Admiralty Bay and Arctowski Station of Polish Academy of Sciences

Abstract

The South Shetlands Islands were discover and annexed for the British Crown in 1819. In 1821 a Russian expedition lead by F.Bellingshausen gave King George Island the name Waterloo. The name Admiralty Bay given by British sealer and appeared on maps in 1822. After the complete eradication of fur seals, at the end of 19th Century whaling vessels were developed. Testimony to the near-shore nature of the early whaling are the whale bones found on the shore of Admiralty Bay. There were no permanent bases in Admiralty Bay up to 1946/47 when the British military group set up on MacKellar Peninsula base “G”. Later Argentineans built a small hut which was used periodically. British base was closed in 1961. In December 1976 two Polish ships set sail from Gdynia, bound for Antartica. This expedition was lead by me. Henryk Arctowski Station was establish on King George Island, on shore of Admiralty Bay. In 1983/84 Brazil established station on MacKellar Peninsula and Peruvians established their Machu Pichu. Near Polish station American have their ornithological hut functioning each summer season. Polish studies in Admiralty Bay have evaluated and recognized many environmental (local warming) and biological processes, the species composition and biomasss of the principal groups of marine and terrestrial plants and animals. Now a day the new methods are needed for modern research and it will be develop with cooperation of Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Research vessel is also necessary.