A century ago, the Antarctic was still an unexplored wilderness and exploration teams were risking their lives to be the first to reach the South Pole. Today that great southern mass of ice seems to have been tamed. Half a dozen countries have base stations there and many claim this possibly mineral and oil rich area as their national territory. The aura of danger seems to have sharply receded.
Once again the frozen continent has sprung a surprise. A Russian ship carrying seventy four explorers, scientists and tourists is stuck in sea ice and requires the services of an icebreaker to set it free. The MV Akademik Shokalskiy was retracing the steps of Douglas Mawson when danger struck.
This event seems completely out of character. It is the height of summer in the southern hemisphere and usually the sea ice is retreating. Not only is this ship stuck fast, but the amount of ice surrounding the ship continues to increase and it's thickness has defeated the efforts of a Chinese icebreaker - which has been forced to retreat after also getting stuck in the ice. Rescue now awaits the arrival of a much bigger Australian ice breaking ship.
This incident underlines the need for caution when the Antarctic is considered as a possible destination for tourists. The cruise industry is building bigger ships and the lure of the deep south with it's magnificent scenery and iceberg spectacles may tempt the tour companies.
It is highly likely that the Akademik Shokalskiy will be freed and make a safe return, but if disaster strikes the rescue of seventy-four people would not be a difficult logistics exercise using helicopters to effect transfers, but what if a cruise ship with thousands of passengers suffered the same fate ? Time would be an important factor in mitigating such a disaster - and in the remote south - distance brings with it a time problem.
The Antarctic has been a tourist destination on a previous occasion. From 1977 until 1979 Air New Zealand operated tourist flights over the frozen continent and on November 28, 1979 a McDonnell Douglas DC10 with 237 passengers and 20 crew crashed into the volcanic Mount Erebus, killing all on board.
A court of enquiry determined that a number of causes were involved, including navigation errors and a " whiteout " making vision impossible, but it also noted the impossibility of rescue had that plane crash stranded the passengers on the ice. All thought of further tourist flights to the Antarctic was quickly abandoned.
When it comes to comprehending the vagaries of nature we enter unknown territory. Why there is thick packs of sea ice in high summer in the Antarctic is one of those mysteries that elude the scientists. What it does tell us is that the deep south is a mysterious and dangerous place - and is somewhere that is definitely unsuitable for any sort of mass tourism.
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