas status in 1956 and 1958 and the 12 parties in the main did not wish to further internationalize the continent at this stage (Beck 1986, Howkins 2007). The treaty also lays considerable emphasis on the free exchange of scientific information and the rights of signatories to establish research programmes throughout the continent. In other words, claimant states could not express any right to veto plans by others to create a scientific station in their national sector. Article VII reiterates the freedom of access (which was intended to counter any sense that activities should be restricted to particular territorial sectors) and other sections helped to realise President Eisenhowers commitment to open skies by establishing a capacity to carry our aerial inspection and the need to provide notification of planned activity including the
Historical Context
By the time the 12 parties gathered around the negotiating table in October 1959, seven claims to the polar continent had been pressed. Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom made up the claimant states. The foundations for these claims including assertions of prior discovery and exploration and subsequent evidence of effective occupation usually in the form of living resource regulation, mapping and surveying and the construction of bases and camps in national sectors (Bush 1982). Most problematically, Argentina, Chile and the United Kingdom all claim the Antarctic Peninsula and surrounding islands (Dodds 2002). Five other IGY polar participants joined the treaty discussions - Belgium, Japan, South Africa, the Soviet Union and the United States. Both the United States and the Soviet Union (now Russia) have reserved the right to make a claim in the future especially if the
introduction of military personnel. The treaty neither considered mineral resources nor living resources such as fishing. It was recognised at the time that the treaty was a starting point. This historical context is essential to any understanding of the contemporary governance of Antarctica. In this review, we consider how the region has been changed by a range of circumstances and developments while acknowledging a number of outstanding challenges including the management of illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing in the Southern Ocean, the regulation of whaling, environmental alongside health and safety implications pertaining to a burgeoning tourism industry, overlapping legal regimes including Law of the Sea and bio-prospecting (Joyner 1992, Herber 2006). This short review will not be able to do justice to these complex topics (including others such as climate change, ozone depletion and ice cap stability) but it will highlight one very important general trend. In December 1959, the delegations involved in the negotiation of the Antarctic Treaty did so in a context where Antarctica was still largely isolated from the global political mainstream. This is no longer the case and the last fifty years demonstrate only to clearly how the governance of Antarctica has become ever more complex and multi-layered as states, non-state organisations, media networks and international actors participate and shape polar governance and political relations.
The Antarctic Treaty System: Governance, Membership and Challenge

The main governing mechanism of Antarctica remains the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS). Created in the aftermath of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty, the signatories to the Treaty committed themselves to a meeting (initially every two years and now every year) to discuss and negotiate matters of interest. From 12 original parties, the ATS has 47 member states including 28 Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties (ATCPs) and 19 non-consultative parties. The ATCPs retain decision-making and policy-making
power for all the membership. There are 28 ATCPs and this includes the original 12 and 16 others who have demonstrated as the treaty demands substantial scientific interest usually in the form of establishing a research station/established polar research programme. The Netherlands is the only ATCP not to have built its own research station. Others have committed themselves to base construction and in some cases this has led to an overconcentration of bases in the comparatively accessible Antarctic Peninsula region. Scientific visibility and credibility remains important in shaping the membership profile but so does political status. In the 1980s, for example, India and China alongside Brazil were quickly elevated to Consultative Party status. While other parties such as West Germany had to demonstrate their scientific credentials over a longer period of time, leading Third World states were quickly admitted in order to strengthen the global profile of the ATS. In the 1990s onwards, a new wave of accession has occurred including former Soviet Union states such as Ukraine and new European Union states such as Estonia. Other states such as Pakistan, which did establish a polar programme including a summer only station called Jinnah were not invited to join the ATS. The ATS membership has expanded alongside the institutional thickening of governance. From a comparatively simple Treaty, the ATS began to negotiate a series of agreed measures (e.g. Agreed Measures for the Conservation of Antarctic Fauna and Flora 1964) and conventions (e.g. Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals 1972 and Conservation for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources 1980) designed to enlarge capacity to govern living resources such as seals and fish while more recently, the Protocol on Environmental Protection (entered into force in 1998) has placed ecological management, wilderness values and environmental impact assessment at the heart of all activities in the region (Rothwell 1996). The Protocol has six operational annexes environmental impact assessment, conservation of Antarctic fauna and flora, waste disposal and waste management, prevention of marine pollution, area protection and management,
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and liability arising from environmental emergencies. In the case of the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR, 1982), a scientific committee was established to advise participants with regard to so-called total allowable catches. The stated goal of CCAMLR is to ensure sustainable exploitation of fish stocks within the Southern Ocean. Whaling, while of interest to the ATS, is dealt in the main by a different body, the International Whaling Commission (established in 1946). The Protocol has, moreover, helped to clarify the potential significance of Antarcticas mineral resources as Article 7 declares that, any activity relating to mineral resources, other than scientific research, shall be prohibited. This helped to defuse the tension that existed in the 1980s concerning the so-called minerals question even if Article 25 leaves open the possibility for negotiating amendments to the Protocol. It is also the case that geological and geophysical exploration regarded as scientific research can still continue. Attempts to create a Convention on the Regulation of Antarctic Mineral Resource Activities (CRAMRA) occurred between 1982-1988 but were rejected as leading states such as Australia and France publically rejected the process. In reality, the negotiations had revealed the growing influence of environmental non-governmental organizations such as Greenpeace and the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition (ASOC) and the international media to challenge the legitimacy of the ATCPs. Members of the global south including Malaysia had accused these ATCPs of seeking to carve up the Antarctic and its mineral resources for their own gain. Interestingly, the position of the G77 and environmental movements coincided in the sense that both groups were hostile to any potential mineral exploitation in Antarctica, albeit for different reasons. Organizationally, a decision was taken to establish a secretariat in Buenos Aires with the explicit purpose of improving information co-ordination and storage especially as each year a different member state hosts the annual Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM). In 2009, the United States hosted the 32nd such meeting. The Secretariat, long a subject of discussion within the ATS, is another manifestation of growing institutional thickness. One of the consequences of the minerals controversy in the 1980s was to expose the workings of the ATS to greater public scrutiny and led to an opening up of the consultative meetings (ATCM) including to nongovernmental organizations. Although there is still some areas of the treaty that are still part of reserved business involving the ATCP only, the contemporary ATCM is unrecognizable from the earliest meetings in the 1960s. This institutional thickening was important for three fundamental reasons. First, it tied the existing membership ever closer together in terms of collective responsibility. It is important to bear in mind that the 1959 Antarctic Treaty was nearly lost as the governments of Argentina and Chile had considerable difficulty in persuading their legislatures to ratify the Treaty in 1960-1. Concern was raised that these countries were giving up their sovereign rights in the Antarctic. Moreover, Australia did not want the Soviets to be a fellow signatory and countries like Britain were on the verge of pulling out of the region on the grounds of financial costs. Institutional development helped to build trust and cement a series of interstate and inter-personal relationships. It was highly significant that Britain and Argentina still managed to conduct Antarctic business notwithstanding the 1982 Falklands conflict (Beck 1986). Second, the Treatys membership through the development of agreed measures, conventions and protocols established a broader political legitimacy in a world transformed by decolonization and expanding membership of the United Nations. Moreover, Antarctica was increasingly attracting the attention of non-governmental organizations especially environmental groups in the 1980s and 1990s. The Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition (ASOC) became an acknowledged presence in consultative meetings. This has been augmented by the presence more recently by a tourist (International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators) and fishing (Coalition of Legal Toothfish Operators) organizations. All
these parties implicitly (and explicitly) recognised the authority of the ATS and as importantly the ATCP recognise the legitimacy of other commercially based activities. It may well be that we will witness some kind of representation for those interested in other emerging activities such as bio-prospecting. Finally, when challenges did come to the ATS in the 1980s from Third World states such as Malaysia in the United Nations and environmental NGOs such as ASOC, the membership was able to retain its legitimacy. The Third World led challenge was particularly noteworthy because Malaysia and its allies complained that the ATS did not possess international legitimacy because it had been created when parts of the Third World were still colonized. Moreover, the presence of apartheid South Africa in the ATS was also considered to be morally offensive. The ATS endured these challenges because it did engage with those actors in institutional settings such as the United Nations General Assembly but also by being sufficiently flexible. The controversial Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Mineral Resources (CRAMRA) was dropped in the late 1980s in favour of a Protocol on Environmental Protection, which banned all forms of mining in the region. By adopting the Protocol, alongside growing Third World membership of the ATS, the latter was able to negate this UN-based critique. The ATS membership has been forced to make changes and adapt. Notwithstanding the presence of the Cold War superpowers and many members of the G8/G20, the ATS has changed its mode of operation towards greater transparency and information exchange especially with regard to interested nonstate parties and the global media. The 1980s were transformative in that sense as Antarctica became a global issue. For some, the continent was considered akin to other global commons such as the deep seabed and the earths atmosphere and as such was considered as part of a global dialogue about governance and rights. The mineral resources of the region were indicative of this trend and closely followed discussion of the Third Law of the Sea Conference, which culminated with the signing of the Law of the Sea
Convention in 1982. Environmentalists shared that conviction concerning Antarcticas global status but argued that no mineral exploitation should ever be entertained. Scientists further contributed to these rival geographical imaginations by warning of the impact of anthropogenic climate change. The parties to the 1959 Antarctic Treaty were asked, with ever increasing frequency, to explain how they were acting in the interests of mankind. The implication of all these political activities were immense and plans to develop a convention for the regulation of mineral resource activities (CRAMRA) were shelved in favour of an environmental protocol, which committed the Consultative Parties to no forms of mining and mineral exploitation. Environmental protection was reaffirmed as central to the working of all parties concerned with Antarctica. The debates over the future of Antarctica via the United Nations became less fierce as critics acknowledged the efficacy of the ATS and its commitment not to exploit Antarctica. More recently, countries such as Australia and New Zealand have been at the forefront of attempts (over a decade or so) to engage former chief critic Malaysia and to encourage scientific exchanges for the purpose of encouraging the country to join the ATS itself in due course. While Malaysia has not joined the ATS it has acquired a particularly transitory form of membership, which means that the country gets access to the ATCM and is allowed to circulate informal papers to these meetings while at the same avoiding the obligations of membership.
Challenging the ATS

In order to show some of the contemporary challenges facing the ATS, this section highlights a series of challenges that illustrate well ongoing Antarctic governance dilemmas. This does not imply that the ATS is incapable of responding to these concerns, however. Indeed the ATS membership is aware of the issues below. At the heart of most, if not all the outstanding concerns facing the Antarctic, is the knotty problem of sovereignty. The Antarctic Treaty does not, because it was not designed to, resolve the basic question who owns Antarctica? The question
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that might now be posed is whether the Antarctic Treaty and associated legal instruments can cope with the growing range and intensity of human activity affecting Antarctica. 1. Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported Fishing Over the last two decades, illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing (IUU) has grown in scale and geographical scope. As fish stocks in other parts of the world have become endangered even collapsed, distant water fishing fleets have considered the Southern Ocean to be commercially attractive. Fish stocks such as the Patagonian Toothfish and Ice Fish have been harvested often illegally. CCAMLR provides a mechanism for which the signatories attempt to mange and regulate fishing in the zone of application, which includes areas north of the Antarctic Treaty region (i.e. north of 60 degrees South). This was important because some of the most lucrative fishing zones are to be found off the continental shelves of islands such as Prince Edward (claimed by South Africa) as well as Heard and MacDonald (Australia). Claimant states including Britain and South Africa with regard to their overseas territories South Georgia and Prince Edward Islands respectively have sought to patrol those waters. In August 2003, an Australian fisheries protection vessel chased and eventually caught a ship Viarsa I suspected of IUU fishing off Heard Island. The ship was eventually caught in international waters off the South African coastline and Australia cited the right to pursuit in the case of suspected IUU fishing under Article 111 (right of hot pursuit) of the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention. CCAMLR has also sought to exert influence on third party states including those who provide transshipment facilities for IUU fishing vessels including Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. Moreover, CCAMLR established a catch certification scheme that helped to label fish such as the Patagonian Toothfish caught in a legal and sustainable manner. However, the problem of illegal fishing has not been eradicated and there are concerns that Southern Ocean fish stocks could also be greatly diminished along with seabirds caught accidentally during long-line fishing. One problem that constantly hampers efforts to regulate fishing is the sheer size of the Southern Ocean and its remoteness from centres of population. Another factor to be acknowledged is that CCAMLR co-exists with other legal regimes responsible for fish in the region this includes the management of specific fish stocks via instruments such as the 1993 Convention for the Conservation of the Southern Blue Tuna (Hemmings 2006). 2. Law of the Sea and the coastal state in Antarctica Under Article 76 of the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention, a coastal state can submit data to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) and seek clarification of the outer limits of its continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles up to 350 nautical miles. A parallel development had been occurring in the Arctic. In April 2008, the CLCS recognised most of the submission by Australia in relation to the extended continental shelf of Australia and its offshore islands and territories including Heard, MacDonald and Macquarie. Australia itself has asked CLCS not to consider, for the time being, the data it submitted in relation to the extended continental shelf of what it calls Australian Antarctic Territory (AAT). However, the extended continental shelf areas of Australias sub-Antarctic islands (Heard, MacDonald and Macquarie) were considered, because they are located north of the Antarctic Treaty Area. Interestingly, the extended continental shelves from these islands now extend into the Antarctic Treaty Area and thus raise interesting issues regarding the interaction between the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention and the 1959 Antarctic Treaty the latter freezes territorial claims with respect to the AAT but not their sub-Antarctic islands (Hemmings and Stephens 2009). This is an important development not only for Australia but also for the wider ATS community. In August 1994, Australia declared an exclusive economic zone off the claimed AAT. From the Australian perspective, successive administrations have sought to enhance their sovereign rights pertaining to the Law of the Sea as a costal state while at the same avoid alienating other parties who do not acknowledge the
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AAT in the first place. One challenge for the future will be reconciling the extended continental shelves of sub-Antarctic islands with Antarctic governance especially Article IV. The problem posed by Australia in essence lies in the existence of two overlapping legal regimes the Antarctic Treaty and the Law of the Sea. The Australian submission, although it did refer to their AAT, highlighted the fact that the Law of the Sea provides a mechanism for coastal states to exert sovereign rights of seabed resources. Other claimant states such as Britain, Norway and New Zealand may also seek to define and secure such rights to the outer limits of the continental shelf surrounding their Southern Ocean territories. Whenever those asserted rights cross into the Antarctic Treaty region, it raises awkward issues such as the recognition of coastal states (i.e. the claimant states) and the status of the seabed of the Southern Ocean is it a global common? Article 7 of the Protocol on Environmental Protection expressly forbids any form of mineral exploitation inside the Antarctic Treaty region. Julia Jabour has argued that Australia is unlikely to assert any seabed resource exploitation below 60 degrees South because the overlap raises uncertainties about the exploitation of those resources and also out of respect for the Antarctic Treaty System and Australias privileged position within it (2009: 429). 3. Tourism When the Antarctic Treaty was negotiated, Antarctic tourism was in its infancy and did not even feature as a topic of conversation amongst polar policy makers. Since the 1980s, this view has changed. Tourism is now the most important commercial development concerning continental Antarctica. In summer season 2007-8 over 50,000 people (including crew) entered the Antarctic and the vast majority arrived via ships (IPY 2007-9 website). The prime tourist region is the Antarctic Peninsula and surrounding islands such as South Shetland. This concentration of activity is logical in the sense that the Peninsula region is closest to mainland South America and attractive to tourists because the transit time is 2 days as opposed to a far longer crossing via Australia and New Zealand. Polar gateways such as
Punta Arenas and Stanley in the Falkland Islands have benefited from this activity. Former Russian crewed ice strengthened vessels operating in Cold War Arctic waters have been redirected towards the Antarctic in the post Cold War era. The major industry association/lobby group concerned with Antarctic tourism is the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO), which works closely with the ATS. IAATO have developed voluntary guidelines for its members and IAATO instituted a voluntary ban on ships carrying more than 500 people entering Antarctic Treaty waters. IAATO does not have any regulatory authority, however. In the last five years, however, non-IAATO ships have entered these waters carrying more than 500 passengers. In the season of 2006-7, the IAATO member vessel Golden Princess carried over 2700 passengers (rising to over 3,000 if one includes crew) to the Antarctic. In some cases, this has involved thousands of visitors in vessels that do not have an ice class classification, which even if they dont attempt any direct landings in Antarctica might nonetheless require emergency support in the event of an accident. In November 2007, the ship Explorer sunk in Antarctic waters and more than 150 people had to be rescued. Concerns have inevitably been expressed over search and rescue regarding the larger vessels (and associated obligations) and the impact of visitor numbers on a select number of sites in the Antarctic Peninsula region. Moreover, there are also ongoing concerns relating to the flagging of these larger vessels especially as many established flag states are not party to the Antarctic Treaty. Alongside the development of ship-based tourism, there is also land-based activity situated in a variety of sites. These bases and summer only camps cater for visitors eager to climb Antarcticas mountains and explore the remoter parts of the continent. Although numbers are small compared to the ship based activity, concern has been expressed about how the Antarctic is becoming an increasingly large and diverse tourist destination, which might in due course host hotels and further tourist infrastructure. 4. Whaling The politics of whaling is one of the
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most explosive currently affecting the Antarctic and Southern Ocean. Regulated by the International Whaling Commission (IWC), the ATS does not explicitly consider this subject even though there is no reason why the Protocol on Environmental Protection might not consider this activity (Report of the Canberra Panel, Rothwell et al 2009). One other reason why whaling has not been considered is that it prevents any worsening of relations or even poisoning of the working environment of the ATS itself. Since 1986 a whaling moratorium was declared for the Southern Ocean under the terms of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling. As Japan appreciated, the IWRW had a provision for the continuation of whaling on the grounds of scientific research. Japan has engaged in whaling much to the displeasure of Australia and New Zealand. In the case of Australia, for example, it has passed legislation banning whaling in its exclusive economic zones including the AAT. Japan does not recognise Australias jurisdictional authority and the two countries have been locked into a bitter dispute about this resource practice and what the Japanese whaling programme (JAPRA II). The Humane Society International (HSI) secured an important decision form the Australian Federal Court in 2008, which stated that a Japanese whaling company was in breach of Australian law when it kills whales in the Australian Whale Sanctuary (created in 1999). This judgement is historic for the first time Japanese whalers have been taken to court and their activities judged to be illegal despite a Japanese government permit. The Rudd government has not sought to enforce the federal court judgement fearing diplomatic damage to Australian-Japanese relations. Moreover, if enforced by the Australian authorities, it would involve a clear-cut assertion of jurisdiction in waters adjacent to the claimed AAT. These are a just a few issues influencing the contemporary governance of the Antarctic and space does not allow consideration of other developments such as bio-prospecting (the search for, extraction and testing of chemical compounds and genetic material in living organisms). Bio prospecting is an increasingly important spin off from scientific research and national governments are eager to maximise their investment from scientific programmes (see Herber 2006). This development will place pressures on established conventions such as the free exchange of information such exchanges may well be increasingly conditioned by commercial considerations.
Conclusions
The Antarctic Treaty remains the cornerstone of Antarctic governance. This document retains considerable saliency and indeed has been championed by some as a potential model of Arctic governance. It needs to be remembered, however, that the origins of the treaty negotiations lay in the 1957-8 IGY and the circumstances pertaining to the Cold War. Science was also critical to the workings of the ATS and the ability of scientists and their national sponsors to establish bases across the Antarctic continent were a critical as was the right of base inspection in terms of confidence building. Some 4,000 scientists now occupy over 60 research stations at the height of the summer season. With logistical and communications improvements, new research stations have been established on the polar plateau. In the past, ice-free ground close to the polar coastline hosted the vast majority of the Antarctic stations. In essence the managerial challenges pertaining to the Antarctic can be summarised as being largely a function of the regions diminishing isolation in a variety of political, scientific, commercial, cultural and environmental contexts. In the late 1950s, the polar continent was, for most people, a place that they were unlikely to see let alone visit. Five decades later, Antarctica is well established within global tourist markets and a regular feature on television screens. Environmentally, the region is firmly established within global climate change debates and commercially, the Southern Ocean hosts fishing and whaling activity. Politically, the ATS has an increased membership and member states co-exist with a range of international bodies and non-governmental organizations concerned with the governance of the polar continent. The International Polar Year
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of 2007-9 has been an important source of further publicity including scientific projects, which promise to penetrate still further into the continents interior. While the ATS is not likely to disappear, its capacity to manage and regulate will continue to be challenged by actors, events and processes that one day might include mineral exploitation the contested sovereignty of the region remains a haunting presence. Reconciling international regimes such as the Antarctic Treaty with the Law of the Sea will, in the meantime, continue to test policy makers and interested observers alike.
Australias Antarctic Agenda Leichardt: The Federation Press pages 176-190. Hemmings, A and T Stephens (2009) Australias extended continental shelf: what implications for Antarctica? Public Law Review 20: 9-16. Herber, B (2006) Bioprospecting in Antarctica: the search for a policy regime Polar Record 42: 139-146. Howkins, A (2007) Defending polar empire: opposition to Indias proposal to raise the Antarctic Question at the United Nations in 1956 Polar Record 44: 35-44. IPY (2007-9) official website www.ipy.org Jabour, J (2009) The Australian continental shelf: has Australias high latitude diplomacy paid off? Marine Policy 33: 429-431. Joyner, C. (1992) Antarctica and the Law of the Sea The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. Joyner, C. (1998) Governing the Frozen Commons Columbus: University of South Carolina Press. Rothwell, D (1996) The Polar Regions and the Development of International Law Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Rothwell, D et al (2009) Japans Scientific Whaling Program and the Antarctic Treaty System Independent Panel of Legal and Policy Experts Report of the Canberra Panel 12 January 2009 20 pages. Stokke O and D Vidas editors Governing the Antarctic Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Acknowledgements I thank Alan Hemmings

for his immensely helpful comments on an early draft and for the many helpful suggestions by the executive editor and the referees for Global Policy. I also acknowledge the funding support provided by the British Academy.
References
Beck, P (1986) The International Politics of Antarctica London: Croom Helm Collis, C. and K. Dodds (2008) Assault on the unknown: the historical and political geographies of the International Geophysical Year (1957-8) Journal of Historical Geography 34: 555-573. Dodds, K. (1997) Geopolitics in Antarctica: Views from the Southern Oceanic Rim Chichester: John Wiley. Dodds, K. (2002) Pink Ice: Britain and the South Atlantic Empire London: I B Tauris. Hemmings, A (2006) Regime overlap in the Southern Ocean: The case of the Southern Blue Fin Tuna and CCSBT in the CCAMLR area New Zealand Yearbook of International Law 3: 207-217. Hemmings, A (2007) Globalizations cold genius and the ending of Antarctic isolation in L Kriwoken, J Jabour and A Hemmings editors Looking South:
Emerging Science-Geopolitics Interface in the Antarctic The Indian Challenge

Prof. Sanjay Chaturvedi Centre for the Study of Geopolitics
Department of Political Science, Panjab University, Chandigarh
It is useful to be reminded at the outset that the Colonial is very much present in Antarctica and disputed ownership of the icy continent (larger than India and China put together) remains the most enduring and contentious feature of Antarctic geopolitics (Beck 1976, Chaturvedi 1996). It was during late 19th century that Antarctica was implicated in the colonial-imperial geographies of exploration and discovery and partitioned into seven pie-shaped claims of territorial sovereignty by the UK, Argentina, Chile (with overlapping claims on the Antarctic Peninsula), Australia (over nearly 42% of Antarctica), France, Norway, and New Zealand. It was the Cold War ideological geopolitics that dictated the spatial representations of the Antarctic during the 1950s as the EastWest rivalry for strategic domination and influence extended to the South Polar Region. The U.S. proposal to internationalize Antarctica, which eventually culminated in the Antarctic Treaty of 1959 (cited hereafter as the Treaty) was driven by the broader geopolitical logic behind the containment strategy: keeping the Soviet Union out of Antarctic affairs (Chaturvedi 1996).
It was the International Geophysical Year (IGY, 1957-58), which proved instrumental in giving rise to the dominant representation of Antarctica as a laboratory for fundamental science and accorded the politicization of Antarctica an entirely new dimension and direction. In the colonisation of Antarctica, the role played by science had been quite pivotal (Dodds, 2006.) And the production of scientific knowledge was to become the key medium of exercising geopolitical authority and exerting effective occupation in the harsh natural environment of the southern polar region. The criteria of substantial scientific activity, to be met by those desiring a consultative status with veto power in the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS), will eventually be skilfully deployed by the major Antarctic powers to decide the inside/outside of the Antarctic domain of responsibility and governance. In February 1956, Indias permanent representative to the UN, Ambassador Arthur S. Lall, under instructions from Krishna Menon (one of the key architects of Indias foreign policy during the 1950s) conveyed Indias preference for some kind of a trusteeship for Antarctica (Chaturvedi 1990). Ambassador Lall, requested on 19 February 1956,
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that the question of Antarctica be included on the provisional agenda of the Assembly (UN 1956; also cited in Chaturvedi 1990: 71-72). The explanatory memorandum read in part:
Modern science is likely to reveal many possibilities for the peaceful utilization of a region hitherto regarded as unproductive. At the same time, the influence of Antarctica on climate and related conditions throughout the world, while obviously considerable, requires further study. Any disturbance of the equilibrium of natural forces in this area might lead to incalculable consequences for the world as a whole involving the deterioration of the conditions for human and other forms of animal and plant life. In view these facts and bearing in mind the size of the area, its international importance and the growing interest in it, the Government of India considers that in order to strengthen peace, it would be appropriate and timely for all nations to agree and to affirm that the area will be utilized entirely for peaceful purposes and for the general welfare. in Antarctica. Nevertheless the Indian Delegation still attached great importance to the item but did not think that it needs to be considered at this session of the Assembly. Their decision to withdraw the item did not mean that they were abandoning it (cited in Ibid.: 42). (emphasis supplied)
Besides questioning the European-colonial imprint of territorial claims on Antarctica, the Indian intervention also expressed serious concerns over the strategic fall out of overlapping claims on the Antarctic Peninsula and, to quote Howkins (2008), raised fears that nuclear weapon testing in Antarctica could adversely disrupt global atmospheric systems and stop the monsoon. It was at the organisational meeting of the eleventh General Assembly, held on 14 November 1956, that Krishna Menon announced the withdrawal of Indias proposal. The following excerpt from the official transcript sent to London by the British delegation gives some idea of what had transpired.
In explanation Mr. Krishna Menon said that the Indian Delegation would be withdrawing the item in view of the heavy agenda with which the Assembly was faced as a result of the inscription of the emergency items on the Middle East and Hungary. Moreover, certain exploration and investigation was now taking place
On 15 July 1958, Ambassador Lall repeated his request and urged that UN should have a chance to comment and offer suggestions on possible participation of non-signatory governments in any regime provided by the proposed Antarctic Treaty. Apparently, the Indian bid at the UN to introduce an alternative imagination of the space and resources of Antarctica had failed to forestall the growing alliance among a handful of state actors having diverse national positions on the sovereignty issue but identical geopolitical interest in maintaining the status-quo with regard to the colonial-imperial legacies. However, as Adrian Howkins (2008: 35-36) has forcefully argued, The episode had in fact have a tangible impact upon the history of Antarctica in the second half of the 1950s. Throughout the 1960s, the science-geopolitics interface in the Antarctic remained quite stable. It was rather commonplace for policy makers and scientists alike to frequently refer to the Antarctic as either a laboratory of science or a continent of peace and science. The preamble to the 1959 Antarctica Treaty affirms that, it is in the interest of all mankind that Antarctica shall continue forever to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become the scene or object of international discord. The Treaty (incorporating within its circle of jurisdiction area south of 60 South latitude) prohibits all activity of a military nature, provides for wide rights of inspection to all areas of Antarctica by the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties (ATCPs). At the very heart of Antarctic geopolitics-science interface is Article IV of the Treaty. The production of scientific knowledge under various instruments of Antarctic governance has always been conditioned, if not constrained, by the provisions of this Article. It explicitly declares that, nothing contained in the
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present Treaty shall be interpreted as: a renunciation by any contracting party of previously asserted right or claims to territorial sovereignty. The Antarctic Treaty in general, and Article IV in particular, definitely deserve a critical scrutiny by post-colonial countries like India, with regards to the manner in which they rewarded colonial occupation and annexation (Dodds, 2006). The legal freezing of territorial claims for the duration of the Treaty (no specific termination date is being mentioned) is therefore much more than a carefully crafted diplomatic solution to the thorny issue of claimant and non-claimant states; it protects and promotes a parochial vision of the continent anchored in the colonial history and geography. The decade of 1970s witnessed the emergence of significant modern commercial interest in the Antarctic and the Antarctic Treaty powers were quick to respond. The Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) was formalized at Canberra in May 1980 and entered into force two years later. It is significant to note that the geopolitical consensus underlying Article IV of the Treaty was explicitly reiterated along with its concomitant ramifications for the freedom of the high seas. By the time the ATCPS signed the 1988 Convention on the Regulation of Antarctic Mineral Resource Activities (CRAMRA), the overall geopolitical equation and alignments within the ATS, marked by a fair amount of exclusivity, had been significantly tempered, if not challenged, with largely due to the entry of India (a major geopolitical landmark in the evolution of the ATS), Brazil and China into the ATS. CRAMRA virtually collapsed, when, in May 1989, the Government of Australia proclaimed that it now was of the view that no mining at all should take place in and around Antarctica and instead a comprehensive environmental protection convention within the framework of the Antarctic Treaty should be pursued instead. With France supporting the Australian position the consensus within ATS was obviously threatened. CRAMRA needed to be ratified by all the countries having territorial claims in Antarctica in order to enter into
force (Chaturvedi, 1996). It is useful to note that decision taken by Australia was substantially dictated by sovereignty considerations. The U turns by Australia and France on CRAMRA seriously questioned the collective understanding of the ATCPs to abide by the consensus principle, and undermined the capability of the ATS to resolve intra-system conflicts. The announcement on 4 July 1991, of the U.S. decision to sign the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty marked, in a way, the end of the most serious challenge to the authority of the ATS. The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (hereafter cited as the Protocol) was concluded by consensus on 4 October 1991 at Madrid. The 1991 Protocol designates Antarctica as a natural reserve devoted to peace and science and binds its present and future signatories to total protection of the Antarctic environment --its intrinsic and extrinsic worth, including its wilderness, aesthetic value, and its value as an area for scientific research, especially that which is essential to understanding global environment. It categorically prohibits any activity relating to mineral resources, other than scientific research for at least fifty years. The Protocol sets out some basic environmental principles to govern all human activity in Antarctica --be it scientific, tourism related, governmental, non-governmental or related to logistic support. According to the Protocol, activities in the Antarctic Treaty area shall be planned and conducted on the basis of information sufficient to allow prior assessments of, and informed judgments about, their possible impacts on the Antarctic environment and dependent and associated ecosystems and on the value of Antarctica for the conduct of scientific research. Antarctica, from early 1980s onwards has been increasingly integrated into the broader regional and global systems and highly capitalized actors and forces of the globalized economy have arrived on the polar scene. Science and scientific knowledge are no longer the only major export of Antarctica to the rest of the world. The distinction between the fundamental and applied sciences is getting increasingly blurred and
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some scientific controversies over issues like whaling in the Southern Ocean have already erupted (see Rothwell 2009) and more might follow, especially with regard to bioprospecting. Acting as a major catalyst for this transformation are of course the technological, political and attitudinal transformations in the wider international system (Hemmings, 2007). It is in the light of issues raised above that I intend to examine various facets of the challenge that Indias science-diplomacy faces, especially in the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings (ATCMs), with regard to the complex issue-area of bioprospecting in the Antarctic. This paper is based on the assumption that growing commercialization of Antarctic biodiversity will pose, sooner than later, a major challenge to the legitimacy, authority and effectiveness of the ATS in governing Antarctica. I wish to argue that India, in partnership with like-minded ATCPs from Asia, should take a leadership role and intervene more proactively in the ongoing debate and dialogue on bioprospecting in the ATCMs. Here is an opportunity for India to assert its political and moral leadership, on behalf of the Global South, and on her own behalf as a rising power in the international system, and strive for a far more democratized ATS. Indias post-colonial engagement with Antarctica is long due, and the issue of bioprospecting in the Antarctic cannot and should not be allowed to be divorced from critically important notions of equitable access and benefit sharing industry consisted of 4,284 companies (3, 662 private and 622 public) in 25 nations, generating $35 billion in annual revenues, and employing some 188,000 people (UNU/IAS, 2003). Some analysts have argued that bioprospecting is both innovative and progressive with enormous potential and promise for the development of new products. Since these products might prove beneficial to humankind, this enterprise should be encouraged. The commercial enterprises that have invested in the form of patent rights over the end products should be rewarded. On the other hand, critics, largely from the Global South have argued that claims to patent rights are often made at the cost of freedom of scientific research, and some ways and means must be put into place so that the benefits to be derived from the commercial use of biological resources are equitably
Bioprospecting is a current activity in Antarctica whose environmental impacts are still unknown. Even if the research, exploitation, and patent of Antarctic genetic resources are organized under international legal instruments, their principles and environmental standards will not match the ethical standards already established by the Antarctic Treaty and its Environmental Protocol. Considering this inadequacy and the insufficiency of CCAMLR and PEPAT to organize this new activity, an ad hoc legal regime for bioprospecting in Antarctica is needed. As such, bioprospecting will only be legitimate if it matches the ethical principles of the ATS.
EmergingFocusAntarcticBioprospecting
In simple terms, bioprospecting is the marketdriven search for bioactive components in such living organisms as animals, plants, microorganisms (bacteria, microbes) or fungi to develop new commercial products, with the ultimate objective of develop marketable biotechnological inventions generally under the protection furnished by patents. The commercial enterprise of exploiting the chemicals and genetic material of the worlds biological resources to provide new feedstock for example is well under way (Green and Nicol, 2003), with most attention being placed so far on tropical rain forests and coral reefs. In the year 2003 alone, the global biotechnology
shared. According to Guyomard (2010: 43), The pursuit and realization of ethical principles and norms in the case of bioprospecting in global commons such as the Antarctic become extraordinary complex due to geopolitical considerations of access and ownership, combined with issues of sovereignty and jurisdiction. The task of injecting public good norms into the governing instrument for Antarctic bioprospecting is bound to become most challenging due to the fact that research into (and development of) new products often requires contractual arrangements between
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public institutions and the private sector. The former provides access to collections of samples in exchange for monetary support by the latter. Scientists working on a apparently academic project may identify and exploit a particular organisms commercial use, thus blurring in the process the boundary between scientific research and commercial activity (UNU/ IAS, 2003: 16). Growing focus on Antarctic biodiversity by the industry can be explained with the help of at least two reasons. First, a largely unexplored, unknown Antarctic biota provides a titillating prospect of discovering a potentially valuable organism. Secondly, the extremophiles, (novel life forms capable of withstanding extreme cold, aridity, and salinity) is the most sought after microorganism by the industry today, whose application is found in industrial processes such as lipsomes for drug delivery and cosmetics, molecular biology, the food industry, and waste treatment (UNU/IAS, 2003). According to Dr. Hamid Zakri, Director of United Nations Institute of Advanced Studies, Tokyo, there is growing evidence that biological prospecting for extremophiles is already occurring and is certain to accelerate in Antarctica and the southern oceans (cited in Zakri and Johnston, 2004). Particularly noteworthy is glycoprotein, which functions as the antifreeze that circulates in some Antarctic fish, protecting them from freezing in subzero environments. Research is in progress on the prospects of applying glycoprotein in a range of processes, including increasing the freeze tolerance of commercial plants, improving farmfish production in cold climates, extending the shelf life of frozen food, improving surgery involving the freezing of tissues, and enhancing the preservation of tissues to be transplanted. The growing significance of extremophiles is reflected in the plans for International Polar Year 2007-2008 (ATCM, 2007). One of the key questions, highlighted in the framework for the IPY was: How does genetic and functional diversity vary across extreme environments and what are the evolutionary responses underpinning the variation? It is further noted that:
One among the diverse range of activities that will be required for the IPY is marine and terrestrial biological surveying using modern genomic methods. This emphasis is evident in the 1100+ research projects that were submitted to the IPY International Programme Office (IPO) to be included as IPY activities. Although this type of research is undertaken for pure scientific reasons, such as the desire to increase the general understanding of Antarctic biodiversity, a significant motivation is the commercial benefits of the outcome of this type of exploration (Ibid:12).
As early as 2004, more than 40 patents had been granted worldwide on bacteria and other organisms found in Antarctica, and more than 90 additional patent applications were pending in the United States alone (Stix, 2004). Around the same time Australias collection of Antarctic Micro-Organisms (ACAM), houses at least 300 species collected from the Antarctic (Green and Nicol, 2003). Genencor International, a global biotechnology company (with more than $300 million in revenue in 1999, and over 3,000 owned and licensed patents and applications) also sources materials from Antarctica. According to some studies, private sector provided at least $1 million funding for Antarctic microbiology and biotechnology between 1997 and 2004 (UNU/IAS, 2005).
Regulating Bioprospecting in the Southern Polar Region: The Response of the ATS
It was United Kingdom (a leading Antarctic claimant state and one of the most vocal and articulate national delegations at the ATCMs) that introduced the question of bioprospecting for the first time in a working paper (WP-043) submitted to the 25th Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM) in 2002. At the 28th ATCM, hosted by Sweden in Stockholm in 2005, a working paper presented by New Zealand (WP 13), pointed out that, it is unlikely that a bioprospecting activity at the sample collection stage will have any more than a minor or transitory impact, although this would depend on the particular circumstances (emphasis mine). A number of other
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papers have also raised the question of the relationship of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) with the Antarctic Treaty System, and questions of access and benefit sharing. The 27th Meeting of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) held in Shanghai, China, in July 2002, also noted that, although bioprospecting had been discussed previously, this issue requires further attention. the ATS might need to be extended to include regulation of bioprospecting, and indeed all the provisions of the Convention on Biological Diversity (UNU/IAS, 2005: 20). At the XXX ATCM (May 2007) hosted by India in New Delhi, the UNEP submitted a comprehensive information paper on biological prospecting in Antarctica. It was pointed out that whereas Antarctic Treaty parties are interested in monitoring the issue, many feel they need more domestic engagement, information, analysis and preparation to address this complex issue at the international level (ATCM XXX, IP 67). It was further pointed out that the IPY [20072008] will provide further momentum to scientific studies that contribute to the appeal of bioprospecting and may also result in a new level of interest in the commercial potential of Antarctic biodiversity (Ibid.). According to UNEP (Ibid.). It should be quite obvious by now that at present the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) does not directly regulate biological prospecting activities. Nevertheless, there are certain provisions enshrined in the Antarctic Treaty (1961), the Protocol on Environmental Protection (the so-called 1991 Madrid Protocol) and the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (1982) that might be relevant to bioprospecting. The 1988 Convention on the Regulation of Antarctic Mineral Resources Activities (which eventually was jettisoned in favour of the Madrid Protocol) also contains certain guidelines that might be of some help in developing measures for regulating bioprospecting activities. It has been pointed out by a number of scholars that at least in the foreseeable future, Antarctic bioprospecting may remain confined to mostly the act of collecting and discovering novel biological resources; an activity that would qualify as largely scientific but possessing considerable commercial potential and value. If so then bioprospecting activities will fall within the remit of Article III (a)-(c) of Antarctic Treaty, whereby contracting parties agree that, to the greatest extent feasible and practicable, information regarding plans for scientific programs in Antarctica shall be exchanged to permit maximum economy of and efficiency of operations. A critical question then becomes: what is the extent to which the urge for commercial confidentiality and patents could be reconciled with the legal requirements of Article III? It is useful to mention in passing that the issue of information sharing continues to generate concerns and anxieties from time to time among the ATCPs. Since the resource issue goes straight into the heart of disputed ownership of Antarctica, it is important to ponder over the sovereignty implications of bioprospecting. According to Article IV the Antarctic Treaty [n]o acts or activities taking place while the present Treaty is in force shall constitute a basis for asserting, supporting or denying a claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica or create any rights of sovereignty in Antarctica. This moratorium on sovereignty was a necessary component of the
Yet no comprehensive or adequate study of Antarctic bioprospecting currently exists, and the reviews conducted thus far have been preliminary and ad hoc in nature. The level of commercial activity that has been brought to the attention of the ATCM to date has been anecdotal. Further research and study is needed to provide a solid informational basis for considering this complex subject, which encompasses scientific and commercial interests, environmental concerns, ethics and equity, and considerations relating to international law and policy, including the adequacy of the Antarctic Treaty System to fully address bioprospecting.
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original Treaty in order to neutralize the then-existing unstable political situation caused by the overlapping territorial claims in Antarctica of several treaty nations (Chaturvedi 1996). The fundamental absence of national sovereignty under ATS stands out, in sharp contrast to the national sovereignty approach that forms the basis of Convention on Biodiversity bioprospecting policy as well as that of UNCLOS except in the high seas and deep seabed (Herber, 2006).
whose nationals undertake the expedition or of the State on whose territory the expedition is organized or proceeds from.
The Ethics and the Politics of Antarctic Exceptionalism: The Challenge of Regulating Bioprospecting in Areas beyond National Jurisdiction
For most of it existence up until now, the ATS has followed what some scholars have described as Antarctic exceptionalism. The underlying reasoning has been that specific polar attributes and issues related to the Antarctic demand and deserve an exclusive treatment on their own merit. Accordingly the Antarctic regime in general should be insulated from wider international arrangements. Antarctic exceptionalism could be sustained and justified so long as the major export of the Antarctic was science and scientific research. With globalization increasingly penetrating the Antarctic both the ethical and the geopolitical justifications behind exceptionalism are likely to be questioned on various fronts. In the case of bioprospecting, there is no regulatory structure under the ATS or Madrid Protocol at present but there is potential interest in this matter in the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the International Seabed Authority (ISA). This fact alone demands that we should examines the relevance and applicability of both the CBD and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) for the purposes of regulating bioprospecting in Antarctica.
The Madrid Protocol of 1991 and Bioprospecting in the Antarctic

The Madrid Protocols comprehensive mandate to protect the Antarctic environment and dependent and associated ecosystems relates it to bioprospecting in a number of waysw. The Protocol designates Antarctica as a natural reserve, devoted to peace and science, and places a moratorium on mineral exploitation (Article 1, Madrid Protocol, 1991). The Protocol contains a series of environmental principles, which, inter alia, stipulate that activities in the treaty area are to be planned and conducted in such a manner that both adverse environmental impacts and detrimental changes in the distribution, abundance or productivity of species or populations of species of fauna and flora are minimal. The Protocol accords priority to scientific research, and to preserve the value of Antarctica as an area for the conduct of such research. This in turn calls for cooperation in the planning and conduct of scientific activities and the sharing of information. Annex I of to the Protocol includes provisions according to which prior assessments of the environmental impacts of scientific research programs, tourism, and all other governmental and nongovernmental activates must be carried out. As per the provisions mentioned above, the bioprospecting activities in the Antarctica will need to be subjected to an assessment of any potential impacts they may have on the Antarctic environment. It is worth noting in this context, that according to Article 8 of the Madrid Protocol as well as Article VII 5(a) of the Antarctic Treaty, the Environmental Impacts Assessment (IAS) is the responsibility of the State
The Convention on Biological Diversity and Its Relevance for the Antarctic
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD, signed by the representatives of 150 countries at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, is dedicated to promoting sustainable development (Convention on Biological Diversity 2005). Conceived as a practical tool for turning the vision behind Agenda 21 into reality, the Convention aims at realizing three main goals: the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components, and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits from the use of genetic resources. The legal
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regime it creates is based on the access granted by the States to the components of biological diversity within the limits of their national sovereignty or jurisdiction. According to Article 4 of the CBD on jurisdictional scope,
subject to the rights of other Sates, and except as otherwise expressly provided in this Convention, the provisions of this Convention apply, in relation to each Contracting Party: (a) in the case of components of biological diversity, in areas within the limits of its national jurisdiction; and (b) In the case of processes and activities, regardless of where their effects occur, carried out under its jurisdictional control, within the area of its national jurisdiction or beyond the limits of national jurisdiction. And according to Article 5 of the CBD, Each Contracting Party shall, as far as possible and as appropriate, cooperate with other Contracting Parties, directly or, where appropriate, through competent international organizations, in respect of areas beyond national jurisdiction and on other matters of mutual interest, for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity (Ibid).
On the face of it the above mentioned provisions do not seem to cover bioprospecting in Antarctica, especially in view of its disputed ownership. Yet it is important to note that Article 5 has been used to both develop regional efforts to apply the provisions of the CBD and to regulate the exploitation of marine genetic resources in the high seas and deep seabed. However as far as Antarctica is concerned, bioprospecting raises two kinds of complex legal issues (ATCM, 2006a). The first relates to the modalities of the activity and raises a couple of important questions. Is access to Antarctic biological diversity limited? Is it subject to environment protection requirements? Whereas the second set of questions concerns the outcome expected from this activity. How does one reconcile the Antarctic Treatys requirement that scientific information and results are made freely
available with possible utilization of the outcome of bioprospecting in the Antarctic Treaty area? No doubt the 1991 Madrid Protocol aims at comprehensive protection of the environment. And in case the ATCPs expect the Madrid Protocol to regulate the issues of both access to and use of biological diversity in the Antarctica, it would be necessary to define in the first place the competent authority to oversee the bioprospecting activities, which in turn would specify, in unambiguous terms, the environmental requirements for this activity. Under Article 15 (1) of CBD, both the sovereign rights of States over their natural resources and their authority to determine access to genetic resources, in accordance with national legislation, are recognized. This clearly suggests that the final authority to determine access to genetic resources rests with the sovereign state. For the ATCPs that do not recognize territorial claims in Antarctica, which include India, access to areas such as the high seas and Antarctic, where there is neither territorial sovereignty nor sovereign rights over resources, is likely to remain free for all (which in turns amounts to privileged access for a select few) in the absence of a collective, consensus-based, regulatory mechanism which gives due attention to the norms of equity and benefit sharing in the best interest of humankind. Whereas under the Madrid Protocol all human activity carried out in Antarctica is to be subjected to environmental impact assessments (EIAs), interestingly, as of now, this does not include bioprospecting. Some might point out that the EIA is to be based on expected impact of the activity in question on the environment: the greater the impact, the more detailed the evaluation (Article 8). An argument then may be made out that bioprospecting can be carried out under environmentally acceptable conditions in the Southern Polar Region and therefore there is no need for an immediate scrutiny to say the leastWhereas collection of just a few samples is unlikely to adversely affect the environment, this will not be the case if full-scale collection is attempted (Green and Nicol, 2003).
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Antarctic Bioprospecting and Law of the Sea

The Southern Ocean legal regime is based upon both the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) and the UN Conventions on the Law of the Sea, as supplemented by international environmental law such as the Convention on Biological Diversity (Rothwell 2005, Chaturvedi ). The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which entered into force on 16 November 1994, was adopted in order:
to establish a legal order for the seas and oceans which will facilitate international communication, and will promote the peaceful uses of the seas and oceans, the equitable and efficient utilization of their resources, the conservation of their living resources, and the study, protection and preservation of the marine environment.
In order to organize and control activities in the Area concerned with seabed minerals, UNCLOS establishes the International Seabed Authority (ISA), notably with a view to administering its resources (Art 156-7, UNCLOS). The deep seabed segment of the high seas or The Area, as defined in Part XI (Articles 133140) is the seabed and ocean floor and subsoil thereof, beyond the limits of national jurisdiction. Declared as the common heritage of mankind (Part XI, Article 136), its exploration and exploitation is to be carried out for the benefit of mankind as a whole, irrespective of the geographical location of states. States can neither claim nor exercise sovereignty over the Area and its resources, nor appropriate any part of it (Part XI, Article 137). Here it is important to note that under UNCLOS III the concept is applicable to the exploitation of minerals and not to the bioprospecting of biological and genetic resources (Herber, 2006). Furthermore, UNCLOS has established an instrument, which authorized International Seabed Authority (ISA) to regulate mining in The Area (Part XI, Articles 156158). But as far as bioprospecting is concerned, this body does not have definitive jurisdiction, though it is presently attempting
to establish such authority (Ibid). Although bioprospecting in the deep seabed is not specifically regulated by ISA at present, there is an inextricable factual link between the protection of the deep seabed environment, including its biodiversity, marine scientific research, and bioprospecting (Scovazzi, 2004). For example, the sampling of biological resources may occur in the course of exploration of mineral deposits in The Area (United Nations Environment Programme 2005). Moreover, several features of the seabed regime outlined in UNCLOS may be extended to (or may become the basis of) a specific bioprospecting policy regime in the Area (United Nations Environment Programme 2005). In any case, the deep seabed area is highly relevant to the formation of bioprospecting policy in Antarctica since it is an area without national sovereignty. Moreover, a deep seabed, as such, also exists in the Antarctic Treaty area; south of the 60 degrees South.
Visualizing Antarctica as a Global Knowledge Commons

