It is also the foundation of a rules-based international order for a continent without a permanent population.
The treaty is remarkably short and contains only 14 articles. Principal provisions include promoting the freedom of scientific research, the use of the continent only for peaceful purposes, and the prohibition of military activities, nuclear tests and the disposal of radioactive waste.
However, since the treaty was negotiated in a very different era and there have been a number of environmental, resource and geopolitical disputes related to Antarctica in recent decades, it begs the question: is it still fit for purpose? Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies (left) at the first Antarctic Treaty consultative meeting in Canberra in 1961.
The Antarctic Treaty is turning 60 In a changed world, is it still fit for purpose?
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Niwa releases amazing images from a 6-week scientific voyage to Antarctica
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Despite the rough ride, Tangaroa managed to avoid the forecasted worst swell. The vessel will pass Banks Peninsula at around midnight on Sunday. Calm seas are expected for the last leg of the journey to Wellington, where it is expected to arrive on Monday. Scientists studied everything from phytoplankton – microscopic marine algae – to water chemistry and oceanography, sampling fish, and listening for whales.
NIWA/Supplied
RV Tangaroa is battered by rough seas during the journey home from its Antarctic Voyage. In an update published on the Niwa website, voyage leader and fisheries scientist Dr Richard O’Driscoll said the weather had been “relatively good” with light to moderate winds, meaning the research went ahead uninterrupted.
Sperm whales were targeted by the whaling industry in the 19th and 20th centuries, and more than 70 per cent of their population was wiped out. “My theory is that because of all the whaling that took place, they have learned to disappear as soon as they hear a big ship.”
Kate Green/Stuff
Principal scientists Matt Pinkerton, left, and Richard O Driscoll, with ice pilot Evan Solly, centre, in front of Niwa flagship Tangaroa ahead of its departure to Antarctica. Knowing how many sperm whales were in the Ross Sea and their movements was an important part of a five-year programme, led by Niwa, to monitor the effectiveness of the Ross Sea Marine Protected Area established in 2017.