The Amundsen & Scott Centenary
In 1911 two explorers, Roald Amundsen and Robert F. Scott, set out on their respective expeditions in an attempt to overcome one of the biggest challenges of all time: to be the first to conquer the South Pole.
On December 14th 1911, Amundsen became the first man to reach the South Pole. Scott got there a month later driven solely by his own desire, but it was to be his last ever journey as he perished in the attempt.
In 2011, the ACCIONA Expedition led by Ramón Larramendi will face the same challenge. However, it will be more than just a simple tribute and commemoration of those legendary expeditions. This year’s expedition will involve crossing the polar wastes on board a wind-drawn sled to the southernmost point on the planet while carrying out scientific observations aimed at gaining further knowledge of the Earth’s climate and global warming.
Research and adventure team up to make headway for a future of shared responsibility.
Trans-Antarctica 06
Crossing the Antarctic on board a wind-propelled sled has been an obsession for the most intrepid explorers since the 19th Century.
A number of attempts to carry out a land crossing using masts and sails by pioneers such as Shackleton, Amundsen, Scott, Nansen or JP Koch, floundered. Yet they helped Ramón Larramendi to come up with a formula of his own. His idea, like all great ideas, is brilliantly simple: a sled pulled along by kites that harness the wind.
In this respect, the Antarctica 2011-2012 expedition takes up where the Polar Catamaran Project left off and develops the first wind-drawn sled capable of moving efficiently across the icy wastes of Greenland and the Antarctic.
The idea occurred to and was developed by Ramón Larramendi between 1999 and 2006, based on traditional and time-proven Inuit concepts and techniques.
The Polar Catamaran Project culminated in the 2005-2006 Spanish Trans-Antarctica Expedition, in which the team made up of Juanma Viu, Ignacio Oficialdegui and Ramón Larramendi, made the first-ever crossing of the Antarctic continent on board a wind-drawn sled, covering 4,500km in 62 days.
This is what preceded the idea that is to revolutionize the planets’ last unspoilt territory. This is what led to ACCIONA Windpowered Antártica 90ºS and the 2011 expedition.
ACCIONA Windpowered Antarctica 90ºS
A geographical, sporting and exploration milestone stoked by a scientific vocation.
In December 2011, four brave men backed by ACCIONA will set off on an epic adventure in which the main protagonist will be the passion to change the way we do things.
With this aim in mind, Ramón Larramendi, Ignacio Oficialdegui, Javier Selva and Juan Pablo Albar, will make a 3,500 km non-stop land crossing of the Antarctic continent headed for the Geographic South Pole, unaided for 35 days and braving the most extreme conditions.
Among other scientific task on board this innovative vehicle, the sled will attempt to prove itself to be by far the best means of transport and vehicle for scientific research for the Polar Regions.
The expedition will provide a unique opportunity to lay down the foundations for efficient polar research given that both Eastern Antarctica and the Inaccessible Zone are still virgin territory in scientific terms and both are the key to unlocking the secrets of climate change and polar thawing.
Because the only way to find out what’s going to happen tomorrow is by carrying out research today.
Technological innovation to reach maximum efficiency. The New Polar Catamaran.
The Polar Catamaran 2011 features a number of structural improvements. In contrast with the first catamaran, this new version is made up of six inter-connected units made of Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), making for increased flexibility and greater resistance to the freezing winds of the Antarctic wastes.
The tents are bigger and feature improved inflation systems. That makes them more comfortable and habitable and increases their insulation and resistance to impact. The sleds also carry an onboard mobile laboratory with storage facilities for samples of Antarctic snow, and are equipped with solar panels that make the vehicles’ electric supply 100% sustainable.
The vehicles for this epic expedition are fitted with bigger kites than their predecessors: up to 80m2, which provide a pulling distance of between 300m and 500m giving greater speed and enhanced handling capabilities.
The Expedition’s Scientific Research Projects.
Scientific Projects Coordinator: Dr. Juan P. Albar, Scientific Researcher of the CNB-CSIC.
The members of the ACCIONA WINDPOWERED ANTARCTICA Expedition will be carrying out a number of different scientific experiments and will gather a range of samples. The experiments will be conducted in collaboration with several high-profile universities and research centers and are designed to study the influence of climate change on melting in the Polar Regions.
Project 1 : ACCIONA-GRENOBLE (CNRS-UJF) : The Isotopic Composition of Antarctic Snow/Ice
Principal Researcher: Jean Robert Petit, Director of Research at the Laboratoire de Glaciologie et Géophysique de l’Environnent de Grenoble (CNRS, Université Joseph Fourier).
Participating Institution: CNRS-Université Joseph Fourier.
The main scientific objective of this project is to determine the composition of the stable isotopes (O18/O16 and Deuterium/H1) of the snow/ice on the Antarctic Plateau. Samples of snow/ice (2 x 50ml) will be gathered every 50km throughout the entire crossing to the South Pole.
Departure Point coordinates: 73º, 21' S; 4º,13' E .
Direction of the sampling: Up to 90º S.
Project 2 : ACCIONA-BARCELONA (IDAEA-CSIC) : Global and Climate Change
Principal Researcher: Jordi Dachs
Participants: Jordi Dachs and Ana Cabrerizo.
Participating Institution: Instituto de Diagnóstico Ambiental y Estudios del Agua del Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (IDAEA-CSIC).
This project sets out to determine the levels of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) present on the continent, using a semi-passive air device developed by Spain’s Instituto IDAEA-CSIC, along the entire expedition route.
The POP-absorbing phase of the device will change every five days during the crossing.
On completion of the sampling, the absorbent membranes gathered will be analyzed at the Instituto IDAEA-CSIC.
The aim is to monitor the atmosphere for POPs in the Antarctic using a zero-emissions vehicle.
Project 3: ACCIONA-MADRID (UAM): Registering Biological Activity on the Antarctic Central Plateau
Principal Researcher: Antonio Quesada
Participants: David Velázquez and Antonio Quesada.
Participating Institutions: The Biology Department of the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid.
This project, in collaboration with the Biology Department of the Madrid’s UAM, will gather snow samples along the entire expedition route in order to verify the presence of composites of biological origin.
The team will take a snow sample (approximately one liter) every 750km in almost sterile conditions and ensuring the cold chain until the arrival of the samples at the laboratory. Once in the lab, researchers will identify the organic material, and eventually the genetic material, dissolved in the snow.