Search for knowledge in the domain of diverse biological and genetic resources is integral to biological prospecting. Whether or not such knowledge qualifies as public would depend largely on the extent to which it is non-exclusive in terms of access as well as consumption (Herber, 2006). In an international political system, characterized by asymmetries in terms of geopolitical clout and technological competence the ideal of widespread (not to talk of just and equitable) dissemination of knowledge is not easy to realize. As far as the Southern Polar Region is concerned, it is possible to argue that the Preamble to the Antarctic Treaty of 1961 (and the overall spirit that has dictated and driven the ATS over the past five decades and more) demands that the public good principles should prevail. The Preamble to the Antarctic Treaty does recognize that: it is in the interest of all mankind that Antarctica shall continue for ever to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become the scene or object of international discord.
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Accordingly, reference in the Preamble to the effect that Antarctica shall not become an object of international discord can also be interpreted to mean that whatever peaceful activities are being undertaken in the Antarctic Treaty area, those engaged in such activities are under an obligation to ensure a zero marginal cost also for those not directly involved in the Antarctic Treaty System to enjoy the benefits of such knowledge. In other words, a private good principle is not only in disharmony with the dominant ethos of the ATS, it is also against the principle of global knowledge commons. In other words, the production, dissemination and sharing of knowledge (biodiversity in this case) can not be allowed to be guided solely on commercial basis by the private sector in the Southern Polar Region. It has also been pointed out by one of the influential Antarctic Treaty consultative member (ATCM 2005b: 3) that, the patenting of bioactive substances, resulting from bioprospecting in Antarctica, is not inconsistent with Article III(1) of the Treaty [exchange of scientific information, observations and results from the Antarctic]. One of the fundamental requirements is that scientific observations and results be exchanged and made freely available. This requirement is qualified by words to the greatest extent feasible and practicable. The proverbial billion dollar question here is this: how do we ensure that the corporations engaged in bio-prospecting willingly adhere to a set of principles and practices that question a culture of secrecy and demand transparency and accountability? The global knowledge commons principle throws up unique challenges in the Antarctic. The growing salience of bioprospecting in the Antarctic is likely to raise a number of ethical and equity issues that will not be easy to address and translate into legally binding regulations. An overarching issue of utmost importance here relates to the extent to which biological and genetic resources in the Antarctic are free to be owned by anyone or should they be regarded as the common heritage of mankind. As Alistair Graham (2005: 50) puts it so succinctly in the wider general context,
We are faced by a genuine frontier mentality. Until such time as the rest of the world catches up, the knowledgeable elites are making up their own rules as they go along, an emerging set of moral principles that has little to do with what we might ordinarily and intuitively expect of ethical behavior to deliver equitable and environmentally sensitive outcomes. Indeed, what evidence we do have indicates that these elites will fight very hard indeed to forestall the imposition of a more customary ethical framework by the wider community.
Driven largely by market forces biotechnology industry will be marked by a steady growth, especially in the pharmaceutical, enzyme, cosmetics, chemistry and agricultural sectors. This growth will be ably assisted by continuing research on Antarctic microorganisms and technological innovation. A major goal of the IPY has been to further develop this researchknowledge base. These growing markets are likely to fuel the demand for novel genetic resource and are likely to result in a much enhanced pace and scope of The factors and forces mentioned above will further fuel the search for new genetic resources and result in greater interest in and demand for Antarctic microbes. Looking ahead, the challenge, according to some scholars (Herbert 2006), is to put into place an Antarctic bioprospecting regime negotiated around the long-established Antarctic norms of public funding, international openness, sharing of information among both state and non-state stakeholders in utmost transparency. Equally significant in this regard would be stringent environmental regulations and impact assessments, which might make it necessary for the ATCPs to rethink and modify some of the provisions of the Madrid Protocol and its annexes. Ever since the Antarctic Treaty came into force in 1961, the meaning and interpretation of the term peaceful uses of Antarctica has been stretched over a period of time to include commercially driven activities such as fishing in the Southern Ocean and tourism. It looks like the next commercial activity to be so termed would be bioprospecting. Many would
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argue that there is no sound reason why biological prospecting should be treated any differently than tourism or fishing, so long as it benefits humankind as a whole and does not result in ecological harm. Others might argue that to permit a free-for-all bioprospecting is in violation of the values enshrined in the Madrid Protocol, which declares Antarctica as a natural reserve devoted to peace and science and reiterates the imperative of sharing all scientific information. Moreover, one simply cannot overlook the ground reality that natures biodiversity and diversity of knowledge systems are undergoing a major process of destabilization with the expansion of patents and intellectual property rights into the domain of biodiversity via the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) agreement of the World Trade Organization. The whole notion of TRIPs has been shaped by the objectives and interests of trade and transnational corporations (Shiva 2007: 309). The nature and extent of physical impact of bioprospecting on the Antarctic eco-systems and biodiversity is being currently addressed by the ATCPs. However, putting into place (through consensus-based negotiations) a sound legal-political arrangement that resists, restricts and regulates the commercialization of polar biodiversity, in harmony with the principles of equity and fairness) is much more complex than often assumed by both the scholars and policy makers. Indeed, developing sound and sustainable measures on bioprospecting in Antarctica would require some basic conceptual agreement on the overall goals of any regulation and the type of management system that is desirable, practical, and most importantly equitable. Since bioprospecting is an activity with potentially both environmental and resource implications, the Antarctic Treaty parties need to work out, sooner than later, a more comprehensive policy position, if not a regulatory framework. Coordination with other international legal fora (a point consistently emphasized by India at the ATCMs) is seemingly an inevitable aspect of the formation of a comprehensive Antarctic Bioprospecting Policy regime. The role of science as the key currency of
geopolitical influence in the southern polar region is likely to be reinforced by bioprospecting in the Antarctica. It will continue to be deployed for the purposes of both re-enforcing and undermining territorial claims. In the light of burgeoning research in cultural histories of science, a far more serious and systematic research is needed to investigate how various scientific discourses, and the practices flowing from them, contribute to the consolidation and exercise of geopolitical power in the Antarctic. In the light of burgeoning research in cultural histories of science, as noted by Klaus John Dodds (2006) a far more serious and systematic research is needed to investigate how various scientific discourses, and the practices flowing from them, contribute to the consolidation and exercise of geopolitical power in the Antarctic. To quote Dodds (Ibid: 62-63).
As has been widely noted, the role of science is critical in facilitating the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) However, social scientists have devoted less attention to how these scientific practices contribute to the consolidation of geopolitical power. This might require, for example, a more detailed analysis of the actual practices surrounding the annual Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings and the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR). As the Treaty parties have improved accessibility for observers, including ASOC, so the opportunities to disseminate scientific knowledge have improved even if the knowledge production is concentrated within particular states and regions. This is important because scientific endeavour has enabled states such as the United States and English speaking allies Britain, Australia and New Zealand to shape political agendasWithin the cohort of Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties (ATCPs), there are important differences relating to capacity and subsequent political influence.
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Antarctica is now increasingly exposed to global market forces and the authority and effectiveness of the ATS are being challenged. International scientific cooperation as the first order policy-value in the region is being slowly but surely displaced by commercial competition.
warming, we need coordinated effort across the world. Detailed deliberations on the growing tourism in Antarctica and the decisions taken by this ATCM will surely help in providing necessary direction and a framework for developing a regulatory mechanism to safeguard the Antarctic environment. The Antarctic Treaty System has become an epitome of coordinated research and cooperation, carried out by the nations and organisations represented here in this august Meeting. The path shown by the Antarctic Treaty System by forging ties in collaborative research and enforcing a strict regime of environmental protection through a detailed consultative process, is not only unique to the Treaty but needs to be followed in other areas as I am happy to be here to address you at the concluding session of a very successful and historic 30th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting. Historic in the sense that India has hosted this meeting for the first time coinciding with the 25th year of its joining the Treaty. The two-week long deliberations have resulted in some significant outcomes and decisions. These mutually agreed decisions not only strengthen the Antarctic Treaty in providing good governance to the Antarctic continent, but underline the need of cooperative research and environmental protection. The Treaty has certainly grown in stature and strength in last 48 years with newer entrants joining its fold. Adoption of the Madrid Protocol on Environment Protection in 1991 was a significant landmark for the Antarctic Treaty. It indicated the concern of Treaty Party nations about the fragile Antarctic ecosystems and their significance at global level. The Protocol is a testimony of farsightedness and a global vision of mentors of the Antarctic Treaty. It has gained further importance at a time when we are passing through one of the most critical phase of global environmental scenario, especially after the report of the UNs fourth Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. It is becoming increasingly clear that to counter the projected impacts of global well. Let me conclude by stating that India remains committed to scientific research and technical cooperation in the Polar Regions. Antarctica being a common heritage of mankind and the foremost symbol of peaceful use and cooperation needs to be protected for posterity.
Conclusion
Hosting the XXX Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM) in New Delhi, in May 2007, was a landmark in Indias Antarctic engagement and program. The then External Affairs Minister of India, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, in his closing address delivered on 11 May 2007, said, and I quote at some length:
The emphasis supplied by me to the long quotation above has been done with the intention to highlight on the one hand Indias commitment to the ATS and its norms and her belief that the Antarctic regime can become a model of cooperation that might be followed in other areas as well. On the other hand, it shows that India continues to perceive Antarctica as a unique but common heritage of mankind. The Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations sent notes to the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (between 13 July 2005 and 31 August 2009) in response to submissions made by Australia, Argentina and Norway to the Commission on the Limits of Continental Shelf. The note sent in response to the Australian submission (see Dodds and Hemmings 2009, Hemmings and Stephens 2009, Rothwell 2008) noted: India recalls the principles and objectives shared by the Antarctic Treaty and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 (Convention) and the importance of harmony
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between the Antarctic Treaty and the Convention and the continuing cooperation, security and stability in the Antarctic area. India while referring to Article IV of the Treaty, wishes to inform that it does not recognize any States right or claim to territorial sovereignty in the Antarctic area and consequently over the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas adjacent to the continent of Antarctica. (Emphasis supplied). The note further said, Acknowledging with appreciation Australias request to the Commission for not taking any action on the portion of its submission relating to the areas of the seabed and subsoil adjacent to Antarctica, India requests the Commission not to take any action accordingly. The notes sent by India in response to the extended continental shelf claims were the first vivid and emphatic expression of Indias non-recognition of the territorial claims and counterclaims on Antarctica after joining the ATS. India would continue to perceive a vital stake in further enhancing the authority and efficiency of the ATS, though not without feeling the tension arising out of the growing realization to further democratize the ATS (which calls for a greater proactive participation of and contribution by the Asian countries to knowledge production and Antarctic governance) and apparently unsettling effects emanating from the questioning of existing asymmetries of power and capacity in the Antarctic regime. Indias commitment to Antarctic science is firm, internationally acknowledged and acclaimed. The task of securing science as the first order value in the Antarctic in the wake of changing resourcescience interface, however, is going to be rather difficult. As Allan D. Hemmings (2010: 11) points out so insightfully, in relation to the role of science in the ATS, some new responses are probably called for in the case of bio-prospecting. Here, for the first time, science wears 2 hats -its traditional Antarctic bonnet, and the hard-hat of commercial self-interest. Some formal mechanisms to avoid conflict of interest seem called for, and some deliberate mechanism to ensure that the interests of science as exploiter are not laundered through its standing as privileged participant in the ATS. As in so many other areas, the
maintenance of a viable Antarctic Treaty System will require us to periodically update it and not blithely assume that mechanisms established half a century ago will suffice. The challenge of bioprospecting before the ATCPs is hugely complex, involves intricate but critically important issues of equity and public good, and demands an early and effective intervention from India.
References
ATCM. (2010), Report from Antarctic Treaty Meeting of Experts on Implications of Climate Change for Antarctic Management and Governance: Co-Chairs Executive Summary with Advice for Actions. XXXIII Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting, 3-14 May. Punta del Este, Uruguay. WP 63. ATCM. (2007), Biological Prospecting in Antarctica: Review, Update and Proposed Tool to Support a Way Forward. XXX ATCM/IP 67 (Submitted by UNEP). ATCM. (2006), In Search of a Legal Regime for Bioprospecting in Antarctica. XXIX ATCM/ IP 13 (Submitted by France). ATCM. (2005a), Biological Prospecting in Antarctica. XXVIII ATCM/IP008 (Submitted by Spain). ATCM. (2005b), Biological Prospecting in Antarctica. XXVIII ATCM/ WP13 (Submitted by New Zealand and Sweden). Beck, P. J. (1986), The International Politics of Antarctica, Beckenham, Kent: Croom Helm. Chaturvedi, S. (1986), India and the Antarctic Treaty System: Realities and Prospects, India Quarterly 32: 1-38. Chaturvedi, S. (1996), The Polar Regions: A Political Geography (Chichester: John Wiley & Sons). Chaturvedi, S. (2001) Ocean Governance and the Polar Regions: Geopolitics, Law and Sustainability Ocean Yearbook, vol. 15.
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Chaturvedi, S. (1990) Dawning of Antarctica: A Geopolitical Analysis. New Delhi. Connolly-Stone, K. (2005), Patents, Property Rights and Benefit Sharing. In: Hemmings, A.D. and M. Rogan-Finnemore (eds). Antarctic Bioprospecting. Christchurch: Gateway Antarctica: 6997. Convention on Biological Diversity. (2005), Proposals by Switzerland Regarding the Declaration of the Source of Genetic Resources and Traditional Knowledge in Patent Applications. Item 4 of the Provisional Agenda. Third Meeting of Ad Hoc Openended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing, Bangkok, 14-18, Available at: http://www.biodiv.org/doc/meetings/ abs/abswg-03/information/abswg-03-inf-07-en.pdf [Accessed on 20 July, 2009]. Dodds, K.J. (1997), Geopolitics of Antarctica: Views from the Southern Oceanic Rim. (Chichester: John Wiley & Sons). Dodds, K. J. (2006), Post-Colonial Antarctica: An Emerging Engagement, Polar Record, 42(220): 5970. Dodds, K. and Hemmings, A. D. (2009), Frontiers Vigilantism? Australia and Contemporary Representations of Australian Antarctic Territory, Australian Journal of Politics and History 55(4): 513528. Elliott, L.M. (1994), International Environmental Politics: Protecting the Antarctic, London: Macmillan, New York: St. Martins Press. Green, J. A. and Nicol D. (2003), Bioprospecting in Areas Outside National Jurisdiction: Antarctica and the. Southern Ocean, Melbourne Journal of International. Law 4(1): 76111. Graham, A. (2005), Environmental, Ethical and
Equity Issues, in Hemmings, A.D. and RoganFinnemore, M. (eds.). Antarctic Bioprospecting. Christchurch: Gateway Antarctica: 6997. Guyomard, A. (2010), Ethics and Bioprospecting in Antarctica, Ethics in Science and Environmental Politics, 10(31): 31-44. Hemmings, A. D. (2007), Globalizations Cold Genius and the Ending of Antarctic Isolation, Kriwoken L. K., Jabour, J. and Hemmings, A. D. (eds.) ,Looking South: Australias Antarctic Agenda, Sydney , The Federation Press: 176-190. Hemmings, A. D. (2010), Does Bioprospecting Risk Moral Hazard for Science in the Antarctic Treaty System?, Ethics in Science and Environmental Politics 10(5): 5-12. Hemmings A. D. (2009), From the new geopolitics of resources to nanotechnology: emerging challenges of globalism in Antarctica, Yearbook of Polar Law 1:5572. Hemmings A.D., Rogan-Finnemore M. (2005), The issues posed by bioprospecting in Antarctica, In: Hemmings AD, Rogan-Finnemore M (eds) Antarctic bioprospecting. Gateway Antarctica Special Publication Series Number 0501, Christchurch : 234 244. Hemmings AD, Stephens T. (2009), Australias extended continental shelf: What implications for Antarctica? Public Law Review 20:916. Herbert, B. P. (2006), Bioprospecting in Antarctica: the Search for a Policy Regime Polar Record 42 (221): 139146. Herbert, B. P. (1991), The Common Heritage Principle: Antarctica and the Developing Countries, American Journal of Economic and Sociology 50 (4): 391406.
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Howkins, A. (2006), Defending Polar Empire: Opposition to Indias Proposal to Raise the Antarctic Question at the United Nations in 1956, Polar Record 44(1): 35-44. International Union for Conservation of Nature and ResourcesWorld Conservation Union (IUCN). (2004), Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. (2007a), Address by External Affairs Minister, Shri Pranab Mukherjee at the closing session of the XXX Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting, New Delhi. 11 May. Available at: http://meaindia.nic.in/mystart.php?id=550312696. [Accessed on 10 November, 2010]. Rothwell, D. (1996), Polar Regions and the Development of International Law, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Rothwell, D. (2005), Southern Ocean Bioprospecting and International law, Hemmings, A.D. and M. Rogan- Finnemore (eds), Antarctic Bioprospecting. Christchurch, Gateway Antarctica: 207232. Rothwell, D.R. (2008), Issues and strategies for outer continental shelf claims, International Journal of Marine and Coastal Law 23: 185211. Shiva, V. (2007), Bioprospecting as Sophisticated Biopiracy, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 32(21): 308-313. Stix, G. (2004), Staking claims Patents on ice: Antarctica as a Last Frontier for Bioprospectors and their Intellectual Property, Scientific American, Available at : http://www.sciam. com /a r t icle.cf m?a r t icleID = 0 0 07671B -A73E 1084A73E83414B7F0000 [Accessed on 1 May,2009]. Scovazzi, T. (2004), Tenth Anniversary Special Session with Expert Panel in future Directions. United Nations: International Seabed Authority ,
(Press Release SEA/1799). The Madrid Protocol on Antarctic Environment Protection. (1991), Available at: http://www.wilderness. org.au/campaigns/international/antarctica/madrid/ [Accessed on 31 October, 2009]. The United Nations Environment Programmes Governing Council. (2005), Report of the Executive Director on State of the Environment and Contribution of the United Nations Environment Programme to Addressing Substantive Environmental Challenges. December 22, UNEP/GCSS.IX/10. United Nations, General Assembly(UN).(1956), 11th Session, Peaceful Utilisation of Antarctica. Doc. A/3118/Add. I: September 13, 1956; Doc. A/3118/ Add. II: October 17, 1956. United Nations University Institute of Advanced Study (UNU/IAS). (2003), Report on the International Regime for Bioprospecting: Existing Policies and Emerging Issues for Antarctica. Tokyo, Japan, Available at: http://www.asoc.org/Documents/Bioprospecting/ UNUIAS_AntarcticaReport. [Accessed on 12 July, 2009]. United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies (UNU/IAS). (2005), Report on the Bioprospecting in Antarctica. Tokyo, Japan, Available at: http://ecosystemmarketplace.net/documents/cms_ documents/antarctic_bioprospecting.pdf [Accessed on 23 August, 2008]. World Trade Organization, TRIP Agreement.1994, Available at: http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/ trips_e/t_agm3c_e.htm#5 [Accessed on 25 October 2009]. Zakri, H and Johnston, S. (2004), Report: Accelerate Global Agreement to Oversee Exploitation of
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South Pole Extremophiles: Ownership of Genetic Materials, Environmental Consequences in Question as 21st Century Bio-prospecting Gets Underway in Antarctica, Available at: http://www.unu.edu/news/ extremophiles.html [Accessed on December,20 2010].
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Antarctic Continental Shelf and the Law of the Seas
A Future Winter of Discontentment?

S. Rajan National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research, Goa
As of date, 45 coastal states have lodged a total of 54 submissions with the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS), defining the outer limits of their continental shelves beyond 200 nautical miles from their territorial sea baselines. Despite the uncertainties surrounding the application of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and its rules on the continental shelf of Antarctica, the submissions made to the CLCS by Australia, Argentina and Norway also include particulars of the outer limits of extended continental shelf off their respective Antarctic territories, either in full or for a part. The United Kingdom, France and New Zealand have likewise, declared their intention of making submissions for areas of continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica at a later date. Chile in its preliminary information submitted to the CLCS indicating the outer limits of its continental shelf has also reserved its rights to make a submission for areas of the Antarctic shelf. The CLCS has resolved that in accordance with its rules of procedure, it is not in a position to consider and qualify those parts of the submissions already received from the coastal states relating to the continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica. The examination of the submission of the continental shelf claims of Antarctica now or at any later date is likely to be plagued by many scientific and legal law of the sea issues, not the least of which stems from the fact that the rights of a coastal State over the continental shelf do not depend on occupation, effective or notional, or on any express proclamation. This paper examines some of these issues involved.
Introduction
The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), having acquired the requisite 60 ratifications, entered into force on November 16, 1994. Primarily UNCLOS (the Convention) seeks to codify the subdivision of ocean space into such
maritime zones as the Territorial Sea, the contiguous zone, the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and the continental shelf. Sovereign rights of coastal states are extended to specific distances offshore, with powers being phased down through several successive zones (United Nations, 1987; Figure 1).
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Figure 1. Illustration of the different Maritime Zones showing the sovereign rights of coastal states
One of the important elements of the Convention is a provision for coastal states to extend their sovereign rights over the seabed-subseabed under their jurisdiction (the continental shelf) beyond the normal limits of 12 nautical miles (Territorial Sea) and 200 miles (EEZ) from their coastal baselines, if certain criteria are met. The regime prescribed for the definition and delineation of the continental shelf is contained in article 76 of the Convention, which seeks to define the outer limits beyond 200 nautical miles by a complex set of formulae and constraints based on sediment thickness and distance measurements (United Nations, 1997, 1999; Vijayalaxmi and Rajan, 2005; Rajan, 2007). Although out to a distance of 200 nautical miles the continental shelf is coincident with the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of a country, the shelf beyond 200 nautical miles is not an extension of the EEZ. Sovereign rights that apply to the EEZ, such as the rights to the resources of the water column above do not apply to this extended shelf beyond 200 nautical miles. Under article 4 of annex II to the Convention, a coastal State intending to establish the outer limits
to its continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles is obligated to submit particulars of such limits to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) along with supporting scientific and technical data within a stipulated deadline dictated by the date of the entry into force of the Convention for that State (United Nations, 1997, 2001). As on date, 54 submissions have been made by 45 coastal states, either as complete submissions, or as partial or joint submissions (United Nations, 2010). 42 coastal states have also filed preliminary information indicative of the outer limits of their full or partial continental shelves beyond 200 nautical miles, in pursuance of a decision taken at the eighteenth meeting of the States parties (United Nations, 2008, 2010). Once all these submissions are examined by the CLCS and the outer limits of the continental shelf delimited by the respective coastal states in accordance with the recommendations of the CLCS, the effect would be to potentially reduce the global commons of the world oceans, with upto 54 coastal states being able to claims extensions of their continental shelf beyond the 200 M limit, accounting for an additional area of
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about 75 million square km (equal to more than half of the earths land surface). However, surprisingly, such extensions can also be equally contentious. This may certainly turn out to be the case as regards the maritime zonation around Antarctica, with rougher seas looming ahead in the coming years.
The 1959 Antarctic Treaty System

The 1959 Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) had its beginnings in the aftermath of the International Geophysical Year (IGY) of 1957-58, when 40 research stations were installed in Antarctica by scientists from 12 countries (Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty, 2010, Walton, 2008). The success this massive multi-national research initiative and the promise it held out for defusing the growing disputes over territorial claims in Antarctica encouraged the 12 countries to establish a legal framework for the management of Antarctica, in what has come to be known as the Antarctic Treaty. As provided in Article VI of the Treaty, its main purpose as to ensure in the interest of all mankind that Antarctica
ARTICLE IV 1. Nothing contained in the present treaty shall be interpreted as: (a) a renunciation by any Contracting Part of previously asserted rights of or claims to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica; (b) a renunciation or diminution by any Contracting Party of any basis of claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica which it may have whether as a result of its activities or those of its nationals in Antarctica, or otherwise; (c) prejudicing the position of any Contracting Party as regards its recognition or non-recognition of any other States right of or claim or basis of claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica. 2. No acts or activities taking place while the present Treaty is in force shall constitute a basis for asserting, supporting or denying a claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica or create any rights of sovereignty in Antarctica. No new claim, or enlargement of an existing claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica shall be asserted while the present Treaty is in force.
shall continue forever to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become the scene or object of international discord. The Treaty applies to the entire area south of 60o latitude, including ice shelves, but explicitly does not affect states rights under international law with regard to the high seas within that area. During its nearly fifty years of existence, the Antarctic Treaty has proved to be particularly effective in dealing with several issues pertaining to Antarctica and the Oceans surrounding it. One of the key factors in the success of the Treaty System has been expansion of the scope of the original Treaty through adoption of new legal instruments, concomitant with the scientific and technical needs (Rothwell, 2002). Equally important has been the growth in the number of countries which have sustained scientific programs in Antarctica. Since 1959, 34 other countries in addition to the original 12 signatories have acceded to the Treaty. Of these new 34 countries, 16 have consultative status, recognised as conducting substantial research activity in Antarctica (Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty website). The pursuit of scientific investigations for peaceful purposes which ironically arose out of a need to put on hold the substantial differences concerning territorial claims can be said to be the hallmark of the Antarctic Treaty. However, the sovereignty issues still continue to loom in the background as they have only been frozen. The Treaty preserves the incompatible views regarding territory, but prevents any action being taken to support, deny, create or extend claims to territorial sovereignty as long as it is in force, as provided in Article IV.
Territorial claims and the Antarctic Continental Shelf

Since the early 1900s, seven territorial claims for nearly three-fourths of the continent have been made, starting with the UKs in 1908. These claims from Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway and the UK have been based on a variety of grounds, and some of them overlap (Figure 2). The US and Russia have reserved the right to make
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Consistent with the first option, Australia requests the Commission in accordance with its rules not to take any action for the time being with regard to the information in this Submission that relates to continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica (http:// www.un.org / Depts/los /clcs_ new/ submissions-files / aus04 /Documents/aus_doc_ es_attachment.pdf).
Figure 2. Territorial claims over Antarctica
claims, while no formal claims have been made in the sector between 90 degrees west and 150 degrees west (Antarctic Treaty Secretariat website). Despite the fact that all territorial claims of Antarctica have been put on hold, all the seven claimant states have either made a submission or have declared their intention of making submissions for areas of continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica, as discussed below: On the 15 November 2004, Australia made its submission for an extended continental shelf comprising ten offshore regions including the
....[it] has regard to the circumstances of the area south of 60 degrees South Latitude and the special legal and political status of Antarctica under the provisions of the Antarctic Treaty, including its article IV, and notes that appurtenant to Antarctica there exists areas of continental shelf the extent of which has yet to be defined. It is open to the States concerned to submit information to the Commission which would not be examined by it for the time being, or to make a partial submission not including such areas of continental shelf, for which a submission may be made later, notwithstanding the provisions regarding the ten-year-period established by article 4 of Annex II to UNCLOS and the subsequent decision on its application taken by the Eleventh Meeting of States Parties to UNCLOS.
Australian Antarctic Territory (http:// http:// www.un.org/Depts/ los/clcs_new /submissions_files / submission_ aus.htm; Figure 2). However, in its note accompanying the lodging of its submission (note verbale no. 89/2004 date 15 November 2004), Australia noted thatIn pursuance of the above request made by Australia, the CLCS decided not to consider the part of the submission referred to as region 2 in the executive summary of the Australian submission (http://www. un.org/Depts/los/clcs_new/submissions-files / aus04/ aus_summary_of_recommendations.pdf). On the 21 April 2009, Argentina made its submission for an extended continental shelf covering
.....[t]ook into account the circumstances of the region south of 60oS and that the Commission could not, in accordance with its rules of procedure, take any action, for the time being, with regard to the part of the submission that related to the continental shelf appurtenant to the Argentine Antarctic Sector.
the natural prolongation of Argentina appurtenant to the continent, the islands and the Argentine Antarctic Sector (http:// www.un.org/Depts/los/clcs_new/ submissions -files/arg25_09e_summary_eng.pdf). In its note of the 21 April 2009 accompanying the submission, Argentina noted that it The Commission, at its twenty-fourth session deliberated on this issue and decided that in accordance with the rules of procedure, it was not in a position to consider and qualify the part of the submission that relates to the continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica (CLCS/64, Statement by
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the Chairman of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf on the progress of work in the Commission, 24 Session, CLCS website). On 4 May 2009, the Kingdom of Norway submitted to the CLCS, in accordance with Article 76, paragraph 8, of UNCLOS, information on the limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical
As regards the information submitted in respect of Dronning Maud land, Norway would like to state the following: Norway recalls the principles and objectives shared by the Antarctic Treaty and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the importance of the Antarctic system and the Convention working in harmony and thereby ensuring the continuing peaceful cooperation, security and stability in the Antarctic area. Norway notes also the relevant provisions of the Convention, including its article 77, which provides inter alia that the rights of the coastal State over the continental shelf do not depend on any express proclamation, and recalls the decisions of Meetings of the States Parties to the Convention and the rules of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. Norway has regard to the circumstances of the area south of 60 degrees South Latitude and the special legal and political status of Antarctica under the provisions of the Antarctic Treaty, including its article IV, and notes that appurtenant to Antarctica there exist areas of continental shelf the extent of which has yet to be defined. It is open to the States concerned to submit information to the Commission which would not be examined by it for the time being, or to make a partial submission not including such areas of continental shelf, for which a submission may be made later, notwithstanding the provisions regarding the tenyear period established by article 4 of Annex II to the Convention and the subsequent decision on its application taken by the Eleventh Meeting of States Parties to the Convention. Consistent with the first option, Norway requests
the Commission in accordance with its rules not to take any action for the time being with regard to the information in this submission that relates to continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica, including Dronning Maud Land.
miles from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured in respect of Bouvetya and Dronning Maud Land (http: // www .un.org / Depts/los/clcs_new/submissions_files/submission_ nor_30_2009.htm). In its Note Verbale accompanying the submission, Norway indicated as follows: In contrast to the three submissions by Australia, Argentina and Norway, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and France have not made any submissions as yet for the extended continental shelves of their respective Antarctic Territories but have indicated that they reserve their rights to make submissions for the areas of continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica at a later date, not withstanding the provisions regarding the ten-year period established by article 4 of Annex II to UNCLOS and the subsequent decision on its application taken by the Eleventh Meeting of States Parties to UNCLOS (Note No. NZ-CLCS-TPN-02 dated 19 April 2006 accompanying the lodgement of the submission made by New Zealand, http://www.un.org /Depts/los/clcs_ new /submissions_files/ submission_ nzl. htm; Note Verbale No. 168/08 dated 9 May 2008 accompanying the lodgement of the partial submission made by United Kingdom relating to the continental shelf of Ascension Island, http://www.un.org/Depts/los/ clcs_new/submissions_files/submission_gbr.htm; Note Verbale No, HR/cl No. 69 dated 5 February 2009 accompanying the partial submission made by France in respect of areas of the French Antilles and Kerguelen Islands, http://www.un.org/Depts/los/ clcs_new/submissions_files/submission_fra1.htm). In its Note of 7 May 2009 accompanying the Preliminary information submitted to the CLCS indicative of its outer limits, Chile has also indicated that it reserves the right to make a submission for the area of the continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica, ....not withstanding the provisions
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regarding the ten-year period established by article 4 of Annex II to UNCLOS and the subsequent decision on its application taken by the Eleventh Meeting of States Parties to UNCLOS (United Nations, 2010, Preliminary information indicative of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles. http://www.un.org/Depts/los/clcs_new/commission_ preliminary.htm) highly unsteady on account of the presence of ice shelf physically attached to the continent make it impossible to determine a low-water line and hence a traditional baseline. It is also debatable whether ice shelves or similar such forms of a permanent nature clinging to the continent can be treated as natural extensions of land for the purpose of defining the baselines. The issue of territorial claims: Article 76 defines the continental shelf and outlines the methodology for the delineation of its outer limits as it pertains to a coastal state. As only coastal states can have maritime claims, it becomes necessary to determine whether any state has in fact a territorial claim over Antarctica which would facilitate it to make a maritime claim. Most states do not recognise any territorial or maritime claims over Antarctica. In response to the submissions already made or assertions on the right to make a submission relating to areas of continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica, several states, most notably India, USA, Russia, the Netherlands and Japan have reiterated their position that they do not recognise any claim to territories in Antarctica and do not recognise that a claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica is capable of creating any sort of rights over continental shelf adjacent to Antarctica (see notes verbales submitted by India, USA, Russia, Japan and the Netherlands on the CLCS website, in response to the submissions made by Australia, Norway, the United Kingdom, France and Argentina, cited earlier). A proper and acceptable interpretation of Article IV of the Antarctic Treaty thus assumes significance as a prelude to any claim over the marine domain. Rights of a coastal state over the continental shelf: Article 77 provides sovereign rights to coastal states over their continental shelf for the purpose of exploring it and exploiting its natural resources. It also recognises that the rights of a coastal State over the continental shelf do not depend on occupation, effective or notional, or on any express proclamation. This aspect brings to the fore the territorial sovereignty being asserted over Antarctica. No submissions may be able to resolve this primary issue.
Submission for the areas of the continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica

As noted earlier, despite the uncertainties surrounding the application of UNCLOS and its rules on the continental shelf of Antarctica and the fact that all territorial claims have been put on hold, all claimant states have submitted or have reserved their rights to submit claims to an extended Antarctic continental shelf. The CLCS in turn has resolved that in accordance with its rules of procedure, it is not in a position to consider and qualify those parts of the submissions already received from the coastal states relating to the continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica. However, it is clear that the examination of the submission of the continental shelf claims of Antarctica now or at any later date is likely to be plagued by many scientific and legal law of the sea issues. In particular, the following aspects merit attention: The issue of baselines: Baseline is one the critical elements in the establishment of the outer edge of the continental margin as well as in the definition and delineation of the outer limits of the continental shelf of a coastal state beyond 200 nautical miles as the measurements are made with respect to the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured. Although article 5 prescribes the use of the low water line as the basis for defining normal baselines, CLCS also acknowledges that it is not entitled to issue any recommendations with respect to the delineation of baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured (United Nations, 1999). The distinctive polar conditions and the fact that the coastline of Antarctica at many places is
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References
Rajan, S., 2007, UNCLOS 1982- Exploring for continental shelves beyond 200 nautical miles. Proceedings of the Seminar on Indias EEZ and continental shelf- its exploration, exploitation and conservation, organized by the Indian Maritime Foundation, Pune, February 2007, pp. 16-26. Rothwell, D. R, 2002, The Law of the Sea and the Antarctic Treaty System: Rougher Seas ahead for the Ocean? (in) Jabour-Green, J and Haward, M. (Eds.), the Antarctic: Past, Present and Future. Antarctic CRC Research Report #28, Hobart, pp. 113-125. Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty, 2010, http://www. ats.aq/e/ats_treaty.htm Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research: Antarctic Treaty, 2010, http://www.scar.org/treaty/ United Nations, Division of Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, Office of Legal Affairs, 1997, The law of the Sea: United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea- Agreement relating top the implementation of part XI of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea with Index and excerpts from the Final Act of the Third United Nations Conference of the Law of the Sea, 293 pages. United Nations, 1999, Scientific and Technical Guidelines of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. CLCS/11, 13 May, 1999, United Nations, New York. United Nations, 2001, Decision regarding the date of commencement of the ten-year period for making submissions to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf set out in article 4 of Annex II to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. SPLOS/72, http://daccess-ods.un.org/TMP/9676831. html United Nations, 2008, Decision regarding the workload of the Commission on the Limits of the
Continental Shelf and the ability of States, particularly developing States, to fulfil the requirements of article 4 of Annex II to the Convention, as well as the decision contained in SPLOS/72, paragraph (a). SPLOS/183, http://daccess-ods.un.org/TMP/7605741.html United Nations, 2010, Submissions, through the Secretary-General of the United Nations, to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, pursuant to article 76, paragraph 8, of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982. http://www.un.org/Depts/los/clcs_ new/commission_submissions.htm United Nations, 2010, Preliminary information indicative of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles. http://www.un.org / Depts/los/clcs_new / commission_ preliminary.htm Vijayalaxmi, N. and Rajan, S., 2005, Extending Indian Continental Shelf - A Preliminary Study through Caris Lots. Paper at CARIS 2005 - 10th International User Group Conference and Educational Session, Halifax, Canada, 28-29 September 2005. Walton, D. W. H., 2008, UNCLOS versus the Antarctic Treaty. Antarctic Science, 20, pp 311-311 doi:10.1017/S0954102008001491 Disclaimer: All information provided in this paper has been obtained solely from the public domain, and the ideas expressed do not reflect in any way, the views of the CLCS, in which the author is a member].
India in Arctic and Antarctica and its Geopolitical Significance

Rasik Ravindra, Director, National Centre for Antarctic and
Ocean Research, Goa
The Polar Regions, Arctic, Antarctic and the oceans surrounding the latter, have become house hold names especially after the world has accepted the reality of global warming. These regions, control the climatic regimes of planet earth and offer an ideal laboratory to mankind to probe the issues related to origin of earth, space and upper atmosphere weather, solar activity, earths magnetism, cryosphere, microbial diversity, especially the cold resistant Psychrophilic bacteria, palaeoclimate of planet Earth and scores of other subjects to answer some of the unresolved questions. Apart from providing a platform for observing and measuring several natural parameters these regions contain more than 70 percent of the fresh water resources of the Earth as well as future resources of untapped mineral and hydrocarbons. The exploration and exploitation of the latter has seen accelerated activity in the Arctic lately. The strategic importance of these regions need not be overemphasized as these are the areas of last pristine pockets left undisturbed on the Earth, to serve as the key environmental reserve for future generations. Though India entered the field of polar research rather late, it is catching up with advanced nations in terms of scientific output. Through its dedicated research, coordinated by National Centre for Antarctica and Ocean Research (NCAOR, an autonomous institute of Ministry of Earth Sciences)) at Indian stations Maitri, Himadri and Bharati ( coming up) as also through its regular southern Ocean expeditions, India is contributing towards understanding the basic scientific questions in the field of atmosphere, biology, earth and environmental sciences. India is strategically placed so far as Governance of Antarctica is concerned as it can play a leading role in representing the views of Asian and third world countries at a time when Antarctic Treaty comes up for revision. Polar logistic, including maintenance of research Stations and launching of expeditions
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takes maximum share of the budget of the national Programmes. A matching financial support for advancement of scientific research, by involving more and more universities and institutions, is need of the hour. Prelude
Polar Regions, Arctic and Antarctica, with their wilderness, mysterious nature and scientific potential have always inspired mankind to launch innumerable expeditions to unravel the secrets hidden under the vast expense of snow and ice. India entered the Antarctic foray in 1981 with launch of its first scientific expedition to Antarctica. A Centre dedicated to the Antarctic studies and named as Antarctic Study Centre created in 1988, acted as a forerunner for an autonomous Institute under Ministry of Earth Sciences (then Department of Ocean Development) which was named as National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR) and dedicated to the nation in 1999. The Centre has been given the mandate to plan, promote, co-ordinate and execute the entire gamut of polar science and logistic activities of the country in order to ensure a perceptible and influential presence of India in Antarctica. NCAOR has since then earned a respectable position among the nations involved in Antarctic Research. The Centre has been equipped with some of the state of art laboratories for ice core studies, microbiological and environmental research and related subjects. Apart from maintaining Indias permanent Research bases at Maitri, Antarctica, Himadri in Arctic; the Centre has also been entrusted with the job of construction of a new research station at Larsemann Hills, east Antarctica and is in process of acquiring countries first Polar Research Vessel.
Maintaining linkages with Antarctic Treaty , SCAR
and COMNAP secretariat Establishment of BHARTI- Third Indian Antarctic station and collection of base line data for EIA Studies. Acquisition of a Polar Research Vessel 2 Arctic Programme Coordinating, formulation and execution of multidisciplinary and multi-institutional scientific research at the Indian Arctic Station- HIMADRI. 3. Southern Ocean Expeditions Launching and coordinating scientific tasks of Southern Ocean Expeditions
Antarctic and Arctic Expeditions : Polar Science

Antarctic The Indian Antarctic Programme that commenced in 1981 is multi institutional and multi-disciplinary in nature where more than sixty national organizations, universities and national laboratories join hands in advancement of polar sciences. In all thirty expeditions to Antarctica have been launched till date with one special expedition to Weddle Sea and another for exploration of krill resources. The first Indian station in Antarctica, Dakshin Gangotri, established in 198384, served the Indian team members till 1989, when it sank into snow due to excessive snow accumulation. Maitri the second Indian station was built in an ice free, mountainous area known as Schirmacher Oasis in 1988. The station has been housing expedition members since then and is operating as a Base for launching work in deep interior areas of eastern Antarctica. NCAOR is the nodal agency coordinating the scientific and logistic operations related to the expeditions. The scientific experiments that are being carried out at Antarctica fall in five major domains viz: Atmospheric and meteorological sciences, Earth sciences including geophysics and glaciology; Biology
The Programme
Indian Polar Programme comprises three main components: 1. Antarctic Programme Scientific and logistic tasks linked to Antarctic Expeditions Maintenance of Research Base at Maitri- Indian Antarctic station
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and environmental sciences, Human physiology and medical sciences and Cold region engineering. Some of the major initiatives include: continuous recording of weather parameters, monitoring of Greenhouse gases and operation of Seismic, geomagnetic and permanent GPS Observatories. In addition to this, India has undertaken geological mapping of central Dronning Maud Land on 1:50,000 scale covering more than 18,000 sq km area in central Dronning Maud land of eastern Antarctica, glaciological studies to monitor the health of glaciers and shallow ice core drilling to decipher climate changes in the Holocene. Indian scientists are also working on cold adaptive microbes, mosses and lichens and mapping of the biodiversity in this region. India has to its credit discovery of some of the new species unknown to this area before. A monograph on the lichens of Schirmacher Oasis has also been published. The work on establishing a new research base- Bharatiin the Larsemann Hills, Prydz Bay area, in eastern Antarctica has already been initiated after obtaining the environmental clearance from Committee on Environmental Protection (CEP), a body of the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Committee. India holds prestigious positions in international Antarctic bodies such as SCAR, COMNAP, AFoPS, CAMLR etc. Arctic NCAOR launched Indias first Arctic expedition in August 2007. Indian Arctic research initiative coincides with the ongoing international Polar Year (IPY), which is seen as one of the biggest scientific congregation of nations devoting time, energy and resources to contribute to the understanding of poles and their relevance to the world at large. Under the programme, Indian scientists have been camping at the international research village-Ny Alesund in Spitsbergen Island of the Svalbard archipelago. The scientists representing various institutes and universities undertake studies on topics of interests in consultation with the Svalbard Science Forum, New Alesund Science Management Committee and Norwegian Polar Research Institute.
Union Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, Shri Kapil Sibal inaugurated the Indian research base- HIMADRI at Ny Alesund, Svalbard situated at 78055 N, 11056E, only 1200 kms from the North Pole in the Arctic Region in 2008. With the opening of Himadri India has become the 10th country to have established its full fledged research station at Ny-Alesund. India, thus is among very few nations in the world that operate stations in both Arctic and Antarctic. Indian scientists have varied interests in atmospheric, biological and glaciological sciences. Atmospheric studies so far have focused on simultaneous and continuous measurements of atmospheric electrical field, conductivity and the size distribution of atmospheric aerosols to understand the global electric circuit and solar-terrestrial relationships. Aerosol measurements are specifically targeted to study the source of Arctic summer aerosols, their concentrations and the processes of the new aerosol particle generation in the Arctic regions. The biological investigations aim to study the microorganisms that thrive in different environment in such regions and define the lower temperature limits for life. Geologically, Svalbard Island provides a unique place to study the landforms given rise to by glaciers, rivers and neotectonic activities. Palaeoclimatic studies from the exposed sections and sediments cores are expected to throw significant light on the changing pattern of the climate in recent past. Markers have been put to monitor the movement of a prominent glacier and attempts will be made to map the glacier with Ground Penetrating Radar and obtain the ice core up to the base of the glacier.
Southern Ocean studies

The Southern Ocean is the source and sinks for several intermediate and deep water masses of the world oceans. The research in the Southern Ocean realm underlines the sensitivity of the Southern Ocean region to climatic variability and its importance in our understanding the climate at large. India already has a strong presence in Antarctica for the past 25 years and to bridge the gap in the knowledge, National Centre
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for Antarctic and Ocean Research has been declared as the nodal agency for planning, coordinating and executing all facets of the work related to the Southern ocean expedition. The basic and advanced research programmes proposed to be undertaken during the XI Plan period in the Southern Ocean Sector primarily include: a) Dynamics of the formation and distribution of water masses, currents and sea ice, b) Investigating the relationship between oceanic and atmospheric circulation systems physical basis for biological productivity, c) assessment of the distribution, sources and sinks of carbon, as also deciphering palaeoclimate records preserved in the sediment cores from the southern Ocean, through integrated sedimentological, micropaleontological and geochemical studies, and d) Delineation of space-time variables of the Antarctic Polar Front and Subtropical Convergence in the Indian Ocean Sector of the Southern Ocean. Four cruises (including a Pilot Expedition) launched in the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean during January-March 2004 and January-April 2006, 2009 and 2010 involved about a dozen institutions in the country to understand the complex integrated behavior of the Indian Ocean Sector of the Southern Ocean. The results obtained have since been publishes in national and international journals. The Fifth Cruise set to be launches in January 2011 has two foreign participants from Brazil. India has a Consultative Party Status in the Antarctic Treaty System and takes active part in the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings. It hosted the XXX ATCM (Antarctic Treaty Consultative Committee Meeting) in New Delhi in April-May 2007, a meeting that brought about 300 Polar delegates for the first time to India. The meeting was significant as India got defended its proposal for a new Antarctic Base in Larsemann hills and obtained the clearance from CEP (Committee for Environmental Protection) for it. SCAR, the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research- is one of the most proactive scientific bodies of ICSU that oversees the cooperation in scientific research in Antarctica. SCAR arranges Open Science Conferences once in two years and increasing number of Indian scientists have been presenting their research work in such forum. India also attends the SCAR Delegate Meet apex body that takes administrative decisions. Director NCAOR, Shri Rasik Ravindra occupies the position of Vice President of this body for the term 2008-2012 India joined COMNAP (Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programme) and SCALOP (Standing Committee on Antarctic and Logistic Operations) in 1999. During its XX Meeting at Washington in 2007, Shri Rasik Ravindra, Director NCAOR was elected to its Executive Committee. The position has subsequently been elevated to the Vice Chair (2008-2010). Apart from these international bodies active in polar science, India is also a member of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) and has Chaired this body for a term. It is also one of the founder members of the Asian Forum in Polar Sciences (AFoPS) with China, Japan, Korea and Malaysia as other members and the DROMLAN (Dronning Maud Land Air Operators Network) - that oversees the air operations between South Africa and Antarctica. The AFoPS is active in developing collaborative science and logistic projects among the member nations. India holds current position of Chair of AFoPS as also of the Larsemann Hills Coordination Group.
The South Pole Traverse

The crowning glory for the nation has been the successful traverse to South Pole planned and executed in a meticulous way during the November-December 2010. The expedition was launched simultaneously from Delhi and Goa by the then Minister of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Hble Shri Prithviraj Chavan and His Excellency the Governor of Goa Dr S. S. Sidhu respectively on 2nd November 2010.
International scene
India at ATCM, SCAR, COMNAP/SCALOP, AFoPS and CCAMLR Meets:
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Geopolitics of Arctic and Antarctic and Indias position: Signing of the Antarctic Treaty in Washington in 1959, as a fall out of the IGY resulted in recognizing Antarctica as a region of science and cooperation. Though several countries had conflicting and overlapping claims on the Antarctic territory, the original twelve signatories agreed to freeze their claims as it was realized that it was in the interests of all mankind that Antarctica shall continue forever to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become the scene or object of international discord. This proved to be a major policy stand pertaining to Antarctica and gave rise to Antarctic Treaty system (ATS) - an instrument that has survived the cold war period and flourished to be cited as one of the most successful international agreement. The ATS has kept under suspension the contentious issues relating to claims of sovereignty over different parts of Antarctica. ATS not only ended suspicion among claimant nations but has also has proved an effective management tool to control environmental and other legal issues (Chaturvedi, 2005). Several other agreements that make the ATS such as: the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (Madrid, 1991); the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (CCAS, London, 1972), the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR, Canberra, 1980) and a number of Measures, Resolution and Decisions further strengthened the ATS. The scenario so far as the Arctic is concerned is entirely different The international attention to the Arctic sea region is fast increasing in view of the fast depletion of sea ice cover over there and chances of opening of new sea routes not very far away. Most of the region surrounding Arctic sea fall under the sovereign control of nations of the Arctic Council which was formally established under the Ottawa Declaration of 1996 as a high level intergovernmental forum to provide a means for promoting cooperation, coordination and interaction among the Arctic states, with the express involvement of Arctic indigenous
communities and other Arctic inhabitants on common Arctic issues, especially issues of sustainable development and environmental protection. The Arctic Council comprises Canada, Denmark (Including Greenland and the Faroe Islands), Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation, Sweden and the United States of America. India is not an Arctic country or a member of the Arctic Council but the Svalbard Treaty which came into force on August 14, 1925 (Treaty between Norway, the United States, Denmark, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, the UK and Ireland and the British Dominions beyond the Seas, and Sweden concerning Spitsbergen, and ratified by India) gives it a right to conduct exploration in Svalbard region of Arctic. At Ny Alesund, in Arctic our scientists are joining the other nations in long term monitoring of Kongsfjorden System, pursuing the studies on role of aerosols and precursor gases in direct radiative forcing over Arctic region, studying the microbial diversity such as that of Cyanobacteria and are conducting multi proxy studies on palaeoclimate that would go a long way in understanding the Arctic eco system. India has been invited to attend the Meeting of the International Arctic Science Committee Meeting in 2011 as an Observer. This would offer it an opportunity to show case its scientific achievements in Arctic region which will help it in securing a respectable place in Arctic Council soon. India has started playing a constructive role in matters pertaining to several issues such as preservation of environment in Antarctica, energy management, outreach and capacity building, tourism activity etc. It has voiced its concern over the growing tourism and consequential negative impact on the pristine environment. As per the information circulated by International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO), total numbers of tourists to Antarctica currently, is at a level of more than 45,000 visitors, annually which is more than the total scientists and support staff of national programs visiting the Antarctic each year. Industry figures project a continuing increase in tourism numbers through this decade, although the recent economic downturn may
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slow increases temporarily. During 30th ATCM, held in Delhi, India had put forward that there was a need to give a fresh look at the growth of tourism in Antarctica, in the context of protecting the Antarctic environment. The New Delhi meeting had recommended that Antarctic tourism should be minimized and managed through stringent possible regulations on ship carrying more than 500 passengers, systemic visit of tourists to predefined area along with guide and impact assessment of tourism, etc. During 31st ATCM, India stressed again on the issue of environmentally sound tourism stating that the resources of national programmes may become overstretched to meet the demands of tourism (ATCM, 2008). Considering that India is not a claimant nation in the Antarctic treaty regime, there is a need to define our long term goals, apart from the scientific and research aspects. The international outlook towards Antarctica, especially in view that most of claimant nations have submitted their claims for extended Legal continental shelf (though kept under suspension presently) is under scrutiny by many nations. India needs to develop a long term strategy for Polar Regions, especially as many South Asian countries have started active exploration strategy both in Arctic and Antarctica.
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Session: 2
Atmosphere and Microbial Research in the Polar Realms
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Changing Climate and Microbial Resources in Polar Realms.

Biological Oceanography, National Institute of Oceanography, Dona Paula, Goa 403 004
P. A. Loka Bharathi,
The current climate changes that we are experiencing is attributable to both natural and man made causes. Either way it would be pertinent to be able to assess the impact at various levels to help us prepare for the consequences to a certain extent. Though the effect of these changes are obvious at the higher trophic levels, it is only subtle and far reaching at the microbial level. Microorganisms are the main affecters, respondents and catalysts of these changes. More importantly, they are a source of a varied compounds with wide ranging applications in many fields. It would be pertinent to examine their role in polar climate and appreciate the products that are already being harnessed from these regions. Then it would be possible to chalk out means and ways we could preserve these sources and then think about the policy of sharing these future commons. My talk would mostly restrict to the first half.
To many of us who do not belong to the field of microbiology, microbes are synonymous with outbreaks of endemic or pandemic diseases. Like newspaper headlines in the first pages, the negatives catch more attention than the positives which are generally relegated to the inner pages. However, microbes are the main drivers of all activities on the planet earth particularly at all types of extreme environments like hyperbaric conditions of deep sea, thermophilic conditions of hydrothermal vents, hypersaline waters and sediments of salt lakes and pyschrotrophic conditions at the poles. The ability to thrive in extreme condition could be partly linked to their evolution. They evolved with the earth.. four billion years ago and made higher life possible by participating in the evolution
of oxygen. The appearance of photosynthesis more than two billion years ago helped to shape the chemical environment that allowed the evolution of multicellular organisms and complex biological communities, including human societies. Their evolutionary success is also evident in their abundance and ubiquity. Publications from the International Census of Marine Microbes clearly shows how their abundance could be enormous at 1 x1029 .Without them there would be little replenishment of nutrients and trophic levels that feed the higher forms on which man depends. The metabolism of marine microorganisms continues to maintain major biogeochemical cycles that other organisms cannot complete, including significant production of the oxygen required for
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aerobic life. For example, although terrestrial plants make up the vast majority of photosynthetic biomass on the planet, marine phytoplankton carry out almost half of the global net photosynthesis. The relatively high rate of photosynthesis per unit of biomass for marine phytoplankton, compared with terrestrial plants, derives from their rapid rates of metabolism and turnover. These facts have implications for the potential response time of microbial assemblages to climate variability. At the poles, sea ice has a marked influence on interactions between the ocean and atmosphere Though biogenic production of green house gases like carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide also affect the climate in the polar regions the effect of the anti green house gas dimethylsulphide (DMS) has been more pursued in these regions. The contribution of DMS from the poles has been of interest for more than 10 years. The flux estimates of DMS from the Antarctic Zone and Seasonal Ice Zone suggests that the emission of DMS from this region is 17% of the global emission. Studies of DMSP (the precursor compound of DMS) in Antarctic sea ice are sparse, with the current data set consisting of less than 200 measurements. Phytoplankton produce dimethylsulfoniopropinate (DMSP) which is known to play the role of an osmolyte and cryoprotectant. It is also known to counter the oxidative and nutrient stress. This compound is degraded to DMS by marine bacteria. DMS is either reused by these bacteria or degraded abiogenically to various S-containing molecules. DMS in the atmosphere is rapidly oxidized to SO2 which ends up as sulfate aerosols. These aerosols control the formation of the clouds by providing seeds for condensation. The cloud cover lowers the surface temperature. It is hypothesized that through this negative loop feedback, marine phytoplankton stabilize the global temperature so that the latter is optimum for its growth. In recent years, polar waters have been shown to be much more biologically active systems and dynamic than previously thought. The process is more pronounced in the poles during the respective summers but more so in the Antarctic than Arctic because of the ice cover that releases the phytoplankton. Moreover, the influence of DMS on aerosol and cloud formation is also known to be most pronounced in the unpolluted marine atmosphere, such as that over the Southern Ocean. Glacial-age ice core samples from Vostok, Antarctica indicate a link between enhanced DMS flux to the atmosphere and high iron-bearing dust concentrations. More recently, evidence from ice cores drilled in different regions of Antarctica and new interpretations of the chemical signatures that they contained, challenges the proposed link between increased dust deposition and elevated DMS emissions from the glacial Southern Ocean These recent studies therefore demonstrate the complex relationship that exists between oceanic primary productivity and sea surface DMS concentrations and justifies more intense observations on a dynamic scale . Besides contributing to climate modulating processes, microbial metabolites could contribute to a plethora of products useful to man. Some of the most important bioactive molecules are because of their ability to thrive under extreme conditions. It is known that microbes, like any other living organism, require certain environmental conditions for survival and growth like (a) temperature; (b) water; (c) molecular oxygen; (d) pH; and (e) osmotic pressure, among others. While humans can only survive on a narrow range of such conditions, microbial life could extend their existence to the extremities. Interestingly, it has been found that there could be even cross-talk between various stress factors like for example many psychrophilic organisms are also able to adapt to high salinity conditions. These organisms survive in the Arctic, Antarctica or any extreme environment because of their unique configurations of genes and proteins The polar realms have been a source of vast number of microbes from which various bioactive compounds have been isolated. Recently the focus is on isolating whole genetic sequences for throughput screening . These genetic resources are Antarcticas extremophilic bacteria or animals that live in harsh environments like frigid water and lakes that are 10 times saltier than saltwater.
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Antifreeze proteins have been used from microbial sources and higher organisms for processing low fat food items like ice cream. Such proteins can also be used to improve surgery and tissue transplants. Plants could also be engineered to produce these protein to be more tolerant to freezing. Cold-adapted enzymes show potential for improving products from bread to beer. A great number of biotechnological processes use enzymes mainly due to their region and stereoselectivity. Enzymes from extremophiles are especially useful since many industrial processes include procedures that require harsh conditions. Food, detergent, pharmaceuticals, and paper industry, among others, are taking advantage of these enzymes in order to improve their processes. Thus the crucial roles of marine microorganisms even in frigid poles in maintaining the well-being of our planet, is now increasingly being realized . These inhabitants have been severely time tested and they have not been frozen in time but active at their own pace in these extreme conditions. In depth knowledge about them could continue to help develop new
products, technologies and even explore extra terrestrial life at Mars and Europa. However, one of the most serious challenges this century will be to understand how best we can maintain these precious resources and also delineate how climate change past, present and future influences life on earth. As these continents especially Antarctica influences world weather and climate patterns, they are regions where climate change studies could be carried out. place It would therefore be the need of the hour to increase the pace of basic research in understanding the biodiversity, dynamics and kinetics in these systems during these rapid climate changes. Some measures could be taken to focus more on microbes for potentially important metabolites and compounds because these are more replenishable resources than the higher organisms or plants. Regulatory laws and appropriate enforcement could be ensured for sample sharing and conservation. More importantly. Marine Protected Areas(MPAs) could be earmarked to protect even microbes because it is now proposed that microbes are best maintained in situ in the realm of their origin.
Aerosol properties over coastal Antarctica during Southern hemispheric summer: Scavenging by snow and possible climate implications
Space Physics Laboratory, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Trivandrum 695 022, India
S. Suresh Babu, Jai Prakash Chaubey and K Krishna Moorthy
Optical and physical properties (AOD, MB and MT)of aerosols were measured over two Antarctic locations, Maitri [70S, 12E, 123 m mean sea level (msl)] and Larsemann Hills (LH; 69S, 77E, 48 m msl) as a part of the twenty seventh and twenty eighth Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica during Southern Hemispheric summer. Our investigations showed comparable values of mean columnar AOD at 500 nm over Maitri (0.034 0.005) and LH (0.032 0.006) indicating good spatial homogeneity in the columnar aerosol properties over the coastal Antarctica. On the other hand, mass concentration (MT) of ambient aerosols showed relatively high values (m8.25 2.87 g m3) at Maitri in comparison to LH (6.03 1.33 g m3). Similarly, the black carbon mass concentration (MB) and its mass mixing ratio to the total aerosols were also much high over Maitri (~ 75 ng m-3 and 2%) compared to LH (13 ng m-3 and 0.2 %). The Angstrom exponent (aabs) estimated from the spectral values of absorption coefficients (sabs) are found to vary from 0.5 to 1 indicating high black carbon to organic carbon ratio, typical of fossil fuel origin. At both locations, MB fell abruptly after blizzards, after which the values reduced to nearly as half the pre-blizzard values. Introduction
Polar regions hold an important place while answering the key questions about the global climate change and contribution towards the background aerosol properties. Antarctic continent at the extreme south, separated from the other populated continental masses, making it one of the most pristine places on the Earth (Wall, 2005). Not only that, the large ice sheet of the Antarctic continent affects atmospheric circulation patterns over this region, which affects the transport and removal of the aerosols particles (Shaw, 1979). On the other hand, absorbing aerosols like Black
Session: 2
carbon (BC) aerosols influence this snow or ice cover by warming the atmosphere (by light absorption), reducing surface incident solar energy (dimming), and reducing the snow reflectance (darkening) due to deposition (Flanner et al., 2009). Viewed in the light of the preceding discussions, the Antarctic region with its vast snow cover assumes significance. The properties of background aerosols and their dependence on meteorological, geographical and human influence are examined using measured spectral aerosol optical depth (AOD), total mass concentration (MT) and black carbon mass concentration over two distinct coastal locations of Antarctica; Maitri (70S, 12E, 123 m MSL) and Larsemann Hills (LH; 69S, 77E, 48 m MSL) during the southern hemispheric summer of 2007 08 (International Polar Year) and 2008-09, as a part of the 27th and 28th Indian Scientific Expeditions to Antarctica (ISEA). The data are also examined to understand the aerosol types at both the locations, scavenging and its subsequent replenishments during the blizzards. This BC aerosol scavenging by snow can leads to change in snow albedo (Hansen and Nazarenko, 2004) and will have strong climate implications.
Site description and Instrumentation

