Polish Polar Research

Alongside the purely scientific nature and the first wintering in Antarctica, another innovative feature of the Belgica expedition was its multinational composition. Two, out of its seven persons strong scientific staff, were Polish - H. Arctowski and A. B. Dobrowolski. The first served as scientific deputy-leader of the expedition, the other as laboratory assistant and meteorologist. Their contribution to the scientific success of the Belgian Antarctic Expedition outlined in the present paper, turned into the starting point of brilliant academic careers in the native country and at international level. Both, Arctowski and Dobrowolski, were acknowledged as symbols of the Polish explorations and scientific investigations in polar regions.

A. B. Dobrowolski, a member of the Belgian expedition in Belgica to West Antarctica (1897-1899), after his return home became a strong supporter of Polish scientific activity in the Polar countries. His patronage - called by him the "Polar Action", was especially well marked during organization of three Polish expeditions to the Svalbard archipelago: to Bear Island during the 2nd Polar Year, 1932-33 and to Spitsbergen in 1934 and 1938. Apart from his scientific achievements in Antarctica, Dobrowolski was also widely known as an author of popular-scientific books on history of discovery and exploration in the Arctic and the Antarctic.

The authors describe the scope of Polish studies in the field of biology and ecology carried on during 20 years of activity of Polish Antarctic Station. Principal results are briefly summarized and ample literature is presented.

The paper provides information on oceanobiological expeditions to the Antarctic organized by Polish Academy of Sciences. The scope of research of five expeditions is described and main achievements of Polish Antarctic studies are summarized.

Polish exploration and exploitation of marine resources of Antarctic waters date back to the reconnaissance cruise of the Sea Fisheries Institutes (SFI) r/v Profesor Siedlecki in 1974. Since 1975, a co-operation between the Institute of Ecology, Polish Academy of Sciences (PAS) at Dziekanów Leśny and SFI in Gdynia with participation of the University of Agriculture in Szczecin, Faculty Marine Fisheries and Food Technology (UA) was established. Fishing fleets of the Polish Deep-Sea Fisheries Companies Odra, Dalmor and Gryf, since 1976 were operating in the Atlantic sector of Antarctic waters, south of the convergence.

The article presents a review of the researches on sea and atmospheric physics conducted by the Polish expeditions in Antarctica from 1977 to 1990.

During the Polish Antarctic Geodynamic Expeditions, 1979-91, a wide geophysical and geological programme was performed in the transition zone between the Drake and South Shetland microplates and the Antarctic Plate, in West Antarctica. In the Bransfield Strait area, and along passive continental margin of the Antarctic Peninsula, 20 deep seismic sounding profiles were made. The interpretation yielded two - dimensional models of the crust and lithosphere down to 80 km depth. In the coastal area between the Palmer Archipelago and the Adelaide Island, the Earth's crust has a typical continental structure. Its thickness varies from 36 to 42 km in the coastal area, decreasing to about 25-28 km toward Pacific Ocean. In the surrounding of Bransfield Strait, the Moho boundary depth ranges from 10 km beneath the South Shetland Trench to 40 km beneath Antarctic Peninsula. The crustal structure beneath the Bransfield Strait trough is highly anomalous. Presence of a high-velocity body, with longitudinal seismic wave velocities Vp > 7,0 km/s, was detected there in the 6-32 km depth range. This inhomogeneity was interpreted as an intrusion, coinciding with the Deception-Bridgeman volcanic line. In the transition zone from the Drake Passage to the South Shetland Islands, a seismic boundary in the lower lithosphere occurs at a depth ranging from 35 to 80 km. The dip of both the Moho and this boundary is approximately 25° towards the southeast, indicating the direction of subduction of the Drake Plate lithosphere under the Antarctic Plate. Basing on the results of four Polish Geodynamic Expeditions, the map of crustal thickness in West Antarctica is presented.

During the Polish Geodynamic Expeditions to West Antarctica, 1984-1991, led by A. Guterch, the scientific research of the geological group (leader K. Birkenmajer) included stratigraphic, sedimentological, petrological, tectonic, volcanological and Quaternary geology studies. They were caried out mainly in the area of Antarctic Peninsula, Palmer Archipelago and South Shetland Islands (the results from King George Island have been reviewed separately, in 1996). The major scientific archievements are: (1) introduction of formal lithostrati-graphical standards, recognition of tectonic structure, and sedimentological characteristics of the Trinity Peninsula Group (?Upper Permian-Triassic) metasediments (Antarctic Peninsula: Hope Bay and Paradise Harbour; Livingston Island: Hurd Peninsula); (2) elaboration of Late Mesozoic-TTertiary magmatic successions (Antarctic Peninsula Volcanic Group and Andean Intrusive Suite) on northern Antarctic Peninsula (Hope Bay; Arctowski Peninsula; Paradise Harbour - Gerlache Strait); (3) together with geophysical group: elaboration of lithospheric transect from South Shetland Islands to Antarctic Peninsula; (4) elaboration of Late Cenozoic evolution stages of the Bransfield Basin and Rift, as based on geological and palaeontological record; (5) introduction of a revised volcanostratigraphic standard, and reconstruction of evolution stages, of the Deception Island volcano (South Shetland Islands); (6) reconstruction of the Holocene history in some areas of Antarctic Peninsula (Hope Bay) and South Shetland Islands (King George Island). The results of palaeontological and sedimentological research on Seymour and Cockburn islands (NE Antarctic Peninsula) were presented separately.

The paper presents a catalogue, with description, detailed map location and references to first publications, of new place names introduced mainly during the Polish Geodynamic Expeditions to West Antarctica, 1984-1991. In the South Shetland Islands, new place names were introduced in parts of King George Island and Deception Island (Some new names for Admiralty Bay, King George Island and Penguin Island, introduced prior to 1984 but not yet formally described, are also included here). In Antarctic Peninsula, new place names have been introduced at Hope Bay (Trinity Peninsula), Arctowski Peninsula-Andvord Bay (Danco Coast/Gerlache Strait) and Paradise Harbour (Danco Coast).