Project for a Multinational Scientific Station for the Preservation of the Antarctic in the Principality of West Antarctic

The Principality of West Antarctic has become the propulsor of a project for a multinational scientific station for the preservation of the Antarctic and has made its territory available to those countries who wish to join this scientific base.
The Antarctic, also know as the Antarctic Continent or Antarctica, is the space the South Pole is located. The most common definition includes all the territory south of the 60th parallel S. as part of Antarctica. According to physical geography, the boundaries would be within the Antarctic Convergence, including, for example the South Georgian Islands and the South Sandwich islands (near the American continent). It has an almost circular form with a diameter of about 4500 kilometers, on which a narrow S-shaped peninsula rises, projected towards the extreme south of South America. It is the most elevated continent on the Earth, with an average altitude of 2000 meters above sea level (masl) and plays host to about 80% of the planet’s fresh water. Furthermore, it also has the lowest humidity level and the lowest average temperature at about  -50°C (-58°F) and which rarely goes above -28°C (-17°F). The highest point of the peninsula is Vinson Massif at 4900 masl. Mount Erebus is an active volcano in the Antarctic located on the eastern coast of Ross Island. Its height is 3794 masl.

The inaccessible part of the South Pole is relatively near the geographic South Pole. This inaccessible Pole is the most rugged and steepest on Planet Earth; its coordinates are 82°58’S and 54°40’E.
The Russian base Vostok is located near there at an altitude of 3718 masl. At the present time around 100 scientific stations from 26 countries exist on the continent, where approximately 1000 people remain during the winter months, carrying out scientific investigations. The population jumps to 10,000 people during the summer, who do scientific and maintenance work on the above-mentioned bases. Most of the countries that are members of the Antarctic Treaty maintain stations in the Antarctic. Some of these operate all year round, while others are of a more weather-related character and operate only during the summer. There is a notable concentration of bases in the northern half of the area of the Antarctic Peninsula. The oldest, with continuous operations, is the Argentine Station Orcadas (since 22 February 1904—107 years). The North American Station Amundsen – Scott is located almost on the geographic South Pole (89°28’00”S -139°16’22”E), while the Russian Vostok (78°28’00”S – 106°48’00’’E) and the Franco-Italian Concordia (75°06’06’’S – 123°23’43’’E) are the nearest to the geomagnetic South Pole. The Principality of West Antarctic is suggesting a project for a multinational scientific base and is hoping that developing countries will join in on this endeavor. According to the Antarctic Treaty, signed in 1959 and in force since 1961, at least formally, all human activities in the dozens of scientific stations (a certain number of stations dedicated to tourism and fishing are exempt), are restricted to pure research, initially centered around meteorology and climate studies; today, however, the range of scientific disciplines has been increased: the Antarctic ecosystem is important for studying extreme organisms with projections towards exobiology, because there are sub-glacial lakes in various zones of the continent, that is, basins of water in liquid form perennially covered by ice caps at least 5 meters thick. The water in these deposits usually remain liquid thanks to heating deriving from volcanic phenomenon, and one of the aspects of these basins that attracts attention the most is the existence of psychrophylic (cold-loving) life; scientists agree that this is a type of extreme life that could resemble possible extraterrestrial life forms present on planets where the dominant temperatures are inferior to the freezing point of water. In November of 2009, the magazine “Science” admitted to the presence of more than 10,000 forms of life in Limnopolar Lake alone.

Taking into consideration what has been said in these two chapters, the Principality of West Antarctic upholds and assists the protection of the continent’s environment by periodically publishing texts on conservation, inciting responsible tourism – not only in the Principality of West Antarctic, but also on the entire continent – and raising its voice everywhere that is dedicated to the protection of the flora, fauna and the ecosystem in general of the West Antarctic. The continent known as the “Pulsating Continent” has received this qualification because in summer it has a surface area of fourteen million square kilometers, but with the arrival of winter, the adjoining sea freezes over and creates an ice-pack and then its surface reaches up to thirty million square kilometers. Less than 3% of the territory remains ice-free during the Austral summer (around January), mainly on the Antarctic Peninsula. On an average, the Inlandsis or ice cap covers around twenty-two square kilometers which represent 90% of surface ice and 70% of the fresh water existing on the Earth. The atmosphere of the central areas of Antarctica is the most translucent of the Earth and, in fact, astronomical observatories are also installed there. On the other hand, the atmosphere in the Antarctic, which is the driest on the Earth, is also the most diaphanous, for which reason a large observatory with a telescopic lens has been installed on the Amundsen – Scott base. This telescope explores, catalogues and traces the heavenly vaults of the southern hemisphere. An interesting fact is that “ice flowers” grow only in Antarctica. These are formed on the sea ice caps, originating from the vapors rising from the water and appearing from the fissures and holes that are present in the superficial area of the ice cap. When they come into contact with the freezing area, these fluids freeze and the salt on the surface crystallizes, serving as a nucleus that gives “birth” to these stupendous “flowers”.