The station locations are shown in Figure 1. The two Indian stations have distinctly different features. LH, where India is going to have its third station, is one pristine island (in a group of islands) very near the open ocean and as of now it is free from any human habitation. The islands of LH are separated by ocean water, either in the form of sea ice or in the form of open ocean during summer. The extent of the ocean water in between different islands varies from a few meters to a few kilometers. On the other hand, Maitri is situated on Schirmacher Oasis (35 km2 of rocky area), which is near to continental ice and almost 75 km away from the open ocean. The Maitri station had a population of 75 investigators during summer and many more day to day human activities compared to LH. As such, on the whole Maitri is a continental station under moderate anthropogenic influence while LH is rather pristine and is more under the influence of marine environments.
Figure 1: Location of coastal Indian Antarctic stations Maitri and Larsemann Hills Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
53
Spectral measurements of columnar aerosol optical depth at 340, 380, 500, 675 and 870 nm were made at every 30 minutes by using a freshly calibrated hand held microtops Sun Photometer (Solar Light Company, USA) whenever the solar disc and its neighborhoods were free from visible clouds. Total mass concentration (MT) and mass size distribution of near-surface aerosols (in the ambient) were measured using the Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM, model PC2, California Measurements Inc.) cascade impactor which makes size resolved measurements of aerosol mass concentration in its 10 size bins in between 0.05 m to 25 m. The above described measurements were carried out during 27th ISEA where as near real time measurements of the mass concentration of BC (MB) were estimated at LH and Maitri by using 7 channel portable aethalometer (model AE 41, Magee Scientific) and mass concentration of composite aerosols were estimated using a single stage high volume sampler (HVS; model GHV 2000P1, Thermo Anderson) during 28th ISEA. Results Columnar AOD values at 500 nm and total mass concentration of ambient aerosols are shown respectively in top and bottom panel of Figure 2.The AOD at 500 nm showed the peak value of 0.046 (on 13 January 2008) and least value of 0.026 (on 08 February 2008) with an average of 0.034 0.005 for the full study period at Maitri. As Maitri is situated on an oasis, dust particles from the oasis both produced and transported by the winds would be significant. Maitri also experiences a fair amount of local station activities during the summer periods, not only that
the anthropogenic influence from the nearby stations of Maitri will also have its contribution. Moreover, advection from the neighboring stations lying upwind, movement of men and transport of goods (more frequent during Antarctic summer at all stations) also contribute to the local (regional) aerosol abundance and to the day to day variations in the AOD. Nevertheless, the average AOD values measured by us over Maitri were comparable to those measured over LH (within the standard deviation), except that, over LH, the AOD depicted smaller day to day variations, remaining between 0.026 and 0.038 with an average of 0.032 0.006. This agreement between AODs at the two locations indicates the prevalence of spatially homogeneity in columnar aerosol abundance at coastal Antarctic atmosphere spatially. This is in contrast to that reported over the populated continental regions of northern hemisphere where significant heterogeneity (vertically and spatially) due to elevated aerosol layers are reported frequently (Satheesh et al., 2008). From spectral measurements of AOD, Angstrom exponent a was estimated by the least square fitting to the each spectral optical depth measurements in loglog scale (Angstrom, 1964). Our study shows that spectral variation is flat for LH compared to Maitri, indicating aerosol size distribution at Maitri and LH are different. At Maitri, the daily average a varied from 0.8 to 1.6 with an average of 1.2 0.3, whereas for LH it varied from 0.6 to 1 with an average a of 0.7 0.2 which is significantly lower than that at Maitri.
Session: 2
Figure 2: (a) Daily mean aerosol optical depth (t) at 500 nm for the Maitri and LH (b) Daily mean total mass concentration (MT), where the error bars are the standard deviation from the mean values.
As shown in Figure 2(b) MT depicted fairly large dayto-day variation at Maitri, from a minimum value of 4.4 g m3 to a maximum of 14.7 g m3, with a mean value of 8.25 2.87 g m3. Comparatively lower values are found at LH where it varied from 4.58 g m3 to 8.53 g m3 with a mean value of 6.03 1.33 g m3 for the study period. While the minimum values at both locations are comparable, showing the homogeneity in the background values over coastal Antarctica. The standard deviation in MT at Maitri was quite larger than the deviations at LH, similar to
the columnar AOD. The low variabilities in MT at LH are consistent with the subdued station activities and the absence of any neighbouring stations upwind. Blizzard (accompanied by high wind, snowfall, and snow or ice drift) resulted into the reduction of AOD and Angstrom exponent a over Maitri where as total mass concentration MT remained more or less same. The large regional differences in the BC concentrations at Maitri and LH are shown in Figure 3(a).
55
Figure 3. (a) Temporal variation of the daily mean MB at LH where the vertical bars through them represent the standard deviations. The values pertaining to each of the stations are identified by the bars, where the unshaded parts with the letter B identify the blizzard events and the length of the unshaded bar corresponds to the duration of the blizzards, (b) The time series of the BC scavenging during the long blizzard event at LH and (c) similar to (b) but during an intense snowfall event at Maitri
The daily mean values at LH varied between 4 and 19 ng m3 with an average value of 13 5 ng m3, compared to the concentrations at Maitri where the daily average values varied from 20 to 157 ng m3 with an average value of 75 33 ng m3. The day to day variations and variations within a day (as revealed by the size of the standard deviation, which indicates the measured variability in Figure 3(a) are much subdued at LH compared to that for Maitri. We estimated the average value of MB corresponding to each sampling duration of the HVS, and the ratio MB/MT (mass fraction of BC) was estimated. It is interesting to note that, while MT over Maitri is about
half that at LH, the mass fraction of BC over Maitri is 10 times greater than that at LH. The consistent and noteworthy feature was the abrupt fall in MB levels associated with the blizzard episodes. The time series shows a consistent and almost exponential decrease in BC concentration throughout the episode, reaching very low values and recovering rapidly to the normal day levels shortly after the cessation of the episode, indicating a fast replenishment. At LH, during the strong and long event shown in Figure 3(b), the decrease was remarkable and sustained, decreasing from 22 to 8 ng m3 after 24 h of the start of the blizzard and continuing to decrease with time, though slowly; after
Session: 2
109 h from the start, the concentration was near the detectable level of the instrument, which is as low as 2 ng m3. At Maitri also, the blizzard also presented a spectacular depletion in the concentration. As shown in figure 3(c) , MB decreased from 87 ng m3 (before the start of the blizzard ) to as low as 15 ng m3 after 15 h of the blizzard event, showing a significant decrease of BC values in the atmosphere. Nevertheless, even after blizzard the BC concentration values remained higher than the normal day values at LH, probably due to the higher levels of BC prevailing over Maitri, the certain degree of anthropogenic activities, and the shorter duration of the blizzard episodes there. This drastic decrease showed that the amount of BC scavenged by snowfall is a function of the amount of snowfall and also its duration. The amounts of BC being deposited on snow and ice by scavenging will affect the snow albedo and can have great climate implications. From the aethalometer measurements at different wavelengths, the spectral values of absorption coefficients and Angstrom exponent were estimated. We found that the Angstrom exponent vary from 0.5 to 1, indicating higher a BC to organic carbon ratio typical of fossil fuel origin at both the locations Maitri and LH.
Snow scavenging leads to substantial removal of BC from the atmosphere. BC scavenged or dry deposited on snow and ice can produce large climatic and radiative implications. This needs to be investigated in detail for delineating the local effects in the ambient aerosol concentrations.
References
Angstrom, A., (1964) The parameters of atmospheric turbidity. Tellus XIVV (14), 64 75. Flanner, M. G., et al. (2007), Present day climate forcing and response from black carbon in snow, J. Geophys. Res., 112, D11202, doi:10.1029/ 2006JD008003. Hansen, J., and L. Nazarenko (2004), Soot climate forcing via snow and ice albedos, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A., 97(101), 423428, doi:10.1073/ pnas.2237157100. Satheesh, S. K., et al. (2008), Climate implications of large warming by elevated aerosols over India, Geophysical Research Letters, 33, L20816, doi:10.1029/2008GL034944. Shaw, G.E.: (1979), Consideration on the origin and optical properties of the antarctic aerosol, Review of Geophysics and Space Sciences, 17, 1983-1998. Wall, D. H., (2005) Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in terrestrial habitats of Antarctica, Antarctic Science, 17(4), 523531.
Summary
Mean AOD over Maitri (0.034 0.005) is comparable to that at LH (0.032 0.006), showing the spatial homogeneity in aerosol properties over the Antarctic atmosphere. Estimated showed a fine mode dominance at Maitri (~1.2) and coarse mode dominance at LH (~ 0.7) Blizzard resulted into the reduction of AOD and Angstrom exponent over Maitri where as total mass concentration M T remained more or less same. Mean BC mass concentration at LH and Maitri during the study period were 13 4 ng m3 (which is comparable to the values reported for the other few coastal Antarctic locations) and 75 33 ng m3 (which is on the higher side of the background concentration and values reported at other coastal Antarctic locations), respectively. The BC mass fraction was 10fold higher at Maitri (0.02) relative to LH (0.002).
57
Ozone Hole over Poles

S. L. Jain, Radio & Atmospheric Sciences Division
National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi- 110 012
Current Status
The ozone in the stratospheric is of great importance for very survival of life on the mother planet the Earth. Ozone acts as an umbrella and protects us from the harmful ultraviolet radiations coming from the Sun. The catalytic destruction of ozone by ClOx & NOx in general and ozone hole phenomenon over Antarctica during spring time in particular has generated unprecedented interest in monitoring of ozone and other trace constituents in the atmosphere. The satellites have proved to be an important tool to monitor the global ozone column on regular basis. The ozone data using various satellite platforms has been analyzed for the ozone hole studies over north and south poles. Also Ozone measurements were carried out at Maitri, Antarctica. The satellite data indicates that some recovery of ozone hole as a result of international efforts in reduction of use of CFCs which are the main culprit for ozone hole. However it will be too early to conclude about ozone hole recovery. In the present communication current status of ozone hole will be discussed in detail.
Introduction
Ozone is one of the most important constituent in atmosphere and in spite of its low concentration, a few ppmv in mixing ratio, it plays an important role not only in the chemistry of this region but also it affects climate and biological activity. Ozone in the stratosphere is very important as it acts as a shield for the Earth and protects life from harmful UV-B radiation coming from the sun. However, the ozone in the troposphere is a green house gas, trapping the long wave radiation in 9.6 mm band and thus affecting the energy budget of the earth atmosphere system. The amount of ozone over any particular place depends not only on photochemical balance, but also on the stratospheric climate, the winds that disperse the ozone. The stratosphere itself is dependent on ozone for its existence. The energy absorbed by ozone in the course of creation and destruction of its layer warms the surrounding atmosphere creating temperature inversion. This inverted layer, which is the stratosphere, is very resistant to vertical movements of air and acts as a cap on the turbulent weather processes in the troposphere below1. The reporting of catalytic depletion of ozone by ClOx and NOx by Johnston2 (1971) in general and ozone hole over Antarctica in particular by Farman3 has generated an unprecedented surge of interest in
Session: 2
the scientific community in monitoring of ozone. It has now been established that the cause of very low ozone in Antarctic spring is due to the presence of CFCs and Polar Stratospheric Clouds (PSCs) that forms polar vortex. Very low temperature during winter leads to the formation of polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs)4. The heterogeneous chemical reactions take place on the surface of polar stratospheric clouds, which are responsible for the ozone hole phenomenon during springtime over Antarctica4. Warm ozone-laden air from the mid latitudes cannot get in, so the temperature inside the vortex plunges even lower. More and more icecrystal clouds form in the freezing air, triggering even greater ozone losses. After the discovery of ozone hole and innovative research efforts, it become clear that at very low temperature (<-80oC) in the lowest stratosphere, chemical reactions were taking place which needed the presence of liquid or ice particles either as ice or nitric acid trihydrate, or other mixture. They lead to the conversion of chlorine compounds, which normally are present as HCl and ClONO2 in the stratosphere. Normally these gases do not react with ozone. However, in the presence of ice particles, HCl and Chlorine Nitrate are converted into Cl2 and HNO3, and if UV-Solar radiation is available then Cl2 is converted into Cl atoms, which next react with ozone to form ClO. Thereafter, a new chemical scheme, involving Cl2O2 as intermediate, comes into action which destroys ozone very efficiently.5 However, planetary waves work against CFCinduced ozone destruction. These vast pressure waves influence ozone destruction in several ways and can have relevant impact on the size and stability of the massive jet stream encircling Antarctica called the Antarctic vortex6-7. Ozone have been found to be strongly affected by the dynamical behavior of the polar vortex8. When the strength of planetary waves picks, they exert a force on the vortex, which blow it apart. As the vortex breaks down, the surrounding warm, ozone-rich air mix with the air over Antarctica, raising ozone concentrations above the threshold for ozone hole9. The day-to-day size of the ozone hole is really controlled by the fine details of weather and needs more attention. The satellite data from NASA9-10 have been used for the study of current status of the ozone hole over Antarctica as well as over Arctic. Also a highly sophisticated and hand held microprocessor based sun photometer, i.e., MICROTOP-II, has been used to measure total ozone, water vapour, optical depth etc. at Maitri, Indian Antarctica research station during the year 1997-98 and 2002-03. In the present communication the current scenario of ozone hole over polar regions is discussed in detail.
Experimental Setup
The MICROTOP-II The MICROTOP-II is a five channels hand held microprocessor based sun photometer with a full field of view of 2.50. The instrument has five optical collimators aligned to aim in the same direction. A narrow-band interference filter and a photodiode suitable for the particular wavelength range are fitted with every channel. All the channels face directly the solar disc simultaneously when the image of the sun is centered at the cross hairs of the sun target. When the radiation captured by the collimators falls onto the photodiodes, it produces an electrical current proportional to the received radiant power, which amplified and converted into digital form in a high resolution A/D converter. Signals are processed in a series of 20 conversions per second. Out of the five channels at 300, 305, 312, 940 and 1020 nm, the first three filter channels are used to derive atmospheric total ozone column and other two for water vapour11. Laser Heterodyne System A high resolution Laser Heterodyne system with 1 GHz acousto-optical spectrometer as backend was designed and developed at National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi for study of vertical profiles of various trace species including ozone profiles at Maitri, Antarctica during normal as well as ozone hole conditions12. The Laser Heterodyne System has been successfully operated at Maitri (70o 46 S , 11o 44 E) an Indian Antarctic station during 13th, 14th and 16th Indian Antarctic Expedition to obtain ozone
59
line spectra at 1043.1775 cm-1 with an ultra high spectral resolution. The line spectra thus obtained with high spectral resolution in turn has been used to get vertical profiles of ozone in the atmosphere using inversion technique developed at NPL for Antarctic conditions13. A guess profile of uniform mixing ratio of 3 ppm has been used for the retrieval. The system
was operated during ozone hole period also. The typical retrieved profiles during normal period and during ozone hole period are shown in Fig. 1 (a) and (b) respectively. The ozone was found to be depleting during ozone hole period from 3 percent to 68 percent in the height range of 13 to 40 km14.
Fig.1 Vertical profiles of Ozone using Laser Hetrodyne system at Maitri (a) Normal period (b) Ozone hole period
Session: 2
Results And Discussion
MicrotopIi Data At Maitri, Antarctica The variation of total ozone from January to December for the years 1997, 2002, 2003 and 2004 measured using MICROTOPII at Maitri, Antarctica is shown in Fig.1. The maximum ozone up to 320- 340 DU has been recorded in the months of January and February in all the years. The gap in the figure is due to nonavailability of data during polar night. The minimum value of total ozone of about in the range 126 to 185 were observes during the last week of the September or the first week of October and found to be fluctuating on year to year basis depending on the meteorological conditions over Maitri. The observation suggests that the ozone hole in the year 2002 was not as deeper as in the year 2003. The observation also reveals the early recovery of ozone hole in the year 2002 as compared to other observational years as depicted in Fig. 2. The ozone depletion was started from 1st September, 2002 onwards. Exceptionally high values up to 361DU of total ozone column were observed during ozone hole period during 7th and 8th September, 2002. Ozone hole started recovering around 23rd September, 2002, however, some exceptional variations were also observed during recovery period of ozone hole as shown in Fig 2. The observation at Maitri showed recovery around 24 25 September 2002, the early recovery of ozone hole in last week of the September in 2002 can be explained by Varotsos15-16 finding. Varotsos16 have performed a Fourier analysis of the 10 hpa height and the temperature time series at the high latitude of the southern hemisphere. He found that extremely large amplitude of planetary waves were present which broke up Antarctic ozone hole into two holes17 on 24-25 September, 2002 as seen in Fig 3. After the breakup, the polar vortex reforms and subsequently disappeared very early. NASA press release17 also represented the prevalence of strong planetary waves in Antarctica. The vortex break up and disappearance have been attributed to the occurrence of a major sudden stratospheric warming in Antarctica due to the occurrence of very strong planetary waves.
Fig. 2: The variation of Column Ozone during 1997 and 2002-2004 at Maitri, Antarctica
61
Fig. 3 Satellite imagery of the ozone hole17 over Antarctica on 26 September
The Maitri Station is situated in the fringe region of the vortex. The observed abrupt high total ozone on 7th, 8th September and also during recovery period from 23rd September onwards as shown in Fig. 2 may be attributed to the planetary wave phenomenon. The planetary wave phenomenon forces the ozone rich air masses from mid latitude to polar latitude region and the rapid displacement of the polar vortex from a roughly symmetric circulation about the pole to a
circulation that is offset from the pole, which leads to the stratospheric sudden warming for a short period over the fringe region of the vortex. If the strengths of these waves is high enough then this forces the ozone reach air mass inside the polar vortex and sudden increase in the total ozone may takes place18-22. Satellite Data Over Antarctica The variation of minimum Column Ozone over
Fig. 4, Variation of minimum Column Ozone over Antarctica during Ozone hole period 1979-2010
Session: 2
Antarctica during Ozone hole period in the years 1979-2010 observed by satellite data9-10 is depicted in Fig 4. Also the area covered by ozone hole in the years 1979-2010 is depicted in the Fig. 5. It is observed that there is a large variation in minimum ozone values during the September- October and varies between 73 DU to 194 DU and minimum value of 73 DU was observed in the year 1994. The maximum ozone hole area was found to be minimum in the year 1979 as 1.1 million square km and maximum was found to be 29.9 million square km in the year 2000 after which it started to decrease. During 2010 maximum ozone hole area was found to be 22.2 million square km. It is further found that the ozone hole is weakening year after year after the ban on ozone depleting chemicals with the Montreal protocol and its time to time
Fig. 5 Variation of maximum Ozone Hole area over Antarctica during the years 1979-2010
amendments and adjustments. Ozone Hole Over Arctic: Significant ozone depletion in the Arctic stratosphere also occurs in cold winters because of reactive halogen gases. The depletion, however, is much less than the depletion that now occurs in every Antarctic winter and spring. Although Arctic depletion does not generally create persistent ozone hole-like features in Arctic total ozone maps, depletion is observed in altitude profiles of ozone and in long-term average values of polar ozone. An Arctic Ozone Hole, if similar in size to the Antarctic Ozone Hole, could expose over 700+ million people, wildlife and plants to dangerous UV ray levels. The Arctic winter stratosphere is generally warmer than its Antarctic counterpart. Higher temperatures reduce polar stratospheric cloud (PSC) formation, which slows the conversion of reactive chlorine gases to
form ClO and, as a consequence, reduces the amount of ozone depletion. Furthermore, the temperature and wind conditions are much more variable in the Arctic from winter to winter and within a winter season than in the Antarctic. Large year-to-year differences occur in Arctic minimum temperatures and the duration of PSCforming temperatures into early spring. In a few Arctic winters, minimum temperatures are not low enough for PSCs to form. These factors combine to cause ozone depletion to be variable in the Arctic from year to year, with some years having little to no ozone depletion. A significant difference exists between the Northern and Southern Hemispheres in how ozonerich stratospheric air is transported into the polar regions from lower latitudes during fall and winter. In the northern stratosphere, the pole ward and downward transport of ozone-rich air is stronger. As a result, total ozone values in the Arctic are considerably
63
Fig. 6 Spring ozone depletion over the Antarctic and the Arctic between 1979 and 2002 Source: http://www.acia.uaf.edu/23
higher than in the Antarctic at the beginning of each winter season as shown in Fig. 623.
Conclusion
It has also been observed that the year to year large variation in ozone depletion at Antarctica as well as over Arctic depending on the meteorological conditions prevailing over the polar regions. The data analysis performed gives the following conclusions, which provide a plausible observational explanation of the unusual behavior of the ozone hole over Antarctica in year 2002. The earlier recovery of ozone hole was observed in year 2002 compare to other years and the effect of planetary wave on the vortex and thereby the total column ozone is visible over the station situated at the fringe of the polar vortex. It is clear from the observations that the vortex breakdown due to planetary wave phenomenon can occur during ozone hole period and has a large influence on total ozone. Relatively warm air extending to the pole indicates that a polar stratospheric major warming was taking place . The observation may be useful in the study of dynamics of waves and their influence on the vortex formation, movement and breakdown. It has also been observed that large fluctuation in ozone depletion at Antarctica as well as over Arctic. The ozone hole over Artic is not as severe as that over Antarctica , due to its geographical location and being
warmer than Antarctica, however an Arctic Ozone Hole, if similar in size to the Antarctic Ozone Hole, could expose over 700+ million people, wildlife and plants to dangerous UV ray levels. Also the ground based as well as satellite borne experiments show that there are indications of slowly recovery of ozone hole. The ozone hole data does give any indication of the long-term trend and the measurements show that the CFC concentrations in the stratosphere are leveling off and in the lowest layer of the atmosphere, the troposphere, CFC concentrations have started to decline due to the decisions taken by international community under Montreal Protocol, its subsequent adjustments and amendments to stop the use of ozone depleting chemicals. These measurements indicate that the ozone hole is not worsening, and may soon start to improve. However, this improvement is going to come very slowly and will take few decades before ozone hole recovers depending on how the CFC concentrations levels off due to their long life time.
Acknowledgement
The author wish to express his sincere gratitude to the Director, NPL and Head, RASD, for their encouragement during the progress of the work. Author thanks the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), India, in the emeritus scientist
Session: 2
scheme for the financial support. Thanks are also due to National Space Science Data Center, NASA, Goddard Space Flight Center, USA, for receiving data from their web site. (http://www.science.nasa.gov/) and http://www.theozonehole.com/arcticozone.htm and also to NCAOR, Goa for providing platform to perform experiments at Maitri and financial support. 185, 30 September 2002 (Http://toms.gsfc.nasa.gov). 18. Brinksma, E..J., Meijer, Y. J., Connor, B. J., Manney, G.L., Bergwerff, J. W., and Swart, D. P. J., 19th ILRC, NASA, 1998, pp-.319. 19. Schoeberl, M. R., Lait, L. R, Newman, P. N., Martin, R. L., Proffitt, M. H., Hartmann, D. L., Loewenstein, M. Podolske.\, J. Strahan, Anderson, J., Chan, K. P., and Gary, B., J Geophys. Res, 1989, 94, 16815. 20. Jones, A. E., T. Bowden, and J. Turner, J. Appl. Metorol., 1998, 37, 477-485. 21. Kirchoffs, V.W., C.A.R. Casiccia, and F. Zamorano, J. Geophys. Res., 1997, 102, 8945-8953. 22. Lee Adrian, M. lee Howard, k.,.Roscoe, Anna E. Jones, Peter H. Haynes, Emily F. Schuckburg, Martin W. Morrey, and Hugh C. Pumphery, , J Geophys. Res., 2001 106, 3203-3211. 23. Arctic Climate Impact Assessment:Factors affecting arctic ozone variability in the Arctic, Published: February 9, 2010, 2:55 pm ,Edited: February 9, 2010, 2:55 pm
References
1. Dennis, L. Hartmann, Global Physical Climatology, Academic Press, San Diego, CA 1994 2. Johnston, H. S., Sciences, 1971, 173, 517. 3. Farman, J. C., Gardiner, B. G. and Shanklin, J. D,. Nature (GB), 1985, 315, 207. 4. Manney, G. L., Froidevaux, L., Waters., Geophys. Res. Lett. 1996, 23(1), 85-88. 5. Crutzen, P. J., Globale environmental Chemistry,(ed. Mitra, A. P), 1998. 6. Newman, P. N., Geophys Res Lett (USA), 1986, 13, 1228. 7. Chandra, S., and McPeters, R. D., Geophys. Res. Lett(USA), 1986 13 1224. 8. Carswell, A. I., Bird, J. C., Donovan, D. P., Duck, T. J, Pal, S. R., and Velkov, D., 19th ILRC NASA. 1998, pp-.327. 9. Newman, P., Science news, NASA, 2002 (www. science.nasa.gov/.), www.ozonewatch.gsfc.nasa.gov 10. http://www.theozonehole.com/arcticozone.htm 11. Jain, S. L., Asian J Phys, 2001, 10, 315. 12. S. L. Jain, Laser heterodyne system for measurement of minor constituents of atmosphere, J. Radio & Space Phys. 25, 309-317 (1996). 13. Jain, S.L. (1987). Inversion technique to get vertical profiles of ozone in atmosphere using laser heterodyne system. Indian J. Radio & Space Phys. 16, 324 (1987). 14. JAIN S.L (2008)Lidars for Atmospheric Probing: A Review. Journal ptica Pura y Aplicada, 41 (2) 129-133 (2008) 15. Kondratyev, K. Y., and C. Varotsos., SpringerPraxis, Chichester, 2000, pp-617. 16. Varotsos, C., ESPR- Environ Sci & Pollut Res, 2002, 9 (6) 375-376 17. NASA/NOAA, in Ozone Hole Press release, 02-
65
Marine biodiversity variation in the low-latitude region
Possible Impact of Polar Climatic Perturbations

Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi-221005
A. D. Singh, Centre of Advanced Study in Geology
In order to understand response of marine biota to changes in ocean environment linked to global climatic fluctuations, it is essential to study how various biotic groups were evolved in the oceans, their diversifications, and selective extinctions during certain geological periods and its possible causes?. Marine sediment records have been the best storehouse of history of changes in oceanss environments (physico-chemical) occurred in the past and its impact on the marine life. Valuable information about the past biological changes in oceans are extracted from the shells preserved in sediments (as fossils) that were secreted by microscopic fauna and flora remarkably sensitive to minor changes in oceanic environment. Studies have suggested that climatic perturbations triggered changes in ocean environment (sea surface temperature, sea level, ocean currents, surface and bottom circulations, nutrient condition and oxygen level etc.) causing major changes in marine biota. The changes in physicochemical condition of ocean influence profoundly marine biotic communities in respect of their biogeographic distribution, abundances, diversities and morphologies. We considered foraminfera for our study as they are very sensitive to changes in ocean environment. Our study reveals a general low diversity of benthic foraminifera during 15 to 30, 000 years ago, a period of glacial stage when northern Hemisphere glaciation enhanced, followed by a gradual increase in diversity reaching to the modern values in the Holocene period which is equivalent to the warm interglacial stage. Within the glacial stage, there have been periods of intensified cold events as recorded from the Greenland ice core, during which benthic diversity in the Arabian Sea increased. The diversity fluctuated in the warm Holocene period and that also probably to be linked with polar climate perturbations.
Session: 2
Introduction
There is increasing concern regarding the impacts of climate change on marine biodiversity and its conservation and management. Although the oceans cover more than 70 % of the Earths surface, our knowledge on marine biodiversity patterns is limited as compared to that of the terrestrial biodiversities. In order to understand response of marine biota to changes in ocean environment linked to global climatic fluctuations, it is essential to study how various biotic groups were evolved in the oceans, their diversifications, and selective extinctions during certain geological periods and its possible causes? Recently, a group of scientists is of the opinion that climate change (what we are witnessing today?) can lead extinction of certain marine species (eg. Thomas et al., 2004). But, such statement should be taken into consideration with a caution, because influence of climatic perturbations on marine biota (animals and plants) is complex and ocean specific. In view of this, it has become necessary to study history of changing biotic patterns in oceans that took place in the geological past as a consequence of major changes in oceanographic and climatic conditions. Marine sediment records have been the best storehouse of history of changes in oceanss environments (physicochemical) occurred in the past and its impact on the marine life. Valuable information about the past biological changes in oceans are extracted from the shells preserved in sediments (as fossils) that were secreted by microscopic fauna and flora remarkably sensitive to minor changes in oceanic environment. Recent decades have witnessed a rapid developments in various aspects of ocean research (both modern and past ocean environments), with the birth of a new discipline in Earth System Science i.e. Paleoceanography dealing with the evolution of the ocean basins, its circulation history and hydrographic, climatic and biotic patterns. As a result , several International ocean drilling programmes have been initiated that enabled to recover a large number of sediment cores from the world oceans, rich in microfossils of groups such as foraminifera, pteropods, ostracodes, nannoplanktons, radiolarian and diatoms. The oceanic microfossil records are not only important to portray the history of changes in biotic patterns, but also crucial to better understand how global climate change in the past has influenced marine biota. Studies have broadly revealed that periods of evolution and diversification of planktons in oceans were coincident with the major climatically induced oceanographic changes (Wei and Kennett, 1986). Evidences have suggested that climate played a major role in promoting unprecedented increase in marine biodiversity around 460 million years ago (Trotter et al., 2008). During this period the ocean surface temperature was estimated as similar to that of today. The physico-chemical and biological environments of modern oceans are closely coupled with characteristics (waxing and waning) of polar ice caps. Before around 60 million years ago, the global climate was warm and geographical thermal gradients were low (Douglas and Savin, 1975). Oceanic surface temperature of 100C was at high latitudes and 200C at low latitudes. Significant changes occurred during 45-60 million years ago, which was a transitional phase between earlier thermospheric circulation and later the psychrospheric and thermohaline circulation. The history of present day glacial mode of Earth was initiated during 25-30 million years ago with the beginning of ice build up on southern pole. Subsequently, major diversification in foraminiferal group took place during 22-23 million years ago (beginning of the Neogene period), when global climatic condition and ocean circulation had changed significantly resulting major shifts in marine trophic conditions (Kennett and Srinivasan, 1983). In the last 60 million years of the Earth, s history, this was the period of an overall increase in marine biodiversity (Fig. 1). The latest major climatic-oceanographic event was the development of an ice sheet in the northern Hemisphere (Arctic region) during 2.5-3.0 million years ago. Thus, prior to 3 million years, polar ice sheets were restricted to Antarctica, and a bipolar symmetry in global climate was developed only after development of permanent ice sheets in the arctic
67
region (Srinivasan, 2003). The climatic studies based on the ice cores (polar ice sheets and high altitude regions), marine and terrestrial archives have revealed that the Earth has experienced cycles of cold (glacial: ice ages) and warm (interglacial) phases during the last 900, 000 years. The glacial phases are characterized by the expanded polar ice sheets, low atmospheric CO2 and low surface temperature. Super imposed on the glacial-interglacial cycles, there has been climate variability on shorter time scales (decadal, centennial and millennial) [eg. Dansgaard et al., 1993]. Studies further suggested that climatic perturbations triggered changes in ocean environment (sea surface temperature, sea level, ocean currents, surface and bottom circulations, nutrient condition and oxygen level etc.) causing major changes in marine biota. The changes in physicochemical condition of ocean influence profoundly marine biotic communities in respect of their
biogeographic distribution, abundances, diversities and morphologies. The nature of biotic patterns depends on sensitivity of biota and how do they respond to changes in various ecological parameters. In view of present scenario of changing climate, studies were undertaken on microfossil records of calcareous foraminifera from the Arabian Sea region generated from ocean bottom sediment archives to evaluate , if there has been any change in the diversity patterns in the past and if yes, was it linked with the climatic perturbations at high latitudes. Foraminfera are very sensitive to changes in ocean environment and this group comprises two subgroups one that lives in surface waters and other on ocean bottom, thus providing information about biotic responses to both the ocean surface and bottom conditions. On longer time scale, it has been observed that diversities of both the planktic and benthic were generally high with a gradual minor decline since 2.5
Session: 2
69
million years ago coincident with the establishment of northern Hemisphere glaciations (Fig. 2). A high resolution time series of foraminiferal diversity record for the last 30, 000 years was also generated based on the Arabian Sea sediment core (Fig. 3). The study reveals a general low diversity of benthic foraminifera during 15 to 30, 000 years ago, a period of glacial stage when northern Hemisphere glaciation enhanced, followed by a gradual increase in diversity reaching to the modern values in the Holocene epoch which is equivalent to the warm interglacial stage. Within the glacial stage, there have been periods of intensified cold events as recorded from the Greenland ice core, during which benthic diversity in the Arabian Sea increased. The diversity fluctuated in the warm Holocene period and that also probably to be linked with polar climate perturbations. It is intriguing to record that diversity of planktic foraminifera did not change significantly in the last 30, 000 years as was seen in the benthic foraminifera. To evaluate the probable reasons for diversity variations in this region, the faunal diversity records were compared with the records of primary productivity and sea surface temperature that are known to be governed by the monsoon circulation pattern and greatly influenced by the global climatic perturbations (Singh et al., 2006, Anand et al., 2008). Data suggest that primary productivity and sea surface temperature in the Arabian Sea have significantly varied in the past in concert with the high latitude climatic perturbations. Variation in primary productivity also results changes in bottom oxygen condition with oxic environment during low productivity period and oxygen poor environment during high productivity period. Combined effects of these factors (primary productivity and sea bottom oxygen environment) seem to have influenced the benthic foraminiferal species diversity in recent past. On the other hand changes in hydrographic conditions do not appear to significantly influence the diversity pattern of planktic foraminifera. Important Issues to be addressed: (1) Has marine diversity changed through time and
space since pre-industrial era to post-industrial period ?. (2) How did different marine faunal and floral species particularly in coastal ecosystems respond to environment changes related to industrial developments? (3) Will it be possible to separate natural changes in marine biotic communities from anthropogenic changes?. (4) Are ocean waters in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal acidifying in recent years ? if yes, how does it affect calcifying biota in the two basins ?.
References:
Thomas, C.D. et al., 2004. Nature, 427, 145-148. Wei, K-Y. and Kennett, J.P., 1986. Paleoceanography, 1, 67-84. Trotter, J.A. et al., 2008. Science, 321, 550-554. Douglas, R.G. and Savin, S.M., 1975. Initial Reports DSDP, 32, 509-520. Kennett, J.P. and Srinivasan M.S., 1983. Neogene planktonic foraminifera: A phylogenetic Atlas, Hutchinson Ross Publication, USA, 265p. Dansgaard, W. et al., 1993. Nature, 364, 218-220. Singh, A.D. et al., 2006. Geological Society of India, 68, 369-377. Anand, P et al., 2008. Paleoceanography, 23, PA4207, doi:10.1029/2007PA001564. Srinavasn, M.S., 2003. 32nd Prof. Birbal Sahni Memorial Lecture, Lucknow
Session: 3
Adventure, Tourism and Geopolitics In Polar Realms
Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011 73
Polar Expeditions Becoming an Industry?

Urmi Popat, Proprietor- Manas Publication
This paper addresses the challenges of what appears to be an uncontrolled growth of one of the only two industries in Antarctica at this time, fishing and tourism, and the counterpart of tourism in the Arctic. The issue of successful management and regulation of tourism in both areas is of concern because of potential environmental damage that might occur in Polar Regions. This essay focuses on the introduction of Antarctic tourism and the subsequent impacts which the industry might have caused and is having upon the Antarctic ecosystems. The chronology of the industry is reviewed from the first ship specifically visiting Antarctica for tourism in 1958 (Davis, 1999), to the development of the Lindblad Explorer by the Antarctic tourist and entrepreneur Lars-Eric Lindblad and the rising tourist trends of the last decade (Powell et al, 2008 & Miller, 2003). Known impacts will be discussed and examined as related to increasing tourist numbers as well as associated increase of carbon emissions into the atmosphere, an unfortunate contribution to what is commonly known as global warming. In addition to discussions of tourism and its potential impacts on the environment of Antarctica, a role must also be included for science in Antarctica, the prime reason for the development of the Antarctic Treaty, signed in Dec. 1959, and ratified in June 1961. Tourism is not excluded from Antarctica, but the Treaty designated the continent as a land of peace and arms control, among other factors that include the prohibition of military maneuvers. When done properly and with a consensus of acceptable management practices, science and tourism can both strive for compatibility in protection of the environment, allowing only minor or transitory effects of the presence of scientific activity and tourism operations. The Antarctic Treaty and its annual Consultative Meetings provide the focus for environmental protection as a result of the Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty of 1991, ratified by all Parties to the Treaty. As a parallel organization with similar objectives, the formation in
Session: 3
1991 of the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) interacts with Treaty Parties to ensure that its members conduct its activities with a minor or transitory impact. A comparable organization in the Arctic, Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators (AECO) adheres to essentially the same guidelines as those for IAATO, and indeed, many operators conduct tourism in both Polar Regions. Major differences between environmental practices of IAATO and AECO relate to the fact there are no indigenous populations in Antarctica, and never have been, whereas the Arctic has many settlements occupied by humans for thousands of years, and environmental practices have not necessarily followed contemporary adjustments to the environment, thus introducing some abuse and misuse of resources. With the onset of warming in both polar regions, tourism might be affected in its activities, sea level will probably rise slowly, affecting many native settlements in the Arctic, and reduction of sea ice will affect livelihoods of wildlife (polar bears and walruses) and humans alike. Proper management by responsible governments is required to prevent predictable scenarios of an unfortunate outcome.
Introduction
Regular passenger voyages began in 1966, when Lindblad Travel Inc owned and operated by Lars-Eric Lindblad, brought paying passengers to the Antarctic Peninsula aboard Lapataia (Lindblad & Fuller, 1983). The form of cruising adopted by Lindblad, involved the presence of experienced lecturers/naturalists and guides aboard and ashore, and inflatable boats to carry passengers ashore. The Lindblad pattern of cruising emphasized exploration and education. Even as of now the guides ensure visitors behave in a way that causes minimal or no disturbance to the natural environment. Before landing in Antarctica, passengers are introduced to the Antarctic Treaty and given a mandatory code of conduct briefing based on ATCM Recommendation XVIII-1 (1994) Guidance for Visitors to the Antarctic. Each evening a recap session provides a forum for discussion of the days events and plans are announced for the following day.
In the 1990s, following the breakdown of the Soviet Union, the fleet of small passenger ships (less than 50 and 51-110 passenger categories) was expanded significantly when Russian research vessels capable of operating in Polar waters became available on the free market (Stonehouse, 1994; Cessford, 1997). And so which in the early days the numbers of tourists visiting the Antarctic only grew erratically, in the 1990s the rate of growth in tourist activity began to increase steadily, resulting in a nearly 10 times increase in the past 20 years. Nature has always cast a spell on mankind and my family is no exception. Even though we secretly thirst for adventure in our lives, going to a place like the Antarctic was surely a far- fetched idea for at least an ordinary Indian family. But, this was a deep-rooted desire that my father had nurtured from his school days, when all he knew of these elusive regions was from the Geography books. For several years, my father who is a keen trekking
enthusiast and a nature lover kept enquiring if there was any way he could be a part of an expedition to Antarctica, but to no avail Eventually I too got passionate about this region, which most claimed, was too far truly for most! In fact when I enquired with travel agents in India about possible tours to Antarctica, most of them had not even heard of this place and would refer it as Argentina or Australia. And so I began to surf the Internet to search for possibilities to visit this exotic place. We finally could fulfill our desire in the year 2002. To the best of our knowledge, we being the first Indian family to visit this land as tourists, it was a sense of joy and pride in unfurling the tricolour on this great white continent! Both humaninduced; be it the advancements in transport - navigational technologies and more comfortable clothing to bear the extreme climates; as well as the natural events like the significant reductions in the amount, extent and duration of sea ice are making the Polar Regions increasingly reachable. Tourism in Antarctica has grown substantially over the last decades and diversified into different activities, modes of transport, destinations, countries of origin of both tourists and tour operators. In addition to the traditional expedition cruise operators, each year there are a number of small yachts that operate in the area, chartering to clients for climbing, skiing, or simply exploring the area in the ultimate small group. A shift has been noted from location-based tourism (i.e. with focus on wildlife, scenery and historic sites), to activity-based tourism (i.e. with focus on activities) an increasing range of adventurous activities are offered, including helicopter excursions, camping, kayaking, scuba diving and mountain climbing. Therefore, the types of visitors to Antarctica are broadening, and due to the development and logistics of each type of visitation, visitors may seek and encounter widely different experiences (see also Hemmings and Roura, 2003; Maher and others, 2006). So it becomes imperative to understand the management implications of the diversification of visitor experiences in the Polar Regions. At the other end of the scale there are the
cruise-only vessels. These comprise vessels carrying more than 500 passengers. They make no landings but cruise the ice-free waters at the northern end of the Antarctic Peninsula region, for 2 or 3 days, rarely going within 1.5 nautical miles from shore. Tourism operations are largely ship-based (97.7%), with smaller (but increasing) numbers of tourists travelling to Antarctica by air (IAATO 2008). Adventure Network International/Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions (ANI/ ALE), which since 1985 has operated as a purely private company offering airborne travel into Antarctica. Heavy transport aircraft fly from Punta Arenas in Chile to their base camp at Patriot Hills during the summer months. From Patriot Hills, ANI/ALE charter two or three smaller aircraft (DeHavilland Twin Otters or Baslers) for flights within the interior. Private travelers can access the South Shetland Islands, a small archipelago at the northern end of the peninsula, through Aerovias DAP, an airline company with more than 20 years operating in Patagonia and Antarctica. This was the first airline to provide regular commercial flights to the Antarctic in 1987 and today offers several Antarctic programs, including day trips and overnight stays at one of the facilities in Maxwell Bay, King George Island. Other forms of tourism exist. These vary from the private yacht-based expeditions to personnel on national programsbe they scientists or logistic personnel who take time to visit areas beyond the immediate boundary of their vessel or station, during their nonworking hours. IAATO has grown from the initial seven charter members in accordance with the increase in activities to comprise more than 100 members in 2008. With more than 95% of the activities concentrating in the Antarctic Peninsula region, Antarctic tourism is very concentrated (Molenaar, 2005). Within a ship voyage reach of around two days from South American ports, the Antarctic Peninsula is the most accessible part of Antarctica. Other regions that attract frequent visitation are the Ross Sea region, accessible by ship in more than ten days from Australia and New Zealand, and Dronning Maud Land, accessible by air from South Africa. Tourism
Session: 3
activities largely take place between November and March, with a peak around December and January, and are clearly highly seasonal. There is no doubt Antarctica is an incredible tourist destination. It is a magnificent and largely uninhabited wilderness with majestic mountains, glaciers, icebergs and abundant wildlife. The majority of tourists come from the USA, followed by Germany, Britain and Australia (IAATO). regions deterioration. In an ideal world, those who have no appreciation for Antarctica should continue to visit Europe, or the Caribbean, or Las Vegas, or ............ The diversification of tourism in Antarctica has been met with concern by those who claim that new activities or types of tourism may pose safety risks, erosion of intrinsic Antarctic wilderness values (e.g. Antarctica becoming a playground). Ushuaia, Argentina used to be a small town without amenities for tourists, but now it is a hub for virtually all ship traffic to the Antarctic Peninsula. You might call that a spinoff benefit to Antarctic tourism. The tourist numbers are greatest during the austral summer, which unfortunately coincides with the breeding and feeding seasons of the wildlife within the ice free zones, particularly within the Antarctic Peninsula. According to some reports the characteristics of the environmental impacts in Antarctica are closely related to the nature of the tourist activity (Hall, 1992). The greater the interaction with the wildlife and ecosystem, undoubtedly the greater potential effects upon them. Check reference by Norman Cobley and John Spears pertaining to gentoo habituation to humans at Port Lockroy Polar Biology, 21:355-360, 1999; also Nimon et al., 1995 Nature, 374:415.. recovery of gentoos following human visits is quick, affecting penguins for only a short time.. Equate that with overflying skuas, which affects the penguins considerably, but after the flying threat is away, recovery (heart rate) returns to normal. Skuas are at penguin colonies all summer, raising heart beats in more penguins than tourist visits will ever do. Alien microbes, fungi, plants and animals have colonised upon the Antarctic continent and archipelago for approximately the last two centuries. The two most important factors influencing organism survival in the Antarctica are water availability and temperature. So with rising global temperatures, consequently releasing melt water, colonisation becomes more successful. Only a few thousand travellers visit the Arctic and Antarctic every year compared to the rest
Impact of Tourism
Although remoteness and lack of development make Antarctica a difficult and expensive place to visit, there is no shortage of people wanting to make the trip - tourist numbers now exceed the number of scientists and support staff that work there, and are increasing steadily. However, the length of time spent ashore is much less than by programme personnel. Although visits are usually short, they are concentrated into a small number of landing sites, creating potential for cumulative impacts in the long term. One could possibly propose new international standards to restrict the number of places where large numbers of tourists may land so that the ecological effects may be monitored. Environmentally responsible tourism should be aggressively maintained so that whatever little abuse or misuse of resources that has been caused in the Arctic due to mass tourism doesnt occur here. Some consider tourists an environmental pressure Antarctica could do without. Others note that the tourists are generally well informed and concerned about the Antarctic environment and this unique environment truly change visitors perception of the natural environment and create ambassadors for Antarctica. Any which ways poorly managed visitors of any kind (whether paying tourists or national programme personnel) in all probability cause damage. In todays cash-rich world, for some its the last place on earth, the seventh check mark on their continent list and so irrespective of their interests towards wilderness and nature they would like to visit this white desert. Scientists worry that this almost morbid curiosity with seeing the Earths last great frontier before it melts away will only hasten the
of the global population that probably is responsible for much more global warming in their respective countries. As responsible individuals, each of us can take steps to save energy and fight global warming.
Inference
To conclude the essay, it must be stated that the most important reason for human existence on Antarctica is for science. In addition to discussions of tourism and its potential impacts on the environment of Antarctica, a role must also be included for science in Antarctica, the prime reason for the development of the Antarctic Treaty, signed in Dec. 1959, and ratified in June 1961. Tourism is not excluded from Antarctica, but the Treaty designated the continent as a land of peace and arms control, among other factors that include the prohibition of military maneuvers. When done properly and with a consensus of acceptable management practices, science and tourism can both strive for compatibility in protection of the environment, allowing only minor or transitory effects of the presence of scientific activity and tourism operations. The Antarctic Treaty and its annual Consultative Meetings provide the focus for environmental protection as a result of the Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty of 1991, ratified by all Parties to the Treaty. As a parallel organization with similar objectives, the formation in 1991 of the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) interacts with Treaty Parties to ensure that its members conduct its activities with a minor or transitory impact. When done with efficiency, it can be assured that Antarctica will be open to visitors for time to come and hopefully stay the pristine environment, which is one of the main attractions for people to visit in the first place. As long as there is no commercial exploitation of the land by vested interests, then there is no reason why tourists cannot enjoy the splendour of the continent. People like Lars-Eric Lindblad had the right idea with education being at the forefront, this way tourism can be sustainable. As Lindblad probably rightly said, You cant protect what you dont know! A major benefit of the 40-some thousand tourists who visit Antarctica is their impression that lasts
for a long time in spreading the word about the environment of the continent and promoting action to preserve it. But of course whether these growing numbers of tourists and tour operators bring the same environmental ethics to the Antarctic as the earlier ones remains to be seen.
Arctic
A comparable organization in Arctic tourism (Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators AECO) performs somewhat the same management practices as does IAATO, but has a different magnitude with respect to numbers of tourists --52,540 visitors (including crews) to Svalbard alone, in 2006, compared with more than 46,000 visitors to Antarctica in the 2007-08 austral summer. It can be said that Arctic is a bit behind in what the Antarctic Treaty and IAATO have done for Antarctica, part of it being the continent owned or claimed by no country, whereas the Arctic includes parts of seven countries (Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Iceland, U.S and Canada) plus Greenland, and each has its own system for regulations. The Arctic has attracted tourists since the early 1800s. The earliest Arctic tourists were individual anglers, hunters, mountaineers, and adventurers attracted to abundant fisheries, exotic wildlife species, and remote regions. Mass tourism in the Arctic has thrived since the mid-1800s when steamships and railroads aggressively expanded their transportation networks providing access to numerous destinations throughout the Arctic. Tourism entrepreneurs, such as Thomas Cook, formed partnerships with railroad and steamship companies and thereby pioneered the popular tourism industry (Brendon, 1991). By the 1880s, the Land of the Midnight Sun in the Scandinavian Arctic, Alaska, and the popular excitement of the Klondike Gold Rushes firmly established the Arctics mass tourism market (Dufferin, 1873; duChaillou, 1881, Pacific Steamship Company, 1885). The five highly specialized market segments currently dominating the polar tourism economy are best
Session: 3
defined as: 1. The mass market, which comprises of tourists primarily attracted to sightseeing within the pleasurable surroundings of comfortable transport and accommodations. 2. The sport fishing and hunting market, with participants who pursue unique fish and game species within a wilderness setting. 3. The ecotourism market, consisting of tourists who seek to observe wildlife species in their natural habitats, and experience the beauty and solitude of natural areas. These tourists are also concerned with conserving the environment and improving the wellbeing of local people. 4. The adventure tourism market, providing a sense of personal achievement and exhilaration from meeting challenges and potential perils of outdoor sport activities. 5. The culture and heritage tourism market, a very distinct market comprised of tourists who either want to experience personal interaction with the lives and traditions of native people, learn more about a historical topic that interests them, or personally experience historic places and artifacts. Each market has distinct visitor experiences and economic dimensions, involving different tourists motivations, expectations, on-site behavior, and resource uses. All eight Arctic nations, and their seas and oceans host all five markets, while Antarctica hosts most of them with the exception of the sport fishing and hunting and the culture and heritage markets. There are serious concerns that tourism is promoting environmental degradation in the Polar Regions (especially in the Arctic) by putting extra pressures on land, wildlife, water and other basic necessities, and on transportation facilities (GEO 2002 and GEO 2006). According to the Arctic Council Working Group on the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), the main environmental impacts of tourism in the Arctic are the following (CAFF 1997, 1998, 2001): 1. The transport of tourists to the Arctic, in itself, increases the volume of ship and airplane traffic. In addition to the impacts on climate by long distance air and water traffic, increased ship traffic in these waters could lead to increased risks of groundings and other accidents, the results of which can include oil spills and other environmental consequences. 2. Many visitors want to see areas of great beauty or richness, such as bird colonies, marine mammal haulouts, and caribou aggregations. Because there are relatively few places where such sights are accessible and reliable, tourist traffic is often concentrated. Arctic vegetation is typically unable to withstand repeated trampling, and paths of bare ground have appeared in some heavily visited spots. 3. In the forest-tundra areas of the Arctic, tourism, including sport hunting and fishing, attracts moderate though increasing numbers of visitors. This places additional pressure on the regions resources, sometimes leading to conflicts between local and visiting hunters. 4. Garbage, waste, and pollution are significant problems for many tourism operations, especially as decomposition is slow and waste remains visible atop the permafrost in many Arctic areas. There are dramatic changes that will be affected, for example, the polar bear in the Arctic, but what we have to understand is that issues are not just about the poles but are worldwide. Like the various national parks world over which are being affected due to human interference. An overall awareness and sensitivity towards environment has to be created of course with special attention towards the Poles. Debatable are issues like - Who owns the right to experience nature and cultural remains? Should the Polar Regions be protected for the future by closing them for todays generation? A middle ground probably exists. Again like Antarctica the main positive impact of Arctic tourism, if well done, is its educational value. Many Arctic people seeking economic security perceive tourism as a positive means for improving economic stability. Culture and heritage tourism provides critical support for language preservation, the practice of traditional ceremonies, and the perpetuation of ancient customs and art forms. After all, the environmental damage caused by oil and
gas exploration and other industries such as mining surely poses a greater threat than a few camera-waving tourists in their holiday thermal wear. The continent of Antarctica derives absolutely no economic benefits from tourism, but can suffer environmental and heritage resource costs. Unlike most parts of the world, there are no indigenous people to benefit from tourism in Antarctica and thus tourism is not an alternative to local unsustainable economics activities. Aside from the fees collected by the Antarctic Historic Places Trust to maintain heroic era huts in the Ross Sea region, no revenues or fees of any sort are collected from either tour operators or the tourists themselves for the management of Antarcticas environmental resources. To the credit of many tourists who learn about Antarcticas economic dilemma, generous personal donations have been given in support of environmental research and heritage preservation projects in Antarctica and the sub-polar islands. A stringent Code of Conduct for the Arctic Coasts (for both tour organisers and tourists) should be practiced just like in Antarctica. As long as education, protection and management are all intertwined and implemented with one another and done sustainably tourists can enjoy the splendour of this region with negligible disturbance to the ecosystems. Pursuit of polar bears with tourists willing to take pictures of these animals as close as possible leads to stress them. However some tourists feel, that is exactly the attraction for which they pay good money. There are problems everywhere in the world where there are tourists be it tourists vandalizing heritage monuments or nature parks. Therefore, tourism particularly in the Polar Regions should be promoted in a more sustainable and responsible way giving sufficient environmental knowledge to both tourists and tour operators. Global warming, which has been blamed for so many of the worlds ills in recent years, has arguably contributed to an impressive growth in tourism in and around the high Arctic archipelago. Rising temperatures mean a longer summer season, enabling
more cruise ships to visit and dramatically increasing tourist numbers to tens of thousands a year. But again some regions have good rules and regulations to avoid negative impact. The limited number of hotel rooms as well as flights in low season also gives tourism a hard time. Nevertheless looking at a larger perspective, with the onset of warming in both polar regions, tourism might be affected in its activities, sea level will probably rise slowly, affecting many native settlements in the Arctic, and reduction of sea ice will affect livelihoods of wildlife (polar bears and walruses) and humans alike. Proper management by responsible governments is required to prevent predictable scenarios of an unfortunate outcome.
Acknowledgement
As a relative newcomer to both Polar Regions, on a tourist cruise to Antarctica and a visit to the Arctic regions, it has been apparent that tourist activities are done mostly in an appropriate and acceptable manner, but firm management practices must be maintained in order to avoid potential damages, particularly with respect to global warming. My book, Arctic and Antarctic Journeys to the Extremities of the Earth, published in 2005, is an attempt to point out some of these concerns in this paper. The assistance of John Splettstoesser, an American geologist who has traveled widely in Polar Regions as a geologist and also in the tourist industry, is acknowledged for contributions to this paper. His official role as Past President of the Antarctican Society and the American Polar Society is apparent in his experienced input in the content.
References
VICAAR (Victory in the Arctic and Antarctic Research) SEARCH (Study of Environmental Arctic Change) WWF International Arctic Programme
Session: 3
The Largest International Team of Women ever to Ski to the South Pole
November 2009 - January 2010 Reena Kaushal Dharamshaktu
Outdoor Instructor, NOLS
At 23:09 on 29th December 2009 a team of women from across the Commonwealth arrived at the Geographic South Pole after skiing 900km from the coast of Antarctica in 38 days. The journey was timed to mark the 60th anniversary of the Commonwealth but the team also achieved a number of records including the first person from Brunei Darussalam and the first person from Cyprus to ski to the South Pole as well as the first woman from Singapore, the first woman from India and the first woman from New Zealand to ski to the South Pole. What is particularly remarkable about this feat is that just 8 months beforehand many of the team had never seen snow, never put on a pair of skis, never experienced subzero temperatures and never spent the night in a tent before. And yet, they completed one of the toughest and most notoriously hazardous journeys on the planet without a guide and pulling all their own equipment with just one re-supply. As the largest and most international womens team ever to reach the South Pole, the expedition represented 5 continents, 6 faiths and 7 languages, powerfully demonstrating the potential for fruitful multi-national and multifaith cooperation. The expedition also highlighted what is being achieved by women across the Commonwealth in all professions and industries.
Session: 3
The team returned to their home countries as role models and have inspired countless others, particularly women and young people, to think harder about their own ambitions in life, and to make that crucial first step towards achieving their goals. To date, the expedition has spoken to many schools and appeared in more than 1000 press reports, TV appearances and radio broadcasts to share their experiences and the lessons they have learnt with thousands of others. The team hope to continue their work . Team Selection and Training
Throughout the summer and autumn of 2008, over 800 women from the 8 participating countries applied to join the expedition via an online application form on the expedition website. Applicants came from all walks of life and included teachers, lawyers, shop assistants, army officers, mountaineers, mums, administrators, nurses, business women, artists, farmers, outdoor instructors, activists, scientists, journalists and students. A shortlist of 10 applicants to represent each country were interviewed and 2 women from each were invited to join a training camp in Norway at the end of February 2009. The final team of 8 would be selected from these candidates.
Norway
The training / selection camp took take place in Norway on the Hardangervidda, a high plateau in the mountains of the southern part of the country. During that time of year (Feb / March) the Hardangervidda had conditions very similar to those in Antarctica. It had a rolling landscape of snow-covered hills with temperatures between -20C and -30C, prone to blizzards and strong winds. The camp took place between 21st February 2009 and 7th March 2009. It served as the first team training camp as well as the selection for the final team members. During the first 4 days, the team was based in a hut on the Hardangervidda. Everyone was issued cold-weather clothing and taught everything about travelling safely and efficiently, and surviving in an extremely cold environment. The team was trained on proper clothing layering, prevention of cold-injuries,
usage of stoves, tent routines, navigation, safety, food preparation and the theory of skiing. The team also had training sessions outdoors for short periods to acclimatise to the cold, learn how to trust the clothing and how to keep warm, as well as learning how to ski. On the 5th day, everyone was split into small teams of 3 or 4, followed by packing their pulks with all the food, fuel and equipment needed before departing on a 3-day mini-expedition. Each team was accompanied by a trainer at all times and camped together at pre-arranged locations each night. On the 7th day, everyone returned to the hut. The following morning, decisions were made on the final team of 8 women. Those that were not selected returned home. The remaining team of 8 set out again on a second 3-day mini-expedition to finalise roles and routines within the team. The rest of the week was spent discussing training regimes, mental preparation, sponsorship strategies, publicity and safety procedures.
New Zealand
The 2nd team training took place between 4th September 2009 and 12th September 2009. The training took place in the South Island of New Zealand near Wanaka. During the first 3 days, the team went through administrative work, practised on camping skills and tent routines, and downhill skiing. Then, the team went on for a 4-day mini-expedition at Snow Farm at Wanaka with full-weight pulks. This was the last opportunity for the team to train together before they were to depart for Antarctica. Therefore a lot of
attention was paid to the equipment we were to use in Antarctica so that final adjustments could be made to make sure that everything was ready and suitable for the team.
Individual Training
After the team training / selection event in Norway in February 2009 each of the selected team members returned home and started to work on their own, individual fitness. Having been given guidance on putting together a suitable training regime, each team member focused on improving stamina and endurance as well as strength. This was achieved through a combination of low-intensity endurance work and high-intensity resistance training. Each team member had to develope training techniques and schedules that were suited to their environment and lifestyle. For example, Reena in India was able to train by trekking at altitude through the Himalaya whereas Sophia in Singapore (where there are no mountains) resorted to using the stairs of the many tower blocks in Singapore while Era in Brunei dragged a wheel-less wheelbarrow along the endless beaches of her country to replicate dragging a sledge over snow. Below is a summary of the training undertaken by Sophia and Era as an example of the kind of regime followed by each team member in their own country. Sophias training in Singapore was sponsored by the Singapore Sports Medicine Centre. Prior to the start of her training, the centre performed a pre-participation screening, which was aimed at identifying cardiovascular diseases, relevant medical conditions and musculoskeletal problems, that might be aggravated by exercise or predispose the individual to injuries and sudden death. The centre also performed a fitness test (including 6-RM strength tests, VO2max and skinfold test) to use as a baseline to measure the performance. The training took place from May-2009 to October-2009, with the initial focus on general training to improve her strength. Towards the last 6-8 weeks before Sophia left for the expedition, the focus changed to specific training to closer mimic crosscountry skiing by having her pulling a sledge with
weights. Extract from the final update provided by the trainer - Sophias training sessions ended officially on the 26/10 with 4 strength tests being conducted to evaluate her progress. The strength adaptations were astonishing with a 126% increase in 6RM half squat and 40% improvement in 6RM lat pull-down. 6RM low-pully test had to end at 75lbs as that was the heaviest load the machine can offer and she was yet to be exhausted. Her 200m splits in the sledge time trial on the average improved by 48.8%. Eras Training in Brunei was sponsored by the Brunei Sport Medical and Research Centre (National gym). It was supervised by Coach Rana Singh and Dr Danish Zaneer. The training was five days a week after working hours. The sixth day was often substituted with rock climbing or hiking with the Brunei Adventure Recreation Association or Swimming with the Netball National team at the National Swimming Pool Stadium. The training lasted 1.5 - 2 hours and consisted of a warm up jog and either a cardio (more jogs), upper body or lower body strength session in the gym.
Maps and Route

