All the scientific goals that the 23 members of this year’s Masaryk University (MU) expedition, who set off for Antarctica two months ago, have been fulfilled and the two expedition groups, the first of which operated from the J. G. Mendel Czech Science Station on James Ross Island, and the second at the technical-logistics base on Nelson Island, have now returned to the Czech Republic. According to plan, just one scientist, the Ukrainian Anton Puhovkin, has remained in Antarctica, and he will continue to work for our program from the Ukrainian station.
"Unlike our Czech station, the Ukrainian station is designed for a year-round stay, which is why our Ukrainian colleague can continue collecting samples and ecological data on lichens there", said Daniel Nývlt, head of the Czech Antarctic Research Programme at the Department of Geography of the Faculty of Science, MU. Anton Puhovkin was given a job at the MU Faculty of Science last year thanks to a program to support Ukrainian teachers and scientists affected by the war, after the war left him with nowhere to return too from Antarctica.
The goal of this year’s expedition (from all destinations) was to obtain long-term climate monitoring and comprehensive monitoring of the state of polar geo- and ecosystems, such as local glaciers, long-term frozen soil, deglaciated territory now allowing the growth of lower plants, river and lake systems and other geomorphological formations.
“The five-year JUNIOR STAR project, which began last year, focusses on studying changes in long-term frozen soils on the Antarctic Peninsula, and undertakes medical research on the effects of stress on the physical health of workers in polar regions, in cooperation with the Ostrava Faculty Hospital”, said the leader of this year's expedition, Filip Hrbáček from the Faculty of Science, MU.
Another of the foreign participants in the expedition, Mohammad Farzamian from the University of Lisbon in Portugal, installed instruments for monitoring long-term frozen soils at the station. In the future, the system should enable a quantitative analysis of current developments in soil ice in relation to climate change.
As part of the ongoing cooperation between the Czech Antarctic Research Programme and the industrial and application sphere, this year's expedition began with testing auxiliary equipment for an automatic meteorological station provided by the company COMET SYSTEM, which is applying for a license to use the trademark Tested in Antarctica.
The planned large-scale repair of the roof to the main J.G. Mendel station accommodation facility was also successful. The repairs were undertaken by Dimitris Georgiadis from the Hrubé Jeseník area, a professional climber with many years work experience as a roofer.
The J.G. Mendel Czech Science Station, owned and operated by Masaryk University, was completed on March 4, 2006. It was ceremonially opened and handed over to scientists on February 22, 2007. The second base, formerly known as Eco-Nelson, is located on Nelson Island in the South Shetland archipelago and now serves as a technical-logistics refuge under the name CZ*ECO Nelson within the infrastructure of the research program. The building was acquired from a private owner by the Czech Antarctic Foundation, which is leasing it to Masaryk University for 99 years from 2018.
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On October 15, 2024, Daniel Nývlt, head of the Czech Antarctic Research Programme based at the Department of Geography of SCI MUNI, received a state honour from the Republic of Chile for his role in the long-standing excellent cooperation between the Czechia and Chile in Antarctic research.
