Activities of the Summer Party of the 39th Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition in 1997-1998

• Main Author: Kiichi MORIWAKI
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: National Institute of Polar Research 1998
• Subjects: geo; Amundsen Bay; Antarctic; Dome Fuji; Dome Fuji Station; Prince Olav Coast; Syowa Station; Tonagh Island; Antarc*
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.15094/00009056; https://doaj.org/article/ee56e94ea4584ce6a4d4cda303280d4b

The 39th Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition (JARE-39) consisted of forty members of the wintering party and eighteen members of the summer party. The summer party was accompanied by other six persons including a guest scientist from Australia. JARE-39 left Tokyo on 14 November 1997 by the icebreaker SHIRASE, and arrived at Fremantle, Western Australia on 28 November. At Fremantle, JARE-39 received news of an emergency illness in the JARE-38 wintering party at Syowa Station, therefore JARE-39 hastened to the station, arriving on 15 December. After accommodating the invalid on board the SHIRASE, 1020t of cargo for the station was unloaded by 31 December, then several broken machines from the station were loaded by 5 January 1998,the SHIRASE left the station on 6 January to transport the invalid and a medical doctor of JARE-38 to Cape Town, South Africa. She returned to the station on 27 January via Tonagh Island, Amundsen Bay, where she arrived on 23 January and geological field work was carried out until 20 February. Construction to replace old buildings and facilities at Syowa Station was carried out from 16 December until 13 February. Geological, geophysical and biological field work, a micrometeorite search and geodesic surveys around Lutzow-Holm Bay, using helicopters on board the SHIRASE, were carried out between 18 December and 7 January, and between 27 January and 10 February. An oversnow traverse to and from Dome Fuji Station (77°19′S, 39°42′E, 3810m a.s.l.) was carried out from 23 December to 6 February. Atmospheric work using a cryogenic sampler with a large balloon was done on 3 January at Syowa Station. The sampler was recovered in Lutzow-Holm Bay by the SHIRASE on 6 January. The JARE-39 summer party and JARE-38 wintering party on board the SHIRASE left Syowa Station on 15 February. A bathymetric survey was carried out systematically off the Prince Olav Coast, including on the continental shelf, from 15 to 19 February, and at the end of February several operations were carried out in the Amundsen ...