The route selected for the expedition began at the edge of the Ronne-Filchner Ice shelf (known as the Messner Start) and covered a distance of 900kms (500 nautical miles) to the Geographic South Pole. The route did not follow a straight line heading south from the start point but began by tracking westwards to avoid the Pensacola Mountains and a known area of heavy crevassing. As the route passes through a corridor between the Pensacola and Thiel Mountains, it was arranged that a resupply depot would be left for the team to collect (having completed just over one third of their journey) before continuing up onto the Polar Plateau. Having begun at sea level, the route gains more than 9000ft in altitude with most of the climb occurring between the 85th and 88th parallel. This is also the section of the route that has the worst sastrugi (formations in the ice formed by the wind). The route ends at the Geographic South Pole
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marked by the Amundsen-Scott base operated by the American science programme in Antarctica. The base can be seen from around 12 nautical miles away. The first 10 days of this route did not fall within an area easily supported by regular flights between the ALE base at Patriot Hills and the Pole. If any member had needed to be evacuated from this part of the expedition, it would have had serious implications regarding further progress for the rest of the team as the logistics budget only allowed for one flight pickup from the Pole itself. The best map of the route is the Jet Navigation Chart (JNC) 121 (Scale 1:2,000,000) available from The Map Shop (See Appendix 1). footprints, but we are compensating for that by the fact that we are giving talks on Antarctica and global warming and how an individual can make a difference.
Outreach and Education

Now that the expedition has returned the team is busy sharing their experiences with as many people as possible. School Talks Each team member is visiting a range of schools in their home country to talk to young people about Antarctica, the expedition and the lessons that were learnt. So far the team have visited 60 schools worldwide and intend to continue this work . Motivational Speaking Team members have been asked to speak at a wide range of events varying from the Ministry of Education in Singapore and the Womens Advisory Council of the United Nations Association to the Youth Olympic Games Youth Conference and the New Zealand Mountain Film Festival, The Indian Mountaineering Foundation , and various Indian Clubs and corporate There are several aims of the expeditions education and outreach efforts, including: To inspire others to go after their own goals and ambitions To engage new audiences in the climate change debate and the protection of Antarctica Changing preconceptions about what women can achieve To increase awareness of the work and value of the Commonwealth To promote greater intercultural understanding To promote Adventure sports since it it the easiest way to bring about love for the nature and environment.
Environmental Impact
We put a lot of effort into doing all we could to minimise our impact on the environment. We repackaged all our expedition food in Punta Arenas to cut out a lot of packaging material waste and therefore take as little as possible into Antarctica with us. During the expedition itself we were careful to remove everything with us. We did not leave behind any waste such as rubbish, food scraps or even solid human waste. We removed our solid human waste by using the Disposable John bags produced by Anteon Ltd. They were super-convenient to use. It had two sections . The outer was a zip locked silver bag and inside was a plastic bag . This way it was doubledbagged. Depending on our needs, we could use it for 1 to 3 days. It was estimated that each person poos approximately 350 grams each day! We created a record by being the first ever expedition to carry back all our poo. Our expedition was well planned .We had good tents, proper clothing , proper gear, and this way we avoided any disaster due to wrong gear, which could lead to an air evacuation and increase the impact on the environment. We were acutely conscious of the fact that by flying into Antarctica we were increasing the carbon
The Geopolitics of the Arctic and Antarctic and Environmental Norm of Resource Uses
1. Research Scholar, Diplomacy and Disarmament Division (CIPOD), School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, and 2. Research Scholar, Political Geography Division, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
Ramanuj Kaushik1 and Kumar Veer Dhirendra 2
In the era of globalization, where economic interdependence is more driven by international trade and commerce, the economic and strategic importance of sea lane of communication has been well underlined. In the last century North Atlantic sea trade route provided cheapest transportation facilities to the North America and European countries and their trade interaction has led to the economic boon on the either side of the Atlantic Ocean. The Sea lane of communication is termed as primary routes between ports used for trade, logistic and naval forces. (Kelvi, John 2007) . In general, we say sea trade route to them.
Sea trade has been cheapest mode of transportation for longer distance and due to that reason major sea route developed over the growth of global trade. The importance of any trade route is marked by the volume of trade flow through that route. The nature of trade and region through which sea trade route passes determines its strategic importance. Apart from that, the accessibility sea routes provide has also been well dwelled upon by strategic analyst. Alfred Thayer Mahan (1660-1783) recognized the importance of sea route and has given the concept of sea power. In his work named The influence of sea Power Upon history, he established the fact that the United State could safeguard its economic interest by becoming a major sea power. His work details the role of sea power, with emphasis on having the largest and most powerful fleet. Sir Halford J.Mackinder ( enier:2004),to his notion of geopolitics signified the
role of sea lane accessibility to the continent. The importance he has given to the Eurasian heartland was based on the notion that, apart from Southern and Eastern side, the Central Eurasian part is inaccessible from the Arctic Ocean because of perennial ice capping that is impossible to penetrate either by land or sea route. The geopolitical approach of Nicholas J.Spykman (Sempa:2006) has, although differ from Mackinder, also based on the issue of accessibility through sea lane, while Mackinder gives more importance to the inaccessibility. Spykman considers that land accesibilty by sea and controlled by sea power has due importance in growing control of world island. So his focus was also on the preparation of good naval fleet and empowering it to that extent that it could help in controlling the rimland which has more geopolitical importance than Mackinders Heartland.
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Geopolitical Importance of the Indian Ocean:
Till sixties the Indian Ocean was not considered to be an arena of significance in political or strategic term. It has due to intense cold war situation among the countries of northern higher latitudes. The Indian Ocean area largely escaped the attention of academics and scholars, political and military strategists. The dominance of British power without any rivalry had led the Indian Ocean as BritishLake (Kumar:1984). The growth of rivalry among the northern power for political and economic advantages, commercial jealousies and anxious quest for markets for the vast quantities of military and consumer goods produced by the industries of the west these pressure have transformed the region into a crisis of all description and area of crucial geostrategic importance. Today the most significant feature of the Indian Ocean is that it is among the richest ocean area of the world in many respects. On its floor lie stupendous resources including metals and minerals.The region is estimated to include 60 per cent of the worlds crude oil reserves, and is an important source of raw materials and strategic minerals such as chromium, bauxite and manganese. Most of these materials are exported to the industrialized countries, the local economies lacking the infrastructure necessary for the processing and industrial exploitation of these commodities. The Indian Ocean has an area of 28,350,000 square miles and is framed by Asia, Africa and Australia. In the south, it extends to the Antarctic Ocean, but, apart from its southernmost stretches, its surface waters are generally warmer than those of the Atlantic and the Pacific. Its northern extremity does not extend beyond the Tropic of Cancer and it may therefore be considered to be tropical in character. Five narrow stretches of water guard its eastern and western entrances, and these are considered to be of great strategic importance: the Cape of Good Hope, the Suez Canal, and the Straits of Bab el Man-deb, Hormuz and Malacca. (Kumar:1984). The region contains 1/3 of the worlds population, 25% of its landmass, 40% of the worlds oil and gas reserves. It is the locus of important international sea lines of communication (SLOCs). The region is home to most of the worlds Muslim population as well as India, one of the worlds likely rising powers (Executive summary :2003). The Indian Ocean also is home to the worlds two newest nuclear weapons states, India and Pakistan, as well as Iran, which most observers believe has a robust program to acquire nuclear weapons.The geopolitical realities that emerge from the features of the Indian ocean as modified by time and technology are far more complex and compelling than ever before. The Indian Ocean affects in a myriad way more people and places than perhaps any other similar part of the world. A very large number of judicially sovereign state -- actually conscious of their distinctive identities and vociferously determined to maintain them-- surround it and are heavily dependent upon it directly or indirectly. While India and some a few of the other littoral states appear to be on a path of sustained economic progress, most of the region is characterized by high levels of poverty. A vast majority of them are thickly populated and together account for the largest concentration of population in the world. The overwhelming mass of these people struggle to survive on pathetically low consumption level. Chronic poverty is a stark reality there. The rate of growth of population in these countries is perhaps the highest in the world. These fast-multiplying peoples are desperation for rapid economic development, the related pressure of their desperation mounting each day. In addition, the region constitutes one of the key centers of gravity of international terrorism - - the broad incubator of terrorism (Executive summary 2003). Asias tryst with many forms of terrorism predates September 11. With separatist and irredentist struggles in many parts of Asia Kashmir and the northeastern parts of India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Aceh, East Timor, West Papua in Indonesia, the Rohingiyas in Myanmar, and in Southern Thailand many of the Asian nations have had a fair degree of exposure to the threats of terrorism (Acharya:2006). In fact, the Moro
liberation movement in the Philippines is one of the longest-running insurgencies in the world. Thousands have lost their lives in terrorist violence associated with the Tamil separatist movement in Sri Lanka and for the liberation of Kashmir in the Indian sub-continent. In almost all these cases and loss of innocent, non-combatant civilian lives notwithstanding, the threat had almost always been looked at as a domestic law enforcement problem and left to the initiatives of the individual states . Following the September 11 attacks, Asia became the main focus of counter-terrorism efforts in what the US President Bush termed the rst global war of the twenty-rst century President Bush described Southeast Asia as the second front in the global war on terror (Gershman: 2002). The Indian Ocean region suffers from a high level of international and internal conflict and is a key venue for international piracy. It also is the locus of some 70% of the worlds natural disasters (Acharya:2006). A striking geopolitical reality that looms large at present in the area is India. Not only is the Indian ocean a vital sea area for Indias life-lines but also much of the wherewithal needed for indias rapid economic development and subsequent prosperity is concentrated in these in the form of resources. Indias industrial development, its commercial growth, its meaningful and mutually beneficial association with Asia, Africa and the rest of the world , its capacity to play a proper role in international affairs etc, depend upon the state and environment of the Indian Ocean. If and when a military threat to Indias territorial integrity arises, the protection and freedom of its 3,000 mile (including its island territories) Indian Ocean coastline could be crucial. Indias Central location in Indian Ocean, which satisfies the six conditions that Mahan (1660-1783) prescribes for the development and maintenance of sea power, makes its dependence on the ocean almost total and its concerns for appropriate conditions there constant and compulsive. India has to ensure that the Indian Ocean does not become a preserve of any particular power, for its very future is at stake in this water.
The Arctic Ocean: Prospective Sea lane of Communication

The global warming has impact in the reduction of permanent ice covers in Arctic Ocean. Continuously decline of the ice in the Arctic Ocean has led to the opening of two sea lanes of communication: the northern sea route and the Northwest Passage. The Northern Sea Route also called as Northeast Passage, along Russias northern border from Murmansk to Provideniya, is about 2,600 nautical miles in length. It was opened by the Soviet Union to shipping in 1931 but was not opened to the rest of the world until 1991 (ORourke:2010). Nonetheless, these waters are little used by non-Russian ships. This route would be applicable for trade between northeast Asia (north of Singapore) and northern Europe. The Northwest Passage (NWP) runs through the Canadian Arctic Islands. The NWP actually consists of several potential routes. The southern route is through Peel Sound in Nunavut, which has been open the past three summers and contains mostly oneyear ice. However, this route is circuitous, contains some narrow channels, and is shallow enough to impose draft restrictions on ships. The more northern route, through McClure Strait from Baffin Bay to the Beaufort Sea north of Alaska, is much more direct, and therefore more appealing to ocean carriers, but more prone to ice blockage. The NWP is potentially applicable for trade between northeast Asia (north of Shanghai) and the northeast of North America, but is considered by many to be less commercially viable (ORourke:2010). With comparison to the Indian Ocean Sea Lane of Communication, the Northeastern Sea route is more important and its significance can be highlight in that reference: First, the Northern Sea route provides shorter distance to the linkages of Asia and Europe. It connects west Europe and Russia to Japan, China and South Korea. These East Asian countries are net producer of consumer goods and export to the European countries. So, in this case China will be in more advantageous position than India in exporting good at competitive price due to less transportation
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cost involve. Second, shortening of distance will be time saving and involve less transportation cost to countries of Europe and East Asia . Recently the MV Nordic Barents has lugged 40,000 tonnes of iron ore from Norway to China on an Arctic Ocean shortcut through melting ice -- and making a little history in the process. By using the northern route from Europe to Asia, the Nordic Barents could save eight days and 5,000 nautical miles of travel thought to be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to the owners of its cargo (Shipping News:2010). Third, de-icing of the arctic sea will provide opportunity to extract untapped petroleum and gas hydrates from this area. It will further boost the economic prospect of this region and facilitate for more port infrastructure. The Arctic region is known to contain large quantities of untapped energy resources. According to one estimate, the region could contain nearly 83 billion barrels of oil which corresponds to about 4 percent of the remaining oil of the world; the natural gas deposits in the region have been estimated to be about 1550 trillion cubic feet. These can sustain global oil and gas demand for about 3 years and 14 years respectively. Further, most of these lie offshore below 500 meters of water and can be extracted with the existing deep sea exploration technologies (Sakuja:2010). The researchers report online in Science that the Arctic likely contains about 83 billion barrels of undiscovered oil. That represents about 4% of the worlds remaining conventional oil and enough to sustain global demand for almost 3 years. At the same time, the Arctic probably contains about 1550 trillion cubic feet of natural gas--enough to meet world demand for about 14 years (Grom:2009).
Source: http://www.worldculturepictorial.com/blog/content/tipping-point-arctic-meltdown-inuit-culturethreatened-global-warming-181-alaskan-villages-f Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011 89
Fourth, the arctic sea region is made of one of the oldest igneous rocks, those are the part of Angara land. These old rock keeps promise for so many metallic and non metallic minerals. Experts estimate that Alaskan coal comprises up to 10 percent of the planets remaining reserves,and the Arctic Circle contains significant deposits of chromium, cobalt, copper, gold, iron, lead, magnesium, manganese, nickel, platinum, silver, tin, titanium, tungsten, and zinc. Diamond mines already feed thriving industries in Siberia and in Canadas Northwest Territories, and the thick forests of the High North have already proven to be commercially valuable (Russia has the worlds largest forest stocks, while Canada is the worlds largest net exporter of timber products) (Conley and Kraut :2010). Fifth, the new sea trade route will be more advantageous for the world fastest growing countries, China. Currently 78 percent of Chinas oil transportation has to go through narrow ocean straits in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) which it has no control over SLOC safety. This presents Beijing with a long-term security challenge, prompting Chinese president Hu to remark on the Malacca Strait Dilemma in 2004 (You :2007). The dilemma reveals the difficulties of finding any effective solution to the challenge. First, according to Chinese researchers, land-based transportation lines are neither practical nor cost-effective. Second, protecting SLOCs through naval forward presence in the IOR is basically a non-option. This is due to not only Chinas lack of necessary military capabilities but also its more urgent security challenge in the Taiwan Strait. (You :2007). Sixth, from the safety point of view this route is out of the danger of sea pirate as has been the case with the Indian Ocean Sea trade route, especially on the Somalia coast .
However in reality the route is not smooth sailing for navigation. The first and foremost problem the route is facing is the availability of route in all seasons. Being located in northern polar region, Arctic sea route is not ice free all the seasons. In fact, the sea route is wide open in just six to eight week in august and September when navigation is possible for commercial activities and economically viable. Rest of the month shipping require ice breaker moving ahead the large ship (Sakuja:2010). The High Norths fisheries are among the best stocked on the planet, with 10 percent of worlds white fish catch already coming from the Arctic Ocean. the Bering Sea supplies a third of Russias and a half of the United States total annual catch, while fisheries in the Barents Sea are Norways second largest earner of foreign exchange. As ice melts and waters warm, fish will move even farther northward, making management of fisheries a potentially contentious issue among Arctic nation states (Conley, Heather and Jamie Kraut :2010). The territorial dispute over the sovereignty of the Arctic sea route has also been major hurdle. Leading the way on December 20, 2001, Russia was the first nation to submit its extended continental shelf claim. The international community received the bold claim to nearly half of the Arctic Ocean with condemnation. Russias submission declared 1.2 million square kilometers of Arctic territory stretching through the North Pole, including the potentially oil and gas-rich Lomonosov and Alpha-Mendeleev Ridges.This is about the size of Texas, California, and Indiana combined. Canada, Denmark, the U.S., and Norway could also claim portions of this region. This issue is still not settled and seeing the posture of Russia over the claim of Arctic recourse, the intense geopolitics will hamper the natural growth of the sea lane and development of the region nearby to the route (Isted :2009).
Problems involving the Northeastern Geopolitical implication on Indian Route: Ocean:

The strategic importance of the Arctic sea route lies in it shorter distance connecting Asia and Europe and thus avoiding long and circuitous Indian Ocean route. It has been said that the opening of the northern sea trade route will ease the pressure on Indian Ocean Sea Lane of Communication, and thus help in change of
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geopolitical outlook of the Indian Ocean. There is no doubt that the arctic sea route has multiple advantages due to distances and resource bases in its catchment area, but to say that it will make a major geopolitical shift toward northern high will be a misnomer . The significance of Indian ocean sea trade route and its geopolitical importance is due to its peculiar location in the world map with reference to recourse base , population and political ambition of great powers. The united State wants to continue its naval base in Diego Garcia and show its presence in the Arabian Sea. The purpose of Washington is very clear. It wants to maintain its big naval base to keep an eye on the development of Middle East. For the US Irans nuclear programme is major political cause of concerns. If Iran get success in its ambitious nuclear programme and in future become the nuclear power , that will be the biggest jolt to the Washingtons drive of non proliferation of nuclear arsenal. Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) is primarily focused on the Indian Ocean sea lane of communication. The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) is a U.S.-led multinational initiative involving the interdiction of third-country ships on the high seas on the basis of carrying nuclear materials. The PSI has over 90 member nations, including Russia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Singapore and Norway. Among countries opposed to the PSI are China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Iran, who dispute its legality. (Varadarajan: 2005), The Indian Ocean sea lane of communication has been used for the proliferation of nuclear technology from Pakistan and exchange of logistics from North Korea. The threat of terrorism, as we mentioned in the first part, is also looming large in the Indian Ocean region. China has its own stake in the Indian Ocean region. Although new sea trade route of Arctic Ocean is more promising to China and has potential to offset many hurdle Beijing has to face in the Indian Ocean region, the interest of the countries is not going to wane owing to many reasons. First, China is major importer of petroleum from Gulf Countries. It has many joint production units in this region and owns many oil blocks. China enjoying very close relation with Iran and invested millions of dollar in the development of oil blocks in that country. In recent days, china invested heavily in the North African region for the development of petroleum and its import to the countries. Apart from petroleum, China has many joint project in African countries related to minerals extraction and joint production of goods. Chinas diplomacy in the African countries is different from that of western countries. While the West approaches to the African countries is more design towards economic subjugation and dependence, China focuses on joint production and development of the recourses the African countries have with the transfer of technology as well. China has political ambition to minimize the influence of the Unite State and India in the Indian Ocean Region. Due to that reason Beijing protests against the United State led Proliferation Security Initiative. Beijing knows that the structure of the PSI is to maximize the role of the United State in detaining and checking the ship. It will hamper the interest of China in this region. It is open secret that Beijing has been favorable to the nucleation of the Pakistan and indirectly helping in the enhancement of the tension in Indian Ocean region . Chinas sting of pearl strategy is a grand design to keep its military and strategic presence in the Indian Ocean region and have influence over the sea lane of communication. The String of Pearls refers to the Chinese sea lines of communication which extend from Hong Kong to Port Sudan. The sea lines run through the strategic choke points Strait of Mandab, Strait of Malacca, Strait of Hormuz and Strait of Lombok as well as other strategic naval interest such as Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Maldives and Somalia. In the word of Christopher Pehrson The String of Pearls describes the manifestation of Chinas rising geopolitical influence through efforts to increase access to ports and airfields, develop special diplomatic relationships, and modernize military forces that extend from the South China Sea through the Strait of Malacca, across the Indian Ocean, and on to the Persian Gulf. (Pehrson:2006),
India has its own stake in the Indian Ocean trade route, because the Ocean is only source of navigation and major trade connection to the world. India has moral obligation to protect the sea route from sea piracy and interference of extra regional power. The Indian Ocean is source of economic and strategic security of India. In the coming year one will see the rising clash of interest among the United State, China and India. The prospect of the trade relationship between Asian and African Countries is bright. The current African exports to Asia, while do not exhibit the pattern of product diversification, do shows the evidence of inter-sectoral complementarities between Africa and Asia. This is true in a general context of Africa as a large supplier of raw materials including energy resources and developing Asian countries being suppliers of manufactured products to African
countries. This is largely driven by factor endowments. The rich resource endowment in Africa provides natural comparative advantage on raw materials and resource-based products. Asian countries on the other hand have rich stock of skilled labor compared to Africa have comparative advantage in manufactured products. Countries higher up along the spectrum of the skills-resource endowment ratio export more manufactured products relative to processed or primary goods, and a larger proportion of higher-technology manufactured products. This seems to be a compelling story for trade relations between Africa and Asia. This high prospect of AsianAfrican trade will keep the Indian Ocean sea lane of communication busy in future. (Yoshino: 2008).
Conclusion:
The de-icing of the Arctic sea and thus opening of
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sea route is not going to affect the geopolitical and geo-strategic importance of the Indian Ocean sea lane of communication. The problem the Indian Ocean is facing and the prospect it has, always been centre of the world politics. The opening of Arctic sea route has created new avenue of geopolitics and prospect of trade relationship but that will has little impact on sea route of Indian Ocean, because of growing trade relationship between Asian and African countries as well as the countries of South Asia and East Asia. If we see the pattern and content of trade flow, the opening of Arctic sea trade route will help in boosting commercial activities in India Ocean. China, Japan and South Korea import raw material from African and South Asian countries through Indian Ocean. Since they export consumer goods to the European countries, the new commercial route of the Arctic Ocean will make it possible in less transportation cost. So, the import raw material from Indian Ocean route and export of finished material through the Northeastern route will definitely give leverage in world market and add new dynamism in trade flow. Here, the role of complementarities of both the sea routes has come to the fore. Sempa, Fransic P. (2006) Spykmans world , American Diplomacy , American Diplomacy Publishers Chapel Hill , [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL : http://www.unc.edu/depts/ diplomat/item/2006/0406/semp/sempa_spykman. html Raja Mohan, C. (2010), India and the Changing Geopolitics of the Indian Ocean, Eminent Persons Lecture Series, July 19, 2010 at India Habitat Centre, new Delhi, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL http://www.maritimeindia. org/pdfs/EminentPersonsLectureSeries_RajaMohan. pdf Kumar, Chandra (1984), The Indian Ocean: Arc of Crisis or Zone of Peace? , International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs ), Vol. 60, No. 2,pp. 233-246,Blackwell Publishing on behalf of the Royal Institute of International Affairs, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January 2011, URL :http:// www.jstor.org/stable/2619047 . Executive summary (2003): India and the Emerging Geopolitics of the Indian Ocean RegionAsia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Honolulu, Hawaii, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January 2011, URL :http://www.apcss.org/core/Conference/CR_ ES/030819-21ES.htm Acharya, Arabinda.( 2006), India and Southeast Asia in the Age of Terror: Building Partnerships for Peace,Contemporary Southeast Asia: A Journal of International and Strategic Affairs - Volume 28, Number 2, August, pp. 297-321, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January 2011, URL : http://muse.jhu. edu/login?uri=/journals/contemporary_southeast_ asia_a_journal_of_international_and_strategic_ affairs/v028/28.2acharya.html Gershman, John. 2002. Is Southeast Asia the Second Front? Foreign Affairs 79, no. 4 (July/August): 60 74, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011,
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Klein, John J. (2007). Maritime Strategy Should Heed U.S. and UK Classics. U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings 133 (4): 6769. [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL:http://www.usni.org/ magazines/proceedings/archive/index.asp Mahan, A. T. (1660-1783 ) The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, The Project Gutenberg eBook, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January , 2011, URL : http://www.gutenberg.org/files/13529/13529h/13529-h.htm Venier, Pascal (2004), The geographical pivot of history and early twentieth century geopolitical cultureThe Geographical Journal, Vol.170, No. 4, December 2004, pp. 330336 , [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January , 2011, URL : http://www. pascalvenier.com/venier2004c.pdf
URL : http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/58041/ john-gershman/is-southeast-asia-the-second-front ORourke, Ronald (2010), Changes in the Arctic: Background and Issues For Congress CRS Report for Congress, Congressional Research Service, Washington, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL :http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R41153.pdf Shipping News, Iron ore cargo ship Arctic route takes, makes history, September 7, 2010, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL :http:// bestshippingnews.com/shipping-news/iron-orecargo-ship-arctic-route-takes-makes-history/ Sakuja , Vijay (2010), China : Breaking into the Arctic Ice, Indian Council of World Affair ,New Delhi, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL : http://www.icwa.in/pdfs/ib%20%20dr.pdf Grom, Jackie(2009) , Arctic May Boost Oil and Gas Reserves Science NOW, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL : http://news.sciencemag. org/sciencenow/2009/05/28-02.html Conley, Heather and Jamie Kraut (2010), U.S. Strategic Interests in the Arctic Centre for Strategic & International Studies, Washington, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL : http://csis.org/files/publication/100426_Conley_ USStrategicInterests_Web.pdf You, Ji, (2007) , Dealing with the Malacca Strait Dilemma: Chinas Efforts to Enhance Energy Transportation Security, EAI Background Brief No.329, Date of Publication: 12 April 2007, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL: http:// www.eai.nus.edu.sg/BB329.pdf Isted , Kathryn (2009) , Sovereignty in the Arctic: An Analysis of Territorial Disputes & Environmental Policy Considerations Florida State University
Journal, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL: http://www.law.fsu.edu/journals/transnational/ vol18_2/isted.pdf Varadarajan, Siddharth (2005), India is entering uncharted, risky territory The Hindu, Date:01/07/2005 [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL: http://www.thehindu. com/2005/07/01/stories/2005070105231300.htm Pehrson, Christopher J. (2006), String of Pearls: Meeting the challenge of chinas rising power Across the Asian littoral, Strategic Studies Institute, Washington DC. [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL :http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/ pdffiles/pub721.pdf Broadman, Harry G. (2007), Africas Silk Road: China and Indias New Economic Frontier, The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank, Washington DC, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL : http://siteresources.worldbank.org/AFRICAEXT/ Resources/Africa_Silk_Road.pdf Yoshino, Yutaka. (2008): Africa-Asia Trade and Investment: Opportunities and Challenges, The World Bank, , Washington DC, [Online: web], Accessed on 4th January, 2011, URL : http://www.international.ucla.edu/media/files/85.pdf
Session: 3
Session: 4
Climate Change, Geologya nd Mapping of Arctic and Antarctic
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Monitoring of wildlife along the Princess Astrid Coast, East Antarctica and its conservation implications
Syed Ainul Hussain, Wildlife Institute of India, Ajai Saxena, Environment and Forest Department,
Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India Post Box # 18, Dehra Dun. 248 001, India
We conducted survey of seals and penguins along the Fimbul Ice Shelf, Princess Astrid Coast, Antarctica between 10-130E longitude during January and February 1997 to examine the abundance of seals and penguins along the coast line. For the survey an AS350 BA Squirrel helicopter was used. The ground speed was maintained at 60 knots at an altitude of 65 m above sea. The width of the transects was 300 m from the ice shelf towards the sea. All sorties were made between 11:00 and 16:00 hours coinciding with the peak hauling out time of seals. A total of 12 hours of flying time was used and 5 sorties were made for the survey. The species composition of seals was 90.2% Weddell and 8.3% crabeater, 1.5% of seals could not be identified. In the case of penguins it was 30% Adelie and 70% emperor penguins. The overall density of Weddell and crabeater seals was 6.57 +1.27, 0.48 +0.13 seals/km2 respectively, and of Adelie and emperor penguins were 12.28 +4.97 and 29.5 +7.30 penguins/km2 respectively. The abundance of seals and penguins varied considerably among sorties. In the case of Weddell seal and emperor penguin the abundance was significantly higher during the sorties carried out in January, where as in the case of crabeater seal and Adelie penguin it was higher in February. Of the total sightings, 77% of Weddell seal and 36% of crabeater seal, 74% of emperor penguin and 17% of Adelie penguins were observed on fast ice. The abundance of Weddell seals was positively associated with the extent of fast ice but was negative in the case of crabeater seals. On the other hand, crabeater seals showed positive associations with pack ice. This pattern was similar with emperor and Adelie penguins. Three area with large congregation of seals and penguins viz. Area I between 10.25-10.650E, Area II 10.90-11.50 and Area II between 11.25-120E were
Session: 4
identified. It is suggested that protection to these areas and regulation of human activities as per the agreed measures for the conservation of Antarctic flora and fauna in the area, need to be taken up at appropriate level. Introduction
The Antarctic regions are the abode of sea birds and seals. Seven species of penguins thirty species of petrels of which six are albatross, two cormorants, five gulls and terns, breed within the Antarctic circle (IUCN 1990). The Antarctic seals, though limited only to seven species, are quite abundant (Bonner, 1985). Besides, seven species of filter feeding baleen whales and eight species of toothed whales occur to the south of the Antarctic convergence (Gambell 1985; IUCN 1990). The Article II, (recommendations VI-4, VIII11, VIII-13, IX-5 and XII-3) of the Antarctic Treaty has made it mandatory for all countries to undertake environmental evaluation prior to taking up any project in Antarctica. Under this framework, the Wildlife Institute of India took up a study to develop monitoring protocol for seals and penguins of the Princess Astrid Coast where cargo discharge point for Indian research station is situated. The main objectives of this study were (a) to derive estimates of seal and penguin abundance between 10-13 0E meridians and (b) relate wildlife abundance to changing sea ice conditions. Prince Haakon VII Sea) is a pronounced on-shelf advection of relatively warm water originating at the Antarctic divergence by the Weddell Gyre reflow (Zimmermann 1997). The water temperature at the bottom varies between -1.8 and 20C. The ice shelf in the coast is known as Fimbul ice shelf, which is highly indented towards sea face margin with many cracks at every few hundred metres interval. The shelf height often varies between 15-25 m with occasional ramps in many places. During this expedition approximately 120 km (65 nautical miles) of the coastline along the Princess Astrid Coast was monitored to determine the abundance of major wildlife along the coast. The transects were from the berthing point of ship (69052S & 12008E) to 40 nautical miles west and 25 nautical miles east. When the Indian scientific expedition team reached Antarctica on January 4, 1997 by M.V. Polar Bird, approximately 20 nautical miles of fast ice from the coast towards sea was still intact. At places along the fringe of fast ice there were some patches of pack ice. By January 28 the fast ice along the shelf started breaking, allowing the ship to berth along the coast. Aerial survey was carried out between January 12 and February 20, 1997 by helicopters, using the ship as base.
Study area
The Princess Astrid Coast is situated between meridians 50E and 200E, East Antarctica. The sampling stretch lies within 10-130E longitude and is part of the Fimbul ice shelf. The climate here is typical to Droning Maud Land. Extreme maximum temperature is +30C and extreme minimum is -480C. The sea remains frozen between April and December. On the approach of summer along the coast, the fast ice becomes fragmented into pack ice by early January, and the area remains snow free between January to March. By late March the sea starts freezing again. A special hydrographic feature of the sea in front of the Princess Astrid Coast (Lazarev Sea/
Methods
The data collection method for seals using an aircraft follows Erickson et al. (1993) with slight modifications because of various constraints, such as visibility and weather conditions, met during the flight. For the survey a AS350 BA Squirrel helicopter was used. On January 12, 1997 two sorties of one hour each were made to familiarize with the area and the species, and for comparing differences in sighting frequency of different seal species at different flying altitudes and ground speed. Wildlife survey along the shelf between 10-130E longitude was carried out
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by flying at 60 knots at an altitude of approximately 65 m from the sea surface, as determined by radar altimeter fitted in the helicopter. The width of transects was approximately 300 m from the shelf towards sea. Attempt was made to keep the width of the transect constant, nevertheless there may be some error in it. All sorties were made between 1100 and 1600 hours coinciding with peak hauling out time for seals (Laws 1993). Apart from the pilot, two observers were involved in the survey. The role of the front row observer was to spot the animals, identify species and count their number. The role of back row observer was to record the observations, taking GPS positions, and also count animals for large groups. When a large group of seal or penguins was seen, the helicopter was allowed to hover for counting. Basking seals were identified following Laws (1993). On the transact line sea ice conditions such
as fast ice, pack ice and polynea were recorded on a visual scale of 1 to 10. This was later summed up and percentage of each type was calculated and compared with the sea ice condition for each sortie. Whenever animals were seen, their location was recorded on a Magellan Trial Blazer XL hand held GPS receiver unit. Simultaneously, the number of animals seen, ice types, floe size and environment condition were recorded on a note sheet and was later transferred to computerized data sheets. Wherever counting was not possible or was believed to be erroneous due to large group size, especially of penguins, photographic records were made that were later counted and tallied with the data collected while flying. For comparison of difference in sightings while flying, ground truthing was also done at sites where large congregation of seals and penguins were found. A total of 12 hours of flying time was used and 5 sorties were made for the survey (Table 1).
Table 1. Details of the five sorties used for wildlife survey along the Princess Astrid Coast, East Antarctica.
Date 17/01/97 17/01/97 18/01/97 06/02/97 06/02/97 09/02/97 20/02/97
Direction West East West West East West West
Start 12 25 14 20 13 00 11 05 16 15 12 15 12 05
Finish 14 05 15 10 15 00 13 10 17 01 14 30 13 35
Duration (min.) 100 50 120 125 47 135 90
Length (km) 64.82 46.30 74.08 72.22 46.30 74.08 74.08
Area (km2) 19.45 13.89 22.22 21.67 13.89 22.22 22.22
Results
The extent of sea ice condition during the survey varied considerably among sorties. Between the beginning and end of the survey the fast ice along the shelf declined by 97.5% leading to opening up of the sea (polynea). However, between first and second sorties there was very little change in the extent of fast ice. Between February 3 and 5, 1997 there was a blizzard with a maximum wind speed of 48 nm that rapidly changed the sea ice conditions. At the beginning of the survey 21.2% of the sea surface was free of ice, which increased to 67.7%, at the end of the survey. Similarly the extent of pack ice increased from 10.8% to 30.6% at the beginning and end of the survey, respectively. The extent of pack ice was highest on February 9, 1997.
During the survey two species of seals viz. Weddell Leptonychotes weddellii and the crabeater Lobodon carcinophagus, and five species of birds viz. emperor and Adelie penguins, and Antarctic and snow petrels, and Antarctic skuas were seen. Though all seven species were counted, data pertaining to seals and penguins are presented in this paper. In total 659 Weddel and 61 crabeater seals, and 1787 Adelie and 4156 Emperor penguins were counted. The species composition of seals was 90.2% Weddell and 8.3% crabeater, 1.5% seals were unidentified, where as for penguins it was Adelie 30% and emperor 70%. The overall density of Weddell and crabeater seals and emperor and Adelie penguins was 6.57/ km2 (+ 1.27), 0.48/km2 (+ 0.13), 29.5/km2 (+ 7.30)
Session: 4
and 12.28/km2 (+ 4.97), respectively. Transect (sortie) wise density of seals and a penguins have been summarized in Table 3. The abundance of seals and penguins varied considerably among sorties along the western (ANOVA F=0.605, p=0.661) and eastern shelf (ANOVA, F-=0.20, p=0.833). In the case of Weddell seals and emperor penguins the abundance was apparently higher during the sorties carried out in January, where as in the case of crabeater seals and Adelie penguins it was higher in February.
Table 2. Density of seals and penguins (animals/km2) along the Princess Astrid Coast, Antarctica between 10-130E meridians, during January-February 1997.
Date
Direction Weddell from ship seal
Crabeater seal
17/1/97 17/1/97 18/1/97 06/2/97 06/2/97 09/2/97 20/2/97
West East West West East West West
No. 192 83 226 212 26 101 84
Density 9.87 5.98 10.17 9.78 1.87 4.54 3.78
No. 4 0 9 24 5 7 12
Density 0.21 0 0.40 1.11 0.31 0.36 0.54
Adelie penguin No. 1740 43 69 756 127 592 177
Density 1.18 3.10 3.10 34.89 9.14 26.64 7.96
Emperor penguin No. 4203 472 988 1102 3 571 173
Density 43.56 33.98 44.46 50.86 0.22 25.69 7.78
The coastline between 10-13 0 E as a single entity had areas with higher concentration of seals and penguins in certain sites indicating choice for these sites. Areas with higher concentration of wildlife sightings have been identified and marked on a map generated through GIS). Along the coast three area with large congregation of seals and penguins have been identified, viz. Area I between 10.25-10.650E, Area II 10.90-11.50 E and Area III between 11.25-120 E (Fig. 1).
Along the coast, apart from fast ice, pack ice and polynea, wildlife was also observed on shelf, eroded shelf or low-shelf and icebergs. Of the total sightings 77% of Weddell seals and 36% of crabeater seals, 74% of emperor penguins and 17% of Adelie penguins were observed on fast ice. The abundance of Weddell seals was positively associated with the extent of fast ice but was negative in the case of crabeater seals. On the other hand, crabeater seals showed positive association with pack ice. Similar pattern was observed for emperor and Adelie penguins also.
Fig. 1. Distribution of seals and penguins along the Princess Astride coast, East Antarctica as observed during January-February 1997 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
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Discussion
Human disturbance due to tourism or research has been implicated in the decline of many Antarctic wildlife populations (e.g. Thompson 1977; Wilson et al. 1990; Young 1990; Woehler et al. 1994, Giese, 196). Princess Astrid Coast is extensively used as a cargo discharge point for many research stations situated in Dronning Moud Land, specifically for Norwegian station Troll, Russian Novolazarevskaya, Indian Dakhsin Gangotri and Maitri, Japanese Asuka and abandoned GDR station George Foster (Anon 1990). We assume that this area is more disturbed in comparison with areas where not many stations or cargo discharge points are located. In spite of several stations being operational in the Princess Astrid Coast, base line information on the population status of seals and penguins from this region has not been available. Thus it was imperative to assess the status of seals and penguins populations along this coast as future changes in the distribution and abundance can not be ascertained due to a lack of baseline information. Given an increased probability of adverse effects on wildlife populations in many places in Antarctica in the event of any catastrophic disturbance or habitat degradation and modification, the information generated through this study would help in conserving seal and penguin populations. Contrary to the Princess Astrid Coast, Princess Martha Coast has extensively been surveyed as early as in 1966 and over the years comparative data for seals are available (e.g. Nel 1966; Hall-Martin 1974; Wilson 1975; Condy 1976, 1977; Erickson et al. 1990 and Bester et al. 1995) For conducting surveys of seals and penguins it was recommended that the transact should be placed at right angles to known gradient in abundance (i.e. from the ice edge towards the consolidated pack) at an altitude of 100-300 m from the sea, with a top speed of 60 nautical miles per hour (Erickson et al. 1993). Because of safety reasons we were not allowed to fly perpendicular to shelf towards polynea. Hence, the survey was carried out along the shelf, 300 m towards sea front. This might have resulted in higher Weddell seal density because of clumped distribution of seals along the tidal cracks close to shelf, and lower crabeater
seal density as very few pack ice zones were covered during the survey. The Ross seal Ommatophoca ross and the leopard seals Hydrurga leptonyx reported from this region were not encountered during the survey. From the ground truthing we did not find differences in the identification of the species, except when the seals were in water. Wherever there was doubt in identification we mentioned it in a separate unidentified category. The apparent more wildlife sightings in the western part of the shelf is linked to the presence of more sheltered bay and creeks in the western shelf than the eastern shelf. At the Russian cargo discharge point (11037E & 70002S) the largest congregation of emperor penguins and Weddell seals were observed. Because of sheltered bay at the Russian cargo discharge point the sea ice remained frozen till February 20, it started freezing again by March 1, 1997. Availability of more fast ice prolonged the stay of seals and provided better moulting habitat for emperor penguins. The average height of the eastern shelf is more than the western shelf and also there were fewer ramps or low shelf in eastern side. These provide lesser basking sites for seals and less shelter for moulting penguins. Consequently the abundance of wildlife is much higher at the western shelf. The Weddell seals are the animals of fast ice nearshore region and are quite sedentary in nature (Bonner 1985). During the early sorties in January, the extent of fast ice was significantly more than in February. Hence there were more Weddell seal sightings in the early sorties. The crabeater seals are the animals of the drifting pack ice, are rarely seen ashore and are great wanderers (Bonner 1985). Their sightings along the coast are of chance occurrence. Though it was not evident, it is likely that the sighting of crabeater seals is influenced by pack ice. In the early sorties in January we observed emperor penguins in large moulting groups on fast ice, by early February their moulting was over and they dispersed due to absence of fast ice. This justifies the higher abundance of emperor penguins during earlier sorties. Whereas the Adelie penguins were in dispersed groups during early January, by early February they congregated mostly
Session: 4
on shelf and on stranded icebergs for moulting. Hence we saw more Adelie penguins during February. The representatives of the Wildlife Institute of India had taken part in the XIV and XV Indian Scientific Expeditions to Antarctica in 1994-1995 and 1995-1996 respectively and conducted similar surveys along the coast and provided encounter rates for seals and penguins (Sathyakumar 1996; Bhatnagar & Sathyakumar 1997). For comparison data gathered during this study was converted into encounter rates. The mean encounter rate derived during this study was comparatively higher for all species except crabeater seals. The estimate of abundance in this study was higher for Weddell seal and lower for crabeater seal than the estimates by various workers during 1974 and 1995 off the Princess Martha Coast (Weddell seal: mean=0.31 seal/nm2, SE=0.081, n=7; crabeater seal: mean=5.51 seal/nm2, SE=1.471, n=7) (HallMartin, 1974; Wilson, 1995; Condy 1976 &1977; Bester et al., 1995). In the case of crabeater seals, our result (0.48 +0.13 km2) was lower than those derived from ship through transect surveys in the AmundsenBellinghausen Seas in 1994 (Gelatt and Siniff 1999). Prior to this study information on the population status of seals and penguins along the Princess Astrid Coast, east Antarctica was not available. Since 1994, the Wildlife Institute is providing information on the distribution pattern of seals and penguins from this part of the Antarctica. During this study three high concentration zones of seals and penguins were identified. During January and February, 1997, approximately 1100 emperor and 750 Adelie penguins, and 220 Weddell and 24 crabeater seal were using these areas. Presence of humans, large ships, cargo discharge operations and convoys are in one way or other disturbing these animals. It is suggested that the high animal concentration zones be avoided as cargo discharge points. As per the provision for designation of specially protected areas under the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS), one of the criteria is to identify areas, which have significant breeding colonies of birds and mammals. During this study at least two major breeding colonies of the emperor penguins have been located in zone I and II. Accordingly, protection to these areas and regulating human activities as per the agreed measures for the conservation of Antarctic flora and fauna in the area need to be taken up at the appropriate level. Line transect method has been suggested as an appropriate tool to census seals (Errickson et al. 1989). The inability of ships to follow a line similar to an aerial transects may introduce an inherent bias in ship based sampling. Helicopters equipped with GPS allow accurate recording of line distance and area surveyed (Gelatt and Siniff 1999), and more recently altitude. In the present study we used GPS based helicopters with three observers to conduct the survey at an altitude of 65 m (c200 ft.) above sea surface and flying at 60 knots per hour. Since we used a more rigorous method than Sathyakumar (1996) and Bhatnagar and Sathyakumar (1997), this survey yielded better results as compared to two previous surveys conducted in the area. In our study some of the estimates have high covariance (>20%) and therefore might require more sampling (replicates) to say anything conclusively regarding the number of seals and penguins in the region. However, as evident from this study, three to four sorties in the first half of January and in the second half of February each will be sufficient to estimate the density of Weddell seals and emperor penguins, and crabeater seals and Adelie penguins, respectively. The sorties should not be clumped (daily) or too widely spaced (8-10 days interval). Clumped sorties may not be able to detect significant variations in the samples and sorties carried out in long intervals will show skewed population because of changing ice conditions. The result obtained from this study relied on the way the transects were laid out. Flying along the ice shelf over fast ice will inevitably produce Weddell seals and over pack ice will usually produce crabeater seals. In view of this, the absence of leopard and Ross seals is not surprising. Therefore, we strongly suggest that the transects to assess seal abundance should be perpendicular to shelf, placed randomly at 5 to 10 nautical miles interval. The width of transects
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can be decided at the time of survey depending on availability of fast ice, nevertheless it should not be more than 300 m at any time. For estimating crabeater seal abundance it is important to monitor pack ice zone separately, when the ship is relatively free after off-loading. In light of our work it is suggested to take similar study in East Antarctica to examine any change in wildlife abundance due to human induced disturbance or otherwise.
Bonner, W.N. (1985) Birds and mammals Antarctic seals. In Key environment Antarctica. Eds. W.N.Bonner & D.W.H. Walton, Pergamon Press. Oxford, U.K. Condy, P.R. (1976) Results of the third seal survey in the King Haakon VII Sea, Antarctica, S. Afr. Jour. of Antarctic Research, 6, 2-8 Condy, P.R. (1977) Results of the fourth seal survey in the King Haakon VII Sea, Antarctica, S. Afr. Jour. Of Antarctic Research, 7, 10-13 Erickson, A.W., Siniff, D.B. and Hardwood, J. (1993) Estimation of population size. In Antarctic seals: research methods and techniques Ed. R.M. Laws. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, U.K. pp. 390 Erickson, A.W., Siniff, D.B. and Hanson, M.B. (1990) Continental estimates and population trends of Antarctic seals. In Kerry, K.R. & Hempel, G. eds. Antarctic ecosystems, ecological change and conservation. Berlin & Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag, 253-264. Gambell, R. (1985) Birds and mammals - Antarctic whales. In Key environment Antarctica. Eds. W.N. Bonner & D.W.H. Walton, Pergamon Press. Oxford. U.K. Gelatt, T.S and Siniff, D.B. (1999) Line transect survey of crabeater seals in the AmundsenBellinghshausen seas, 1994. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 27 (2): 330-336 Giese, M. (1996) Effects of human activity on Adelie penguin Pygoscelis adeliae breeding success. Biological Conservation 75: 157-164 Hall-Martin, A.J. (1974) Observations on population density and species composition of seals in the King Haakon VII Sea, Antarctica, S. Afr. Jour. of Antarctic Research, 4, 34-39
Acknowledgments
We take this opportunity to express our sincere thanks and gratitude to Ministry of Earth Science, Govt. of India for extending infrastructural support to conduct this study. In Antarctica, this work would not have been possible without the support and help extended to us by the Australian helicopter crew Nigel, Desmond and Ken who took special interest in this work, and made some impossible sorties. We thank Dean, FWS and Director, WII for their support and encouragement. Dr. Sulagna Chattopadhyay, President, LIGHTS Research Foundation, New Delhi encouraged us to contribute this article for the National Conference on Science and Geopolitics of Arctic and Antarctic, January 14-15, 2011, New Delhi
Literature cited
Anon (1974) The Antarctic pilot. Hydrographic Department, Ministry of Defense, Taunton. Anon (1990) Antarctica, the extraordinary history of mans conquest of the frozen continent. The Readers Digest Association Inc, New York. Bester, M.N., Erickson, A.W. and Ferguson, J.W.H (1995) Seasonal change in the distribution and density of seals in the pack ice off Princess Martha Coast, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 7(4):357-364 Bhatnagar, Y.V. and Sathyakumar, S. (1997) ) Developing a long term monitoring programme for birds and mammals in the Indian ocean and Antarctica. Technical Report (XV Expedition), Wildlife Institute of India, Dehra Dun. 40 pp.
Session: 4
IUCN, (1990) A strategy for Antarctic conservation. World Conservation Union, Gland Switzerland. Laws, R.M. (1993) Antarctic seals: research methods and techniques. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, U.K. pp. 390 Nel, J.A.J. (1966) On the behaviour of the crabeater seals Lobodon carcinophagus (Hombron & Jacquinot). Zoologica Africana, 2,91-93 Sathyakumar, S. (1995) Developing a long term monitoring programme for birds and mammals in the Indian ocean and Antarctica. Technical Report (XIV Expedition), Wildlife Institute of India, Dehra Dun. 13 pp. Thompson, R.B. (1977) Effects of human disturbance on the Adelie penguin population rookery and measures of control. In Lalno, G.A., Eds. Adaptation within Antarctic Ecosystems. Washington DC. Smithsonian Institution, 1177-1180. Wilson, V.J. (1975) A second survey of seals in the King Haakon VII Sea, Antarctica. S. Afr. Journal. of Antarctic Research, 5, 31-36 Wilson, K.J., Taylor, R.H. and Barton K.J. (1990) The impact of man on Adelie penguins at Cape Hallet, Antarctica. In Kerry, K.R. & Hampel, G. Eds. Antarctic ecosystems: ecological changes and conservation. Berlin & Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag, 183-190. Woehler, E.J., Penney, R.L., Creet, S.M. and Burton, R.H (1994). Impacts of human visitors on breeding success and long-term population trends in Adelie penguins at Casey, Antarctica, Polar Biology, 14, 269-274. Young, E.C. (1990) Long-term stability and human impact in Antarctic skuas and Adelie penguins. In Kerry, K.R. & Hampel, G. Eds. Antarctic ecosystems: ecological changes and conservation. Berlin & Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag, 183-190.
Zimmermann, C. (1997) On the Demersal fish fauna of the Lazarev Sea (Antarctica): Composition and community structure. In Antarctic communities. Species, structure and survival. Eds. Battaglia, B., Valenica, J. & Walton D.W.H. Cambridge University Press. U.K.
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Survey Of India & Indian Scientific Expeditions To Antarctic

