Our Scott Base
From Sir Edmund Hillary's dash to the South Pole by tractor to the excellence of New Zealand Antarctic science, Kiwis have a long history of exploration on the continent.
Pram Point, Hut Point Peninsula, Ross Island in McMurdo Sound
77° 51’ S, v 166° 46’ E
10 m above sea level
Established in 1957, Scott Base is New Zealand’s home in Antarctica for science, environmental protection and cooperation with international partners.
The base is located at Pram Point – 3800km south of Christchurch and 1350km from the South Pole. It is currently made up of 12 buildings and is a bustling hub of scientists, staff and visitors from October through to February. Hundreds of people flow through Scott Base during the season, with up to 100 on base at any one time. During the dark winter months, a hardy ‘winter over’ team of around 12 keeps the home fires burning.
New Zealand in Antarctica
New Zealand has a long history of exploration in Antarctica. Scott Base was established in 1957 as part of our participation in the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition.
As one of the 12 original signatories of the Antarctic Treaty, New Zealand plays a leading role in ensuring the continent is protected as a natural reserve devoted to peace and science. New Zealand maintains a pre-eminent role in the Antarctic Treaty System and strategic relationships with other national Antarctic programmes.
To have influence in the Antarctic Treaty System, New Zealand must continue to:
- Have a credible ongoing presence in Antarctica, particularly in the Ross Sea region, and
- Conduct high quality Antarctic science.
In addition to our presence on the ice, New Zealand’s interests are enhanced through the position of Christchurch as one of only five Antarctic gateway cities alongside South Africa’s Cape Town, Australia’s Hobart, Chile’s Punta Arenas and Ushuaia in Argentina. In 2023, Christchurch’s gateway city status brought $229.3 million directly to the New Zealand economy.
Scott Base enables the permanent presence in Antarctica that underpins New Zealand’s strategic interests.
Science
Antarctica makes up 10% of Earth’s land surface and influences the climate and ocean circulation of the entire planet. Change from global warming is accelerating in Antarctica. At Scott Base, scientists are conducting climate change research that will inform policy and help New Zealand plan and adapt for the future.
Scott Base is also home to several long-term science experiments with globally significant datasets. The redevelopment had the potential to impact some of these, so a decision was made to relocate and/or upgrade them to maintain the integrity of these important datasets and enhance the quality of data. Some experiments have continued uninterrupted since 1957, with datasets that are nationally and internationally significant.
Antarctica New Zealand and members of the science community worked together to relocate some these long-term science experiments, with additional infrastructure built to host several of them.
A number of critical project tasks at Scott Base have already been completed. These works included a geomagnetic survey, the installation of a new meteorological mast, the installation of a new Soil Climate Station, along with the construction of a new long-term science building and geomagnetic huts.
Antarctica New Zealand is committed to maintaining the integrity of the long-term data sets and will continue to work with the long-term science community throughout construction.
