Christchurch is celebrating the Antarctic Season Opening with events celebrating Christchurch's role as one of five Antarctic Gateways in the world. See the full programme of Antarctic Season Opening events.
Antarctic Adventure - Wednesday 2 October 9am to 11am, Tūranga
Professor Lloyd Peck, British Antarctic Survey: Life in Antarctica: A Study In Extremes
Join leading Polar scientist Professor Lloyd Peck at the opening of the 2019 Christchurch Antarctic Season and free presentation ‘Antarctic Adventure’ at Tūranga. The renowned researcher at the British Antarctic Survey is at the forefront of animal adaptations to extreme cold and will be the guest speaker at the upcoming event. Professor Peck’s talk, Life in Antarctica: A Study in Extremes, will offer fascinating insights into his life on the ice and how he and his team conduct their studies at the Rothera British Antarctic base – both above and below the water.
Professor Peck will be joined by fellow presenters Dr Regina Eisert and Shanelle Dyer with Science for the Ross Sea Region and Heritage Expeditions Operations Director and Expedition Leader Nathan Russ with his talk In the Wake of Scott and Shackleton.
Antarctic Adventure is proudly presented by The Antarctic Office, New Zealand Antarctic Society, University of Canterbury, Antarctica New Zealand and Heritage Expeditions.
Subscribe to the Antarctic Adventure Facebook event.
Explore Antarctica - Saturday 5 October 11am to 4pm, Cathedral Square
Explore Antarctica is a family fun day to welcome the international programmes and showcase the city’s wealth of Antarctic connections.
Things to see:
- Get your hands on snow in the central city and build your own snowman!
- Crowd-favourite Huskies.
- All-terrain Hagglund vehicles
- Antarctic footage.
- Scavenger hunts for young explorers.
- Antarctic heroes come to life.
Children are encouraged to dress up like their favourite explorer (past or present) to be in to win a major prize pack of Antarctic themed goodies.
Subscribe to the Explore Antarctica Facebook event.
Fifteen Million Years in Antarctica by Rebecca Priestley - Saturday 5 October 4.30pm to 5pm, Scorpio Books, BNZ Centre, 120 Hereford Street
Fifteen Million Years in Antarctica offers a deeply personal tour of a place in which a person can feel like an outsider in more ways than one. With generosity and candour, Priestley reflects on what Antarctica can tell us about Earth’s future and asks: do people even belong in this fragile, otherworldly place?
Fifteen Million Years in Antarctica
Celebrate Antarctica - Wednesday 9 October 10.30am to 11.30am, Shirley Library
Join us in celebrating our connection with Antarctica. Help us build a model of New Zealand’s Scott Base and also send messages to the team there. Recommended for ages 7+years. Free, no bookings required. Find out more in the events calendar.
More about the Antarctica Season Opening events
See the full programme of Antarctic Season Opening events including:
- The Christchurch City Antarctic Walk Saturday 5 October 2pm to 3.30pm (starts at Canterbury Museum)
- Antarctic Sun Lines by Adele Jackson at the Christchurch Art Gallery foyer and atrium (Wednesday 2 October to Sunday 6 October)
- Breaking the ice exhibition at Canterbury Museum (on until Sunday 13 October)
- Arctic Voices exhibition at Canterbury Museum (on until Sunday 3 November)
- The Lyttelton Antarctic Heritage Walk Saturday 12 October 1pm to 2.30pm
More about Antarctica
- Visit our web page about Antarctica.
- Antarctica - discovery and exploration
- South Pole - discovery and exploration
- Robert Falcon Scott
- Roald Amundsen
- Ernest Shackleton
- Two letters from Robert Falcon Scott to the Town Clerk of Christchurch
The Canterbury Museum has an extensive collection of Antarctic historical resources. The International Antarctic Centre has exhibitions showing past and present life on the ice.
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