Surveyor General of India, Sunil Kumar Mehta, Officer Surveyor Digital Mapping Centre, Dehradun
Swarna Subba Rao
Ever since its inception in 1767, Survey of India has been instrumental in the scientific and geo-political development of India & Adjacent Countries during British Rule and that of India after its independence, exploring, mapping and integrating the small geographical pockets of the region , using conventional tools such as planetables ,Levels,and theodolites as well as latest gadgets such as Total Stations, Digital Tide Gauges, GPS and Satellite Imageries. Keeping its traditions, Survey of India has been actively participating in the Scientific and Geopolitical Activities in Antarctic since 1991 when its 1st Scientific Team explored the possibilities of Topographical Mapping and Geophysical studies in Antarctic during the 10th Expedition. Survey of India has almost completed topographical mapping in and around old station Maitri in Schirmacher Oasis. And has started mapping . in Larsemann Hills Region in eastern Antarctic, Mapping, of the remaining southern portion and the nearby islands will be done on 1:5,000 scales with 5m Contour Interval. SoI will continue its scientific activities in the field of Topographical mapping , tidal observation and Geophysical Studies. It will also continue to collaborate with other participating organizations /Countries.
Introduction
Established in 1767, Survey of India (SoI) is the oldest scientific department of India. Ever since its inception, Survey of India has been instrumental in the scientific and geo-political development of India & Adjacent Countries during British Rule and that of India after its independence, exploring, mapping and integrating the small geographical pockets of the
region, using conventional tools such as plane tables, Levels,and theodolites as well as latest gadgets such as Total Stations, Digital Tide Gauges, GPS and Satellite Imageries. Keeping its traditions, Survey of India has been actively participating in the Scientific and Geopolitical Activities in Antarctic since 1991 when its 1st Scientific Team explored the possibilities of
Session: 4
Topographical Mapping and Geo-physical studies in Antarctic during the 10th Expedition. scale with contour interval of 1mgal. To monitor the plate movement of the continent with respect to Indian plate. Studies for neo-tectonic activities of the Antarctica region. Large scale mapping of Larsemann Hills on scale 1:5,000 with 5 meters contour interval .
Objectives of Survey of India in Antarctic

Establishment of horizontal and vertical reference frame for detail mapping and scientific activities. Large scale mapping of the Schirmacher Oasis on scale 1:5,000 with 5 meters contour interval Establishment of relative gravity network of 1 km. mesh at Schirmacher Oasis, connecting all GPS stations. Preparation of different gravity anomaly maps of the Schirmacher Oasis region in Antarctica on 1:5,000
Salient Features of SoI Activities in Antarctic
During 10th Expedition in 1991-92, Primary control for Surveying activities was established in Antarctic for the first time.
IMSL Height = h1+ h2+h h3
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Orthometric height(H) = Ellipsoidal height (h)- Geoidal Separation(N)
During the first few expeditions, horizontal and vertical control was provided to establish the framework for future mapping needs.
Session: 4
In the successive expeditions, mapping on scale 1:5,000 with contour interval 5m and on scale 1:1,000 with 1 metre contour interval has been taken up around Schirmarcher Oasis near Maitri.
S.K.Mehta Of SoI Mapping The Antarctic Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
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Mapping Strategy
During 16th Expedition(1996-97), Survey of India explored the possibilities of establishment of New Indian Station in Antarctic to reduce the burden on existing Indian Station-Maitri. From 23rd expedition (2003-04), Survey of India has initiated studies of Inter Plate Movement between Indian and Antarctic plates. Neo-tectonic studies and
glacier movement studies in Antarctic region were also commenced during the 23rd Expedition. (For plate movement studies 7 days campaign mode GPS observation has been carried out at Maitri during each expeditio along with six Permanent GPS stations in India, one each at Pune, Thiruvananthapuram, Bhubaneshwar, Shillong, Jabalpur and Dehradun).
GPS Observation In Antartica
Session: 4
From 26th Expedition, onwards Survey of India has
started survey work in Larsemann Hills. The map of area around new station site at Larsemann Hills on scale 1:2,500 with contour interval 5 m has already been published. As per the requirements, mapping of the Larsemann Hills station site on 1:1,000 scales
with contour interval 1 m was completed during 27th expedition. In addition to the mapping, Survey of India has also provided surveying related technical assistance to other participating organizations of India as well as other countries.
SoI & GSI Teams Recording Dg Snout Movement S.K.Mehts of SoI with Sh.Arun Chaturvedi of GSI
Indo Norwegian Cooperation S.K.Mehta Of SoI Doing Gps Obsn. For Norwegian Team
Survey of Indias Achievements so far

Mapping on scale 1:5,000 with Contour Interval 5 m for 20.25 sq. km. has been completed out of total 34.0 sq. km. area of the Schirmacher Oasis region. The map produced on the International Standards will be very useful for the Indian Scientific Community and also for the developmental activities to be undertaken in the future in Antarctica. Survey of India, has established 27 GPS stations for densification of control work for mapping and neotectonic movement studies of the region. Seven days GPS campaign has also been carried out to monitor
the plate movement studies of Antarctic plate with respect to Indian plate. At Larsemann Hill region, mapping of new proposed station site on 1:1,000 scale with 1 m contour Interval has been successfully completed and the Map publication is in the process. Ground Control Points(GCPs) have been provided along the route from Jetty to the Existing Station Site, at the Helipad, and at the sites for proposed helipads and Fuel Dumping . Installation of Tide Gauge in Larsemann Hills has been completed successfully.
Installation Of Tide Gauge In Antarctic Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
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A Ref. BM has been established by measuring height difference between a ref. point marked on the Tide Gauge hanging wire (1.93 m above the sensor) and the ref. BM using Total Station. The height of the ref. BM will be calculated after processing of the Tide Gauge data. The equation given below will give the height of the ref. BM. Height OF Ref. BM = 1.93 a + 34.7901
Activities Planned for Coming Expeditions
SoI will also take up the left over 13.75 sq. km. work of detail mapping around old station Maitri in Schirmacher Oasis and will also take up the job as assigned to or deemed fit.
It is proposed that in the next three consecutive expeditions mapping, GPS and gravity observations will be carried out. GPS observations on already fixed 27 GPS stations as well as about 13 well distributed GPS stations and seven days GPS campaign at Maitri station will be carried out. in Larsemann Hills Region in eastern Antarctic, Mapping, of the remaining southern portion and the nearby islands will be done on 1:5,000 scales with 5m Contour Interval. In addition to this Survey of india will continue to provide Surveying cooperation to participating organizations and countries for strengthening & accelerating the research activities in the Antarctic region.
Survey of India in Scientific Support Mode

Survey of India has always tried its level best to provide scientific, logistic and humanitarian support to the participating organizations. Control Points were provided for IMD
NPL was given Relative Position for its establishment.
Assisted Army Team in aligning and laying pipe line. Alignment of HF Antena of DEAL Topographcal assistance to NEERI,Nagpur. Alignment of E-mail Antena R&DE, Pune.
Session: 4
Topographcal assistance to Botanical Survey of India. Survey assistance to scientists from Norway, German etc.
Survey of India in Group Activities in Antarctic
Survey of India has always tried its level best to provide scientific, logistic and humanitarian support to the participating organizations.
Survey of India in Politico-Scientific Mode

Survey of India has always stood up for the politicoscientific cooperation with other participating countries in Antarctic
Conclusion
Keeping its commitment to reach, explore and map every inch of the land under its jurisdiction ever since its inception in 1767, Survey of India will continue its mission in Antarctic which was started in 10th Expedition to Antarctic in 1991-92.
Indo-Russian Team In Antarctic
Indo-Norwegian Team In Antarctic
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Warming in coastal Antarctica based on ice core records and its implications
National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research, Headland Sada, Vasco-da-Gama, Goa 403004 INDIA
Meloth Thamban and Rasik Ravindra
Analyses of ice core climate records provide one of the most accurate means to reconstruct the Antarctic climate change beyond the instrumental data limits. Isotopic reconstruction of temperature records using a high resolution ice core record from the coastal Dronning Maud Land demonstrated an average warming of 1C for the entire century (1905-2005), with a greatly enhanced warming of ~3C during 1930-2005 (~0.4C/10 years). The warming trend has been confirmed (~0.06C/10 years) using longer temperature proxy records from another ice core as well as the longest available instrumental record (~50 years) from this region. Such warming has significant implications for the coastal Antarctic ice sheet stability. Introduction
The Antarctic climate system fluctuates on a subannual to millennial time scales, with a complex interplay of the ice sheet, ocean, sea ice, and atmosphere. Scrutiny of instrumental data from Antarctica based on the few available records reveal that Antarctica had undergone significant changes in recent decades, with an increase in atmospheric temperature in most parts of the Antarctic continent. Accordingly, the largest annual warming trends are found on the western and northern parts of the Antarctic Peninsula (Turner et al., 2009). Contrastingly, interior parts of East Antarctica seems to have experienced little warming or even slight cooling at certain locations. However, the spatial and temporal complexity of Antarctic climate is still poorly understood because of the limited and short periods of observational data. Analyses of ice core proxy records provide one of the most accurate methods to reconstruct the Antarctic
climate change beyond the instrumental limits (Schneider et al., 2006; Mayewski et al., 2009). Ice core records from polar regions offer continuous and highly resolved proxy records on major atmospheric parameters like temperature, composition and trace gases. Among the various proxy variables used, the stable isotope ratios of oxygen (18O) and hydrogen (D) offer the most critical information on the past changes in temperature. Additionally, glaciochemical parameters like ionic and trace metal composition of the ice cores are extensively used for reconstructing the past changes in atmospheric circulation, global volcanism, dust input, sea ice extent/ concentration, oceanic productivity, as well was the environmental pollution. Considering the importance of understanding the Antarctic environmental change in the context of global warming, Indian researchers have made systematic efforts to retrieve and study ice core records
Session: 4
from the coastal regions of East Antarctica. Such studies revealed the utility of ice records to reconstruct the past records of environmental conditions, global volcanism, as well as associated microbial components (Nijampurkar et al., 2002; Thamban et al., 2006; Laluraj et al., 2008). Further to understand the coastal Antarctic variability during the past few centuries with annual to sub-annual resolution, two ice cores from the central Dronning Maud Land region (IND-22/ B4 and IND-25/B5) were studied in detail for various proxy parameters. While the IND-25/B5 provided high-resolution records of the past 100 years (19052005), the IND-22/B4 core represented the past ~470 years (1530-2002) of climate change in coastal East Antarctica (Marshall et al., 2009; Naik et al., 2010 a & b; Laluraj et al., 2010). The considerable variation in 18O records
on an interannual to decadal scale seems to be associated with changes in low and mid latitude climatic modes. The IND-25/B5 18O record revealed a significant relation to the Southern Annular Mode (SAM), except during certain intervals of enhanced influence of El Nio Southern Oscillation (ENSO), established through the in-phase relation between SAM and ENSO. Conversely, on a decadal scale, a significant relationship between 18O and SAM is established that prevail the influence of ENSO. Application of the 18O-T spatial slope to the IND-25/B5 ice core record revealed an average air temperature of -25.5C during 1905-2005 AD. Compared to this, extended 18O records of IND22/B4 revealed an average temperature of -19.3C during 1530-2002.
The reconstructed temperature record of IND25/B5 exhibited an average warming of 1C for the entire century (1905-2005) with a warming trend of 0.1C/10 years. The records also revealed a greatly
enhanced warming of ~3C during 1930-2005 (~0.4C/10 years). The temperature record of IND22/B4 exhibited relatively more negative 18O values during periods of reduced solar activity like the
115
Dalton and Maunder Minima, suggesting significant influence of solar activity on Antarctic climate. The estimated warming trend for this site was ~0.6 C per century, with relatively increased warming during the recent decades. The reconstructed temperature records of ice cores reported here as well as the available observational data thus suggest that the coastal regions of Dronning Maud Land in East Antarctica are experiencing significant warming in the recent decades. The findings have significant implications for the coastal Antarctic ice sheet stability and necessitate a detailed study of the spatial and temporal variability of Antarctic warming based on a combination of instrumental and proxy records.
Naik, S. S., Thamban, M., Laluraj, C.M., Redkar, B.L. and Chaturvedi, A. (2010). A century of climate variability in the central Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica and its relation to Southern Annular Mode and El Nio Southern Oscillation. Journal of Geophysical Research (Atmospheres), doi:10.1029/2009JD013268. Naik, S.S., Thamban, M., DSouza, W., Laluraj, C.M., Rajakumar, A. and Chaturvedi, A. (2010) Influence of climatic teleconnections on the temporal isotopic variability as recorded in a firn core from the central Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica. Journal of Earth System Science, 119, pp. 41-49. Nijampurkar, V.N., Rao, D.K., Clausen, H.B., Kaul, M.K., Chaturvedi, A. Records of climatic changes and volcanic events in an ice core from Central Dronning Maudland (East Antarctica) during the past century. Proceedings Indian Academy of Sciences (Earth Planet Sciences), (2002) v.111, pp.39-49. Schneider, D. P., Steig, E. J., van Ommen, T. D., Bitz, C. M., Dixon D., Mayewski, P.A. and Jones, J.M. (2006) Antarctic temperatures over the past two centuries, from ice cores, Geophysical Research Letters, v.33, L16707, doi:10.1029/2006GL027057. Thamban, M., Chaturvedi. A., Rajkumar. A., Naik. S. S., DSouza, W., Singh A., Rajan, S. and Ravindra, R. (2006) Aerosol perturbations related to volcanic eruptions during the past few centuries as recorded in an ice core from the Central Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica. Current Science, v.91, pp.1200-1207. Turner, J., R. Bindschadler, P. Convey, G. di Prisco, E. Fahrbach, J. Gutt, D. Hodgson, P. Mayewski, C. Summerhayes (2009). Antarctic Climate Change and the Environment: a contribution to the International Polar Year. Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research, Cambridge, ISBN 978-0-948277-22-1
References
Laluraj, C.M., Krishnan, K.P., Thamban, M., Rahul, M., Chaturvedi, A., Naik, S.S., DSouza, W., Ravindra, R. (2009). Origin and characterisation of microparticles in an ice core from the Central Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, v.149 (1-4), pp.377-383. Laluraj, C.M., Thamban, M., S.S. Naik, B.L. Redkar, A. Chaturvedi and R. Ravindra (2010). Nitrate records of a shallow ice core from East Antarctica: atmospheric processes, preservation and climatic implications. The Holocene, DOI: 10.1177/ 0959683610374886. Marshall, G.J., Battista, S., Naik, S. S. and Thamban, M. (2009) Analysis of a regional change in the sign of the SAM-temperature relationship in Antarctica. Climate Dynamics, DOI: 10.1007/s00382-0090682-9 Mayewski, P.A., Meredith, M.P., Summerhayes, C.P., Turner, J., Worby, A., Barrett, P.J., Casassa, G., Bertler, N.A.N., Bracegirdle, T., Naveira Garabato, A.C., Bromwich,D., Campbell, H., Hamilton, G. S., Lyons, W. B., Maasch, K. A., Aoki, S., Xiao C. and Tas van Ommen (2009) State of the Antarctic and Southern Ocean climate system. Reviews of Geophysics, v.47, pp. RG1003 1-38.
Session: 4
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Quantitative Studies of Sea Ice Melting Rates in the Antarctic using SSM/I Data
I. M. L. Das 1, 2,3, Amitabh Mitra*2, Abhinav Srivastava1, Mihir Kumar Dash4, Sandip R. Oza 5 and N. K. Vyas 5
1. K Banerjee Centre of Atmospheric & Ocean Studies 2. M N Saha Centre of Space Studies 3. Department of Physics, University of Allahabad, Allahabad 211002 4. Centre for Oceans Rivers Atmosphere and Land Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur 721302 5. Space Applications Centre, Indian Space Research Organisation, Ahmedabad 380015
Sea ice controls the fluxes of heat, moisture and momentum across the ocean-atmosphere interface. Because it is thin, sea ice is vulnerable to small perturbations within the ocean and the atmosphere, which significantly change the extent and thickness of the polar ice cover. We have used DMSP SSM/I monthly ice concentration data over the Antarctic region to calculate the monthly sea ice extents (August to February) for each year during 1988 - 2006. Compared to the melting rates based on seasonal cycle of solar irradiance, the SSM/I estimated melting rate, is less in the beginning of the month of September and increases to its peak value by the end of December. The observed melting rate behaviour indicates that apart from the seasonal cycle of solar irradiance, it is controlled by other mechanisms also. The present study estimates the feedback impact factor, response time, accelerating and decelerating melting rate duration for the period 1988-2006.
Introduction:
Sea ice influences the climate through various feedback mechanisms. The most important feedback mechanism is the albedo-temperature feedback: an initial small warming (cooling) implies a decrease (increase) in the sea-ice extent and, hence, a smaller (larger) reflection and larger (smaller) absorption of total incident solar energy over the region, which would be conducive to further enhancement of the
initial warming (cooling). The mean albedo () of sea-ice ranges roughly from 0.5 to 0.7, compared to 0.05 to 0.15 for the open water1,2. As a result of the high albedo of ice surfaces, only a small fraction (1-) of the energy is absorbed at the surface. Solar heating of the surface during summer results in the increase of snow / ice wetness and development of melt ponds, which in turn, significantly reduce the regionally averaged summer time albedo3. This reduction in
Session: 4
albedo plays an important role in the Polar Regions. Any perturbation in the surface energy balance resulting in a decrease of ice extent due to warming may spread and amplify4. Another feedback mechanism is provided by sea-ice modifying the evaporation rates: a decrease (increase) in the sea-ice compactness through melting (freezing) leads to higher (lower) water-vapour concentration in the lower atmosphere and to an enhancement (inhibition) of the atmospheric longwave radiative absorption, thus supporting further ice ablation (accretion). Because of such feedback effects between the surface and the atmosphere, the climate change signals are expected to be amplified in polar regions5. Microwave emission comes from different layers such as snow surface, snow / ice interface and the internal ice layers and depends on the frequency. Open water is reflective in microwave band and emits little energy and has strong polarization. In contrast, first year ice is highly emissive and has weak polarization while the multiyear ice emission falls between that of water and the first year ice. Consequently, the brightness temperature recorded by the passive microwave remote sensor depends on the type of the surface from which the radiation has emanated6. The Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSM/I) onboard Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellites F8, F10, F11, F12, and F13 is a seven-channel, four-frequency, orthogonally polarized, passive microwave radiometric system that measures atmospheric, oceanic and terrain microwave brightness temperatures at 19.35, 22.2, 37.0, and 85.5 GHz. Using the Bootstrap algorithm, data is gridded at a resolution of 25 x 25 km since 25 June 1987. To assess the impact of the ice albedo feedback mechanism on the Antarctic sea ice melting rates, we have used the DMSP SSM/I sea ice monthly concentration data in the Antarctic region with latitudinal variation [39.3649 S to 89.8368 S] and longitudinal variation [000.1651 E to 359.8350 E] during the summer melt season (August February) for the period 1988 2006.
The Analysis Procedure

The monthly sea ice extents were assumed to correspond to the 15th day of each month. The mid day of the month of August i.e. 15th August was allocated the time t = 0 which has been taken to correspond to the maximum sea ice area during the study period. Then t = 184 corresponds to the mid day of the month of February i.e. 15th February which has been taken to correspond to the minimum sea ice area during the period of our study. The solar irradiance at given latitude depends on the seasonal variation of the cosine of the solar elevation angle at that latitude during the apparent annual motion of the sun. So, we fit a cosine curve of the form given by equation (1) for the sea-ice extent values against time t in days during the melting phase: y = c + a cos (t)..........................(1) where y represents the expected sea-ice extent. Here = 2/ T, where T = 365.24 days corresponding to a periodicity of 1 year. For all the years varying from 1988 to 2006, the coefficients a and c were determined by using the sea ice extent values on the 15th August (t=0) and 15th February (t=184). The actual melting rate of sea-ice extent for each month was compared with the depletion rate obtained by differentiating equation (1) as shown below - (dy/dt) = asin (t)..........................(2)
Results and Discussion

Figure 1 (a d) shows the monthly sea ice extents in the Antarctic region, for 1990-91, 1995-96, 200001 and 2005-06 during the summer melt season as derived from the SSM/I and those obtained from equation (1). Figure 2 (a d) compares the actual melting rate of sea-ice extent from the SSM/I with that obtained from equation (2) for the same period. The actual SSM/I melting rate is very less during September, while the SSM/I sea-ice extent is almost at its peak as seen from Figures 1 and 2. The melting rate picks up and reaches its peak during the months of December and January. Then the sea-ice extent starts decreasing rapidly and reaches its bare minimum in February. The peak-melting rate derived from the observed
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SSM/I data lags behind that obtained from equation (2) based on the cycle of solar irradiance by nearly 60 days. This is due to the time taken by the melting process to complete in response to the absorbed solar radiation. It is evident from Figure 2 that during the melting phase (August-February), the actual rate of depletion of sea-ice extent remains low for a considerable time and then peaks up very fast and subsequently comes down at a steep rate. It deviates from the path expected purely from the cycle of solar irradiance described by equation (2), suggesting the presence of some basic physical feedback processes controlling the extent of sea-ice. The age and thickness of sea-ice present in different sectors of the Antarctic Ocean also play a role in increasing / decreasing the absorption of solar radiation, as the melting process proceeds with time. These processes need to be further explored and their effects need to be quantified. Similar results were obtained by earlier calculations based on observations obtained from CCEANSAT-1/ MSMR data6. To assess the impact of the sea ice feedback processes we further calculated the followings: (a) Response time: It is the duration for which the SSM/I melting rate is slow (less than 0.05 million km2 per day) before attaining the peak melting rate, (b) Accelerating melt rate duration in days: It is the time for which the SSM/I melting rate is greater than 0.05 million km2 per day but less than the peak melting rate, (c) Decelerating melt rate duration in days: It is the time period between the peak SSM/I melting rate and mid February, (d) Effective melting phase duration in days: The period during which most of the ice melts i.e. sum of (b) and (c), (e) Peak SSM/I Melting rate: Highest value of the sea ice melting rate in a year, derived from the observed SSM/I data, (f) Peak Theoretical Melting rate: Highest value of the sea ice melting rate in a year, estimated from equation (2) and (g) Feedback impact factor: Ratio of (e) and (f).
The estimated response time was found to be 61 days, from mid August to mid October for the period 1988-2006. During this period the existing sea-ice increases the local albedo of the region and resists the incoming solar radiation from melting the surface, thus reducing the melting rate in the beginning. Further, the accelerating SSM/I melting rate duration was found to be 92 days from mid October to mid January for all the years, except 94-95 and 200001 when the peak melting rate was attained in mid December itself and the duration decreased to 61 days. The calculated decelerating SSM/I melting rate duration was 31 days from mid January to mid February for all the years, except 94-95 and 2000-01 when this duration increased to 62 days. The effective melting phase duration was of 123 days, from mid October to mid February for the entire period 19882006. Figure 3 shows the peak SSM/I melting rate and the peak theoretical melting rate attained in each year from 1988 to 2006 during the period midAugust to mid-February. The peak SSM/I melting rate shows an insignificant decreasing linear trend of Y = -0.0004X + 0.2141. Further, it is observed that the peak theoretical melting rate is far below than the observed peak SSM/I melting rate possibly due to the presence of some physical albedo feedback processes which raises the melting rate of sea ice. As the seaice starts melting, the open water fraction increases. The shortwave radiation over the open water fraction further increases the melt rate, hence the actual melting rate observed by the SSM/I is more than the expected. This behavior clearly illustrates the presence of the sea-ice albedo-temperature feedback process7. Figure 4 shows the feedback impact factor for all the years from 1988-2006. It follows an insignificant decreasing linear trend of Y= -0.0023X+1.5961. Table 1 shows the maximum, minimum, average and standard deviation of some of the parameters described above for the years 1988 to 2006 during mid August to mid February. The average value for the feedback impact factor is 1.57, which nearly coincides with the value of 1.5 obtained from an earlier analysis6 using OCEANSAT-1/MSMR data for the year 1999 2000.
Session: 4
Table 1: Impact of feedback processes
Response time (days) Effective Melting phase (days) Peak SSMI Melting rate (million sq. km. per day) Peak theoretical Melting rate (million sq. km. per day) Feedback Impact factor
Max 61 123 0.248629 0.139991 1.85
Min 61 123 0.178629 0.121013 1.33
Average 61 123 0.210355 0.133521 1.57
Standard deviation 0 0 0.02146 0.00454 0.13
Conclusions
The SSM/I ice concentration data from 19882006 was used to assess the impact of the feedback processes. The melting rate obtained from the SSM/I data was compared with the theoretical melting rate obtained by differentiating a theoretical curve, based on the effect of seasonal cycle of solar irradiance. The feedback acts with a response delay of 61 days and increases the sea ice melting rate by 1.570.13 times. The amount of sea ice present in the Polar Regions determines the future of Antarctic sea ice
variability. The feedback processes should be taken into consideration while modeling the sea ice system in the Polar Regions.
Acknowledgements
Two of the authors (AM and IMLD) thank NCAOR, Goa / DOD for supporting the work in the form of a research grant. Authors also wish to acknowledge the deep interest taken and encouragement provided by Dr. A. Sarkar, Head, Ocean Sciences Division of SAC during the course of this work.
Figure 1: Monthly Sea Ice extents in the Antarctic region derived from SSM/I and those obtained from equation (1) in the years 1990, 1995, 2000 and 2005 ( SSMI Sei Ice Extent, Y=c + aCOS (t))
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Figure 2: Comparison of the actual melting rate of sea-ice extent from the SSM/I with that obtained from equation (2), for the years 1990-91, 1995-96, 2000-01 and 2005-06 ( SSMI meltina rate, dy/dt = aSIN(t))
Figure 3: Peak SSM/I melting rate and peak theoretical melting rate attained in each year for the period 1988 to 2006.
Session: 4
Figure 4: Feedback impact factor for the period 1988-2006.
References:
1. Grenfell, T. C. and. Maykut, G. A., The optical properties of ice and snow in the Arctic Basin. J. Glaciology, 1977, 18, 445-463. 2. Massom, R. and Comiso, J. C., The classification of Arctic sea ice types and the determination of surface temperature using advanced very high resolution radiometer data, J. Geophys. Res., 1994, 99(C3), 5201-5218. 3. Eicken, H., Krouse, H. R., Kadko D. and Perovich D. K., Tracer studies of pathways and rates of meltwater transport through Arctic summer sea ice. J. Geophys. Res., 2002, 107(10), doi: 10.1029/2000JC000583. 4. Curry, J. A., Schramm, J. L. and Ebert, E. E., Sea ice-albedo climate feedback mechanism. J. Clim., 1995, 8, 240-247. 5. Budyko, M. I., Polar ice and climate. In: Proceedings of the Symposium on the Arctic Heat Budget and Atmospheric Circulation, (Ed. J. O.
Fletcher), RM 5233-NSF, Rand Corporation, Santa Monica, California, 1966, 3-32. 6. Mitra, A., Das, I. M. L., Dash, M. K., Bhandari, S. M. and Vyas, N. K., Impact of ice-albedo feedback on hemispheric scale sea-ice melting rates in the Antarctic using Multi-frequency Scanning Microwave Radiometer data, Curr. Sc., 2008, 94(8), 1044-1048. 7. Yao, T., Tang, C. L., and Peterson, I. K., Modeling the seasonal variation of sea ice in the Labrador Sea with a coupled multicategory ice model and the Princeton ocean model. J. Geophys. Res., 2000, 105, 1153-1165. Keywords: Antarctica, SSM/I, sea-ice extent, melting rate, ice-albedo feedback. *Presently, D.C.O. Chandigarh, Janganana Bhawan, Plot 2B, Sector 19A, Madhya Marg, Chandigarh 160019
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Glacial and Fluvial Environments of the Ny-Alesund Region, Arctic

Dhruv Sen Singha and Rasik Ravindra
a Centre of Advanced Study in Geology, University of Lucknow, Lucknow-226007 b National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research, Vasco-da-Gama, Goa
Ny-Alesund region exhibits complex topography and geomorphic features evolved by various sedimentary environments under direct control of climate and tectonics. The geomorphic features such as moraines, alluvial fans, channel bars, lacustrine deposits, deltaic deposits, marine terraces are evolved by glaciers during glaciation and by mass movement, fluvial, lake, delta, and sea respectively during deglaciations. During deglacaiation a new set of environmental conditions came into existence which contribute in shaping the landforms and landscape of the region. The analysis of glacial and fluvial landforms were analysed on the basis of documentation of small valley glaciers (Vestre brogger and Midre loven) and the streams originating from it. This describes that the glaciers are characterized by convex wrinkled surface, crevasses, bergchurnds, supraglacial melt water streams, longitudinal debris strips, thrust moraines, convex longitudinal profile with break in slopes, fractures and joints. The moraines and outwash plain deposits are made up of clast to matrix supported boulders with varying gravel size. The matrix supported facies capped by clast supported facies indicate the high energy of the glacial and so the cold climate. The bimodal roses and palaeocurrent analysis suggest that there were two prominent directions for the movement of glaciers in the past controlled by tectonic activity. The granulometric analysis of the streams indicates that the mean grain size decreases from origin to the middle reaches of the river whereas it again increases near its confluence with the ocean. The percentage of the finer sediments decreases and coarser fragments increases in the downstream direction. The granulometric parameters which are contrary to the normal fluvial system are due to the tectonic events.
Session: 4
Introduction
Ny-Alesund is located in NW Spitsbergen of Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. It provides varied geological structures and geo-historical development since the palaeo-Proterozoic time and is well known for having rocks of all the geological ages with multiorogenic development and prominent tectonic events (Elvevold, 2007; Hjelle, 1993). Glaciers and the streams originating from its snout are considered indicators of climate change as fluctuations (expand/shrink) and discharge (decreases/ increases) are in direct response to the climatic turnover. Arctic, a store house of maximum number of proxies, is of great relevance and concern for climate change and tectonic studies. It has been described that Arctic has experienced significant environmental/climate changes during the last few centuries (Overpeck et al., 1997). Ny-Alesund region has been affected by recent glacial activities which provides a natural laboratory to examine the landforms. However, the geomorphic data base of this area is quite limited with paucity of observations, making it difficult to analyze and interpret for landscape evolution and climate change. The analysis and documentation of geomorphic features and their associated depositional environment are important in understanding the landforms and landscape evolution and their relationship with the climate. Therefore by studying the landforms and its sediment, it is possible to reconstruct the surface processes/depositional sedimentary environment and so the prevailing climate. A model for the landscape evolution and geomorphic feature is proposed which can be used as an analogue to interpret the rock record. The present paper describes the glacial and fluvial environments of the study area (fig 1) with special reference to the geomorphic features which also explain the control of climate and tectonics in the region.
Figure 1 Location map showing Spitsbergen and Ny-Alesund
Sedimentary Environments and Geomorphology

Sedimentary environment has mainly four important components, place, process, medium, and material of deposition and refers simply to the place or medium of deposition and to the physical, chemical and biological
conditions which characterize the depositional setting. The major criteria currently used in recognizing the depositional environments are the characteristics of the sediments such as bedding plane, nature of contact between the beds and small to large scale structures, directional properties, gross composition of the rock
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and total faunal and floral assemblage which can be identified in the field. The sedimentary environment is characterized by its own energy level and so the capacity for transportation and deposition of sediments of particular grain size with diagnostic sedimentary structures controlled by climate and tectonics. Therefore, every sedimentary environment will be characterized by its typical sedimentary parameters. The area is characterized by the dominance of glacial landforms, however, the glacio-fluvial, and fluvial geomorphic features are also present and can be identified on the basis of above criteria. The cryosphere present as snow, glaciers, ice sheets, sea ice, and permafrost is the prominent feature of this region. The majority of the glaciers belongs to the sub polar type and may be classified as ice cap, valley glaciers, cirque glaciers, tidal glaciers, rock glaciers, and talus cone glaciers (Singh and Ravindra, 2010). Small valley glaciers ending on land usually have very low velocities. It erodes and deposits the debris to form a number of geomorphic features characterized by poorly sorted angular coarse grain sediments, which are devoid of any sedimentary structures. Very low velocities in the lower part of ablation and considerably higher ones in the middle and upper parts is characteristic feature of a glacier to surge which results in transportation of ice from higher to lower part (Meier and post, 1969). Surge is a dramatic increase in their velocity, up to one hundred times the normal flow rate. Due to high sliding velocities, the basal ice must be at melting point during the surge (Paterson, 1983). Vestre brogger and Midre loven located at a distance of about 3 km in SW and 4.5 km in SE direction from the Himadri (Indian Research Station at Arctic) are small valley glaciers. The geomorphic features formed by these small valley glaciers are lateral moraines, recessional moraines, pushed moraines, hummocky moraines, out wash plains and kettles where poorly sorted sand, silt and gravels are deposited in thick succession. Convex wrinkled surface, crevasses, bergchurnds, supraglacial melt water streams, longitudinal debris strips, thrust moraines, convex longitudinal profile with break
in slopes, fractures and joints are the characteristic feature of the valley glacier (Singh and Ravindra, 2010). On Brogger breen, the maximum velocity close to the equilibrium line was less than 0.01 m/d (2m/a), whereas it was close to 0.02 m/d (4.5m/a) on Loven breen (Liestol, 1988). Study in this region was started in 1966 on Brogger breen and a year later on Loven breen, and has been carried out every year. A positive net balance has only been recorded in 1987 and 1991 (Hagen and Liesto 1990). All the moraines are made up of clast supported boulders. The percentage of sand, silt and clay is about 30% and boulders 70%. Boulder varying in size from 2-10 cm is 50%, 10-15 cm 15%, and more than 15 cm are 5%. The length, width, height, and provenance of the moraines are changing with respect to the changing volume of glacier due to climate change. Hummocky moraines are produced by dumping and inglacial thrusting. These are mound shaped complex moraine formed when the glacier was at its most dynamic stage. In the area mound shaped debris some with ice core can be observed. The hummocky moraines consist of 20% sand, silt and clay and 80% boulders. A 65% of the boulders vary in size from 4-10 cm in length and 3-5 cm in width, whereas 10% boulders are 10-20 cm in length and only 5% boulders are more than 20 cm and up to 4 feet in length and 2 feet in width. The azimuths of the orientation of the boulders were measured for palaeocurrent analysis. The rose diagram prepared on the basis of boulder alignment is shown in (fig 2). The bimodal rose diagram indicates two directions for the movement of the glacier in the past with a prominent direction in the S 61 W.
Figure 2 showing bimodal rose diagram
Session: 4
Figure 3 shows the lateral moraines, terminal moraines, hummocky moraines, kettles and out wash plain. The out wash plain are reworked by surging glaciers and also by the processes which originate during deglaciation. Figure 4 indicate the litholog of the outwash plain which explain about the facies of the sandur deposits. The rivers are ephemeral and transport large amount of sediments from mountain to plain and to the ocean. Generally the rivers originating from glaciers are large with high discharge and heavy sediment load but in this area snow fed rivers are very small 3-5 km in length with low discharge and sediment load. The valley width varies from 50-100 feet in which channels are 15-20 feet wide only. The depth of the channel varies from 1-4 feet. The rivers carry bed load, suspended load, and dissolved load. The middle and distal part of the river exhibit sand bar deposits and small scale ripple marks. The rivers drain into the ocean and form a delta. The river sediments were analysed for granulometric analysis. The sediment samples were collected near origin (A1), middle reach (A2) and confluence of the river with ocean (A3). The granulometric parameters are given in table 1 and the cumulative curve for the grain size is given in figure 5. Table 2 shows the weight percentage of the different grain size fraction of sediment.
Figure 3 showing moraines, kettles, outwash plain and the ocean
Figure 5 showing cumulative curve of granulometric analysis
Table 1 indicating Grain size parameters
Sample no. A1 A2 A3
Sk1 1.06 2.08 -0.41 1.77 1.58 0.18 0.73 1.62 -0.28
Mz
KG 0.72 1.14 0.91
Figure 4 showing facies of the sandur deposits
Where Mz is mean size, 1 is inclusive graphic standard deviation, Sk1 is inclusive graphic skewness, and KG is graphic kurtosis.
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Table 2 indicating weight % of different grain size fractions of sediments
Mesh no. 10 18 35 60 120 230
scale -1.00 0.00 1.00 2.00 3.00 4.00
Weight(in gram) A1 A2 A3 12.06 8.979 16.71 3.97 4.33 13.90 4.48 7.09 17.61 9.48 30.09 25.00 14.20 13.77 13.39 10.06 22.39 5.82
A1 22.21 7.31 8.24 17.47 26.17 18.54
Weight% A2 10.31 4.97 8.14 34.57 15.82 25.72
A3 17.78 14.80 18.74 26.62 14.25 6.19
Cumulative wt. % A1 A2 A3 22.5 10.31 17.78 28.75 15.28 32.58 37.5 23.42 51.32 56.25 57.99 77.94 81.00 73.81 92.19 99.90 99.53 98.38
Where -1 to 0 is very coarse sand, 0 to 1 is coarse sand, 1 to 2 is medium sand, 2 to 3 is fine sand, and 3 to 4 is very fine sand.
Discussions and conclusions

The understanding of geomorphic features and their associated surface process/sedimentary environment is the first step in describing the landscape evolution. The main sedimentary environment active for the formation of landforms and sediments are glacial during glacial stage, while during deglaciation many sedimentary environments came into existence and contribute in shaping the landscape of the area.
The present study describes that the landscape of the Ny-Alesund, Svalbard, Arctic is carved by the last period of glacial activity followed by surface processes/sedimentary environments evolved during interglacial period under direct control of climate and tectonics. A model of the surface process/sedimentary environments and landforms was proposed which can be used as an analogue to interpret the rock record (fig 6).
Figure 6 showing model of sedimentary environment and landforms of Ny-Alesund area
Session: 4
Since the motion of most glaciers in this region is very slow, the front will shrink and retreat in periods between surges. The front position therefore gives little information on whether the ice mass is growing or shrinking. The convex shape and steep slope gradient near snout of the Midre loven and and Vestre brogger glacier with well marked frontal convexity indicate the surge features (Hagen, 1987) The sandur facies in which the clast supported facies are followed by matrix supported facies which are further capped by clast supported facies also explain the high glacial energy and so the glacial advance stage. The roses of palaeocurrent indicate that there are two directions for the movement of the glaciers in the past. It means the glacier was changing its direction frequently which explains the strong control of tectonic activity. The granulometric parameters indicate that the grain size decrease and again increases in the downstream direction which further supports the influence of the tectonic activity. Hjelle, A. (1993). The Geology of Svalbard. Oslo, Norsk Polarinstitutt, 163 pp. Liestol O. (1988). The glaciers in the Kongsfjorden area, Spitsberg- en. Norsk Geografisk Tidsskrift, 42: 231-238. Meier, M.F. and Post, A.(1969). What are glacier surges?. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 6: 807 817. Paterson, W. S. B. (1983). Deformation within polar ice sheets: An analysis of the Byrd Station and Camp Century borehole-tilting measurements. Cold Regions Science and Technology, 8 (2): 165-179. Overpeck, J., Hughen, K., Hardy, D., Bradley, R., Case, R., Douglas, M., Finney, B., Gajewski, K., Jacoby, G., Jennings, A., Lamoureux, S., Lasca, A., MacDonald, G., Moore, J., Retelle, M., Smith, S., Wolfe, A. and Zielinski, G., (1997). Arctic Environmental Change of the Last Four Centuries. Science, 278 (5341): 12511256. Singh, D.S. and Ravindra, R. (2010). Geomorphology of the Midre Loven Glacier, Ny-Alesund, Svalbard, Arctic. In Geological Processes and Climate Change edt by Chabra, N.L. and Singh, D.S. In press (Macmillan Publishers India Ltd). Keywords Arctic, Climate, Tectonic Glacier, Fluvial, Landforms,
Acknowledgements
Ministry of Earth Science, Government of India, New Delhi and NCAOR, Goa are highly acknowledged for conducting the Arctic expedition. Head, Centre of Advanced Study in Geology, University of Lucknow, is acknowledged for providing the working facilities. Thanks are due to Dr. M. Shiwaji, Dr. S.M. Singh, Dr. C.G. Deshpandey who were part of First Indian Expedition to Arctic. Dr. Niloy Khare and Dr. Rakesh Mishra are thanked for their help at Ny-Alesund. Dr. Jayendra Singh is thanked for fruitful discussion.
References
Elvevold, S. (2007). Geology of Svalbard. Norweign Polar Institute, Norway, 35 pp. Hagen, J.O. (1987). Glacier surge in Svalbard with examples from Usherbreen. Norwegian Journal of Geography, Volume 42, Issue 4 1988 , pages 203 213. Hagen, J.O. and Liestl, O. (1990). Long-term glacier mass balance investigations in Svalbard. Annals of Glaciology, 14: 102106.
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Session: 5
Atmospheric, Oceanic and Microbial Research in Arctic and Antarctic
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Stable isotope and salinity variations in the Southern Indian Ocean

Rengaswamy Ramesh 1, Rohit Srivastava 1*, and Maruthadu Sudhakar 2
1 Physical Research laboratory, Navrangpura, Ahmedabad 380 009, India. *Presently at: School of Liberal Studies, Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University, Gandhinagar 382 007, India. 2 Ministry of Earth Sciences, Mahasagar Bhavan, CGO Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi 110 045, India.
Both the oxygen and hydrogen isotope ratios (18O and D),, measured as deviations in parts per thousand (or per mil, denoted by ) from those of the Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water (Yadava and Ramesh, 1999) of sea water vary linearly with salinity, S (e.g., Singh et al., 2010). By measuring these parameters as a function of time, it is possible to detect the extent of melting of the polar ice sheets. Melting causes salt-free isotopically depleted (i.e., depleted in 18 O and D) water to mix with salty, isotopically enriched sea water, thus defining a linear relation between the two. During the second expedition to the Southern Ocean, water samples were collected and salinity and stable isotopic compositions were measured (Srivsatava et al, 2007; Srivastava et al, 2010). The results, when compared with measurements that were made decades ago independently by other groups, show that there is no significant change in the salinity- stable isotope relation. This implies that the melting of the Antarctic ice sheet has not yet started influencing the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean. A theoretical model connecting stable isotope ratios and salinity has been developed and results will be examined under its light (Ramesh and Singh, 2010).
Introduction
The Southern Ocean, defined as the region between the south of 60S and Antarctica, is an important region that affects the climate of the earth (e.g., Luis and Sudhakar, 2009; Prakash et al., 2010). The main bottom and intermediate water masses of the world ocean originate here. The Antarctic zone of the
Southern Ocean refers to the vast area between the polar front and the Antarctic continent. The surface water in this zone, characterized by a commonly observed summer minimum surface temperature, is the Antarctic Surface Water (AASW) [Park et al., 1998]. The thermohaline structure of this water mass is determined by seasonally changing air-
Session: 5
sea interaction (air-sea fluxes of momentum, heat and fresh water), advection and formation/melting of sea ice [Srivastava et al, 2007]. Despite its close relationship with changing atmospheric conditions, the vertical and horizontal structures of AASW of the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean, as a whole, have not been studied well, although some detailed studies exist for limited locations. Several expeditions have been made earlier to explore the Indian Ocean as well as the Southern Ocean [Duplessy, 1970; Kallel, 1985; Archambeau et al., 1998; Singh et al. 2010]. But due to high spatial and temporal variability this region needs further studies to characterize its physical (such as temperature and salinity), chemical and isotopic properties adequately. Some studies have shown that due to global warming, parts of Antarctic ice sheet are melting and the Southern Ocean is getting more and more melt water [Banks and Bindoff, 2002; Aoki et al., 2003; Aoki et al., 2005; Barnett et al., 2005]. This makes the isotopic study of the Southern Ocean all the more urgent. The stable isotopic composition (18O and D) of ocean waters provides specific information on several aspects of the water cycle, and is useful to elucidate the mechanism and estimate the magnitude of the fluxes between the ocean and atmospheric reservoirs. The spatial distribution of 18O (and D) is useful to understand the mechanism responsible for the internal variability of water masses in their source region and allows one to follow their circulation far away from their origin. The isotopic compositions at various stages of the hydrological cycle help constrain different water masses as well as their movement. The variation in the isotopic composition of deep-sea water is relatively smaller than that in freshwater and mainly determined by freshwater input and mixing between water masses [Paul et al., 1999]. A simultaneous study of 18O and salinity provides specific information about sea surface processes such as (1) evaporation/precipitation (2) melting/freezing (3) upwelling/advection (4) continental runoff and also helps to understand reasons for the isotopic heterogeneity of the surface waters. In the case of the Southern Ocean, changes due to continental runoff are very small. Salinity and 18O covary in the case of evaporation/precipitation because both parameters decrease due to precipitation whereas evaporation increases both. Salinity and 18O exhibit a linear relationship and its slope depends on regional climate, but in the case of melting/freezing, 18O does not change much while salinity changes significantly. D co-varies with 18O generally (Ramesh and Singh, 2010). Being lighter than oxygen, hydrogen has a lower isotopic fractionation factor. D not only helps to confirm processes detected by 18O but also provides information about the humidity conditions at the time of evaporation and extent of kinetic fractionation through the deuterium excess. A proper understanding of these surface processes is very important over the Southern Ocean as it influences the monsoon. So a combined study of stable hydrogen (D) and oxygen (18O) isotopes and salinity is ideal to monitor various oceanic processes.
Cruise Track and sampling locations

Surface seawater samples were collected during the second expedition to the Southern Ocean and Larsemann Hills, Antarctica on board R/V Akademik Boris Petrov during January to March, 2006. We reached the Prydz Bay area, Antarctica, on 25th February, a time when freezing started in the Antarctic Zone. This cruise covered a large area (from 13N to 68S and 71E to 77E). 97 ocean surface water samples were collected at one degree latitude intervals. The cruise track is shown in Fig. 1. Using Niskin bottles or a clean plastic bucket, sea surface water samples were collected. Salinity was measured on board using a salinometer (Autosal) with a reproducibility of 0.001. The accuracy was checked by using IAPSO standard sea water of salinity 34.995, conductivity 1.997435, conductivity ratio (K15) 0.99987. An isotope ratio mass spectrometer (PDZ-Europa, Geo 20-20) was used for isotopic analysis. Salinity is reported as a dimensionless number in units of practical salinity units (psu). Isotope ratios are reported in per mil () deviations from the international standard V-SMOW (Vienna Standard mean Ocean Water). For details reference is made to Srivastava et al., 2007& 2010.
The observed latitudinal variations of 18O, salinity and Sea Surface Temperature (SST) are shown in Fig.
Salinity and oxygen isotopic ratios
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2 (a), (b) and (c), respectively. From 5N to 45S salinity follows the 18O pattern. North of 4.5S lies a high salinity and high 18O region, indicating a positive E-P (i.e. evaporation dominates). Between 4.5S to 20S lies a low salinity and low 18O region, with a negative EP (i.e. precipitation dominates). Moving further south of 20S, the salinity and 18O values again start increasing. This indicates againthe domination of evaporation. Due to solar heating, water around the equator (from 13N to 4.5S) evaporates and rains south of 4.5S up to 20S in the austral summer, when the ITCZ (Inter Tropical Convergence Zone) is located south of the equator. AF and STF have been reported earlier to be at subsurface; but during our pole-ward journey (February) we could observe their signature at
the very surface. At 41S there is a change in salinity by 0.69 while 18O changes by 0.35., showing the presence of AF. Again at 44S sharp changes in the salinity and oxygen isotopic composition occur. Between 44S and 45S, salinity changes by 1.02 and 18O by 0.49, indicating the position of STF. SST too decreases by 2C (from 18C to 16C) at AF whereas a decrease of 4.5C (from 15C to 10.5C) at STF is seen Fig. 2 (c). During the return journey (March) a sharp increase in 18O by 0.95 is noticed at 41S. This indicates that both fronts (AF and STF) had merged at least at the surface; SST too decreased sharply by 9C at 41S [Fig. 2(c)]. In the case of freezing/melting of an in situ ice, sea water 18O does not change much whereas the
Figure1: Cruise track along which sampling was done. Approximate locations of the various fronts are marked (after Belkin and Gordon, 1996): AF: Agulhas Front; NSTF & SSTF: North and South Sub-Tropical Fronts; PF: Polar front; SAF: Sub- Antarctic Front; SAMW & STMW: Sub -Antarctic and Sub -Tropic Mode Waters. Onward and return journeys are shown by arrows.
Session: 5
in salinity. From 45S to 61S salinity follows the same trend as 18O except for some minor variations. From 47S to 51S increase of 0.17 in salinity and 0.08 in 18O are observed. This is a cyclonic area. Winds are very strong (about 10 m/s to 14 m/s) in this region. Due to strong winds evaporation is also high and thus salinity and 18O increase. From 51S (58.8E) to 62S (67E) salinity and 18O co-vary, indicating minor effect of precipitation/evaporation. The region between 63S to 67S exhibits high salinity (increase in salinity by 0.25 in the first region and 0.49 in the second) while 18O remains constant. This region is affected by ocean water freezing; we observed freezing during the cruise south of 63S.From 67S onwards both 18O and salinity start decreasing possibly due to mixing of continental melt ice to the coastal ocean water. During the return journey (March) we have only one sample for salinity up to 41S (48E) at 65S. This high value of salinity (34.38) is due to a strong freezing effect, as visually observed. This is also the beginning of the austral fall. 18O shows a constant value from 68S to 42S but for small variations between 0.25 to 0.45 during the return journey. From 41S to 33S salinity and 18O are both constant except for small variations. Fig. 3 shows the relationship between 18O and salinity. All points plotted as circles and crosses are from north of 44S (13N to 44S). In the graph, best fit line has a slope of 0.27 0.03 (best fit line: 18O = (0.27 0.03) S (8.89 0.98), r2 = 0.73, P 0.01), indicating that this region is governed by local evaporation and precipitation. On the other hand, points plotted as triangles from 45S to 68S, lie in a line of negligible slope (best fit line: 18O = (0.01 0.06)S + (0.04 2.10), r2 = 0.0011, P = 0.88). The data points are further distinguished as filled (up to 62S) and open triangles (south of 63S). While the freezing effect is clearly seen for the latter, some evaporation effect cannot be ruled out in the former. LeGrande and Schmidt [2006] presented global gridded data set of sea water 18O values, with variable number of observations for different oceanic regions. They reported 18O-salinity relationships for different oceanic regions, whose definition was somewhat arbitrary, according to them. They cautioned
Figure 2: Latitudinal variation of (a) salinity (b) 18O and (c) SST of surface waters. The two vertical bands refer to positions of the fronts: STF (left) and AF (right). The filled circles and crosses refer to data collected during onward and return journeys, respectively.
salinity varies significantly. Since the fractionation factor for water to ice transition is very small, freezing does not change the 18O of the remaining water or ice significantly. But salinity changes, as during freezing, ice discards salt; the salt content in the remaining water increases. During melting salinity decreases due to fresh water input from ice. The case of continental ice melt is different. The ice forms by precipitation which is highly depleted in the heavier isotope. So mixing of continental melt water decreases salinity as well as 18O of the ocean surface water [e.g. Archambeau et al., 1998]. The region from 45S to 68S shows much less variation in 18O (between 0.2 and 0.4) than
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that their data set was too sparse to capture consistently seasonal or longer variability except in localized regions. Our 18O data, in a similar range as reported by them, are consistent with their general observations that (i) the 18O-salinity slope is greatest at mid-latitudes and shallowest at low latitudes and the Southern Ocean, and (ii) in areas of sea ice formation and melting, the slopes
tend to be shallow. They reported slopes of 0.24 and 0.16 respectively for the Southern Ocean and the Indian Ocean. A direct comparison of the slopes obtained by us is difficult because (i) our data are seasonal and theirs pertain to long term means, and (ii) our data pertain only to the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean and theirs cover most Southern Ocean.
Figure 3: 18O salinity relationship for the Indian Ocean, 2006.
Hydrogen isotopic ratios
Figure 4: Latitudinal variation of D
Session: 5
By and large, hydrogen isotopic composition (D) follows the same trend as 18O and salinity (Fig.4) except depleted isotopic values between 4.5S and 20S, as observed in the 18O and salinity. This may be due to the sparse of sampling in this zone. A sharp decrease in D of ~8 from 41S to 45S with an increase of ~2 at 44S confirms the effect of shoaling of AF and STF. Barring some fluctuations, which are within the experimental uncertainties, D shows an overall increasing trend, moving towards the south. This increase in the D values confirms the increasing effect of in situ melting of sea ice. For more details see Srivastava et al., 2010.
Sea water line over the Southern Ocean
The relation between D and 18O of the ocean surface water gives information about the humidity at the time of evaporation. For worldwide fresh surface waters, Craig [1961] has found that 18O and D exhibit a linear correlation, which defines the global meteoric water line (GMWL). Its slope is ~8 and intercept is ~10.The slope is 8 because this is approximately the value produced by equilibrium Rayleigh fractionation of evaporating water surface at about 90% humidity. The value of the slope of the GMWL is close to
Fig. 5: Plot of 18O vs. D of surface sea water from the Indian Ocean (best fit line with slope = 7.35 0.29, intercept = 0.30 0.14, r2 = 0.88). Global Meteoric Water line is also shown for comparison
the ratio of the equilibrium fractionation factors for H and O isotopes at 25C-30C [Majoube, 1971]. Slope reduces to less than 8 due to evaporation controlled by ambient humidity (and also due to diffusion through the water vapor boundary layer and exchange with atmospheric water vapor) at the ocean surface. The non-equilibrium evaporation process is characterized [Dansgaard, 1964; Gat, 1981; Mook, 2006] by a slope
of less than 8. The relation between D and 18O for the Indian Ocean is depicted in Fig. 5, where data points cluster in two distinct bunches. The best fit line has a slope of (7.35 0.29), which is significantly lower than the slope of the GMWL (8.12 0.07). This indicates the Southern Ocean as a whole is evaporating under isotopic non-equilibrium, with a mean ambient humidity significantly less than 95%, as also borne
137
out by humidity observations during the cruise. As a result, the Indian Ocean samples show an intercept of (0.30 0.14) which is much less than the intercept of GMWL (9.20 0.53). The relation between D 18O is similar to two end member mixing (points in the two big circles). This again emphasizes that the region between 41S and 45S is a transition region between two different types of zones.
Effect of the Global warming over oceans

