U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton made a special visit to the U.S. and New Zealand Antarctic programs in Christchurch on Nov. 5 (local time) during a two-week diplomatic tour through Asia and the Pacific.
Art Brown, the National Science Foundation (NSF) representative in Christchurch for the U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP) , greeted Clinton at the International Antarctic Centre . The centre is located near U.S. facilities that support the USAP science mission in Antarctica.
Brown extended a personal invitation for Clinton to visit Antarctica on behalf Subra Suresh, the new director at the NSF, and Karl Erb, director of the NSF Office of Polar Programs . The secretary of state had planned to visit the Ice in January of this year but canceled her trip after the Haiti earthquake.
Brown commented on the long-standing relationship between the United States and New Zealand, which dates back to the 1950s during the International Geophysical Year when both nations began their research programs in Antarctica.
People exit plane on rainy day.
Photo Credit: Ron Rogers
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton deplanes Air Force 2.
“Over the years, that relationship has grown and matured into a complex and fruitful scientific and logistical partnership that is addressing global scientific challenges, including one of the most pressing scientific problems facing the world today — the efforts to understand the mechanics and consequences of changing climate,” Brown said.
In her speech during the ceremony, Clinton also acknowledged the bond between the countries, mentioning the joint wind turbine project that provides energy to New Zealand’s Scott Base and the USAP’s McMurdo Station on Ross Island. [See previous article: Winding up.]
“That means lower greenhouse gases and less risk associated with transporting and storing liquid fuel. It’s a testament to that continent’s unique quality that for decades, the world has agreed on [for] Antarctica,” Clinton said.
“The Antarctic Treaty , the first arms control treaty signed during the Cold War, has kept the area free of weapons since the 1960s, making it the most successful arms control treaty in history,” she added. “And today, America and New Zealand remain committed to keeping Antarctica a cooperative, peaceful, and pristine scientific reserve.”
Clinton then presented the people of New Zealand with a new aeronautical map of the route between Christchurch and McMurdo that included a new and unusual feature. Eleven of the waypoints had been named after “the unsung heroes of Antarctic exploration” — the dogs and ponies that early explorers used to open up the last frontier on Earth.
“In the story of the Antarctic, the names of the explorers are well known and famous, but now they’re joined by the likes of Helge and Snippet and Bones and Nobby,” Clinton said.
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