The Spanish Antarctic Campaign 2007-2008 has begun, encompassing more than 20 research projects funded by the Ministry of Education and Science.
Miguel Ángel Quintanilla, Secretary of State for Universities and Research; Montserrat Tormé, President of the Spanish Polar Committee; and Margarita Yela, President of the National Committee for the International Polar Year in Spain, presented the Spanish Antarctic Campaign 2007-2008, which will house 21 research projects, funded by the Ministry of Education and Science and related to the knowledge of climate change.
The Antarctic campaign is the first to coincide with the celebration in Spain of an International Polar Year, in which 63 countries participate and which aims to increase knowledge about the polar regions and the implications of climate change on a planetary scale.
The campaign, which began with the departure of the Oceanographic Research Vessel Las Palmas, providing logistical support to the scientific expeditions, from the port of Cartagena, will conclude with the closure of the Spanish Antarctic bases on March 10, 2008. The Spanish Antarctic Base Juan Carlos I, located on Livingston Island and managed by the Marine Technology Unit of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), will open on November 10. However, the first fieldwork for the scientific projects will not begin until November 22, coinciding with the opening of the other Spanish base, Gabriel de Castilla, located on Deception Island and managed by the Army.
Scientific campaign
Miguel Ángel Quintanilla emphasized the importance of understanding the environmental situation of these regions and quantifying our knowledge of the natural, environmental, and social evolution of the polar regions to improve predictions about future changes. "That is the work of the 82 Spanish scientists and 25 technicians participating in this Antarctic campaign," he noted. He also highlighted the "comprehensiveness" of its scientific approach. The scientific program includes projects in physical oceanography, marine geology, aquatic systems, chemical water pollution, ice core analysis, zoology, glaciology, monitoring of volcanic and seismic activity, ionospheric studies, geomagnetism, plant ecology, and atmospheric ozone analysis.
Spanish infrastructure will host 17 of the projects: 13 at Antarctic bases, three aboard the Hespérides Oceanographic Research Vessel, and one on the Las Palmas vessel, both belonging to the Spanish Navy. Four other projects will be carried out at scientific facilities in Chile, Argentina, and the United Kingdom.
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