Oceans are getting highly affected due to the effect of global warming. Observations shows that ~80% of the total heating of the Earth system (oceans, atmosphere,
continents and cryosphere) over the last 40 years has gone into warming the oceans [Levitus et al., 2005]. Due to the effect of warming fresh water input, sea surface level, sea surface temperatures and current structures are significantly changing. But these changes are different for different oceans. A recent model study [Barnett et al., 2005] suggests that ocean warming cannot be explained by only taking account the natural internal climate variability or solar and volcanic forcing. To fully explain ocean warming the anthropogenic forcing also has to be taken into the account. Ship based studies demonstrate the effect of global warming in the various part of the globe. They show the pattern of cooling and freshening on isopycnals
Fig.6: Sampling locations for Duplessy (), Kallel (), Archambeau () and Srivastava ()
Session: 5
in midlatitudes, with warming on isopycnals at high latitudes. They also show that the water mass changes are related to changes in the surface fluxes and surface warming is the dominant factor in producing water mass changes [Banks and Bindoff, 2002]. A few recent studies show the effect of global warming in the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean as well [Aoki et al., 2003; 2005] yet such studies are sparse. To study the effect of global warming on the ocean surface water salinity-18O relation over the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean, a comparative study was done using the previous available stable isotopic and salinity data set (data of Duplessy and Kallel available at http://data.giss.nasa.gov/ o18data and of Archambeau, taken from his paper) [Archambeau et al., 1998; Schmidt et al., 1999]. Sampling points for different studies are shown in Fig. 6. For the comparison, data from the south of 25S are used as they are common for all the above studies. The NASA data-bank does not contain information about the sampling months of Duplessy and Kallel whereas Archambeau and Srivastava et al. (2007) collected their samples in the same season (FebruaryMarch). All the above studies were done almost in the same region and likely in the same season. This study demonstrates not only changes in the salinity18O relation but also changing pattern in the water currents between 40S and 50S (sharpness of salinity & 18O decreases). This region is very important as it makes the demarcation between warm tropical water and Antarctic cold water. A sudden decrease in the salinity and 18O between 40S and 50S shows the change in the surface water properties. Comparison show that the sharpness of the decrease in the salinity and 18O between 40S and 50S is increasing from 1969-2006 except during 1993. This may be due to the difference in the study region (Fig.7). This decrease was very fast in 2006 in comparison to the previous data sets. This may be an indication of ocean warming and consequent meridional mixing. The combined effect of these two may shrink the transition zone. More studies are required to confirm this hypothesis. Salinity- 18O relation also shows a significant increase in the slope in 2006 whereas for other studies it is same within the uncertainty limit (Fig. 8). This mainly due to the increase of mean 18O in the tropics, which could be due to enhanced evaporation in this region, the salinity increase being compensated by influx of ocean water from the surroundings.
Figure 7: Comparison among (a) Duplessy (measurements in 1969), (b) Kallel (measurments in 1984), (c) Archambeau (measurements in 1993) and (d) Srivastava et al (measurements in 2006) in the latitudinal variation of 18O () and salinity(PSU) Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
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References
Aoki, S., M. Yoritaka and A. Masuyama (2003), Multidecadal warming of subsurface temperature in the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean, J. Geophys. Res, 108 (C4), 8081. Aoki, S., N. L. Bindoff and C. J. A (2005), Interdecadal water mass changes in the Southern Ocean between 30E and 16E, J. Geophys. Res, 32, L07607. Archambeau, A. S., C. Pierre, A. Poisson and B. Schauer (1998), Distribution of oxygen and carbon stable isotopes and CFC-12 in the water masses of the Southern Ocean at 30oE from South Africa to Antarctica: results of CIVA1 cruise, Journal of Marine Systems, 17, 25-38. Banks, H. T. and N. L. Bindoff (2002), Comparison of Observed Temperature and Salinity Changes in the Indo-Pacific with Results from the Coupled Climate Model HadCM3: Processes and Mechanisms, 2002, 16, Journal of Climate, 16, 156-166. Barnett, T. P., D. W. Pierce, K. M. Achuta Rao, P. J. Gleckler, B. D. Santer, J. M. Gregory and W. M. Washington (2005), Penetration of HumanInduced Warming into the Worlds Oceans, Science, 309, 284. Belkin, I. M. and A. L. Gordon (1996), Southern Ocean fronts from the Greenwich meridian to Tasmania, J. Geophys. Res., 101 (C2), 3675-3696. Craig, H. (1961), Isotopic Variations in Meteoric Waters, Science, 133 (3465), 1702-1703. Dansgaard, W. (1964), Stable isotopes in precipitation, Tellus, 16, 436-468.
Figure 8 (right) : Comparison among (a) Duplessy (1970), (b) Kallel (1985), (c) Archambeauet al (19983) and (d) Srivastava et al. (2007) in the salinity- 18O relation.
Session: 5
Duplessy, J.-C. (1970), Note preliminaire sur les variations de la composition isotopique des eaux superficelles de lOcean Indien: La relation 18O-Salinit, C. R.Acad. Sc. Paris, 271, 1075-1078. Gat, J. R. (1981), Isotopic Fractionation. In Stable Isotope Hydrology: Deuterium and Oxygen-18 in the Water Cycle, Technical Report Series No.210 (eds.Gat J R and Gonfiantini R.), IAEA, Vienna, 21-33. Kallel, N. (1985), La composition isotopique des eaux du secteur Indien de locean austral, Masters thesis. Universite de Paris Sud. LeGrande, A. N. and G. A. Schmidt (2006), Global gridded data set of the oxygen isotopic composition in seawater, Geophys. Res. Lett., 33, L12604. Levitus, S., J. Antonov and T. Boyer (2005), Warming of the world ocean, 1955-2003, Geophys. Res. Lett., 32, L02604. Luis, A.J. and Sudhakar, M. (2009) Upper-ocean hydrodynamics along meridional sections in the southwest Indian sector of the Southern Ocean during austral summer 2007, Polar Science, doi:10.1016/j. polar.2009.03.001. Majoube, M. (1971), Fractionnement en oxygen-18 et en deuterium entre leau et sa vapeur, J. Chem. Phys, 68, 1423-1436. Mook, W. G. (2006), Introduction to Isotope Hydrology: Stable and Radioactive Isotopes of Hydrogen, Oxygen and Carbon, Taylor & Francis. Park, Y. H., E. Charriaud and M. Fieux (1998), Thermohaline structure of Antarctic Surface Water/ Winter Water in the Indian sector of Southern Ocean, Journal of Marine Systems, 5-23. Paul, A., S. Mulitza, J. Ptzold and T. Wolff (1999), Simulation of Oxygen Isotopes in a Global Ocean Model. In: Fischer, G & Wefer, G (eds.), Use of Proxies in Paleoceanography - Examples from the South Atlantic, Springer-verlag Berlin, 655-686. Prakash, S., Ramesh, R., Sheshshayee, M., Mohan, R. and Sudhakar, M. (2010) Effect of high level iron enrichment on potential nitrogen uptake by marine plankton in the Southern Ocean, Curr. Sci. 99(1) 1400-1404. Ramesh, R. and Singh, A. (2010) Isotopic fractionation in open systems: application to organic matter decomposition in ocean and land. Current Science, 98(3) 406- 411. Schmidt, G. A., G. R. Bigg and E. J. Rohling (1999), Global Seawater Oxygen-18 Database, http://data. giss.nasa.gov/o18data/, NASA Goddard Inst. of Space Sci.,New York, N. Y. Singh, A., Jani, R.A. and Ramesh, R. (2010) Spatiotemporal variations of the 18Osalinity relation in the northern Indian Ocean. Deep Sea Research I, 57, 1422-1431. Srivastava, R., Ramesh, R., Prakash, S., Anilkumar, N. and Sudhakar, M. (2007) Oxygen isotope and salinity variations in the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean. Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L24603, doi:10.1029/2007GL031790, 1-4. Srivastava, R., Ramesh, R., Jani, R.A., Anilkumar, N. and Sudhakar, M. (2010) Stable oxygen, hydrogen isotope ratios and salinity variations of the surface Southern Indian Ocean waters, Current Science, 99(10) 1385-1399.
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Suspended Particulate Matter In Southern Ocean An Approach To Understand Source And Processes
Department of Marine Sciences, Goa University, Goa -403 206 (*2006 Ms. Deepti V. G. Dessai and Mr. Ksh. Tomchou Singh; 2009 Ms. Ratnaprabha Siraswar; 2010 Ms. Samida Volvoikar; 2011 Ms. Cheryl Noronha)
Prof. G. N. Nayak and Participants*
The Southern Ocean, also known as Antarctic Ocean or the South Polar Ocean is the fourth largest of the worlds five oceans. It encompasses roughly 20.3 million sq. km (7.8 million sq mi) in area. Geologically the Southern Ocean is the youngest of the worlds oceans. It formed around 30 million years ago when Antarctica and South America moved apart. It has several seas, the most oceanographically distinctive of which are the Ross and Weddell seas. It is considered as a crucial area in the contemporary cycle of matter. Two major sources responsible for supply of particles to the ocean are biogenic particles formed as a result of planktonic metabolism and Lithogenic particles, mostly clay and rock detritus, transported from continents by rivers, coastal erosion and wind. Also, as a result of resuspension of sediments, a large volume of lithogenic particles is transferred within the interior of the ocean. The mass concentrations of suspended particulate matter (SPM) in the ocean vary in different regions and at different depths due to various biotic and abiotic factors and depend on the geographical location, its productivity and the dynamics of its water masses. The knowledge on the distribution of SPM is an important prerequisite for the description and prediction of the ecological conditions. The SPM in the water column regulates the penetration depth of light and therefore it is an important parameter influencing primary productivity. Suspended barite is being used as a tracer of biological activity in Southern Ocean. Elemental chemistry of SPM will help us in understanding source of matter. The fundamental physical and chemical properties of water will vary depending on the type and origin of SPM. So far India through NCAOR of MoES, launched four expeditions in the
Session: 5
Indian sector of the Southern Ocean during January - March 2004, January - April 2006, January - April 2009 and January - March 2010 and fifth one is presently on for January - April 2011. We from the Department of Marine Sciences of Goa Universality are part of all the expeditions except for the first one. Our studies on SPM and its chemistry have given interesting results. The observed variations in SPM were attributed to changes in productivity and/or to the difference in source of matter. In order to understand climatic changes through the study of Southern Ocean continuous and long term monitoring is essential. It is therefore proposed to be part of future Southern Ocean expeditions. We also propose to collect sediment cores to support our studies on past climate changes.
The Southern Ocean is the fourth largest of the worlds five oceans as it encompasses roughly 20.3 million sq. km (7.8 million sq mi) in area and is also known as Antarctic Ocean or the South Polar Ocean. Southern Ocean surrounding the Antarctic continent due to its dynamic nature played a key role in the long term global paleo-environmental evolution (Kennett and Barron, 1992). Further, coastal waters of Antarctic continent along the periphery of Southern Ocean play a crucial role in climatic change especially that related to ocean-ice system response to global warming, carbon sequestration due to bottom water formation and biological productivity (Davis and McNider, 1997). Southern Ocean receives nutrient input from the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) which provides pathway between the major ocean basins and has a vital role in global distribution of salt, heat nutrient etc (Peterson and White, 1998). Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) in the water column regulates the penetration of light and therefore it is an important parameter influencing the primary productivity. Various processes such as biological activity, lithogenic inputs through melting of ice, submarine volcanic activity, hydrothermal and extraterrestrial inputs determine the composition of SPM. Research in the Southern Ocean underlines the sensitivity of the region to climate variability and its importance in understanding climate change. Southern ocean is also important in the context of global biogeochemical cycling because it contains sites of deep water convection and also because its surface waters contain a large pool of unutilized nutrients, presumably due to the limitation of biological productivity by low dissolved iron levels (Pandey et al., 2006). In our attempt therefore, an effort is being made to investigate the distribution of SPM and its components to understand the source and processes operating in the region.
Methodology
a. Study area - The Southern Ocean is characterized by three different zones representing Sub Tropical (280 430 S), Sub- Antarctic (430 590 S) and Antarctic (590 S onwards). The Antarctic Zone of the Southern Ocean is largely covered for most of the year by sea ice and is isolated from human induced activities. It is dominated by several frontal zones i.e. Sub-Tropical Front (STF), the Sub Antarctic Front (SAF); the Polar Front (PF); and a deep-reaching front observed persistently to the south, the Southern Antarctic Circumpolar Current Front (SACCF). The larger variation in environmental forcing parameters of Southern Ocean is the result of these Frontal Zones and in turn influence global climate. b. Field Methods - During the expeditions, five litres of surface water samples were collected at one degree interval from 28S to 66S of Indian sector
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of Southern Ocean representing three zones i.e. Sub Tropical, Sub- Antarctic and Antarctic in 2006, 2009 and 2010 (Fig.1). In addition, water samples were also collected from four different depths i.e. 100 m,
200 m, 500 m and 1000 m using rosette sampler at selected locations. The water samples were stored in acid washed pre cleaned plastic containers to avoid metal contamination.
Figure 1: Cruise tracks of 2nd (2006), 3rd(2009), 4th(2010) and 5th(2011) expeditions
Session: 5
c. Laboratory analyses - Samples were analyzed, in the laboratory, for the following parameters: Salinity and Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) onboard and SPM constituents and Particulate metals in the laboratory on land. i) Salinity: Salinity was measured by using Autosal in which the readings of the collected water samples both at surface and depth were directly noted. ii) SPM: A known volume of water sample (5 litres) was vacuum filtered through pre-weighed millipore membrane filter having a pore size of 0.45 m. The filter paper was then oven dried at 600 C and reweighed on the four-decimal balance. Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) concentration was then calculated using the sample volume and sample weight. SPM was expressed as mg/l. iii) SEM photographs: Sample preparation for SEM photography was done by taking a portion of the dried filter paper containing suspended particulate matter which was mounted onto a stub coated with platinum in a sputter coater. SEM photographs were obtained by using model JEOL 6360. SEM uses a beam of electrons to scan the surface of a sample to build a three-dimensional image of the specimen. In order to take better resolution image, the SEM was operated at an accelerating voltage range, 6 kv. Low magnification (1000-2000X) was used for a quick overview of the sample. For selected particle, magnification was increased (3000-11000X) and a photograph was taken. Five images for each selected samples were digitally captured and among these best ones were chosen for analysis. iv) Digestion of SPM and metal analysis: Digestion of filter papers containing suspended particulate matter of the water samples collected at both surface and depth was carried out using following procedure given by (Satyanarayana et al., 1985). The digested samples were analyzed for selected elements using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (VARIAN AA 240 FS model) equipped with deuterium background corrections. Blank corrections were applied for all the metals.
Results And Discussion

The range and average values of SPM in surface water samples from 280 S up to 660 S representing SubTropical, Sub Antarctic and Antarctic zones are been displayed in the Table 1.
Table 1: Ranges and Average values of suspended matter concentration in surface water samples along the study stretch in year 2006, 2009 and 2010.
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In the Sub tropical zone SPM values fluctuated between 5.2 and 6.7 mg/l during the year 2006, 0.52 and 7.56 mg/l in the year 2009 and 6.62 and 9.22 mg/l during the year 2010. SPM showed less variation during 2006 (Fig.2a), overall decrease trend during 2009 (Fig.2b) with few peak values. However during 2010 (Fig.2c), the values showed initial increase up to 330 and then decrease from 280 to 330. This
indicates overall decreasing trend towards 430 S with fluctuating higher values. In the Sub Antarctic zone, SPM varied from 2.3 to 5.95 mg/l during the year 2006, 0.52 to 2.68 mg/l during 2009 and 5.78 to 8.02 mg/l during 2010. The values showed almost a constant trend from 430 S up to 540 S followed by alternate high decreasing and increasing concentration up to 590 S during the year
Figure 2a: Concentration and distribution of surface SPM along the studied stretch in 2006.
Figure 2b: Concentration and distribution of surface SPM along the studied stretch in 2009
Session: 5
Figure 2c: Concentration and distribution of surface SPM along the studied stretch in 2010. 2006 (Fig. 2a). In the year 2009 (Fig. 2b), significant increase between 430 S up to 450 S is noted followed by a decrease up to 480 S. Further an almost constant trend is observed up to 590 S except a minor peak observed at 580 S. In the year 2010 (Fig. 2c), alternate decreasing and increasing trend is noted between 430 S to 590 S except significant peak value is noted at 53et al. The values remained low during 2009 as compared to 2006 and 2010. In the Antarctic zone, during the year 2006 the value varied from 0.7 to 7.05 mg/l, during 2009 it was between 0.98 and 3.36 mg/l and in 2010 it was from 6.1 to 7.06 mg/l, maintaining very high values during 2010 and lower during 2009 and during 2006 with a large range. In 2006 (Fig.2a) very high fluctuating values are seen with comparatively lower SPM concentration observed at 630 S and 660 S. In the year 2009 (Fig.2b), overall gradual increasing trend is noted in this zone. In the year 2010 (Fig.2c), fluctuating trend with minor variations but high values of SPM is observed. When data of the three years are compared, in case of Sub Tropical zone, Sub Antarctic zone and Antarctic zone it is been observed that higher average values of SPM is noted in the year 2010 followed by 2006 and lower values during 2009 indicating yearly fluctuation in SPM in all the three zones. Higher variation in values reveals dynamics of the zones (Queguiner et al., 1997; Baldwin and Smith, 2003) and variation in supply of source material (Thamban et al., 2005) and processes including productivity (Pasquer, et al., 2010). Variation with Depth - In Sub Tropical zone, when the data of the three years i.e. 2006, 2009 (350 S) and 2010 (390 S) with respect to depth are compared (Table 2a). In 2006, the SPM showed not much variation with depth except at 10 m where in slightly higher value is noted. In 2009, the SPM showed increasing values with depth while in 2010 surface concentration was higher than 100 m.
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Table 2a: Ranges values of suspended matter concentration in water samples collected at depth 350 in year 2006, 2009 and 390 in 2010.
Table 2b: Ranges values of suspended matter concentration in water samples collected at depth 430 in year 2006, 2009 and 2010
Table 2c: Ranges values of suspended matter concentration in water samples collected at depth 650 in year 2006, 2009 and 590 in 2010.
Session: 5
In Sub - Antarctic zone (430 S), SPM concentration showed almost a constant trend up to 200 m depth and comparatively lesser value at 1000 m in the year 2006 (Table 2b). In 2009, the surface concentration was lesser than depth values. While the surface water sample showed relatively higher suspended concentration than 100 m depth in the year 2010. During the year 2006, in the Antarctic zone (650 S) the suspended matter showed almost constant values except at 1000 m depth where in relatively higher concentration was observed (Table 2c). In the year 2009, the SPM concentration showed a decrease up to 200 m depth followed by a slight increase at 1000 m. In 2010, lesser suspended matter was observed at 100 m depth as compared to surface values. When yearly data of the three zones were compared it has been observed that higher SPM concentration is seen in the year 2010 at surface and 100 m depth followed by 2006 and with relatively lower value during 2009. Distribution of SPM and associated particulate Fe - In the Sub Tropical Zone i.e. 350 S, SPM showed increase up to 100 m and Fe decreasing trend up to 200 m depth followed by constant trend in deeper zones (Fig. 3). In Sub Antarctic Zone (430 S), increasing SPM is associated with decreasing particulate Fe up to 100 m followed by alternate increase and decrease i.e. up to 200 m and 1000 m respectively. In Antarctic Zone (650 S), SPM and particulate Fe showed similar distribution pattern showing an alternate decreasing and increasing trend i.e. up to 100 m and 200 m respectively followed by a decrease up to 1000 m. The particulate Fe showed decreasing values up to 100 m in all the three zones which reveals that it being a micro nutrient it is essential for primary productivity in euphotic zone. Sources of iron in near shore Antarctic waters include inputs from iron-rich sediments and iron released from melting sea ice (Martin et al., 1990) might have resulted higher Fe beyond 100 m depth at 430 S and 650 S. Components of SPM - SEM photographs of suspended matter largely show lithogenic (Plate 1) and biogenic (Plate 2) components. The biogenic components are largely dominated by Fragilariopsis sp.
Figure 3: SPM and Iron distribution with depth
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Plate 1. Scanning electron microscope photograph of SPM collected at 400 S. SPM consists of angular inorganic particle.
Plate 2. Scanning electron microscope photograph of SPM collected at 690 S. SPM consists mainly of biogenic components dominated by Fragilariopsis sp.
Future Studies Proposed

We from Department of Marine Sciences of Goa Universality are part of all the expeditions except for the first one, which was organized by NCAOR of MoES, in the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean during January - March 2004, January - April 2006, January - April 2009 and January - March 2010 and fifth one is presently on for January - April 2011. Our
studies carried out on SPM and its chemistry has given interesting results. The observed variations in SPM were attributed to changes in productivity and/ or to the difference in source of matter. In order to understand climatic changes through the study of Southern Ocean continuous and long term monitoring is very much essential. It is therefore proposed to be part of future Southern
Session: 5
Ocean expeditions. We propose to study component composition of SPM to understand the source of matter and productivity. We also propose to collect sediment cores to support our studies on past climate changes. Satyanarayana, D., Rao, I. M. and Prasada Reddy, B. R. 1985. Chemical oceanography of harbour and coastal environment of Visakhapatnam (Bay of Bengal): Part I Trace metal in water and particulate matter. Ind. Jour. Mar. Sci., 14, 139 146. Thamban, M., Nail, S. S., Mohan , R., Rajakumar, A., Basavaiah, N., DSouza, W., Kerkar, S., Subramaniam, M. M., Sudhakar, M. and Pandey, P. C., 2005. Changes in the source and transport mechanism of terrigenous input to the Indian sector of Southern Ocean during the late Quaternary and its palaeoceanographic implications. Jour. Earth Syst. Sci. 114 (5), 443452.
References
Baldwin, R. J. and Smith, K. L., 2003. Temporal dynamics of particulate matter fluxes and sediment community response in Port Foster, Deception Island, Antarctica. Deep-Sea Research II, 50, 17071725. Davis, A. M. and McNider, R. T., 1997. The development of Antarctic katabatic winds and implications for the coastal ocean. Jour. Atmos. Sci., 54, 1248 1261. Kennett, J. P. and Barron, J. A., 1992. Introduction to the Antarctic Paleoenvironment: a perspective on global change. Antarct. Res. Ser., 56, 1 - 6. Martin, J.H., Gordon, R.M. and Fitzwater, S.E., 1990. Iron in Antarctic waters. Nature 345, 156158. Pandey, P.C., Khare, N. and Sudhakar, M., 2006. Oceanographic research: Indian efforts and preliminary results from the Southern Ocean. Curr. Sci., 90(7), 978-984. Pasquer, Benedicte., Mongin, Mathieu., Johnston, Neale. and Wright, Simon., 2010. Distribution of particulate organic matter(POM) in the Southern Ocean during BROKE-West(301E - 801E). Deep-Sea Research II 57, 779 793. Peterson, R. G. and White, W. B., 1998. Slow oceanic tele-connections linking Antarctic circumpolar wave with tropical El-nino Southern Oscillation. Jour. Geophys, Res., 103, 573-583. Queguiner, B., Treguer, P., Peeken, I. and Scharek, R., 1997. Biogeochemical dynamics and the silicon cycle in the Allantic sector of Southern Ocean during austral spring 1992. Deep Sea Research II, 44, 69- 89.
151
Biodiversity and biotechnological applications of psychrophiles

Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Uppal Road, Hyderabad 500 007, INDIA
Dr S Shivaji
More than 300 viable colonies of bacteria from various habitats of Antarctica have been identified up to the species level and the predominant bacteria belonged to the genera Arthrobacter, Exiguobacterium, Micrococcus, Kocuria, Leifsonia, Planococcus, Planomicrobium, Sporosarcina, Pseudonocaridia, Pseudomonas, Sphingobacterium, Psychrobacter, Halomonas, Marinobacter and Marinomonas. Thirty of these isolates were identified as new species thus adding to the 240 new species of bacteria, thus far identified from Antarctica. All these species were psychrophilic and oligotrophic. The rRNA approach was also used to establish the total bacterial diversity of sea water from Antarctica. A number of investigations were also carried out to understand the molecular basis by which these microorganisms adapt to the cold icy continent of Antarctica. These studies indicated that cold loving bacteria adapt to low temperatures by their ability to modulate membrane fluidity by up-regulating fatty acid desaturase genes or by down-regulating genes such as the fatty acid cis-trans isomerase gene. In addition, it was demonstrated that in pigmented bacteria synthesizing carotenoids, membrane fluidity is also modulated by the differential synthesis of polar and non-polar carotenoids depending on the environmental temperature, thus highlighting a new function for carotenoid pigments. Recently using a transposon-mediated mutagenesis approach a tRNA modification GTPase (TrmE) has been implicated in cold adaptation. Taken together these results indicate that modulation of membrane fluidity is crucial for the survival of microorganisms at low temperature, but other genes may also be needed for the ultimate survival of the bacterium at low temperature.
Session: 5
Introduction
Antarctica is considered as a global Hot Spot of bacterial biodiversity and these bacteria which are cold loving could be used as work horses of biotechnology (Shivaji, 2005; Chintalapati et al., 2005). The primary reason for this consideration is based on the realization that the extremophiles from Antarctica are well adapted to extreme habitats, such as low temperature, aridity of the ice free zones, salty lakes, high pressures in the depths of the ocean etc. and could thus serve as potential biotechnological resource for bioactive molecules, biopharmaceuticals and extremozymes. In India, research in the area of Antarctic Biotechnology has essentially centered around on the following aspects : i. Biodiversity of Antarctic microbes ii. Biotechnological potential of Antarctic microbes iii. Molecular basis of the survival of Antarctic microbes 1999; Delille and Bouvy, 1989) does not correlate with heterotrophic activity thus implying that the ratio of culturable bacteria to the bacterial abundance was low. Thus, there is an urgent need to study the viable and non-cultivable fraction of the bacterial assemblage in Antarctic ecosystems using the rRNA approach, a culture-independent molecular technique which has been so far applied only to a few habitats in Antarctica such as a mat sample from Lake Fryxell, McMurdo Dry Valleys (Brambilla et al., 2001), an anoxic sediment of a meromictic lake and a coastal marine basin of Vestfolds Hills, Eastern Antarctica (Bowmann et al., 2000), a sample of ice of Lake Vostok and Lake Bonney, McMurdo Dry Valleys (Gordon et al., 2000; Priscu et al., 1999) and a sediment core from the Antarctic continental shelf (Bowman and McCuaig, 2003). Compilation of the bacterial diversity data from the above studies indicated that irrespective of the habitat and the geographical location bacterial clones belonging to 214 genera were detected besides unaffiliated 16S rRNA clones or sequences (Shivaji et al. 2009). From all the habitats, bacterial community belonging to the divisions/classes Proteobacteria, CFB, Low G+C Gram-positive, Actinobacteria, Cyanobacteria, Deinococcus/Thermus, and Acidobacteria/Holophaga were the dominant. The other lineages such as Planctomycetes, Spirochaetes, Chloroflexi, Gemmatimonas, Fibrobacteres, Nitrospira, Chlamydia/Verrucomicrobia, Aquificae and Synergistetes were reported from only a few habitats like sediments (Gordon et al., 2000; Bowman et al., 2000b), sediment core (Bowman and McCuaig, 2003), soil (Shivaji et al., 2004; Smith et al., 2006; Niederberger et al., 2008), glacier melt water (Sjoling and Cowan, 2003), microbial mats, water samples (Pearce, 2003) and dust (Hughes et al., 2004). In India to the best of my knowledge only two studies have been carried out using the rRNA approach to establish the bacterial diversity of a soil sample collected in the vicinity of Lake Zub, Schirmacher Oasis, Antarctica, (Shivaji et al., 2004) and on sea water contaminated with crude oil in Sub Antarctica (Prabagaran et al. 2005). In the soil study the 16S rRNA gene clones indicated that the
Biodiversity Of Antarctic Microbes

The Polyphasic Approach Biodiversity refers to all life forms and includes plants, animals, viruses, bacteria, algae, fungi, protozoa etc. The focus of the present study is on the bacterial diversity of Antarctica and especially the taxonomy of the bacteria present. In Antarctica, so far about 240 novel species of Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria have been identified from various habitats of Antarctica ranging from soil, sandstone, fresh water and marine lakes, sea ice, ocean etc (Shivaji et al., 2009). Over the years, the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, have isolated bacteria from various habitats in Antarctica and identified them up to the species level. The results led to the identification of 15 new species of Gram-positive bacteria and 12 new species of Gram-negative bacteria. All the new bacterial species were psychrophilic and could be differentiated from the nearest phylogenetic neighbour based on their phenotypic and chemotaxonomic characteristics and also at the 16S rRNA gene sequence level (Table 1). The Rrna Approach The bacterial abundance in Antarctic (Karl et al.,
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bacteria belonged to the classes alpha-proteobacteria, beta-proteobacteria, gamma-proteobacteria, Gemmatimonas, Bacteriodetes, Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi and Chlamydiae. In addition, seven clones were categorized as unidentified and unculturable in the classes of beta-Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi and Chlamydiae (Table 2) (Shivaji et al., 2004). Further, comparison of the Antarctic soil bacterial diversity with other cold habitats of Antarctica like from sediments, ice and cyanobacterial mat samples indicated that the bacterial diversity in soil was similar to the diversity observed in the continental shelf sediment sample. The Antarctic soil clones also resembled the bacterial diversity of soils from other geographical regions, but were unique in that none of the clones from the soil belonged to the uncultured Y, O, G, A and B groups common to all soil samples (Shivaji et al., 2004). The subsequent study on the bacterial diversity in sub-Antarctic pristine seawater and sea water contaminated with crude oil, collected off Ushuaia, Sub-Antarctica that the 16S rRNA gene libraries from two habitats was statistically different (P value 0.001) (Table 3) (Prabagaran et al. 2005). In both libraries, clones representing the Alpha-proteobacteria, Gamma-proteobacteria, the CytophagaFlavobacteriumBacteroidetes group and unculturable bacteria were dominant. Clones associated with the genera Roseobacter, Sulfitobacter, Staleya, Glaciecola, Colwellia, Marinomonas, Cytophaga and Cellulophaga were common to both the libraries. However, clones associated with Psychrobacter, Arcobacter, Formosa algae, Polaribacter, Ulvibacter and Tenacibaculum were found only in seawater contaminated with hydrocarbons (Table 3) (Prabagaran et al., 2005). In the global scenario, microbial biodiversity has become extremely important essentially due to the associated biotechnological potential of the microorganisms which could be utilized for the betterment of mankind and further the possibility that life forms such as bacteria could be patented. More importantly these cold-loving bacteria could be used as model systems to understand the molecular basis of survival of life forms at low temperatures.
Molecular Basis Of The Survival Of Antarctic Microbes

Role Of Carotenoid Pigments Studies using Antarctic bacteria have revealed that their adaptation to low temperature is dependent on a number of survival strategies such as their ability to modulate membrane fluidity, ability to carry out biochemical reactions at low temperatures, ability to regulate gene expression at low temperatures and ability to sense temperature (Chintalapati et al., 2004). Modulation of memebrane fluidity in pigmented bacteria is also brought about by carotenoid pigments which could interact with the bacterial memebranes and thus alter its fluidity. In a series of experiments using pigmented psychrophilc bacteria from Antarctica (Chauhan and Shivaji, 1994; Jagannadham et al., 1996b, 2000; Chattopadhyay et al., 1997; Gupta et al., 2004; Reddy et al., 2000, 2002a, 2002b, 2003a, 2003b). it was established that the synthesis of the type of carotenoid (polar versus less polar) appeared to be dependent on the growth temperature (Chattopadhyay et al., 1997; Jagannadham et al., 2000). Therefore, it was speculated that in these bacteria temperaturedependent synthesis of carotenoids may be a strategy to modulate membrane fluidity by altering the levels of the polar and nonpolar carotenoids. In psychrophilic Sphingobacterium antarcticum and Micrococcus roseus, an increase in the levels of polar carotenoids and a concomitant decrease in the levels of less polar carotenoids was observed when cells were grown at low temperature (Jagannadham et al., 2000; Chattopadhyay et al., 1997). Simultaneously, i an increase in the biosynthesis of unsaturated and branched-chain fatty acids was observed in cells grown at 5C compared to cells grown at 25C. Taken together, these results suggested that in cells grown at 5C, unsaturated and branched-chain fatty acids, which increase quantitatively at low temperature, would increase the fluidity of the membrane, whereas polar carotenoids that stack well in the membrane would facilitate membrane stabilization and thus overcome the fluidizing effect of the unsaturated fatty acids (Jagannadham et al., 1991, 1996a, 2000). Thus, by switching over the synthesis of carotenoids
Session: 5
from one type (polar) to another type (nonpolar), a bacterium could alter the fluidity of its membrane and thus influence homeoviscous adaptation. to low temperatures respond by increasing the level of unsaturated fatty acids in the membrane phospholipids. The role of unsaturated fatty acids in cold adaptation has been extensively studied in cyanobacteria and these studies highlighted that unlike mesophilic cyanobacteria, the psychrophilic cyanobacteria have increased levels of unsaturated fatty acids, which are further increased, when shifted to low temperature, so as to modulate membrane fluidity an important strategy for cold adaptation. In studies carried out by us on psychrophilic Nostoc it was observed that when cells were grown at 25 0C and then shifted to 10 0C, the cells showed an increase in the tri-unsaturated fatty acid [C18:3(9,12,15)] at the expense of mono- [C18:1(9)] and di-unsaturated [C18:2(9,12)] fatty acids. These results indicated that the activities of the enzymes DesA and DesB are up-regulated, when cultures were grown at 10 0C or shifted to 10 0C from 25 0C. However, RT-PCR studies indicated a constitutive expression of desA, desB, desC, and desC2 genes when cultures grown at 25 0C were shifted to 10 0C. This constitutive expression of des genes is in contrast to that observed in mesophilic cyanobacteria, in which desA and desB are transcriptionally up-regulated in response to lowering of growth temperature (Chintalapati et al., 2006, 2007).
Role of Cis And Trans Fatty Acids

cis-unsaturated fatty acids lower the phase-transition temperature, whereas trans-unsaturated fatty acids do not lower the phase transition to the same extent. Therefore it is logical to assume that by modulating the levels of the cis/ trans-fatty acid levels the cell could alter its membrane fluidity. In order to test this hypothesis a psychrophilic bacterium, Pseudomonas syringae (Lz4W) from Antarctica, was used as a model system to establish a correlation, if any, between thermal adaptation, trans-fatty acid content, and membrane fluidity (Kiran et al., 2004, 2005). When grown at 28C, the bacterium showed increased proportion of saturated and trans-monounsaturated fatty acids compared with cells grown at 5C and the membrane fluidity decreased with growth temperature. Further, when the cti gene was mutated in P. syringae (Lz4W), it was observed that the growth of the mutant at 5C was not altered but was arrested at 28C, thus implying that the synthesis of trans-fatty acid and modulation of membrane fluidity to levels comparable to the wild-type cells are essential for growth at higher temperatures (Kiran et al., 2004, 2005) but not required for survival at low temperature.
Role of Cold-Active Genes

As of now, in psychrophilic bacteria very few genes required for low temperature growth have been identified and they include the genes pnp (polynucleotide phosphorylase), oppA (mediates the transport of oligonucleotides) and recD. In a recent study, it was demonstrated for the first time that trmE (tRNA modification GTPase) is required for growth of bacteria at low temperature (Ashish et al. 2009). Following transposon mutagenesis of Pseudomonas syringae (Lz4W) a psychrophilic bacterium capable of growing between 2 to 30C, thirty cold sensitive mutants were generated which could grow like the wild type cells when cultured at 22C and 28C but when cultured at 4C the mutants exhibited retarded growth (Fig. 1). CSM1, one of the cold sensitive
Role Of Unsaturated Fatty Acids

The membrane normally has both saturated and unsaturated fatty acids.The rule of thumb is that saturated fatty acids decrease, whereas unsaturated fatty acids increase, the fluidity of the membrane because the acyl chains of the saturated fatty acids pack tightly, but the unsaturated fatty acid acyl chains exhibit poor packing because of the kink caused by the cis double bound. It is a well-established fact that psychrophilic bacteria, as compared with mesophilic bacteria, have a greater proportion of unsaturated fatty acids (Prabagaran et al., 2005; Reddy et al., 2002a, 2003a, 2003b, 2003c, 2004) and also that mesophilic or psychrophilic bacteria when exposed
155
mutants, was characterized. The mutated gene in CSM1 was identified as trmE (coding for transfer RNA modification GTPase) and it was observed that this gene is induced at low temperature). Further, the cold inducible nature of the trmE promoter was also demonstrated. This is the first report demonstrating that trmE is required for growth at low temperature and this wasfurther confirmed by gain of the cold resistant phenotype in CSM1 complemented with the trmE gene (Ashish et al., 2009).
been made to understand sensing of temperature and transduction of the signal for the specific induction of genes. Differential phosphorylation of membrane proteins and probably LPS have also been implicated in temperature sensing (Ray et al., 1994a, 1994b, 1994c).
Future Directions
Biodiversity and biotechnological potential of Antarctic microbes needs to be taken up as a long term programme and in an extremely focused manner such that the objectives are achieved and such that we do not miss the woods, while searching for the trees. The reason for this caution is that within this programme there are essentially two distinct components namely Biotechnology and Biodiversity. Both are related and therefore need to go hand in hand so that while focusing on biodiversity, bioprospecting for biotechnological application should be an integral component. It is also very important to understand the molecular basis of cold adaptation since such studies could provide an insight into the various strategies by which life forms adapt to low temperature thus opening up avenues for improving survival of crop plants at low temperature.
Biotechnological Potential Of Antarctic Microbes

Psychrophiles or cold loving microorganisms exist in permanently cold habitats and produce enzymes which are heat labile and cold active with optimum activity between 10 to 30C. Such enzymes would be best suited for biotechnological processes at low temperatures and lead to savings in energy requirements since neither cooling nor heating would be required for the activity of the enzymes. Such enzymes that work at room or refrigerator temperatures would be very appropriate for the food processing industry, perfume industry and cold wash detergent industry. The biotechnological potential of Antarctic microbes is also dependent on the ability of psychrophiles to synthesise polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUF) such as eicosopentaenoic acid (EPA), -linolenic acid (GLA) and archidonic acid (AA) which are essential fatty acids for human beings and are used especially to supplement the diets of patients suffering from eczema, cardiovascular disease and diabetic neuropathy since these individuals are unable to convert lineoleic acid to GLA. The presence of cold active enzymes and the ability to support transcription and translation in psychrophiles was demonstrated at low temperatures (Uma et al., 1999; Ray et al., 1999; Chattopadhyay et al., 1995; Reddy et al., 1994; Ray et al., 1992). Studies also revealed the presence of certain genes which were active at low temperature. In addition, genes essential for survival at low temperatures were also identified (Kannan et al., 1998). More importantly, attempts have also
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the Department of Ocean Development, Government of India, National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research, Goa, India and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi.
Legend To Figure
Fig. 1 Growth analysis of psychrophilic Pseudomonas syringae (Lz4W) (), Pseudomonas syringae (Lz4W) harboring pGL10 (), cold sensitive mutant of Pseudomonas syringae (CSM1) (), complemented strain of cold sensitive mutant of Pseudomonas syringae (CSM1) harboring pGL10::trmE promoter plus trmE () and cold sensitive mutant of Pseudomonas syringae (CSM1) harboring only pGL10 () cultured at 4C (A), 22C (B) and 28C (C).
Session: 5
Fig.1
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Table 1. Inventory of new species of bacteria isolated from various habitats of Antarctica at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad
S. No. Bacteria Gram-positive bacteria 1 Arthrobacter flavus 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Arthrobacter roseus Arthrobacter gangotriensis Arthrobacter kerguelensis Exiguobacterium soli, Kocuria polaris Leifsonia rubra Leifsonia aurea Leifsonia Antartica Planococcus antarcticus, Planococcus maitriensis, Planomicrobium psychrophilum, Sporosarcina mcmurdoensis, Pseudonocardia antarctica Janthinobacterium lividum Gram-negative bacteria Psychrobacter vallis Psychrobacter aquaticus Psychrobacter salsus Psychrobacter adeliensis Pseudomonas antarctica, Pseudomonas meridiana, Pseudomonas proteolytica Sphingobacterium antarcticus, Marinomonas polaris Marinobacter maritimus Marinomonas ushuaiensis Halomonas glaciei
Habitat Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Penguin rookery soil Sea water, Kerguelen island Moraine, McMurdo Dry Valley Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Sediment, Antarctic ocean Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Cyanobacterial mat, Schirmacher Oasis Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Moraine, McMurdo Dry Valleys Soil, Scotia Ridge Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Cyanobacterial mat, McMurdo Dry Valleys Fast ice, Adelie Land Fast ice, Adelie Land Cyanobacterial mat sample, Lakes Cyanobacterial mat sample, Lakes Cyanobacterial mat sample, Lakes Soil, Schirmacher Oasis Sea water, Kerguelen island Sea water, Kerguelen island Sea water, Sub-Antartica Fast ice, Adelie land
Reference Reddy et al (2000) Reddy et al (2002 a) Gupta et al (2004) Gupta et al (2004) Chaturvedi et al (2009) Reddy et al (2003 a) Reddy et al (2003 b) Reddy et al (2003 b) Pindi et al (2009) Reddy et al (2002 b) Alam et al (2003) Reddy et al (2002 b) Reddy et al (2003 d) Prabahar et al (2004) Shivaji et al (1991) Shivaji et al (2005) Shivaji et al (2005) Shivaji et al (2004) Shivaji et al (2004) Reddy et al (2004) Reddy et al (2004) Reddy et al (2004) Shivaji et al (1992) Gupta et al (2006) Shivaji et al (2005) Prabagaran et al (2005) Reddy et al (2003c)
Session: 5
Table 2. Identification of 16S rRNA gene clones from a soil sample from Maitri Station, Schirmacher Oasis, Antarctica*
Clone number and 16S Number of rRNA accession number Clones Gram-Negative Bacteria Class: -Proteobacteria (11 clones) Rhodopseudomonas 1 Sphingomonas 9 Pedomicrobium 1 Class: -Proteobacteria (6 clones) Burkholderia 1 Acidovorax 1 Uncultured 4 Class: -Proteobacteria (25 clones) Serratia 7 Enterobacter 10 Pseudomonas 6
Nearest phylogenetic neighbour (Accession Number)
16S rRNA gene similarity (%)
R. rhenobacensis (AB087719) S. aurantiaca (AJ429237) Pedomicrobium manganicum (X97691) B. phenazinium (AY154375) A. delafieldii (AJ420323) Uncultured bacterium (AF358003), (AY133100), (AY128104) and (AY043677) S. marcescens (AF124042) E. agglomerans (AF130960) E. aerogenes (AF395913) P. woodsii (AB021422) P. pseudoalcaligenes (AF238494) P. nitroreducens (AF494091) P. pavonanceae (AY136082) P. aeruginosa (AY331663) N. ramose (AJ001011) Xanthomonas sp. (AJ244722) Acidobacterium sp. (AJ529104) G. aurantiaca (AB072735) F. aggregans (AB078038) F. japonensis (AB078055)
96 97 95 90 98 91-96
Nevskia 1 Xanthomonas 1 Class : Acidobacteria Acidobacterium 2 Class : Gemmatimonadetes Gemmatimonas 3 Class : Bacteroidetes Flexibacter 3 Gram-Positive Bacteria Class : Actinobacteria Rubrobacteridae Arthrobacter Uncultured Class : Chloroflexi Chloroflexales Class : Chlamydiae Verrucomicrobiales Class : Nitrospira Nitrospira Uncultured
97-99 94-99 97-99 90 96 91 97 99 95 94 89-98 88-89 88 93
1 5 2
Rubrobacteridae bacterium (AY150874) A. agilis (AF511518) Uncultured bacterium (AY208806) Uncultured Actinobacterium (AJ519395) Uncultured bacterium (AJ504591), (AJ532724) and (AF423285) Verrucomicrobium sp. (AJ132494) Uncultured bacterium (X64381) Nitrospira cf. moscoviensis (AF155153) Uncultured bacterium (AY326598)
97 92-99 92 96 84-93 93 87-94 96 91
3 9
1 7
* For details of the accession numbers of the clones, see Shivaji et al. (2004). Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
159
Table 3. Comparison of 16s rRNA gene clones of seawater and seawater contaminated with the water-soluble fraction (WSF) of crude oil collected off Ushuaia, Sub-Antarctica *
Nearest phylogenetic neighbour Class: -Proteobacteria Roseobacter Sulfitobacter Staleya Uncultured -Proteobacteria Class: -Proteobacteria Glaciecola Psychromonas Colwellia Marinomonas Psychrobacter Vibrio Oleispira Pseudomonas Uncultured -Proteobacteria Class: -Proteobacteria Arcobacter Uncultured -Proteobacteria CytophagaFlexibacter Bacteriodetes group Cytophaga (Stanierella) Cellulophaga Formosa algae Maribacter Flexibacter Polaribacter Ulvibacter Tenacibaculum Uncultured organisms
Number of clones Seawater (120) 67 51 11 1 4 25 14 2 1 2 0 1 0 1 4 0 0 3 15 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 21
Seawater contaminated with crude oil (104) 44 36 4 1 3 25 9 0 1 2 6 0 1 0 6 1 1 3 20 0 2 2 0 1 2 1 1 22
* For details of the accession numbers of the clones see Prabagaran et al. (2006)
References
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the accreted ice of lake Vostok, Antarctica. Science, 286, 2144-2147. Kiran, M.D., Prakash, J.S.S., Annapoorni, S., Dube, S., Kusano, T., Okuyama, H., Murata, N., Shivaji, S. 2004. Psychrophilic Pseudomonas syringae required trans monounsaturated fatty acid for growth at higher temperature. Extremophiles, 8, 401-410. Kiran, M.D., Annapoorni, S., Suzuki, I., Murata, N., Shivaji, S. 2005. Cis-trans isomerase gene in psychrophilic Pseudomonas syringae is constitutively expressed during growth and under conditions of temperature and solvent stress. Extremophiles, 9, 117-125. Niederberger, T.D., I.R. McDonald, A.L. Hacker, et al., 2008. Microbial community composition in soils of Northern Victoria Land, Antarctica. Environ. Microbiol. 10: 1713-1724. Pearce, D.A. 2003. Bacterioplankton community structure in a maritime antarctic oligotrophic lake during a period of holomixis, as determined by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Microb. Ecol. 46: 92-105. Prabagaran, S.R., Suresh, K., Manorama, R., Delille, D., Shivaji, S. 2005. Marinomonas ushuaiensis sp. nov., isolated from coastal seawater in Ushuaia, Argentina, Sub-Antarctica. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 55, 309-313 Prabahar, V., Smita Dube, Reddy, G.S.N., Shivaji, S. 2004. Pseudonocardia antarctica sp. nov., an Actinomycetes from McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Syst. Appl. Microbiol. 27, 66-71. Priscu, J.C., Adams, E.E., Lyons, W.B., Voytek, M.A., Mogk, D.W., Brown, R.L., McKay, C.P., Takacs, C.D., Welch, K.A., Wolf, C.F., Kirshtein, J.D., Avci, R. 1999. Geomicrobiology of subglacial ice above Lake Vostok, Antarctica. Science, 286, 2141-2144. Ray, M.K., Uma Devi, K., Seshu Kumar, G., Shivaji,
S. 1992. Extracelllar protease from the Antarctic yeast Candida humicola. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 58, 1918-1923. Ray, M.K., Seshu Kumar, G., Shivaji, S. 1994a. Phosphorylation of membrane proteins in response to temperature in an Antarctic Pseudomonas syringae. Microbiology, 140, 3217-3223. Ray, M.K., Seshu Kumar, G., Shivaji, S. 1994b. Phosphorylation of lipopolysaccharides in the Antarctic psychrotroph Pseudomonas syringae : A possible role in temperature adaptation. J. Bacteriol. 176, 4243-4249. Ray, M.K., Seshu Kumar, G., Shivaji, S. 1994c. Tyrosine phosphorylation of a cytosolic protein from the antarctic psychrotrophic bacterium Pseudomonas syringae. FEMS Microbiol. Letts. 122, 49-54. Ray, M.K., Sitaramamma, T., Seshu Kumar, G., Kannan, K., Shivaji, S. 1999. Transcriptional activity at supraoptimal temperature of growth in the Antarctic psychrotrophic bacterium Pseudomonas syringae. Curr. Microbiol. 38, 143-150. Reddy, G.S.N., Rajagopalan, G., Shivaji, S. 1994. Thermolabile ribonucleases from antarctic psychrotrophic bacteria : Detection of the enzyme in various bacteria and purification from Pseudomonas fluorescens. FEMS Microbiol. Letts. 122, 122-126. Reddy, G.S.N., Aggarwal, R.K., Matsumoto, G.I., Shivaji, S. 2000. Arthrobacter flavus sp. nov., a psychrotropic bacterium isolated from a pond in Mc Murdo Dry Valley, Antarctica. Int. J. Syst. Evl. Microbiol. 50, 1553-1561. Reddy, G.S.N., Prakash, J.S.S., Vairamani, M., Prabhakar, S., Matsumoto, G.I. and Shivaji, S. 2002a. Planococcus antarcticus and Planococcus psychrophilus spp. nov. isolated from cyanobacterial mat samples collected from ponds in Antarctica. Extremophiles, 6, 253-261.
Session: 5
Reddy, G.S.N., Prakash, J.S.S., Matsumoto, G.I., Stackebrandt, E. and Shivaji, S. 2002b. Arthrobacter roseus sp. nov., a psychrophilic bacterium isolated from an Antarctic cyanobacterial mat sample. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 52, 1017-1021. Reddy, G.S.N., Prakash, J.S.S., Prabahar, V., Matsumoto, G.I., Stackebrandt, E., Shivaji, S. 2003a. Kocuria polaris sp. nov., an orange pigmented psychrophilic bacterium isolated from an Antarctic cyanobacterial mat sample. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 53, 183-187. Reddy, G.S.N., Prakash, J.S.S., Srinivas, R., Matsumoto, G.I., Shivaji, S. 2003c. Leifsonia rubra sp. nov. and Leifsonia aurea sp. nov. psychrophilic species isolated from a pond in Antarctica. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 53, 977-984. Reddy, G.S.N., Matsumoto, G.I., Shivaji, S. 2003d. Sporosarcina macmurdoensis sp. nov., from a cyanobacterial mat sample from a pond in Mcmurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 53, 1363-1367. Reddy, G.S.N., Matsumoto, G.I., Schumann, P., Stackebrandt, E., Shivaji, S. 2004. Psychrophiic Pseudomonads from Antarctica : Pseudomonas antarctica sp. nov., Pseudomonas meridiana sp. nov. and Pseudomonas proteolytica sp. nov. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 54. 713-719. Shivaji, S., Reddy, G.S.N., Raghavan, P.U.M., Sarita, N.B. and Delille, D. (2004) Psychrobacter salsus sp. nov. and Psychrobacter adeliensis sp. nov. isolated from fast ice from Adelie Land, Antarctica. Syst. Appl. Microbiol. 27 : 628-635. Shivaji, S. 2005. Microbial diversity and molecular basis of cold adaptation in Antarctic bacteria. In : Microbial Diversity : Current Perspectives and Potential Applications. (Eds. T. Satyanarayana and B.N. Johri), I.K. International Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, pp. 3-24. Shivaji, S., Reddy, G.S.N., Raghavan, P.U.M., Sarita, N.B., Delille, D. 2004. Psychrobacter salsus sp. nov. and Psychrobacter adeliensis sp. nov. isolated from fast ice from Adelie Land, Antarctica. Syst. Appl. Microbiol. 27, 628-635. Shivaji, S., Gupta, P., Chaturvedi, P., Suresh, K., Delille, D. 2005. Marinobacter maritimus sp. nov., a psychrotolerant strain isolated from sea water off the Kerguelen Island, Sub-Antarctica. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 55, 1083-1088 Shivaji, S., Reddy, G.S.N., Aduri, R.P., Kutty, R., Ravenschlag, K. 2005. Bacterial diversity of a soil sample from Schiracher Oasis, Antarctica. Cell. Mol. Biol. 50, 525-536. Shivaji, S., Reddy, G.S.N., Suresh, K., Gupta, P., Chintalapati, S., Schumann, P., Stackebrandt, E., Matsumoto, G. 2005. Psychrobacter vallis sp. nov. and Psychrobacter aquaticus sp. nov. from Antarctica. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 55, 757-762. Shivaji, S. (2009) Genus Planococcus Migula, 1894. In : Bergeys Manual of Systematic Bacteriology. Vol. 3, 348-354. Singh, A.K., Pindi, P.K., Dube, S., Sundareswaran, V.R. and Shivaji, S. (2009) In the psychrophilic Pseudomonas syringae, trmE is important for low temperature growth. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 4419-4426. Sjling, S., D.A. Cowan. 2003. High 16S rDNA bacterial diversity in glacial meltwater lake sediment, Bratina Island, Antarctica. Extremophiles 7: 275-282. Smith, J.J., L.A. Tow, W. Stafford, C. Cary, D.A. Cowan. 2006. Bacterial diversity in three different Antarctic Cold Desert mineral soils. Microb. Ecol. 51, 413-421. Uma, S., Jadhav, R.S., Seshukumar, G., Shivaji, S., Ray, M.K. 1999. A RNA polymerase with transcriptional activity at 0C from the Antarctic bacterium Pseudomonas syringae. FEBS Lett. 453, 313 - 317.
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A Review of Meteorological Observational Programme of India Meteorological Department in Antarctica

India Meteorological Department, New Delhi, India
R. P. Lal
India Meteorological Department (IMD) is participating in Indian Antarctic Expedition since 1981. During third expedition, a permanent scientific station Dakshin Gangotri (69 59 23 S, 11 56 26 E) was established in 1983 in Lazarev Sea area of Queens Maud Land and functioned there till 1989. Thereafter second Indian Antarctic Station, Maitri (700 450 570 S, 110 440 090 E) was established in 1989 in the Schirmacher Oasis of East Antarctica. Since establishment of these observatories all the meteorological observation such as pressure, temperature, wind speed and direction, total global solar radiation, surface ozone, radiometersonde, ozonesonde etc., were taken at Dakshin Gangotri (WMO station index No.89510) and Maitri (WMO station index No.89514). This effort of IMD has contributed to the international efforts for understanding the meteorology and climate of Antarctica. In this paper, various observational programme of IMD being undertaken at Maitri has been discussed along with brief results of observation taken at Maitri & Dakshin Gangotri. Three hourly daily synoptic data recorded at Dakshin Gangotri (1984-1989) and Maitri for the year 1990 to 2010 has been used for computation of daily and monthly mean of temperature, wind, pressure and cloudiness. The climate of Schirmacher Oasis is believed to be typical of much of the coast of East Antarctica whereas Dakshin Gangotri climate is typical to Antarctic Costal station situated on ice shelves. The stations are affected by cyclonic activity and katabatic winds. Introduction
India Meteorological Department (IMD) is participating in Indian Antarctic Expedition since 1981. A permanent scientific station, known as Dakshin Gangotri (69 590 230 S, 11 560 260E) was established in 1983 during third expedition. IMD took observation of various meteorological parameters till 1989. A second permanent Indian Antarctic Station Maitri was set up at Schirmacher oasis during 8th expedition in 1988-89. Since 1990 all the meteorological observation such as pressure, temperature, wind speed and direction, total global
Session: 5
solar radiation, surface ozone, radiometersonde, ozonesonde etc., are being taken at Maitri. India Meteorological Department (IMD) has participated in all Indian Antarctic Expeditions and contributed towards creation of database of meteorological parameters for the studies in the field of meteorology, ozone and radiation. Antarctica has attracted the attention of scientific community all over the world since it is one of the most important climate regimes with a potential to influence long-term global climatic patterns. In order to study these, IMDs meteorological programme is specifically aimed at preparing a data archive of meteorological parameters over Antarctica. The daily synoptic observations recorded at Maitri, Antarctica enter into the Global Telecommunication System (GTS) and contribute to the international efforts for weather forecasting. Measurement of Total atmospheric total ozone, ground reaching UVB and concentration of SO2 and NO2 and vertical profile of O3 by Brewer Spectrophotometer (Figure-1) installed at Maitri during 18th Expedition in 1999. Complete data for the years 1984 to 2008 are held in the computer database of the National Data Center of India Meteorological Department at Pune, India. Daily weather summaries of the station are available in manuscript form at IMD headquarters, New Delhi. Data from all sources has been used in this study. In this paper, an attempt has been made to provide an overview of the contributions made by
Figure-2: Meteorological Observatory at Maitri
the India Meteorological Department to Antarctic meteorology right from the establishment of scientific stations Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri. The climatology of both the stations has been reported along with salient features along with the comparison of some meteorological parameters recorded at both the stations.
Results and discussion

A good database is essential to study the climate of the region. Hence the observatories at Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri were equipped with the various instruments to monitor weather systems round the clock. Field observatory at Maitri is shown in Figure-2. Similar instruments were installed at Dakshin Gangotri also on the shelf ice. At Dakshin Gangotri Anemometer, wind vane and Stevenson screen were mounted on the tower at appropriate heights. Along with synoptic observations, the meteorological programme also includes study of radiation, surface ozone, Total ozone & atmospheric turbidity etc. For the study of Climatology of Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri daily synoptic data was used for computation of daily and monthly mean of temperature, wind, pressure and clouding. The daily mean values were derived by averaging 8 synoptic observations. Thereafter monthly and annual values were calculated. Data recorded during 1984 to 1989 has been used to derive climatological features at Dakshin Gangotri. Data recorded during 1990 to 2010 has been used to derive climatological features at Maitri.
Figure-1: Brewer Spectrophotometer
165
Surface temperature
The basic mean and extreme long-term temperature data for Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri are shown in Figure-3 & Figure-4 based on the data available for the period of study. Annual average air temperature of Dakshin Gangotri is 16.6 deg C whereas it is 9.6
deg C for Maitri. Comparison of monthly mean of both the stations shows that temperatures recorded at Dakshin Gangotri are always lower than Maitri and as the season advances toward mid winter the difference reaches up to 10 degree C.
Figure-3: Mean monthly temperatures for Dakshin Gangotri, Antarctica for the period 1984-1989.
Figure-4: Mean monthly temperature for Maitri, Antarctica for the period 1990-2010.
Session: 5
The lowest mean temperature and extreme daily minimum temperature are recorded in August and highest mean and extreme maximum temperatures in January & December when reading well above zero are recorded. Highest temperature of 9.9 degree C was recorded at Dakshin Gangotri on 10 January 1988 where as February 1996 had been an exceptional year when on Feb 3rd the Maximum temperature rose to 12.2 deg C at Maitri. The lowest temperature of 52.2 degree Celsius was recorded on 16th August 1988 at Dakshin Gangotri and 38.0 degree Celsius was recorded on 23rd July 2006 at Maitri. In the colder winter month abnormally warm situations are possible usually associated with rapid translation of warm oceanic air from north, disturbance of low level inversion or substantial low level subsidence and warming in high pressure centers or ridges extending to high latitudes. The example of such extreme maximum of 0.2 degree Celsius was recorded on 25th August 1996 at Maitri under similar synoptic situation. The trend analysis of the temperature record of Maitri for the period of 1990 to 2010 shows a cooling trend in average air temperature, mean maximum and minimum air temperature. The same is depicted in Figure-5
Figure-5: Trend analysis of air temperature for the year 1990-2010 at Maitri.
Wind
For continuous recording of wind speed and direction a DIWE, comprising of one CGA and Selsyn Windvane, were installed on the roof of Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri stations. Output from this system was displayed and recorded in the IMD LAB. Wind speed and direction recorded on the recorder is used for synoptic observation and hourly values are also tabulated from these records through out the year. Katabatic winds are characterized by high directional constancy but show large variations in
speed: their direction at Maitri is invariably southerly, since the elevation increases in that direction. Katabatic winds are more frequently experienced at Maitri as it is located at the margin of the polar ice cap. Sudden onsets with the wind speed jumping from almost calm to 12 to 15 m s 1 (25 to 30 kt) and equally sudden cessation (lull) are common. The month of May is the windiest month of the year at Maitri where as it is June at Dakshin Gangotri. Comparison of average surface wind speed at both the stations is shown in Figure-6. Annual average surface wind speed at Dakshin Gangotri was 17.1 knots and
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at Maitri it was 16.8 knots. On average there are about 104 days in a year with daily average wind speed exceeds more than 23 knots at Dakshin Gangotri and this value is 190 days at Maitri. Monthly distributions of average number of days with daily average wind
speed exceeds more than 23 knots is shown in Figure-7. It is evident form above figures that Maitri is windier than Dakshin Gangotri this is because of geographical location of both the stations.
Figure-6: Monthly variation of average surface wind speed at Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri, Antarctica.
Figure-7: Monthly variation of number of days with wind speed > 23 Knots at Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri, Antarctica
Session: 5
Figure-8: Trend analysis of average annual wind speed
Trend analysis of average annual wind speed of Maitri for the period 1990-2010 (Figure-8) indicated that average annual wind speed shows a negative trend with the indication frequency of low pressure system or katabatic wind is reducing with time.
Surface pressure
Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri stations lie between the high-pressure region centered around the South Pole and the circumpolar trough of low pressure roughly along 63 S. Therefore atmospheric pressure at these stations is influenced by the relative position and strength of these features. At both the stations seasonal variation in pressure shows a trend of alternate rise and fall with highest values in summer and winter and lowest values in autumn and spring. Day to day variation in pressure can be very dramatic. The mean monthly sea level (MSL) pressure at the both
the stations shown in Figure-9 exhibits a half yearly cycle with lowest pressure being recorded in spring season and a secondary minimum in March. Similarly maximum pressure is recorded in June and January. Mean annual mean sea level (MSL) pressure at Dakshin Gangotri is 985.0 hPa and Maitri it is 986.1 hPa. During the period 1984-89 lowest MSL pressure of 935.0 hPa was recorded at Dakshin Gangotri on 30 July 1985 and highest MSL pressure 1023.0 hPa on 29 August 1989 during the period. For the period 19902010 at Maitri the highest MSL pressure of 1030.5 hPa was recorded on 29th April 1990 and lowest MSL pressure of 930.0 hPa was recorded on 9th August 2005 during the passage of low-pressure area. This was the lowest Mean Sea Level recorded at this station since 1990. Annual average mean sea level pressure of Maitri shows no significant trend for the period 19902010 as shown in Figure-10.
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Figure-9: Monthly variations of average mean sea level pressure at Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri, Antarctica.
Figure-10: Trend analysis of average annual mean sea level pressure at Maitri, Antarctica.
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Snowfall
First time snow gauge was installed at Maitri in the year 1998 for measuring snowfall during snowfall and blizzard days. With this instrument we can measure the collected snow equivalent to water. Snowfall was observed almost in all the months. Number of days with snowfall at Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri is shown in Figure-11. There are on average 88 days with snowfall at Dakshin Gangotri and 60 days at Maitri. Figure-12 shows the monthly average snowfall recorded at Maitri. The maximum snowfall is recorded in the month of August followed by June and September. Snowfall occurs in the average on some 7 days at Dakshin Gangotri and 5 days per month at Maitri through the year. As with other Antarctic stations in strong wind areas precipitation has not been successfully measured quantitatively because of difficulty of distinguishing between falling and drifting snow as collected in a gauge. A few very rare cases of rainfall have occurred at Maitri resulting in a usually short-lived glaze or rime covering exposed rocks. On 17 January 1991 Maitri had experienced light rain and drizzle around 1930 to 2030 HRS local time. Similarly during 1996 on 2nd February Maitri experienced light rain equivalent to about 2mm. Trend analysis of total number of days with snow fall in year for the period 1990-2010 indicates that number of snowfall days is decreasing. The trend is shown in Figure-13.
Figure-11: Monthly variation of number of days with snowfall at Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri, Antarctica.
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Figure 12: Average monthly snowfalls in millimeter of water equivalent for Maitri for the period 1998-2010.
Figure 13: Annual variation and trend in number of days with snowfall at Maitri for the period 1990-2010
Blizzards and drifting snow

Weather in Antarctica is subject to frequent and sudden changes. Strong winds and blizzards dominate Antarctic weather. When wind speed exceeds 23 knots with drifting/blowing snow reducing the
surface visibility to less than one kilometer then the weather phenomenon was defined as Blizzard for our study purposes. On average during the year about 52 blizzards affects the Dakshin Gangotri for 115 days during the year and about 23 blizzards affects the
Session: 5
station for 42 days during the year at Maitri. Monthly variation of number of days with blizzards is shown in Figure-14. Average wind speed recorded during the blizzard is about 52 knots but it exceeded 100 knots on several occasions. The duration may vary from hours to days with average of 25 hours. Longest duration of 168 hours was recorded in June 1997. The frequency of blizzards and blizzard days (Figure-15) also shows a negative trend for the period 1990-2010.
Figure-14: Monthly variation of number of days with Blizzards at Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri, Antarctica.
Figure-15: Annual variation of number of days with Blizzards at Maitri, Antarctica.
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Radiation Balance Studies: Total Global Solar Radiation Measurement

Total global solar radiation was continuously recorded at Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri stations using thermo-electric Pyranometer installed on the roof of the station ( Radiation measurements were taken throughout the year. Average monthly total global solar radiation values for Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri are shown in Figure16. The distribution of mean hourly global solar
radiation with hours in Local Apparent Time (LAT) is shown in Figure-17. The irradiance received is in direct correspondence with the duration of sunshine and solar elevation. The highest value of 2.39 MJm-2 occurs around noon in January & December obviously because the solar elevation reaches maximum angle of 45 degree in the second fortnight of December. Noon time lowest values of 0.04 MJm-2 occurs in the month of July when radiation intensity is weakest, the solar elevation being less than 0.5 degree, since annual sun rise occurs in the 3rd week of this month.
Figure -16: Variation of average monthly total global solar radiation (MJm-2).
Session: 5
Figure -17: Monthly variation of average hourly total global solar radiation (MJm-2).
Conclusion
Continues record of surface meteorological observations at Dakshin Gangotri and Maitri indicates that the weather over Antarctica experiences large seasonal variations. The Climatology of the station, Maitri, gives several interesting indications concerning the climate of Schirmacher Oasis. The study of temperature has shown a cooling trend of 0.260 C per decade. A similar significant negative trend has been observed in other meteorological parameters such as MSL pressure, wind, number of days with precipitation and number of blizzard days. In view of these facts it is apparent that continuing polar records of unchanging environment of Maitri will be extremely valuable in monitoring of the global climate in foreseeable future. Thus the long-term data being archived by IMD have tremendous potential
and significance for understanding the meteorology and climate of Antarctica.
Acknowledgement
Author is thankful to the Director General of Meteorology, India Meteorological Department for his encouragement and kind permission for pursuing this study and use of Antarctic data from the archives of IMD. The efforts put up by all IMD Antarctic Expedition team members for taking meteorological observations under adverse hostile environmental conditions is also acknowledged. Without their support and contribution this study was not feasible. Key words: Polar Meteorology, Climatology, East Antarctica, Antarctic Expeditions, Schirmacher Oasis
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Changing Relationship Between Centers Of Action And Indian Monsoon

Nityanand Singh1, Ashwini Ranade 2 and H. N. Singh 1
1 Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune 2 Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India, New Delhi
Humans and human society have evolved in the backdrop of climatic changes. Therefore, concern of human beings for water is wide-ranging: divinephilosophical, chemical-biological, spiritual-religious, climatic-cultural, scientific-engineering (computational) and services-society. Adequate fresh water availability is essential for spiritual growth of human beings and healthy physical-material human society. Drastic and complicated spatial and temporal changes are expected in the general atmosphere and an oriental monsoon circulation and availability of fresh water across the globe during global warming with southern hemisphere is warming at a faster rate than northern hemisphere. During dry climate spirituality, religion, philosophy, literature, peace, mercy, compassion and charity dominate the psyche of the people, and during wet climate economics, power, politics, trade, wealth, commerce, insanity, looting, corruption, invasion and war. Thus, the sole objective of the present study is to understand association between Oriental-Indian monsoon circulation and the different eight highs during the warmer global troposphere.
Recent Global Climatic Changes

During the period 1979-2009, the global troposphere has warmed by 0.58C compared to the 1949-1978 period. The net radiation balance at the surface during this period has increased by 0.82W/m2. The tropospheric thickness has increased by 33.58m and the resultant wind speed by 0.18m/sec. The mean sea level pressure (MSLP) has decreased by 0.13mb, the precipitable water (PW) by 0.05mm, the total cloud cover (TCC) by 0.64% and the global annual precipitation by 0.62% . Broadly, changes in different parameters are physically and dynamically consistent.
Relationship Between General Atmospheric Circulation And Oriental Monsoon Circulation

During boreal summer, the temperature of the troposphere over the THIKHIHILs (Tibet-HimalayaKarakoram-Hindukush Highlands) is ~10C higher than that over the whole globe. At the surface two heat lows develop, one over the Middle East and another over the China-Mongolia area that is the Asian Continental Low (ACL). Intense large-scale lowlevel converge occurs over these lows and the rising airs are aligned to diverge (spread out) from the upper
Session: 5
tropospheric anticyclone over the THIKHIHILs. The outflows from the THIKHIHILs anticyclone are directed in varied proportion to subside over the eight deep highs: north polar (65N-90N; 0-360), North Pacific (10N-40N; 150E-120E), South Pacific (25S-5S; 160E-90W), Australian (25S-5S; 100E-160E), Mascarene (25S-5S; 60E-100E), south polar (65S-90S; 0-360), Marina (south subtropical, 25S-5S; 30W-10E) and AzoresBermuda (10N-40N; 80W-20W) (Figure 1). The divergence from lower layers of the deep highs flow as return current through a large variety of meander courses (easterly, southeasterly, southerly, southwesterly and westerly) converge into the heat low(s) in the Afro-Asian dry province. The seasonally (boreal summer) occurring, large-scale lower tropospheric converging air with imbedded various secondary circulations (line, circular, meander-eddy, wave and orographic ascent) produce frequent rains/ rainspells over the Asia-Pacific region is popularly known an Asian summer monsoon circulation. The Coriolis force, orography and diabetic heating affect large-scale monsoon flow. Rainfall across India occurs through the following six convection-convergence processes. Off-shore trough along the West Coast Trough in the low level westerlies along the East Coast Line-cum-eddy convergence (LEC) over the IndoGangetic plains Cyclonic convergence over head Bay of Bengal Cyclonic (including mid-tropospheric cyclone) convergence over Gujarat and south Rajasthan Line convergence between extratropical northwesterly and southwesterly monsoon flow over extreme north India and northwestern Pakistan The off shore trough along the West Coast (WC) is quasi-stationary, and associated rainfall is confined over the WC and neighboring areas of the Indian peninsula. Occurrence and intensity of the other five convection-convergences vary largely during the season depending upon thermal conditions/gradient over the Afro-Asian landmass and the Indo-Pacific Oceans. The different convergences do not occur simultaneously, but two or more can merged to form a huge convergence system to produce large-scale longperiod heavy rainspells. Relatively a small portion of the outflows from the THIKHIHILs anticyclone is directed towards the north polar high, the Azores-Bermuda High, the Marina High and the south polar high. The occurrence of the secondary circulations is highly dependent on the following factors: intensity of the heat low(s) lower level convergence and rising motion over heat low(s) outflows from the THIKHIHILs upper troposphere anticyclone directed towards the eight deep highs across the globe return flows from the lower layers of the deep highs through a variety of pathways converging into the heat low(s)
Recent Climatic Changes Over India During Monsoon

During summer monsoon period of June through September, the net surface radiation balance over India has increased by 1.2 W/m2. The temperature of the troposphere has increased by 0.19C and the thickness by 8.36m. The MSLP has increased by 1.6mb and the PW by 0.74mm, but column-area mean resultant tropospheric wind decreased by 0.24m/sec. The TCC over the country has decreased by 2.33% - decrease in the HCC by 1.97%, the MCC by 2.38% and the LCC by 0.63%. Elaborate documentation of types of clouds over India and the whole of OMAR (Oriental Monsoon ARea) does not seem to exist. Because of changes in the atmospheric conditions, the monsoon rainfall has lessened by 2.47%. During monsoon period, the troposphere over the THIKHIHILs is thickest (14243.2m) - it is thicker than 507.8m compared to the global-and-annualmean (GAAM). The tropospheric thickness over the THIKHIHILs is a reliable measure of intensity of the Indian monsoon rainfall. The correlation between the two parameters is 0.57. The troposphere geopotential thickness gradient (TGTG) from the THIKHIHILs to the four subtropical highs over the Indo-Pacific
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Figure 1. The Centers of Action (COA) invoked during active Oriental-Indian monsoon circulation. Location of the different COAs is approximate attempted to adjust them on small map.
Oceans (North pacific, South Pacific, Australian and Mascarene Highs) provides still a better measure of the monsoon rainfall. With the all-India monsoon rainfall, the TGTG from the THIKHIHILs to the North Pacific High shows correlation of 0.68, the South Pacific High 0.69, the Australian High 0.67 and the Mascarene High 0.64. The correlation of the TGTG with the other highs is relatively weakerthe Azores-Bermuda and the Marina Highs 0.55, the north polar high 0.46 and the south polar high 0.43. During global warming (1979-2009), the troposphere over the deep highs has stretched by 22.8m compared to the preceding cooler period (1949-1978). This resulted in the decline of the TGTG from the THIKHIHILs to different deep highs from 270.5m to 247.7m. Consequently, the correlation between the TGTG and the all-India monsoon rainfall has weakened- from 0.7 during 1949-1978 to 0.42 during 1979-2009. Important to note that the tropospheric temperature over the oceanic and polar has increased
by 0.54C, but over the Afro-Eurasian dry provinces the increase is mild 0.02C. In nutshell, during recent global warming epoch the drivers of the general atmospheric and Asia-India monsoon circulations that are tropospheric temperature and thickness gradients from the THIKHIHILs to different parts of the globe have weakened.
Important Results
Compared to the cooler epoch (1949-1978), during recent warmer epoch, the tropospheric temperature and the tropospheric geopotential thickness over subtropical and polar highs have increased larger than that over the Middle East; the vertical depth of the Oriental monsoon circulation has increased and its horizontal extent spreaded over Afro-Eurasian landmass; the correlation between the TGTG from the Middle East to different highs and all-India monsoon rainfall
Session: 5
has decreased (from 0.73 to 0.48), but in case of the south polar high the correlation has increased (from 0.51 to 0.55); and intensity and frequency of El Nio has increased.
Concluding Remarks
In case the global warming is continuing, Higher the temperature of the global troposphere, greater the participation-role of the South Polar High in the general atmospheric and Oriental Monsoon circulations. Warmer boreal winter followed by warmer austral winter is a reliable indicator of occurrenceintensification of El Nio (CC=-0.38). There will be lesser exchange of mass and moisture between the hemispheres if winter hemisphere is warmer consecutively. Subsidence in the upper troposphere over North Pacific and South Pacific Highs would decline. Easterlies will be weaker over equatorial Pacific and SST higher over central and eastern Pacific. Consequently, Oriental-Indian monsoon circulation, convergence processes in the monsoon domain and rainfall occurrences across India will be weaker. Reverse is likely to be true during cooler winter hemisphere consecutively.
Limitations
The COA exhibit large spatial shift, which is yet to be studied. Further, this is a preliminary study. Detailed illustration and description of the OrientalIndian monsoon circulation embedded in the general atmospheric circulation for specified global tropospheric temperature in a wide range is essential to understand relationship between global temperature and the monsoon. Microscopic interpretations of the results reported in this study should be done keeping in view limitations of the NCEP-NCAR dataset.
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Space Weather Studies Of Ionosphere In Arctic Region

1. Space Science Laboratory, Department of Physics, Barkatullah University, Bhopal-426026, India. 2. RKDF College of Engineering, NH-12 Hoshangabad Road, Bhopal, India.
A.K. Gwal 1 and Himanshu Chaurasia 2
The study of Space Weather is to have collaborative effort worldwide to go with joint efforts to enable the progress in our ability to identify critical inputs to specify the geo-space environment at a level needed to minimize impact on technology, human society and life, and to support the development worldwide the dependable, robust models that predict conditions in entire Sun-Earth system and all of its interacting components. The study of the Climate and Weather of Sun-Earth System (CAWSES) is a international program which is the first step is a quantitative evaluation of physical changes in the near earth space environment in response to the variations in Solar radiation, Solar plasma ejection, and the electromagnetic status of the interplanetary medium. This would lead to the identification of the key parameters, such as geomagnetic indices, S4 index, etc. Thus understanding the physical processes, that are involved in linking the entire system, which begins at the Sun and ends on the Earth. This will improve our capacity to provide timely specification and forecasting of conditions on the Sun, and in solar winds, magnetosphere, ionosphere, and thermosphere that can impair the performance and reliability of space-borne and ground-based technological systems.
When the disturbances from the Sun, reaches the earths neighborhood, causes severe fluctuations in the geomagnetic field and particle environment of the magnetosphere. Geomagnetic storms/substorms cause mainly two types of effects on the Earths ionosphere/ thermosphere (1) Charged particle induced effects and (2) electrodynamical effects, which involve magnetic and electric fields.
During geomagnetic storms in particular, changes in the composition in the thermosphere (95 to 500 km altitude) and the composition of the upper atmosphere can alter the recombination rate of the ionosphere (60 to beyond 1000-km altitude), which changes the electron density drastically. Accurate estimation of electron density would therefore allow navigation system users to correct the errors in signal
Session: 5
propagation. During ionospheric storm the changes in F-region are studied either using fof2 data or IEC data (Mendillo and Schatten 1983). Study of the diurnal and seasonal variation of the TEC of the ionosphere by using Geo-stationary satellite beacon signals have been done by many workers (Titheridge, 1966; Walker and Ting, 1972). Forecasting the space weather events-comprising both long and short term predicting capability, under various IMF conditions, solar wind interaction with the magnetosphere and associated current systems, ring current interaction with the ionosphere/ upper atmosphere, effects of the energetic charged particles on the space based systems including particle simulations, storm, substorm studies, magnetic activity predictions, prediction of ionospheric scintillations in L-band, TEC variations. Simultaneous observations of L1 and L2 signals from GPS satellites at intervals of 30 s using dualfrequency receivers have been widely used to study ionospheric irregularities in equatorial as well as high latitudes (Aarons et al., 1997; Pi et al., 1997; Basu et al., 1998; Aarons et al., 1999; Aarons and Lin, 1999; Mendillo et al., 2000). Several case studies of the observed effects of geomagnetic storms (Aarons and Lin, 1999; Mendillo et al., 2000; Basu et al., 2001) and solar flares (Afraimovich, 2000) on the STEC along the satellite-to-receiver path give an idea of the various possibilities that exist. Mendillo et al. (2000) in the first study of magnetic storm effects on TEC at equatorial latitudes, using GPS data. Basu et al. (2001) reported that GPS measurements at Fortaleza (dip latitude = 4.5) showed a precipitous fall in TEC. Doherty et al. (2001) shows July 2000 storm presented the highest range delays together with the highest rates of change ever recorded in the multitudes United States. Various characteristics of night-time enhancement in ionospheric electron content had been studied by Jain et al. (1995). Considerable solar and magnetic activity depending on the latitudinal variation has been reported by Balan et al. (1994). Bailey et al. (1992) studies the TEC during winter months of low solar activity and comparison made with the conjugate hemispheric station. The Ionospheric parameters are mainly under the control of solar geophysical conditions (Space Weather) and it is greatly affected by geomagnetic storms especially in the high and low latitude ionosphere. The effects of space weather over high and low latitude Ionosphere has a great importance due to its unique features. The high and low latitude ionosphere has a very dynamic nature and effects are very high on both the regions due to changes in of its any controlling parameter. Due to its uniqueness a lot of studies have been done over low latitude ionosphere during magnetic storm periods, which provides a significant knowledge of low latitude response during storm time (Kelley et al., 1979; Abdu et al., 1990, 1995; Fejer, 1991; and Sobral et al., 1997). The evidences have been shown by Fejer et al. (1999), for the effect of winds blowing across the magnetic equator transporting plasma along the nearly horizontal field lines. Sobral et al. (1997) reported that in some cases the increase in foF2 to be related to the increase in fountain effect mechanism or vice versa. Burns et al. (1995) reported that the occurrence of adiabatic heating could at low latitudes as a result of down welling from the storm-time changes in the global circulation. In connection with above studies some earlier studies are also reported on the response of ionosphere to the magnetic storms at Indian region by some Indian workers by using ionosonde data. The response of equatorial and low latitude F- region to the great magnetic storm of 13 March 1989 has been studied by Lakshmi et al., (1991) with available data of various equatorial and low latitude stations. The amount of energy carried by the solar wind has a great influence on the behavior of earths magnetosphere. The earths strong magnetic field traps the solar wind particles in a limited region within the magnetosphere. It is not yet clear that most of these particles are from solar wind, or terrestrial particles accelerated by solar energy. At high latitudes contribution due to the particle fluxes become important. Solar wind is a significant energy source of the entire ionosphere at high latitudes.
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The geomagnetic field forms an obstacle to the solar wind flow, by intense interaction between the solar wind and the magnetosphere, mass, momentum and energy is transferred from solar wind to magnetosphere. There are two important energy input mechanism at high latitudes; first one is the large scale convection of the magnetic field lines due to solar wind interaction that results in disturbances, other from the precipitating particles which comes from the collision retardation of magnetosphere energetic particles as they enter the lower atmosphere. The space weather impacts are highly pronounced for equatorial and low latitude ionospheric parameter, which affects the HF communication as well as trance-ionospheric communications. During ionospheric storm the changes in F region are studied either using foF2 data (Sharma et al., 2005) or IEC data (Mendillo, 1970). It has been observed that the day-to-day variability in TEC in equatorial and low latitude follow the variations in Equatorial Electro Jet (EEJ) strength very closely (Dabas et al., 1984; Rama Rao et al., 2006). Dabas et al. (1984) extended the above work from equator to 250 N dip latitude and observed that the day-today variability to be particularly large around equatorial anomaly peak region. Long time series of the critical frequency of the F2 layer, foF2, from several mid- and high-latitude stations, were studied for investigation of the average behavior of the disturbed ionospheric conditions. The studies of Ionospheric effect on GPS signals have already been carries out (Gwal et al., 2005).
Loss of Lock
A Doppler shift is experienced in the GPS signal due to rapid phase fluctuations, which when exceeds the bandwidth of the phase lock loop (PLL), results in a loss of phase lock. Additionally, amplitude fades causes the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) to drop below the receiver threshold level, resulting in loss of code lock. These effects have large impacts on tracking loops employing codeless and semi-codeless technologies, versus full code correlation. In particular, codeless and semi-codeless tracking loops experience losses
of 27-30 dB and 14-17dB respectively, with respect to full code correlation, and are more susceptible to the effects of amplitude fading. L2 phase lock loop (PLL) also employs a narrower bandwidth (1 Hz, compared to 15 Hz for L1) to eliminate excess noise, and is more susceptible to loss of lock due to phase scintillations. The receiver PLL recovers from the loss of lock within a short duration of about 1-4 minutes. It is also so that the receiver losses lock more than once if the scintillation activity is severe and also if the satellite is at low elevation angle. The scintillation are moderate to weak at latitudes closer to the equator because of the presence of low electron density and absence of the short scale length irregularities, which do not significantly affect the radio signals at L-band frequencies. Whereas, at the anomaly crest region, because of increased electron densities and the presence of large gradients, the generation of small scale irregularities is relative high which contribute to the occurrence of strong scintillations that severely affects the L-band signals. The presence of scintillation thus degrades the GPS receiver tracking performance. These effects therefore are of significant concern for users who require dual frequency data for estimation of ionospheric effects, or resolution of wide lane ambiguities. Once the loss of lock occurs the phase count breaks and every lock on to a satellite starts the phase lock again, which generates a new unknown offset. Every lock on to a satellite generates a new unknown offset, because, the phase counting starts again. As a result, there is at least one unknown bias associated with every receiver for every satellite pass. When during a pass, phase lock is lost and acquired again, an additional bias results. These types of offsets are quite common with the orbiting satellite data such as those from NNSS or GPS.
Procurement of Data and Method of Analysis

A year data which has been used for the present study was collected during the months December 2005 to November 2006 by operating GPS Silicon Valleys GPS ionospheric scintillation and TEC
Session: 5
monitor (GISTM) system Model GSV4004A receiver which is NovAtels Euro4 version of the OEM4 card (OEM4-GL2) with modified software, installed at Space science laboratory, Department of Physics, Barkatullah University, Bhopal which is a low latitude station situated at 23.2N Lat. 77.4E Long.. It can track up to 11 GPS signals at the L1 (1575.42 MHz) frequency and the L2 (1227.6 MHz) frequency. It measures phase and amplitude (at 50 Hz rate) and code/carrier divergence (at 1Hz rate) for each satellite being tracked on L1, and computes TEC from combined L1 and L2 pseudorange and carrier phase measurements. To collect ionospheric scintillation and TEC data for all the visible satellites, output data logs, called ISMRB, is used to get an output data, which is either in binary or ASCII format. Finally the data which is received in the interval of 60 sec is used to convert slant TEC (STEC) to vertical TEC VTEC and S4 index was used for the scintillation purpose. For the study of TEC, five days were chosen with keeping in view that the receiver was logged for the whole day i.e. full day data is available. Another point which was kept into consideration for the choice of data was that, the solar activity or magnetic activity be not high during those days. The prime reason behind this choice of data was know and understand, if some other physical processes be involved into the variation of TEC. As this is the solar minimum period this could be well realized during this period than that of the solar high periods. For the study purpose the data was taken at every 60 sec interval. The average of the slant TEC for all the visible satellite was done for every 60 sec value, with the cut off elevation of 30 degree. The average of the slant TEC measured at every 60 second intervals was then converted to vertical TEC for the study of temporal variation of TEC. In conversion of STEC to VTEC, it is assumed that the ionosphere and the protonosphere are horizontally stratified and are spatially uniform. Further, the ionosphere is simplified to a thin layer at an altitude of 380 km above the earths surface. This is known to be the thin shell model, and its height is the effective height or centroid of mass of the ionosphere, which is taken as the IPP altitude or altitude of ionospheric intersection of the user line of sight to the tracked satellite. The thin shell concept is to reduce each 3D space measurement to a data point (the IPP) on a two dimensional map. The single layer concept of atmosphere assumes that the free electrons present in the ionosphere are concentrated in an infinitely thin imaginary spherical shell surrounding the earth at a height of the expected maximum electron density of about 300-400 Kms (Klobuchar et al., 1987). While for Scintillation study purpose the data of almost whole year from the same receiver, situated at same location was used. The data was taken at every 60 sec interval. The cut off elevation for the study of scintillation was kept to be 15 degree. The data of high latitude were collected by the same receiver during the period (June 17, 2008 to July 17, 2008), installed at Indian Station at HIMADRI (Ny-lesund (78.9N Lat. and 11.9E Long.), Norway), while I took a pride to be the team member of Second Summer Indian Artic Expedition to Nylesund. For the purpose of Geomagnetic activity, Solar activity and magnetic activity the data have been procured from the different sites like Space Physics Interactive Data Resource (SPIDR), Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), Solar X-ray Observatory (SXOS), Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES), Advance Composition Explorer (ACE), http://pss.swpc.noaa. gov, http://swdcwww.Kugi.Kyoto-u.ac.jp.
Results
Tec Variation At High And Low Latitudes The results obtained during the course of study has been presented in the Mass plots of the diurnal variation of the TEC for the month of June, July and February 2008 in the Fig.-1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively, of which Fig.-1, 2 and 3 present the diurnal variation of TEC at high latitude station Ny-lesund (78.9N and 11.9E) and that the Fig.-4 presents the same of the low latitude station, Bhopal (23.2N and 77.4E). The mean of the diurnal plots have been shown by magenta color in all the plots. It is clear from the plots that the variation in the TEC during the day is not significant
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only slight variations of about one to two TECU is observed to fluctuate. One important noticeable feature of the high latitude plot was the presence of the valley of about 5 TECU between the period 0130 UT and 0210 UT. The value of TEC at these latitudes remained between 19 and 30 TECU. The mean diurnal plot of both the months of the high latitude station Ny-lesund is shown in the Fig.-3. On the other hand the diurnal variation of low latitude station Bhopal shows a clear sharp rise during the sunrise hours reaching to the peak value of about 56 TECU during the afternoon hours at around 1230 UT. The TEC decreases with the steep gradient and remains almost constant during the night time with the value of about 25 TECU. The overall picture which is inferred from the high and low latitude study of the variation of the TEC parameter is that its value at low latitude is much higher than that of the value of TEC at high latitude. The variation of the average day time value of TEC as studied during the period of February 2008 is shown in the Fig.-5. The maximum of the average of the day time TEC value was 41.69 TECU on February 11, 2008 while the minimum remained on February 13, 2008 with the value 30.5 TECU. Fig.-6 depicts the average night time TEC behavior of the low latitude
station during the month of February 2008 with the variation of utmost 3 TECU. The comparison of the two Figures (Fig.-5 and Fig.-6) gives the idea that the ionosphere remains quite and stable during the night time but is highly variable during the day time. Fig.-7 and Fig.-8 give the maximum value of TEC and the time at which the value reached maximum respectively. As shown in the Figure that the maximum value showed its maxima on February 11, 2008 at 1235 UT. The minimum value of TEC and the time of its occurrence are shown in the Fig.-9 and Fig.-10 respectively. Trend which is observed from these Figures is that the time of occurrence of the minimum value of TEC keeps on shifting towards the day side. The day-to-day variability of the TEC during the February 2008 has been shown in the Fig.-11. From the Figure it can be inferred that the variability of the day to day TEC was about 12 TECU with the variation from the mean in most of the cases were towards the lower side. In all these Figures one very important feature that is noticeable is the day-to-day randomness in the variation of TEC particularly, during the mid day to pre-dawn hours, which is of serious concern in forecasting as well as in navigation.
Fig.-1:- Diurnal variation of TEC in the month of June 2008 at Ny-lesund.
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Fig.-2:- Diurnal variation of TEC in the month of July 2008 at Ny-lesund.
Fig.-3:-Mean Diurnal variation of TEC for the month of June-July 2008 at Ny-lesund.
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Fig.-4:- Day-to-day variation of TEC from Monthly Mean.
Fig.-5:- Variation of Average TEC value during day time.
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Fig.-6:- Variation of Average TEC value during night time.
Fig.-7:- Maximum value of TEC during the days of Feb 2008.
Fig.-8:- Time at which the value of TEC went maximum during the days of Feb 2008.
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Fig.-9:- Minimum value of TEC during the days of Feb 2008.
Fig.-10:- Time at which the value of TEC remained minimum during the days of Feb 2008.
Fig.-11:- Diurnal variation of TEC in the month of February 2008 at Bhopal.
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Solar Activity Based Study Of Tec
The effect of the solar variability seen on the earth has been correlatively expressed in the Fig.-12. Here Sunspot number and Solar flux (10.7) which are considered to be the parameter for the solar activity are plotted in first and the second place while the geomagnetic parameters are plotted there after. In this Figure both solar as well as geomagnetic index are plotter together to give the comparative look into the solar and geomagnetic parameters. The fact that the changes in the solar parameter have varied the geomagnetic parameter. TEC dependence on solar flux (F10.7 cm) For the present study the 2800 MHz solar radiation [solar flux (F10.7 cm), W/m2/Hz=1 unit] which is a measure of (or Index of) solar wave radiation is used. The presence of ionization at the ionospheric latitude is mainly due to the solar EUV radiation. It is quite clear from the diurnal variation of TEC (in Fig.-4) that it follows the sun at that location. With the local sunrise, the ionization starts to built up around 0630 LT when the value of solar flux 10.7 cm starts rising; and around noon or so at 0100 LT, maximum ionization is reached. The rate of change of ionization is large in the morning hours and also after the local sunset hours. A reverse process is operative after the termination of the solar radiation. Various loss processes take over after local sunset and hence a fast decay in TEC is observed in the evening hours followed by local sunset. Though the correlation between the daily mean value of TEC and that of Solar flux 10.7 has found to be very poor which is just 0.2 as shown in the Fig.-21. A good correlation between observed ionosphere parameters and solar activity variations is found especially in autumn to winter season (Oinats et. al., 2008) Fig.-13 has been plotted to study the relationship between the mean TEC and the solar flux (10.7) during all the months of the year (December 2005 November 2006), a linear fit shown by red line is added to the plot to understand the dependence of TEC on solar flux. Though the diurnal variation of the TEC closely follows the sun, however, the monthly mean TEC values have shown a mixed effect of its variation with solar flux. Since the most of the months have shown a positive dependence. It can be inferred that there is positive correlation between the two, however the presence of contradictory results is the indicative of the fact that there may be some other processes playing the role for such effect. Hence it could be said that the daily variation of TEC have reasonable dependence on the solar flux.
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Fig.-12:- Variation of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity during December 2005 to November 2006.
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Fig.-13:- Variation of TEC with Solar Flux (10.7) during different months of the year (December 2005 November 2006).
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Fig.-13:- Variation of TEC with Solar Flux (10.7) during different months of the year (December 2005 November 2006).
The randomness in the day-to-day variability in TEC are attributed to be due to the changes in the activity of the sun and the associated changes in the intensity of the incoming radiations, and the zenith angle ( ) at which they impinge on the earths atmosphere, in addition to the changes that take place in the earths magnetic field and the equatorial electrojet (EEJ)
strength, added to the effects due to the dynamics of the neutral winds. Added to all these, the plasma flow associated with the EIA may also play a significant role in the day to day variability of the observed diurnal variations in the TEC. The ions produced from the striking process of the ultra violet light have an active role in reflecting and observing the earth
Session: 5
radio waves. This layer also is an unstable medium because it is vulnerable to several distortions which affect its physical condition (Yaacob et al., 2008). TEC dependence on sunspot number (SSN) The mean daily variation of the sunspot and the daily mean TEC during the year (December 2005 November 2006) have been shown in the Fig.-15. It is evident from the Figure that with the increase in the sunspot number the TEC increases correspondingly with some time lag. The month wise study of the dependence of the TEC on the sunspot number has been shown in the Fig.-16. These Figures have not yielded any decisive result. Some months have shown the positive correlation while others have given a opposite picture. The correlation coefficient between the two parameter was found to be 0.3 as shown in Fig.-21, which gives the picture of positive dependence of daily variation of TEC on sunspot number. The reason for the poor correlation may be due to the time lag between the cause and effect. results. Therefore it concludes that there is a positive correlation between the TEC and the Dst index. The value of coefficient of correlation as has been shown in the Fig.-21 is 0.011. From the studies of effects of geomagnetic storms on TEC at low latitude, it is seen that during the magnetic storms, the usual equatorial anomaly generation is inhibited and as a result during magnetic storms, there is general decrease in TEC at low latitudes. Quiet day and Disturb day study of TEC For the study of quiet day and disturb day variation of TEC, the vertical TEC has been derived from the measured GPS slant TEC by multiplying it with the slant factor. The quiet and disturb day have been taken from the internationally recognized website SPIDR. The study of quiet and disturbed days taken at the low latitude station Bhopal has been shown in the Fig.-22 and Fig.-23. From the Fig.-22 it is clear that the maximum value of TEC during the quiet days were 29.5, 41, 41, 42 and 38 TECU during 1415, 0630, 0730, 0615 and 0900 hrs UT respectively and that Fig.-23 show that the maximum value of TEC during disturb days were 49, 39.5, 39, 45 and 56 TECU during 0600, 0830, 0600, 1100 and 0550 hrs UT respectively. While the study of the quiet and disturb day TEC variation at high latitude station Ny-lesund has been shown in the Fig.-24 and Fig.-25. From the Fig.-24 it is clear that the maximum value of TEC during the quiet days were 28.5, 26.8, 27.2, 27.8 and 27 TECU during 1100, 1015, 1000, 1000 and 1000 hrs UT respectively. Fig.-25 shows the maximum value of TEC during disturb days were 29, 27.1, 28.7, 28 and 29 TECU during 1030, 0950, 0930, 1000 and 1040 hrs UT respectively. In the study it is found that the value of TEC remained high during the disturb days as compared to that of quiet days at the low latitude station as well as at high latitude station during the low solar activity period. Another important point that has been deduced from the above study is that during the disturb days the maxima of TEC peaks earlier than that of the quiet day.
The Effect Of Geomagnetic Activity on Tec

A good result can be deduced from the present study as shown in Fig.-17 (a and b), Fig.-18 (a and b), Fig.19 (a and b) and Fig.-20 (a and b). It has been clearly found that in short term study of TEC variation with increased geomagnetic activity has shown a decrease in the value of TEC during storm time. The Fig.-17 (a ) shows that on the January 05, 2006 at 1200 UT the Dst rises to a small value of about less than 10 nT which is called the initial phase of the storm which then starts going down and reaches the mimimum value of -23 nT on January 06, 2006 at 1700 UT (main phase of the storm) and then storm enters into the recover phase. Corresponding to this variation of Dst the Fig.-17 (b) shows the variation of TEC. It is found that the TEC peaked to the value of 28, 32, 31 and 38 TECU on January 04, 05, 06 and 07, 2006 respectively. Thus we find that on the day January 07, 2006 when the Dst went low correspondingly the value of TEC has also fallen. Similarly the Fig.18, Fig.-19 and Fig.-20 have depicted the similar
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Fig.-14:- Variation of daily mean TEC and Solar Flux (10.7) during the year (December 2005 November 2006).
Fig.-15:- Variation of daily mean TEC and Sunspot number during the year (December 2005 November 2006).
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Fig.-16:- Variation of daily mean TEC with Sunspot number during different months of the year (December 2005 November 2006).
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Fig.-16:- Variation of daily mean TEC with Sunspot number during different months of the year (December 2005 November 2006).
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TEC. It is found that the TEC peaked to the value of 28, 32, 31 and 38 TECU on January 04, 05, 06 and 07, 2006 respectively. Thus we find that on the day January 07, 2006 when the Dst went low correspondingly the value of TEC has also fallen. Similarly the Fig.-18, Fig.-19 and Fig.-20 have depicted the similar results. Therefore it concludes that there is a positive correlation between the TEC and the Dst index. The value of coefficient of correlation as has been shown in the Fig.-21 is 0.011. From the studies of effects of geomagnetic storms on TEC at low latitude, it is seen that during the magnetic storms, the usual equatorial anomaly generation is inhibited and as a result during magnetic storms, there is general decrease in TEC at low latitudes. Quiet day and Disturb day study of TEC For the study of quiet day and disturb day variation of TEC, the vertical TEC has been derived from the measured GPS slant TEC by multiplying it with the slant factor. The quiet and disturb day have been taken from the internationally recognized website SPIDR. The study of quiet and disturbed days taken at the low latitude station Bhopal has been shown in the Fig.-22 and Fig.-23. From the Fig.-22 it is clear that the maximum value of TEC during the quiet days were 29.5, 41, 41, 42 and 38 TECU during 1415, 0630, 0730, 0615 and 0900 hrs UT respectively and that Fig.-23 show that the maximum value of TEC during disturb days were 49, 39.5, 39, 45 and 56 TECU during 0600, 0830, 0600, 1100 and 0550 hrs UT respectively. While the study of the quiet and disturb day TEC variation at high latitude station Ny-lesund has been shown in the Fig.-24 and Fig.-25. From the Fig.-24 it is clear that the maximum value of TEC during the quiet days were 28.5, 26.8, 27.2, 27.8 and 27 TECU during 1100, 1015, 1000, 1000 and 1000 hrs UT respectively. Fig.-25 shows the maximum value of TEC during disturb days were 29, 27.1, 28.7, 28 and 29 TECU during 1030, 0950, 0930, 1000 and 1040 hrs UT respectively. In the study it is found that the value of TEC remained high during the disturb days as compared to that of quiet days at the low latitude station as well as at high latitude station during the low solar activity period. Another important point that has been deduced from the above study is that during the disturb days the maxima of TEC peaks earlier than that of the quiet day.
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Fig.-17:- (a) Variation of Dst during January 04, 05, 06 and 07, 2006. (b) Variation of TEC during January 04, 05, 06 and 07, 2006.
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Fig.-18:- (a) Variation of Dst during April 08, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16, 2006. (b) Variation of TEC during April 08, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16, 2006.
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Fig.-19:- (a) Variation of Dst during November 07, 08, 09 and 10, 2006. (b) Variation of TEC during November 07, 08, 09 and 10, 2006.
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Fig.-20 (a):- Variation of Dst during April 04, 05 and 06, 2006.
Fig.-20 (b):- Variation of TEC during April 04, 05 and 06, 2006.
Fig.-21:- Correlation Coefficient of different Parameters with TEC during December 2005-November 2006. Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
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Fig.-22:- Diurnal variation of TEC at Bhopal on Quite Days during the month of Feb-2008.
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Fig.-23:- Diurnal variation of TEC at Bhopal on Disturb Days during the month of Feb-2008.
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Fig.-24:- Diurnal variation of the TEC at Ny-lseund on Quiet days during the month of June-2008 and July-2008.
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Fig.-25:- Diurnal variation of the TEC at Ny-lseund on Disturb days during the month of June-2008 and July-2008.
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Study Of Space Weather Events Leading To Loss Of Lock

It is true that Sun is the cause of all effect felt on the atmosphere of the earth. The study of loss of lock was carried out at low latitude station and at high latitude station. The data for low latitude was collected at Bhopal station during February 2008 while for the study taken on the high latitude, the data was collected at Indian Station at North Pole HIMADRI [Nylesund (78.9N Lat. and 11.9E Long.), Norway] from June 17, 2008 to July 17, 2008 during the period of low solar activity. Case-1:- Study at low latitude The results obtained after the analysis of the data so collected at Bhopal have been shown in the Fig.-26. In this Figure the TEC is coupled with the geomagnetic index (Dst), the amplitude scintillation index (S4) and the Number of PRNs locked during February 01, 02 and 03, 2008. As shown in the Figure the Dst value falls to the minimum of -44 nT during 0000 UT on February 02, 2008. This fall of Dst could effect only to the TEC by reducing its value by 2 TECU and that the maximum value of TEC remained at 43 TECU compared to other two days on both the side (February 01 & 03, 2008) when the maximum value of TEC was 45 TECU. The number of PRNs locked has not shown any unusual trend nor was the amplitude scintillation observed during that period. As no loss of lock was observed they have not been presented. From the above scenario it could be depicted that at low latitude station the fall of Dst even upto the value of -44nT could create loss of lock in the GPS satellite signals. Case-2:- Study at high latitude In order to investigate the status of loss of lock at high latitude station Ny-lesund. The data so collected were analysis and have been presented in the Fig.-27. In this Figure the TEC is coupled with the geomagnetic index (Kp), the amplitude scintillation index (S4), the phase scintillation and the Number of PRNs locked while Fig.-28 represents the AE index variation as taken form the site World Data Centre (WDC) during
the period of June 25, 26 and 27, 2008 respectively. As shown in the Fig.-27 the Kp values rises at 0300 and 1200 UT to the value 4 during both the period, also from the Fig.-28 a change in the AE index could be seen with some time lag of about one to two hours. Although not much of the effect of this increase in the Kp value was observed on the TEC, there was mild effect on the amplitude scintillation but the phase scintillation has shown a considerable amount of variation which has been shown encircled within the white oval. The numbers of PRNs locked have been shown in the bottom of the Fig.-27. Different PRNs showing the amplitude scintillation have been plotted in the Fig.-29 while the PRNs showing the phase scintillation are plotted in the Fig.-30. It can be seen from the Figures that the number of PRNs showing the phase scintillation are more also it has been observed that in some cases though the phase scintillation is present the amplitude scintillation is absent. Thus it could be well said that the phase scintillation is more predominant phenomena than the amplitude scintillation at high latitudes while at low latitudes it is the amplitude scintillation which is more pronounced. During this period the satellites which have suffered the loss of lock have been compiled in the Fig.-31. The scintillation leading to loss of lock, together have been shown in Fig.-32, Fig.-33 and Fig.34, while the satellite path traces have been shown in Fig.-35 (a) , Fig.-36 (a) and Fig.-37 (a). The zoomed in image of the satellite path trace from the Fig.-35(a) , Fig.-36(a) and Fig.-37(a) has been shown in the Fig.35 (b) , Fig.-36 (b) and Fig.-37 (b) respectively. Thus from the satellite path trace plots it could be inferred that the present of irregularities in the ionosphere over head at the high latitude station Ny-lesund was toward the southern side of the station.
Session: 5
Fig.-26:- Geomagnetic Activity based study of TEC at Bhopal during February 01, 02 & 03, 2008.
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Discussion
It has been found in the study of the data of Nylesund that with the approaching solar cycle minimum, the scintillation effects on GPS signals are turning to be less frequent, with less number of GPS satellites loosing lock on the GPS receiver. The loss of lock happens when the scintillation value exceeds a limiting value. It has also been found that the loss of lock is more at lower elevation angles. The variation of solar activity is in cycles of the period of around eleven years, with the current cycle approaching to its minimum, which means that now there are less chances of a disruption to the GPS signals. The fading of amplitude and fluctuation of phase has also been discussed by many writers Ionosphere (Klobuchar, 1996; Aarons and Basu, 1994). This effects could cause receivers to loose lock on the ranging signals broadcast by Geostationary WAAS satellite or GPS, potentially causing a short service outrage for one or more aircraft satellites (Loh et al., 1995). The error translated from the code-delay to the carrier-phase ionospheric observable by the so called Levelling Process which is applied to reduce carrier phase ambiguities from the data was carried by Yaacob et al. (2008). The study of total electron content morphology using the beacon on the Advance Technology Satellite-6. Geophysical discoveries using ATS-6 beacon data have been summarized by Evans (1977). Various groups all over India studied the parameter TEC and scintillation by establishing a chain of stations, the results of which have been reported by Deshpande et al. (1977); Singh et al. (1997); Jain et al. (1998); Sethia et al. (1978). The study of daily TEC variations, diurnal TEC variations and statistical analyses of TEC has been carried out by Ali et al. (2007). Present study has shown that scintillation activity at Bhopal shows a negative correlation with Kp index (Magnetic activity). Many researchers have discussed the correlation between the Kp magnetic activity index and the occurrence of ionospheric scintillation (Doherty et al., 2000). The responses of TEC at European region during the geomagnetic storms were
studied and it was found that the F1 region response to the geomagnetic storm was negative (decrease of electron density) in the higher middle and middle latitudes and was independent for the F2 region. For the lower middle latitudes the F1 response is weaker and less regular (Buresova, 2005). In the study it is found that though the prime cause of formation of ions is the suns EUV radiation, the day to day variability of TEC have very poor correlation with solar 10.7 cm flux. This has been reported by many workers that the TEC do not have any dependence on 10.7 cm flux (Guhathakurta, 1978; Bastista et al., 1994; Doherty, 2000). Correlation is found to be somewhat larger in the ascending phase. Moreover variation of ambient ionization in the equinoctial and the December solstial months are found to be more sensitive to solar flux change (Chakraborty et al., 2007). A good correlation between observed ionosphere parameters and solar activity variations is found especially in autumn to winter season (Oinats et al., 2008). The seasonal variation pattern in TEC was found to be maximum in equinoctial months and minimum in June solstice, with similar variations for foF2. The solar flux dependence of the TEC is maximum during equinoxes, especially for the post sunset TEC values at times when the latitudinal distribution is controlled by the equatorial evening plasma fountain processes. Significant variations with local time are found in the degree of solar flux dependence for both the TEC and EIA (Abdu et al., 2008). The effect of magnetic storms on the ionosphere has been studied by many workers and they have suggested that during storm time, if due to some reasons the composition of the medium changes may give rise to loss coefficients and thus decrease the electron density Nmax. This may be true for TEC as well. Latter on storm studies were carried out by many workers. The study of the storm time TEC variation were carried out by Jain et al. (1978); Barbara et al. (1983); Rama Rao et al. (1981); Korde and Navaneeth (1981, 1983); Bhuyan and Tyagi, (1992); Loknadham et al. (1983). Rajaram (1977) has shown that following
Session: 5
a geomagnetic storm, the uplifting of plasma due to ExB action in vertical direction and eventually diffusion along the magnetic field lines to the sub tropical latitudes is inhibited, thereby the anomaly weakens. This results in decrease in ionization at sub tropical or low latitudes (20 from the geomagnetic equator). The study of pre-storm electron density enhancements at mid latitudes, showed no systematic effect in F1 region, the E region (foE) appears to be insensitive and the effect was found to be confined to F2 region (Buresova and Lastovicka, 2008). An inter comparison with the AE index indicates that there is a good relationship. During the main phase of storms AE increases. Thus one interpretation of this observation is that AE increases due to injection of plasma particles into the outer radiation belts, preventing the ring current from reaching quiet day values. However, it should be noted that plasma sheet current intensifications or earthward motions of the latter could also cause such effects on the AE index and there is shift in the auroral oval with magnetospheric disturbances. When there is magnetic disturbances the AE level also changes from auroral oval to equator ward. The connectivity of coronal holes and the more distant solar wind has been demonstrated by tracing field lines back to the sun. During solar maximum coronal holes and regions of flux tube divergence are more evenly spread over the Suns surface than at solar minimum, allowing the Earth to experience a broad range of solar wind velocities, almost independent of its heliographic or heliomagnetic latitude. Which are less during solar minimum. The neutral winds that causes the weakening of electrojet (the electrojet strength is basically the product of the east-west conductivity of the ionosphere and the electrostatic field) during storm, give rise to decrease in ionization at low latitudes, Burge et al. (1973) have worked on this problem and have shown that during magnetic disturbances, the wind (which they term storm time wind) opposes the transportation of ionization from equatorial anomaly. This influences the latitudinal variation of electron concentration at lower and middle latitudes. Further they have shown that this storm time wind produces negative storm effects during summer days in the day time while in winter it depends on the magnitude of the storm. For weak storm, these winds produce positive effects and for strong and major disturbances a negative effect is seen. Therefore it could be said that during the storm time, the electric field structure in the ionosphere is affected, may be due to some sort of coupling with polar region or magnetosphere which in turn complicates the effect at low latitude ionization anomaly.
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Fig.-27:- Geomagnetic Activity based study of TEC at Ny-lesund during June 25, 26 & 27, 2008.
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Fig.-28:- Variation of AE index at Ny-lesund during June 25, 26 and 27, 2008.
Fig.-29:- Different PRNs showing Amplitude Scintillation on June 26, 2008 at Ny-lesund.
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Fig.-30:- Different PRNs showing Phase Scintillation on June 26, 2008 at Ny-lesund.
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Fig.-31:- Different PRNs showing Loss of Lock on June 26, 2008 at Ny-lesund. Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011
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Fig.-31:- Different PRNs showing Loss of Lock on June 26, 2008 at Ny-lesund.
Session: 5
Fig.-32:- Plot showing Loss of Lock, Amplitude Scintillation and Phase Scintillation on PRN-5 at Ny-lesund on June 26, 2008.
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Conclusions
The value of TEC remains very high during the daytime as compared to that of nighttime values at low latitude region. The TEC variability shows the diurnal variation with the peak during afternoon hours and the minimum around pre-midnight hours at low latitude region. Typical low latitude diurnal variation is absent at high latitude region. And the variability of TEC through out the day remains very less. The time of occurrence of minimum value of TEC keeps on shifting as has been found (during the study of campaign mode data) in the month of February. The variability of TEC is high during the daytime and is comparatively low during nighttime at low latitude region. The behavior of quiet day TEC is different from that of the disturb days. The value of TEC remains high during the disturb days than that of the quiet day periods. A sharp increase in the value of ROT has been found during the sunrise time and sunset time. Daily average TEC value is more correlated to the daytime average value of TEC than to the night-time
average TEC value which mean some other physical processes also go during the night. The value of TEC shows the positive dependence on the solar activity. The phase scintillation are dominant at high latitudes where as low latitudes are dominated be amplitude scintillation. The loss of lock occurs if the scintillation exceeds a limit, which also depends on the elevation angle of the satellite (The loss of lock is more at less elevation angles). The main phase of Dst (i.e. during the negative excursion of Dst) suppresses the value of TEC.
Acknowledgement
One of the writer (Himanshu Chaurasia) take pride to acknowledge :1. ISRO, Department of Space, Govt. of India, Banglore for providing the financial support under the project entitled, Space weather studies of the ionosphere and its impact on ground and space based systems. 2. NCAOR, Sada, Goa, working under the Ministry of Earth Science, Govt. of India for enduring me with the golden opportunity to be a team member of Indian Artic Expedition to Ny-lesund and for the financial support.
Session: 5
Fig.-35 (a):- Satellite Path Trace at IPP for PRN-5 on June 26, 2008 at Ny-lesund.
Fig.-35 (b):- Zoomed in view of the Satellite Path Trace at IPP for PRN-5 on June 26, 2008 at Ny-lesund.
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219
Refrences
Aarons J. and Basu S., Ionospheric amplitude and phase fluctuations at the GPS frequencies, Vol. Proceding of ION GPS-94, Institute of Navigation, Arlington, Va., 1569-1578, 1994. Aarons J., Mendillo M. and Yantosca R., GPS phase fluctuations in the equatorial region during sunspot minimum, Radio Science, Vol. 32, pp 1535-1550, 1997. Aarons J. and Lin B., Development of high latitude phase fluctuations during the January 10, April 10-11, and May 15, 1997 magnetic storms, J. Atmospheric Solar-Terrestrial Physics, Vol. 61(3-4), pp 309-327, 1999. Aarons J., Mendillo M., Lin b., Colerico M., Beach T., Kinter P., Scali J., Reinish B., Sales G. and Kudeki E., Equatorial F region irregularity morphology during an equinoctial month at solar minimum, Space Science Review, Vol 87, pp 357-386, 1999. Abdu M. A., Walker, Reddy B. M., Sorbral J. H. A., Fejer BB. G., Kikuchi T.,Trivedi N. B. and Szuszczewicz E. P., Annales Geophysicae, Vol. 8, pp 419-430, 1990. Abdu M. A., Batista I. S., Walker G. O., Sorbral J. H. A., Trivedi N. B.and De Paula E. R., J. Atmospheric and Solar Terrestrial Physics, Vol. 57, pp 1065-1083, 1995. Abdu M.A., Brum C.G.M., Batista I.S., Sobral J.H.A., Depaula E.R. and De-Souza J.R., Solar flux effects on equatorial ionization anomaly and total electron content over Brazil: Observational results verses IRI representations, Advances in Space Research, Vol. 42, Issue 4, pp 617-625, Aug. 2008. Ali S.S. and Yatim B., Ionospheric GPS-TEC observations at Scott Base Antarctica during 2004, Applied Electromagnetics, 2007. APACE 2007. AsiaPacific Conference, pp 1-3 Dec. 2007.
Bailey G.J., Sellek R. and Balan N., Nighttime enhancements in TEC during winter at solar minimum: the effect of the conjugate hemisphere, Advanced Space Research, Vol. 12, 309-312, 1992. Barbara, Proceedings of International Symposium beacon satellite studies of the earths environment, pp 287, Feb. 7-11, 1983. Basu Su., Basu S., Valladares C.E., Yeh H.C., Su S.Y., Mackenzie E., Sultan P.J., Aarons J., Rich F.J., Doherty P., Groves K.M. and Bullet T.W., Ionospheric effects of major magnetic storms during the international space weather period of September and October 1999: GPS observations, VHF/UHF scintillations, and in situ density structures at middle and equatorial latitudes, J. Geophysical Research, Vol. 106 (A12), 30389-30413, 2001. Batista I.S., De-Souza J.R., Abdu M.A. and De-Paula E.R., Total electron content at low latitudes and its comparison with the IRI90, Advances in Space Research, Vol. 14, Issue 12, pp 87-90, Dec. 1994. Bhuyan P.K., Diurnal , seasonal and solar cycle variation of TEC, NmF2 and slab thickness at Lunping, Indian Journal of Radio Space Physics, Vol. 21, pp 170-178, 1992. Buresova D., Effects of geomagnetic storms on the bottomside ionospheric F region, Advances in Space Research, Vol. 35, Issue 3, pp 429-439, 2005. Buresova D. and Lastovicka J., Pre-storm electron density enhancements at mid latitudes, J. Atmospheric and Solar Terrestrial Physics, Vol. 70, Issue 15, pp 1848-1855, Dec. 2008. Burge J. D., Eccles D., King J. W. and Ruster R., J. Atmospheric and Solar Terrestrial Physics, Vol. 35, pp 617-623, 1973. Burns A. G., Killeen, T. L., Deng, W. and Carignan, G. R.: Geomagnetic storm effects in the low to
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Loknadham et al, International Symposium on Beacon Satellite Studies of the Earths Environment, pp 379, Feb. 7-11, 1983. Mendillo M., Papagiannis M.D. and Klobuchar J.A., Ionospheric Storms at Midlatitudes, Radio Science, Vol. 5, pp 895, 1970. Mendillo M. and Schatten K., Influence of solar sector boundaries on ionospheric variability, Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 88, pp 9145-9153, 1983. Mendillo M., Lin B. and Aarons J., The application of GPs observations to equatorial aeronomy, Radio Science, Vol. 35, pp 885-904, 2000. Oinats A.V., Ratovsky K.G. and Kotovich G.V., Influence of 27-day solar flux variations on the ionosphere parameters measured at Irkutsk in 20032005, Advances in Space Research, Vol. 42, Issue 4, pp 639-644, Aug. 2008. Rajaram G., Das A.C. and Rastogi R.G., Annales Geophysicae, Annales Geophysicae, Vol. 27, pp469475, 1971. Rama Rao P.V.S., Nru D. and Srirama Rao M., Study of some low latitude ionospheric phenomenon observed in TEC measurements at Waltair, India, Sciencetific Symposium, Warszawa, Poland, May 19-23,1980, Ed A.W. Wernik, pp 175-187, Polish Scientific Publishers, Warsaw, 1981. Rama Rao P.V.S., Gopikrishna S., Niranjan K. and Prasad D.S.V.V.D, Temporal and Spatial variations in TEC using simultaneous measurements from the Indian GPS network of receivers during low solar activity period of 2004-2005, J. Annales Geophysicae, Vol. 24, pp 3279-3292, 2006. Sethia C., Chandra H., Despande M.R. and Rastogi R. G., Indian Journal of Radio and Space Physics, Vol. 7, pp 149, 1978.
Sharma N., Dabas R.S., Pillaii M.G.K. and Gwal A.K.: Day-to-day variability of equatorial and low latitude F-region ionosphere in the Indian zone. Processings of XXVIII General Assembly of International Union Radio Science (URSI), NewDelhi, 23-29 October 2005 [GPIG03.4(0659)]. Singh S.K., Mishra S.D., Vijay S.K. and Gwal A.K, Day-to-day variability of ionospheric electron content at low latitudes during minima of 20th and 21st solar cycle, Acta Geo. Geoph. Hung., Vol. 32(34), pp 293-299, 1997. Sobral J.H.A., Abdu M..A., Gonzalez W.D., Tsurutani B.T., Batista I.S. and Gonzalez Clua de A.L., Effects of intense storms and substorms on the equatorial ionosphere/thermosphere system in the American sector from ground based and satellite data, J. Geophysical Research, Vol. 102(14), pp 305313, 1997. Titheridge J.E., Continous records of total electron content of ionosphere, J. Atmospheric and Solar Terrestrial Physics, Vol. 28, pp 1135-1150, 1966. Walker G. O. and Ting, S. D.: Electron content and other related measurements for a low-latitude station obtained at sunspot maximum using geostationary satellite, J. Atmospheric and Terrestrial Physic, Vol. 34, pp 283, 1972. Yaacob N., Abdullah M. and Ismail M., Determination of GPS Total Electron Content using Single Layer Model (SLM) Ionospheric Mapping Function, IJCSNS International Journal of Computer Science and Network Security, VOL.8 No.9, pp 154 September 2008
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Study of GPS derived Total Electron Content and Scintillation Index variations over Indian, Arctic and Antarctic stations
Space Science Laboratory, Department of Physics and Electronics, Barkatullah University, Bhopal 462 026, India.
A. K. Gwal, Purushottam Bhawre and Azad Ahmad Mansoori
The preliminary results of Total Electron Content and Amplitude Scintillation Index over the Indian base Stations Himadri Ny-Alesund (78.9N Lat. and 11.9E Long.), Arctic and Maitri (70.650 N Lat, 11.450E Long), Antarctic during the low solar activity period (Jan-Dec 2008) descried here, but we are having only two months (October and November) data for analysis from Himadri, Arctic Station. The Antarctic study is divided into three parts namely monthly, seasonal and Mid Polar Day and Mid Polar Night variations. We observed TEC values are highest during the months of January and December as compare to June month, because during January and December months there is 24 hours sun light present ( Polar days) whereas June month there is no sun light (Polar night). During the study of seasonal variations, in winter months i.e. June, July and August 2008, TEC values were lowest because of ionization processes are very low due to absence of sunlight and in the southern summer season TEC values reaches its highest due to presence of 24 hour sunlight and maximum solar radiation present. During equinoxes the study shows the autumnal equinox period TEC disparity is low as compare to vernal equinox period. During autumnal equinox period sun goes towards the sunset point and hence solar ionization radiations decreas day by day and hence the TEC values, whereas in the vernal equinox period it is reverse i.e. sun goes towards sunrise and is visible for maximum duration which causes increased in ionization process. TEC and L-band scintillation activities are also studied during the space weather events. Normally it was found that TEC increases during magnetic disturbances and in some cases weak L-band scintillation activity was also observed. The data observed with the help of GPS receiver is used to study the occurrence characteristics of high latitude L-band scintillation during the low
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solar activity period 2008. The observation reveals that the high latitude L-band scintillations are observed only during night time and since it was a low solar activity conditions and hence the observed scintillations are generally weak type (S4 index less than 0.5). Season wise, their maximum percentage occurrence is observed in winter season i.e. polar night periods from May to August 2008 as compared to summer and equinox seasons. During the study of Arctic region, maximum TEC variation observed in October month as compare to November and maximum amplitude scintillation activities observed in November month. Introduction
The polar region offers exclusive vantage point and proceed as open natural laboratories for ionospheric research. Ionospheric studies at Polar Regions are of interest to users of satellite transmissions and those studying Aeronomy. A network of stations has been reporting data on a continuous basis. Ionosperic Total electron content data are recorded every 30s. throughout the year 2008. In polar region high latitude are directly affected by the energy of charged solar particles and energy thus the ionosphere becomes highly fluctuation. The TEC fluctuations over polar region depends on various factors and one of them ionization process in a high latitude region, ionization process depends on suns activities and zenith angle of the sun. Total electron content is very variable with time and season in particular several studies demonstrated that the TEC strongly depends on solar activates (Da Rosa et al., 1973; Soicher, 1988; Van Velthoven, 1990; Feitcher and Leitinger, 1997; Karnowski, et al., 2006). many studies defined the maximum of the 11-year solar activity cycle will be reached in 2000 or 2001, during the high solar activity period, the ionosphere will have a strong influence on GPS and the end of solar activity cycle will be reached in 2008 during this period of negligible solar activity observed the ionosphere will have weak influence on GPS. The ionosphere is a dispersive medium in which RF signals are refracted by amount dependent on the signal frequency and electron density in regions of small scale irregularities in electron density rapid random phase variations can be produced by phase irregularities in the emerging wavefront, these are referred to as phase scintillations. Diffraction of signals (interference cross the wavefront) also leads to variations in signal amplitude referred to as amplitude scintillation (or amplitude fading for degradations in signal strength) these effect are strongest in equator, auroral and polar cap regions. High latitude auroral irregularities are formed from a precipitation of energetic electrons along terrestrial magnetic field line into the high latitude ionosphere. These electrons are energized through complex interaction between the solar wind and the earth magnetic fields, resulting in optical and UV emissions commonly known as the auroras. This phenomenon characterized the magnetosphere sub storm, where associated irregularities in electron density lead to scintillations (Basler, et al., 1962; Lansinger, et al., 1967; Whitney, et al., 1969; Kersley, et al., 1995; Aarons, 1982). At high latitudes scintillations are found to be associated with large scale plasma structures. Experimentally , the two states of the polar ionosphere controlled by the IMF, and there association with high latitude large scale plasma structures known as patches, blobs and sunaligned arcs, have been discovered in the 1980s (Weber et al., 1984,1986; Tsunoda, 1988, Basu and Valladares, 1999). It is well known that ionospheric scintillation is produced by electron density irregularities in the ionosphere, which becomes highly disturbed at times. A radio wave crossing these drifting ionospheric irregularities suffers a distortion of phase and amplitude and the magnitude of fluctuations
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vary with the frequency used, magnetic and solar activity conditions, and time of the day, season and location. These effects are called amplitude and phase scintillation Biago Forte et al., (2002). Severe amplitude fading and strong phase scintillation affect the reliability of GPS navigational systems and satellite communications. Therefore, it is desirable to obtain further understanding of ionospheric scintillation and its effects on GPS by means of a receiver capable of performing in such conditions. Ionospheric scintillation, which is produced by ionospheric irregularities, affects GPS signals in two ways, broadly classified as refraction and diffraction. Both types of effects originate in the group delay and phase advance that a GPS signal experiences as it interacts with free electrons along its transmission path. This paper describes amplitude scintillation measurements over Indian Antarctica station Matrix (70.65 S, 11.45 E) as part of International Polar Year (IPY) by using NovAtel make dual frequency GPS receiver. In this present paper stresses on the response of ionospheric TEC during the end of solar activities period over Arctic and Antarctic GPS stations were used for analysis of TEC behavior of during the Monthly, Seasonal and Polar day and polar night. Now a day GPS measurements are commonly used to investigate the structure and dynamics of the ionosphere. We present results of data on the ionospheric Total Electron Content (TEC) and Amplitude Scintillation (S4- Index) response during the year 2008.
RF Antenna Cable, 12V Power Adapter Cable, Null Modem Data Cable, Data Communications Equipment. The GPS receiver was set tracks GPS signals at 1 second sampling rate and cut of elevation angles was set to 400 to eliminate the multipath effect of GPS data. A standard of 30 second data sampling was executed in order to reduce processing time. The GPS observable are biased by the instrumental delay therefore it is necessary to remove these biases for accurate estimation of TEC. The absolute Total Electron Content (VTEC) determination has the capability to remove the instrumental biases both from the receiver and the satellite. The instrument time delay potential errors are corrected using the code biases obtainable from Indian base station, Himadri, Arctic and Maitri, Antarctica and all data analyzed in Space Science Laboratory, Department of Physics, Barkatullah University, Bhopal.
Result and Discussion

STUDY OVER MAITRI, ANTARCTIC A total of one year of GPS-TEC data have been processed for Indian permanent station Maitri, Antarctic during the year of 2008. The study divided in three parts:I. Monthly behavior of Total Electron Content:The observation for monthly variation of TEC is based on 12 months GPS data. During the month of January TEC fluctuated between the ranges of 10 to 22 TECU. In the February month 7 to 22 TECU, March month TEC fluctuated between 6 20 TECU. In the April month minimum TEC observed 6 TECU and maximum 15 TECU observed. In the starting of polar night moth May, minimum TEC 7 TECU and maximum 15 TECU observed, in a Dark month of June minimum TEC 4 TECU and maximum 15 TECU observed, in the month July minimum TEC goes to 3 TECU and maximum TEC 16 TECU observed, in the starting of suns activity month August minimum TEC observed 3 TECU and maximum 19 TECU, in the spring month of Antarctica September and October minimum TEC
Procurement of data and method of analysis

The measurement systems for this work are based on the NovAtel GPS, which were stationed at Indian Base Station Maitri, Antarctic. The system was installed on January 2008 during the 27th Indian Antarctic Scientific Expedition. It consist of a 24-chenal, high precision, dual-frequency GPS receiver, GPS antenna modal 702 or 701 for low-noise amplifier (LNA) boosts the power of the incoming signal to compensate for the line loss between the antenna and the receiver,
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noted 3 and 7 TECU and maximum 22 and 22 TECU, again in the summer month November and December TEC variation observed between the range of minimum 6 and 8 TECU and maximum 27 and 26 TECU. This type of behavior of TEC in polar region depends on solar zenith angles. Figure (1) clearly shows 12 month TEC behavior in all months and we noted in every month TEC pick shift pattern between the month January to May TEC peak sifted right side, between the month of June and July TEC peak almost observed overlapped but again sun rising month August to peak summer month December TEC peak noted toward left side. This type of peak shifting pattern depends on the solar zenith angle.
Figure 1. Monthly Total Electron Content variations over Maitri, Antarctica
II. Seasonal Variation of TEC The observation for seasonal variation of ionospheric TEC over Antarctica divided into three seasons: first is summer season (November, December, January and February ) Second is winter season ( May, June, July and August) and third is equinox period divided into two equinoxes seasons according to solar activities first Autumnal equinox (March, April) and other Vernal equinox seasons (September and October).
In the summer period TEC monthly median value fluctuate in the range of 11 20 TECU, this type of performance of TEC in summer period cause of presence of 24-hour solar activity in polar region. In the period of winter TEC monthly median value drops and fluctuates between the range of 8 to 14 TECU. During the winter period solar activities are negligible as compared to summer period. The study of equinox period is divided into two parts first is
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Autumnal equinox from March to April and second is Vernal equinox from September to October 2008. In the autumn equinox TEC monthly median value vary between the ranges of 8-16 TECU, it is because of partial decrease of solar activities. In other vernal
equinox period TEC fluctuates between 8-18 TECU during the period of partial increase in solar activities. Figure (2) shows seasonal variation of TEC over Maitri, Antarctica.
Figure 2. Seasonal Variations of Total Electron Content at Maitri, Antarctic
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III. Mid Polar Day and Mid Polar Night Observation The observation during the mid polar night (21 June 2008), this is totally Antarctic dark night month, during this night total solar activates absence and TEC variation is very less, TEC behavior is just apposite during mid polar day (21 December 2008). In this month complete full sunny days and high solar activities are present, and TEC fluctuate maximum as compared to polar night. Figure (3) shows mid polar day and mid polar night variations.
Figure 3. Mid polar day and mid polar night variation of Total electron Content at the Maitri, Antarctic
AMPLITUDE SCINTILLATION Amplitude scintillation is defined by the S4 index that is derived from detruded intensities of signals received from satellites. The S4 index is computed over 60-second intervals and stored in the Ionospheric Scintillation Monitor Receiver data log along with the phase measurements. This is referred to as the Total S4 (or S4T ). The normalized S4 index, including the effects of ambient noise, is defined as follows:
The amplitude measurements are filtered using a Low Pass Filter (LPF) and the effects of ambient noise removed from the S4T. This is achieved by estimating the average signal-to-noise ratio over the 60-second interval. The 60-second estimates are then used to determine the
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expected S4 correction (or S4No) due to ambient noise. The use of this average signal-to-noise ratio (S/NO) is feasible because the amplitude scintillation fades which did not significantly alter the S/No. Knowing the S/ NO, ambient noise (S4No) becomes:
Equation (2) is referred to as the S4 correction (or S4No). By subtracting the square of the right hand side of Equation (2) from the square of the right hand side of Equation (1), and replacing the S/No with the 60-second estimates. Equation (1) may be modified to give the S4 index, with the effects of ambient noise removed, as follows:
In this paper scintillation morphology is described in terms of percentage occurrence in specified
threshold level according to intensity and differential phase respectively of S4 Index when S4 is greater than 0.1, 0.3 and 0.5. The study is divided in hourly, monthly and seasonal variations of S4-Index observed in GPS signals at Maitri Antarctica. Figure 4 show the scintillation occurrences with different S4 index values i.e. S4 is greater than 0.1, 0.3 and 0.5. When S4 is greater than 0.1, this type of small disturbance regularly observed most of the time throughout the year during the observation period since polar ionosphere where disturbed most of the time due to solar and magnetic activity disturbances (Basu et al., 1988). When S4 is greater than 0.3, the maximum percentage occurrence of 30% is observed in the morning hours (~ 0400 to 0700UT) of winter months and after noon time hours (~1300 to 1800 UT) of summer months. Further, when scintillation index S4 is greater than 0.5 maximum occurrence upto 28% is observed in the morning hours (0500 to 0700 UT) and in the evening hours (1600 to 1800 UT) in winter and summer months respectively.
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Figure 4. Scintillation occurrences with different S4 index values at Maitri
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Figure (5) shows the hourly scintillation activity in a different seasons for different levels of S4 index during the summer months (November, December, January and February) when 24 hour sunlight is present in polar region and as is known that during the day time scintillation occurrence is much lower (Aarons et al., 1981). The percentage occurrences of ~30%, 18% and 12% is observed when S4 is greater than 0.1, 0.3 and 0.5 respectively. In the winter months ( May , June , July and August ) when there is no sun i.e. polar nights, the percentage occurrences of ~18% is observed when S4 is greater than 0.1 whereas at higher S4 it is less 10%. During equinoctial months (March, April, August and September) the occurrence of scintillations is about 19%, 8% and 5% respectively with S4 is greater than 0.1, 0.3 and 0.5 in the morning as well as in the evening hours. But during the monthly percentage occurrence observation maximum percentage occurrence observed in a winter season as compare to summer season and maximum monthly percentage occurrence of S4 index observed in September and October months as shown in figure (6). Over all, from the above observations it is noted that during the period of low solar activity mostly weak scintillations are observed.
6. Monthly percentage occurrence of S4 index
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The results are based on one year of GPS data collected from Indian Antarctic Station Maitri, during the period of low solar activity conditions i.e. during 2008. The study shows that at a high latitude station only weak scintillations (S4>0.1) are observed both during day and night time periods due to low solar activity conditions. At high latitudes, Aarons et al. (1981) reported that maximum scintillation activity is observed in winter season as compared to summer and equinox. In winter season when sun goes down and total solar activity is closed during the night time in a polar region, maximum scintillation occurrence at Fregion heights and minimum scintillation occurrence appears in full sunlight months. During the first two months of equinox (March and April) when solar activities goes down and last two months (August and September) when sun again is rising and solar activities start to grow and the scintillation is present in the night sector, significant morning scintillation is also observed both in day and night time, follow the general pattern of local magnetic activity (Rino and Matthews, 1980). In general at high latitude scintillations occur over night side auroral oval and the polar cap at all local times. In the winter polar cap moderate to strong L-Band scintillation are observed in association with the so-called polar cap patches (Weber et al., 1984). When the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) is directed southward, patches with high-ionization density are observed to enter the polar cap from the day side auroral oval, convected in the anti-sunward direction and eventually exit
into the night side auroral oval. One mechanism by which patch formation is achieved corresponds to changing the plasma convection pattern in response to the IMF component during periods of southward Bz (Sojka et al., 1993). Among several other formation mechanisms, one of that considered the role of large plasma flows in the formation of discrete patches have been experimentally substantiated (Rodger et al., 1994; Valladares et al., 1994). During the observation of monthly occurrence of L band scintillation, we have seen the more irregularities occurred in the southern summer months of June to December as seen from the above results. STUDY OVER HIMADARI, NE- ALESUND, ARCTIC Over the northern hemisphere at Himadri, Arctic station, the Total Electron Content observed during October and November months when polar night just started in the northern polar region. During the study maximum TEC above 28 TECU observed at October month and maximum TEC below 28 TECU at November month observed. October month is an equinox month and November is a polar night month, so maximum TEC fluctuates in equinox month as compare to Polar night month. Figure (7) shows the variation of TEC over Himadri, Arctic region. During the study of Amplitude Scintillation we observed scintillation (0.3) activity in November month as compare to October month (2.5). Figure (8) shows the scintillation variations.
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Figure 7. TEC variation over Himadri, Arctic
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Figure 8. Monthly average Scintillation Activities over Himadri, Arctic
Conclusion
We have processed and analyzed one year GPS data from Indian base station Maitri, Antarctica. This present work shows the presence of strong relationship between GPS-TEC and its dependence on solar activities. During the Monthly observation in the first January month TEC value goes to high as compared to June month, TEC value again goes to high in December month. In January and December months solar activities are high as compared to June month. The seasonal study of Total Electron Content (TEC) shows that winter season total solar activities are discontinued and no ionization processes during this season so that TEC value goes to minimum. The study of summer season just opposite of winter season, the total solar activities are present which is due to ionization process in presence of 24 hour sun light then TEC value goes to maximum. In our last study of equinox season which is divided in two parts: in the first equinox period (March and April months) solar activities are low due to solar zenith angle which is the time of the sunset. In the second equinox period (September and October months) solar zenith angle goes toward maximum to minimum and solar activities are again started and ionization process progresses and during this period TEC variation are high as compared to March and April months. Ionospheric Total Electron Content ( TEC) variation depends on solar activities and solar zenith
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angle and TEC variation are high in presence of solar activities and minimum solar zenith angles and TEC variation are low in absence of solar activities and maximum solar zenith angle. Present study describing scintillation activity as observed during low solar activity year of 2008 over Maitri, Antarctica as a part of International Polar year (IPY). The study can be summarized as follows. The weak scintillations (S4>0.1) are observed all the 24 hours of the day in almost all the seasons whereas during morning and afternoon hours slightly higher magnitude scintillations (S4< 0.5 ) are also observed during the solar minimum period of 2008. Season wise maximum occurrence is noted during summer months whereas in a winter and equinox months scintillations are observed mostly in early morning hours as well as well as in the night hours. As regarding month wise maximum occurrence is observed between June and December months. in starting of month in this year scintillation activity is start to grow from June when with polar night starts. During the month of August and September sun rising with minimum solar activity so that ionization process again started but after the month of October, scintillation activity is again goes minimum. Present work further confirm the earlier observations at high latitudes reported by various other workers. Over the Himadri, Arctic region maximum TEC variation observed at equinox month as compared to polar night months and maximum amplitude scintillation activities are observed at polar night month as compare to equinox months.
References
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Acknowledgement
This study is supported by the National Center for Antarctic and Ocean Research, Goa, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India and staffs of Maitri, Antarctica for their scientific and logistic supports. One of the authors (P.B.) acknowledges National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi for providing an opportunity at Maitri during Winter Expidition and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for awarding Senior Research Fellowship.
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Rino, C. L., Matthews, S. J., 1980. On the morphology of auroral zone radio wave scintillation. J. Geophys. Res. 85, p. 4139. Rodger, A. S., Pinnock, M., Dudney, J. R., Baker, K. B., Greenwald, R. A., 1994. A new mechanism for polar patch formation. J. Geophys. Res. 99, 64256436. Soicher, H., 1988. Traveling ionospheric disturbances (TIDs) at mid-latitude: Solar cycle phase dependence. Radio Sci. 23, 283-291. Sojka, J. J., Bowline, M. D., Schunk, R. W., Decker, D. T., Valladares, C. E., Sheehan, R., Anderson, D. N., Heelis, R. A., 1993. Modeling polar cap F-region patches using time varying convection. Geophys. Res. Lett. 20(17), 1783- 1786. Tsunoda, R. T., 1988. High-latitude F-region irregularities: A review and synthesis. Rev. Geophys. 26, 719-760.
Valladares, C. E., Basu, S., Buchau, J., Friis-Christiansen, E., 1994. Experimental evidence for the formation and entry of patches into the polar cap. Radio Sci. 29, 167-194. Van Velthoven, P. J., 1990. Medium-scale irregularities in the ionospheric electron content, Ph.D. Thesis, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven. Weber, E. J., Buchau, J., Moore, J. G., Sharber, J. R., Livingston, R. C., Winningham, J. D., Reinisch, B. W., 1984. F-layer ionization patches in the polar cap. J. Geophys. Res. 89, 1683-1694. Weber, E. J., Klobuchar, J. A., Buchau, J., Carlson, H. C., Livingston, R. C., Beaujardiere, O. de la, McCreday, M., Moore, J. G., Bishop, J. G., 1986. Polar cap F-layer patches: Structure and dynamics. J. Geophys, Res. 91, 2121-2129. Whitney, H. E., Aarons, J., Malik, C., 1969. A proposed index for measuring ionospheric scintillations. Planet. Space Sci. 17, 1069-1073.
Session: 5
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Protection of the Arctic Region: Are there some lessons to learn from the Antarctic Treaty System and international law?
Senior Legal Officer, Legal and Treaties Division, Ministry of External Affairs, India.
Dr. Luther M. Rangreji
The Times magazine described Russian attempts to place a titanium flag at the seabed of the Arctic as a Fight for the Top of the World.1 On August 2, 2007, a Russian expedition called Arktika 2007, composed of six explorers led by Artur Chilingarov, employing MIR submersibles, had for the first time in history descended to the seabed at the North Pole. Russia claimed this was part of the ongoing 2007 Russian North Pole expedition within the program of the 20072008 International Polar Year and the expedition aimed to establish that the eastern section of seabed passing close to the pole, known as the Lomonosov Ridge, is in fact an extension of Russias landmass.
The Arctic region comprises the United States, Russian Federation, Canada, Norway and Denmark (via Greenland). Climate change and the melting of ice have a potential impact on vulnerable ecosystems, the livelihoods of local inhabitants and indigenous communities, and the potential exploitation of natural resources. As was stated by the Fourth Report Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on March 25, 2007, that riches are awaiting the shipping industry due to Arctic climate change. The report also states that this economic sector could be transformed similar to the way the Middle East was by the Suez Canal in the 19th century. There will be a race among nations for oil, fish, diamonds and shipping routes, accelerated by the impact of global warming. The potential value of the North Pole and the surrounding area resides not so much in shipping itself, but in the possibility that lucrative petroleum
and natural gas reserves exist below the sea floor. In July 2008, the US Geological Survey while releasing the resource estimates stated that the Arctic Circle contained an estimated 90 billion barrels of undiscovered oil and 1670 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.2 In the aftermath of the cold rush and alarmed at the developments and the diplomatic fallout it caused the Arctic States adopted the Ilulissat Declaration in May 2008. It stated:
The Arctic Ocean stands at the threshold of significant changes. Climate change and the melting of ice have a potential impact on vulnerable ecosystems, the livelihoods of local inhabitants and indigenous communities, and the potential exploitation of natural resources. By virtue of their sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction in large areas of the Arctic
Session: 5
Ocean the five coastal states are in a unique position to address these possibilities and challenges. In this regard, we recall that an extensive international legal framework applies to the Arctic Ocean as discussed between our representatives at the meeting in Oslo on 15 and 16 October 2007 at the level of senior officials. Notably, the law of the sea provides for important rights and obligations concerning the delineation of the outer limits of the continental shelf, the protection of the marine environment, including ice-covered areas, freedom of navigation, marine scientific research, and other uses of the sea. We remain committed to this legal framework and to the orderly settlement of any possible overlapping claims.3 promote the peaceful uses of the seas and the oceans and equitable and efficient utilization of their resources, the conservation of their living resources, and the study, protection and preservation of marine environment.
The Declaration, among other things, clearly brought out the desire of the Arctic states not to internationalize the issue. It also firmly stated that existing legal regimes under international law were sufficient to address the need for delimitation of maritime claims for extended continental shelves. In the light of the above backdrop, it will be the effort of this short paper to summarily (for reasons of space and time) address the existing legal framework pertaining to: (i) maritime continental shelf delimitation under UNCLOS 1982; (ii) shipping and navigation; (iii) fisheries and other environmental treaties; (iv) Antarctic Treaty system; (v) legal and Institutional mechanisms of the Arctic region; and (vi) conclusions.
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 (UNCLOS)
A question that a crop up to a lay mind is for heavens sake- Whom does the Arctic Ice belong? Although this may appear to be a fair question, international law clearly provides states with rights to have extended claims to continental shelves. UNCLOS 1982 hailed by many as a constitution of the oceans was intended to be a comprehensive restatement of almost all aspects of the Law of the Sea. Its basic objective is to establish
A legal order for the seas and oceans which will facilitate international communication, and will
UNCLOS 1982 has also progressively developed and codified the maritime zones, namely, the territorial sea (12 nautical miles), the contiguous zone (24 nautical miles from the baselines), an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of 200 nautical miles from the coastline and continental shelf (200 nautical miles from coastline). Such codification is accepted by many states to be customary international law. Article 76 of UNCLOS which defines continental shelf provides in paragraph 1 that The continental shelf of a coastal State comprises the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas that extend beyond its territorial sea throughout the natural prolongation of its land territory to the outer edge of the continental margin, or to a distance of 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured where the outer edge of the continental margin does not extend up to that distance. It also provides that the outer limit of the continental shelf shall not exceed 350 nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured. However, if a State claims the limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured, it shall submit such claims to a body called the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. The Commission is empowered to make recommendations to coastal States on matters related to the establishment of the outer limits of their continental shelf and the limits of the shelf established by a coastal State on the basis of the Commissions recommendations shall be final and binding. It may be noted that Arctic States which are parties to UNCLOS have a legal right to claim extended continental shelf areas under Article 76. But the issue seems to have got a complicated because of Russian Federation claims for an extended continental shelf and believes that the Lomonosov Ridge that crosses
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the central part of the Arctic Ocean as a natural Rice former US Secretary of State was of the view prolongation of its Siberian continental shelf. So what should the United States do about the Arctic? In this regard, on December 20, 2001, Russia For starters, it should do nothing to advance a new made an official submission to the UN Commission comprehensive treaty for the region. Instead, it should on the Limits of the Continental Shelf in accordance take full advantage of the existing rules by joining with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Law of the Sea Convention. The convention, the Sea (article 76, paragraph 8). The territory claimed now before the Senate, would codify and maximize by Russia in the submission is a large portion of the international recognition of United States rights to Arctic, extending to the geographic North Pole. One one of the largest and most resource-rich continental of the arguments was a statement that Lomonosov shelves in the world extending at least 600 miles Ridge, an underwater mountain ridge passing near off Alaska.4 the Pole, and Mendeleev Ridge are extensions of the Eurasian continent. In 2002, the UN Commission UNCLOS and Protection of the neither rejected nor accepted the Russian proposal, Marine Environment Although states have a right to claim extended recommending additional research. Russias claim to the Lomonosov ridge has continental shelves, UNCLOS provides an umbrella been contested by Canada and Denmark. Canada framework to draw up international, regional, bilateral is actively engaged in joint research with Russian treaties to protect the marine environment. The protection and preservation of the marine Federation and separately with the United States before staking its claim for an extended continental environment under Part XII of UNCLOS provides shelf. Similarly, Denmark claims that its autonomous a comprehensive legal framework for controlling province Greenland has the nearest coastline to the the serious degradation of the marine ecosystem. North Pole, and argues that the Lomonosov Ridge is Although Articles 192 to 237 deal with protection and preservation of the marine environment per in fact an extension of Greenland. Norway too has submitted its claim to an extended se, environmental clauses are found in a number of continental shelf to the CLCS in November 2006 in different provisions dealing with maritime zones. The importance attached to environmental three areas of the northeastern Atlantic and the Arctic: the Loop Hole in the Barents Sea, the Western provisions of the Law of the Sea under the Convention Nansen Basin in the Arctic Ocean, and the Banana is evident in Article 1 of the Preamble, which provides Hole in the Norwegian Sea. It has also stated that that additional submission for continental shelf limits in Consequently the States Parties recognize the other areas may also be posted later. desirability of establishing through this Convention, The other major player in the Arctic, the United with due regard for the sovereignty of all States, a States has signed, but not yet ratified UNCLOS 1982. legal order for the seas and oceans which will facilitate The US which has always had its reservations to the international communication, and will promote the treaty believes that becoming a party would tie its peaceful uses of the seas and oceans, the equitable and hands and take away the leeway it has in interpreting efficient utilization of their resources, the conservation a larger extended EEZ, as well as maritime security of their living resources, and the study, protection and zones needed to intercept terrorists and generally its preservation of the marine environment. war against terrorism. But there have been assenting voices too. Some are of the view that it would be The provisions on the protection and preservation in United States interest to become a party to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. of marine environment constitute a substantial part John Bellinger, a former legal adviser to Condoleezza of the UN Law of the Sea Convention. Prior to the
Session: 5
adoption of this Convention pollution of the sea by oil and pollution by dumping ships and aircraft was of major concern to the international community. In addition conservation of marine fisheries either because of over exploitation in some cases or parts of the sea or adverse impact of pollution or available fish stocks was also a matter of concern but generally was dealt as part of regulation of fishery resources of the sea. Although UNCLOS does not specifically address Arctic issues, it has a provision covering Polar regions. Article 234 titled Ice-covered Areas provides that: Coastal States have the right to adopt and enforce non-discriminatory laws and regulations for the prevention, reduction and control of marine pollution from vessels in ice-covered areas within the limits of the exclusive economic zone, where particularly severe climatic conditions and the presence of ice covering such areas for most of the year create obstructions or exceptional hazards to navigation, and pollution of the marine environment could cause major harm to or irreversible disturbance of the ecological balance. Such laws and regulations shall have due regard to navigation and the protection and preservation of the marine environment based on the best available scientific evidence. It may be noted that Article 234 largely regulates ice-covered areas and calls upon Arctic States to adopt due diligence legislative measures to regulate marine pollution in the EEZ areas. But it does not address areas of high seas where many of the extended continental shelf claims may be settled in the future by the CLCS5. States however, are bound by the customary principle of due regard which binds states to protect the marine environment beyond maritime zones. to give rise to navigation routes opening up in the Northwest Passage joining the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. International navigation is regulated by the conventions drawn up under the auspices of the IMO. UNCLOS provides that the IMO is the competent international regulating international shipping and with a mandate for ensuring cleaner oceans. It adopts rules and regulations on ship safety, and certification standards for ships, navigation, and liability for oil pollution, dumping of hazardous substances and radioactive wastes at sea. It is assumed that most Arctic States may be parties to IMO conventions that will impact navigation or any resultant marine pollution damage.
Marine Pollution
The important conventions include the : International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution of Ships, 1973, modified in 1978; International Convention Relating to Intervention on the High Seas in Cases of Oil Pollution Casualties (INTERVENTION), 1969; Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter (LDC), 1972; International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Cooperation (OPRC),1990; Protocol on Preparedness, Response and Co-operation to pollution Incidents by Hazardous and Noxious Substances, 2000 (HNS Protocol); International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-fouling Systems on Ships (AFS), 2001; and International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships Ballast Water and Sediments, 2004
Liability and Compensation

The important conventions are: International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage (CLC), 1969 International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage (FUND), 1971; Convention relating to Civil Liability in the Field of Maritime Carriage of Nuclear Material (NUCLEAR), 1971; Athens Convention relating to the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by Sea
International Maritime Organization (IMO) Conventions applicable to the Arctic Region

The melting of the ice in the Arctic region is bound
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(PAL), 1974; Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims (LLMC), 1976; International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea (HNS), 1996; International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage, 2001 Along with a global regime on the above areas, some Arctic states are parties to regional conventions regulating different aspects of marine pollution such as the Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area, 1992 and the Oslo and Paris Convention on the Protection of the marine environment of the North-East Atlantic. The Arctic it must be borne in mind is an ocean and effects of climate have helped melt the ice, including the permafrost of the region. In fact, in the summer of 2007 the Northwest Passage and the North Sea route along Russias north were considered navigable. As regards the Northwest Passage the sea route has been a subject of long standing dispute involving jurisdictional issues between United States and Canada. Canada has always believed and stated that the waters of the Northwest Passage are internal waters, which are not free for transit passage through international straits even though the same is guaranteed under customary international law and UNCLOS. Further, Canada to protect its environment and wary of oil spills in the region has unilaterally adopted the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act in 1970. Unlike the Northwest Passage, the North Sea Route is a difficult ice-covered route largely used by Russian vessels helped with ice-breakers servicing its gas and oil installations.6 But one can never be sure as in the future these routes may be opened up if Russia and other Arctic states set about hydrocarbon/oil extraction on their extended continental shelves. The legal regime governing navigation and the attendant dangers of incidental oil pollution or oil spills is already in place. What would remain to be seen is how effectively these regimes are implemented in the future.
Fisheries agreements
Another very contentious issue that is bound to cause
concern is the movement of fish stocks once actual navigation begins in the region. In this regard, the 1995 Agreement The United Nations Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks sets out principles for the conservation and management of those fish stocks and establishes that such management must be based on the precautionary approach and the best available scientific information. The Agreement elaborates on the fundamental principle, established in the Convention that States should cooperate to ensure conservation and promote the objective of the optimum utilization of fisheries resources both within and beyond the exclusive economic zone. Guidance may also be provided by the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) 1982. CCAMLR has a geographical scope covering the Southern Ocean. Something similar in geographical and temporal scope based on an ecosystemic approach is needed to preserve the flora and fauna of the Arctic Region. In this regard, Article II of CCAMLR 1 states that the objective of the Convention is the conservation of Antarctic marine living resources and for the purposes of this Convention, the term conservation includes rational use. Further, any harvesting and associated activities in the area to which this Convention applies shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of this Convention and with the following principles of conservation: (a) prevention of decrease in the size of any harvested population to levels below those which ensure its stable recruitment. For this purpose its size should not be allowed to fall below a level close to that which ensures the greatest net annual increment; (b) maintenance of the ecological relationships between harvested, dependent and related populations of Antarctic marine living resources and the restoration of depleted populations to the levels defined in sub-
Session: 5
paragraph (a) above; and (c) prevention of changes or minimization of the risk of changes in the marine ecosystem which are not potentially reversible over two or three decades, taking into account the state of available knowledge of the direct and indirect impact of harvesting, the effect of the introduction of alien species, the effects of associated activities on the marine ecosystem and of the effects of environmental changes, with the aim of making possible the sustained conservation of Antarctic marine living resources. Article II and III of CCAMLR are important from an ecosystemic viewpoint. CCAMLR obligates all Parties even when they are not Parties to the Antarctic Treaty to abide by the objectives of Treaty to protect the marine living resources of the Southern Ocean. The Contracting Parties, whether or not they are Parties to the Antarctic Treaty, agree that they will not engage in any activities in the Antarctic Treaty area contrary to the principles and purposes of that Treaty and that, in their relations with each other, they are bound by the obligations contained in Articles I and V of the Antarctic Treaty. The mad rush to tap the oil and other natural resources will sound the death knell for some of the already endangered Arctic animals such as the polar bear, the grizzly bear, caribou and some varieties of Arctic fox. Some of the critically endangered Arctic plant species include the Aleutian Shield Fern Aleutian Wormwood, Sessile-Leaved Scurvy-Grass Bering Sea Douglasia. The animals of the region such as the polar bear are dependent on cod fish and seals for their food. The global warming and the added rush of human population would drive fish further northwards and hasten the disappearance of the polar bear on account of the disturbance in its food chain. Environmental Treaty regimes There are a number of other international instruments that address issues relating to climate change, ozone depletion, transboundary movement of hazardous wastes, and pollution by chemicals and radioactive substances. These include: the Convention on Biological Diversity, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol, The Vienna/Montreal regime on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, Convention the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) etc. One of the conclusions of the fourth International Polar Year (2007-2008) has been the reduction in the ice around the Arctic Ocean, Climate scientists state The Antarctic sea-ice cover has increased on average in the last 30 years, but not everywhere. Both the general increase around East Antarctica and the large decrease off West Antarctica are attributed to the ozone hole and corresponding changes in the Southern Annular Mode (SAM, or the Antarctic Oscillation), though this probably doesnt explain what is happening in winter. There is no clear polar amplification observed over Antarctica, such as seen as in the Arctic, and one explanation for this may be that the Antarctic continent has large ice sheets with enormous thermal inertia. But ice core data suggest that there have been amplification there in the past too. Nevertheless, the Arctic is characterized by a polar ocean with retreating sea-ice in the northern hemisphere. In both cases, changing air masses and the winds are important for inter-annual to inter-decadal variations, both in explaining cold winters over Eurasia and sea-ice around Antarctica.7 The alarming situation in the Arctic Ocean region may have opened up riches to the littoral states, but this must not be an excuse to implement in letter and spirit the remit of the UN Conventions on climate change.
Antarctica
There are some similarities, but also stark differences between the two regions. The biggest and something well known is that under the Antarctic Treaty all claims to sovereignty are frozen, whereas in the Arctic
245
region as seen earlier, most states have territorial claims. The Antarctica is uninhabited, but thats not the case in the Arctic where there are indigenous populations living. The Antarctica is an icy landmass, but the Arctic is an ocean governed by UNCLOS 1982. Be that as it may, the Arctic being a polar region, one may wonder whether there are any lessons from the Antarctic Treaty and related agreements, collectively called the Antarctic Treaty System or ATS8 , regulate international relations with respect to Antarctica. For the purposes of the treaty system, Antarctica is defined as all of the land and ice shelves south of 60S latitude. The treaty, entering into force in 1961 and eventually signed by 47 countries, sets aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve, establishes freedom of scientific investigation and bans military activity on that continent. Many scholars regard it as the first genuine arms control treaty to be established during the Cold War. Since 12 September 1983 India has become a Consultative Party to the ATS. The main objective of the Treaty is to ensure that Antarctica shall be used for peaceful purposes only and for scientific investigation, with all forms of militarization and weaponaization being prohibited the in Antarctic region. The Charter of the United Nations and general rules of international law are applicable to the region. The Antarctic Treaty System or as some call it a genuine regime, consists of other agreements namely: Agreed Measures for the Conservation of Antarctic Fauna and Flora (1964) (entered into force in 1982) The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (1972) The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (1980) The Convention on the Regulation of Antarctic Mineral Resource Activities (1988) (although it was signed in 1988, it was subsequently rejected and never entered into force) The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty was signed October 4, 1991 and entered into force January 14, 1998; this agreement prevents development and provides for
the protection of the Antarctic environment through five specific annexes on marine pollution, fauna and flora, environmental impact assessments, waste management, and protected areas. It prohibits all activities relating to mineral resources except scientific research. A sixth annex on liability arising from environmental emergencies was adopted in 2005 but is yet to enter into force. Two clear lessons come to mind readily which can be applied in a future treaty governing the Arctic region. One, the cardinal principle of peace, with the application of the UN Charter and rules of general international law. And two, the Madrid Protocol of 1998 which can serve as a model to emulate to guarantee the protection of Arctic region.
Legal and Institutional mechanism governing the Arctic region

The Arctic Council was established in 1991 as a highlevel intergovernmental forum which addresses issues faced by the eight Arctic States namely Canada, Denmark (including Greenland and the Faroe Islands), Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation, Sweden, and the United States of America and its indigenous peoples.9 The Council has a special category, called Permanent Participants, which includes all the representatives of indigenous peoples from member States who actively participate and are full consulted in matters of policy and decision making. It also provides for observer status to non-Arctic States.10 The Council work is assisted by six working groups: Arctic Contaminants Action Programme (ACAP), Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme Working Group (AMAP), Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), Emergency Prevention, Preparedness and Response Working Group (EPPR), Sustainable Development Working Group (SDWG) and the Working Group on Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment. In 1991 the member States adopted an Arctic Environment Protection strategy. The forum functions through a Ministerial Meetings held biannually which adopts decisions which are not legally binding. The current Ministerial chair is held by Denmark which has outlined among others, a number of focus areas such as the effects/
Session: 5
impacts of climate change on the Arctic, the Fourth IPY study of the region, biodiversity and integrated resource management.11 Despite the best efforts of the Council, it may be stated that it lacks substantive strength to take head on some of the difficult issues that have surfaced such as maritime delimitation issues and resource ambitions of big powers, marine pollution and related shipping and navigational issues as well as problems associated with fisher resources. Such deficiencies as well the new geopolitical dimensions of the Arctic have increased the call for having a more robust legal regime. task, bearing in mind strong positions of the Arctic states. However, it offers the only effective solution in the present circumstances where the whole region appears to be up for grabs. A legal regime ensures certainty, dispute settlement measures as well as comfort that there is place for equitable and rational use of the Arctic resources
Conclusions
The effects of climate change have once again brought the Arctic region into limelight. This cold ice-covered area which many believed was similar to the Antarctic region has now become a centre of strategic importance and with undefined geopolitical ramifications. The fact that two big powers are involved gives it a cold war dj vu. But many may say its nothing but an assertion of rights of States guaranteed under the UNCLOS 1982 and other treaties under international law. The disquiet is largely because a pristine polar environment which was for long the home of the Inuits and other indigenous people has suddenly become a battleground for competing claims of continental shelves laden with hydrocarbon riches and other goodies. The Fourth IPPC Report and the Fourth IPY study, like the discovery of the ozone hole over Antarctica have laid threadbare the fact that human induced activities are responsible for tragedies of the global commons, although many states have genuine bonafide claims to Arctic territory. The dispute in the thinking mind is not over these claims, but the uncontrolled savagery which a large number of oil firms may subject the Arctic region. The memories of the Exxon Valdez oil spill and the havoc it caused in the Alaskan region are still fresh in public memory. While it is prudent not to internationalize the issue as Arctic states have the wherewithal to solve their regional problems, every effort must be made that the region is used for peaceful developmental purposes and sustainable use. It is in this regard that the Antarctic Treaty can guide the drawing up of a robust regional treaty that is based on the principle of equality and the equitable needs of different states. While Article 76 of the UNCLOS may guarantee an
Need for a stand alone Arctic Treaty

The Ilulissat Declaration of 2008 which was the logical consequence of the increased tensions in the Arctic itself provides the basis for a stronger legal regime. While stating that an extensive international legal framework applies to the Arctic Ocean the Declaration adds We therefore see no need to develop a new comprehensive international legal regime to govern the Arctic Ocean. There already exist some blueprints for such a regime,12 but there are a number of elements that need to be put in such a future regime. These randomly stated may include: lessons from the Antarctic Treaty elements such as environmental protection of the region; such as regime would adopt the cardinal principles of the ATS namely peace, scientific research, an ecosystemic approach that guarantees the rights of indigenous peoples and protects the flora and fauna of the region emphasis on the UNCLOS as a legal basis for settling maritime claims on extended continental shelf a regional treaty regime on the lines of the UNEP Regional Seas Programme that provides sufficient to address a host of pollution issues such as marine pollution caused by oil, land-based pollutants, solid wastes, dumping etc. Leeway to enter into stronger regional and bilateral agreements based on the precautionary approach and the principle of polluter pays. Putting in place a legal treaty would be no easy
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equitable distribution of maritime claims beyond 200 nautical miles it is equally important to implement in letter and spirit Part XII which deals with protection of the marine environment of the Arctic. The need of the hour is an ecosystemic approach that guarantees the health of the polar region without causing transboundary effects. 1. See James Graf, Fight for the top of the World Times magazine, 19 September 2007. 2. US Department of Interior, US Geological Survey (2008) www.usga.gov/newsroom/article 3. www.oceanlaw.org 4. New York Times, 23 June 2008. 5. See Michael A. Becker, Russia and the Arctic: Opportunities for Engagement within the Existing Legal Framework, American University International Law Review, vol. 25(2), 200, pp/225-250. 6. La Fayette at pp. 52-53. 7. Real Climate: Climate Science from climate scientists, www.relclimate.org, 13 June 2010. 8. See generally Olav Schram Stokke and Davor Vidas, Governing the Antarctic: The Effectiveness and Legitimacy of the Antarctic Treaty System (Cambridge University Press, 1996), pp.13-34. 9. www.arctic-council.org ; Also see La Fayette pp.7476; Rob Hubert, The Need for an Arctic Treaty: Growing from the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Ocean Yearbook 2009, pp.27-37 10. Dr Vijay Sakhuja The Arctic Council: Is There a Case for India a policy brief published in Geopolitics in the High North 2011 11. See the Programme for the Danish chairmanship of the Arctic Council 2009-2011 on the website of the Arctic Council. 12. See Donat Pharand, Draft Arctic Treaty: An Arctic Regional Council, www.carc.org
Proceedings of SaGAA 2011 14 and 15 January

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Proceedings of SaGAA 2011 14 and 15 January

SCIENCE & GEOPOLITICS OF ARCTIC & ANTARCTIC

SCIENCE & GEOPOLITICS OF ARCTIC & ANTARCTIC

Session II : Atmosphere and Microbial Research in the Polar Realms

Session III : Adventure, Tourism and Geopolitics in Polar Realms

2 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

Session IV : Climate Change, Geology and Mapping of Arctic and Antarctic

Session V : Atmospheric, Oceanic and Microbial Research in Arctic and Antarctic

Changing Global Positions and Legal Framework of the Polar Realms

Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

Klaus Dodds, Professor of Geopolitics at Royal Holloway, University

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The Antarctic Treaty System: Governance, Membership and Challenge

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Challenging the ATS

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Acknowledgements I thank Alan Hemmings

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Emerging Science-Geopolitics Interface in the Antarctic The Indian Challenge

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The Madrid Protocol of 1991 and Bioprospecting in the Antarctic

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Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

Antarctic Bioprospecting and Law of the Sea

Visualizing Antarctica as a Global Knowledge Commons

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28 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

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Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

Antarctic Continental Shelf and the Law of the Seas

A Future Winter of Discontentment?

32 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

The 1959 Antarctic Treaty System

Territorial claims and the Antarctic Continental Shelf

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Figure 2. Territorial claims over Antarctica

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Submission for the areas of the continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica

Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

38 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

India in Arctic and Antarctica and its Geopolitical Significance

Antarctic and Arctic Expeditions : Polar Science

Southern Ocean studies

42 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

The South Pole Traverse

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Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

Atmosphere and Microbial Research in the Polar Realms

Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

Changing Climate and Microbial Resources in Polar Realms.

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50 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

S. Suresh Babu, Jai Prakash Chaubey and K Krishna Moorthy

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Site description and Instrumentation

54 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

56 Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011

Science & Geopolitics of Arctic & Antarctic: SaGAA 2011