“Life Becoming Easier In The Antarctic”

Press, Volume C, Issue 29633, 2 October 1961, Page 9

“Life Becoming Easier In The Antarctic”

- toe Mewiy of scientific and technokhPcri advance* toere wu do flood reason wtay toe Antarctic should not eventually become a seif-sufficient continent, said Dr. Baul Sipie, an American authority on the Antarctic, in Osritociiurcb yesterday. By self-«ufficience, Dr. Srjrfe said, he meant such Herne ae power, food, ctotoing, and shelter—toe baric amenities of life. These items had a oommoa denominator in toe four elements carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen—“of which the Antarctic has an abundance.’’ “When chemiste and acientiste learn to put these cocomon elements together tc make food, clothing, power and so on, directly from raw materials, then toe southern continent wil become selfsufficient,” he said. ’’lf toe supplementary chemicals are not available on the continent, they are available in the surrounding sea. M Of living coalitions in the Antarctic, Dr. Siple said: “Even toe pioneer women of New Zealand and toe United States suffered far more hazards than anyone going down to toe Antarctic today.” Dr. Siple hopes to go back to the Antarctic for the seventh time between October 24 and November 10. His prime reason for the visit, he said, was that although not actively engaged on Antarctic studies now, he liked to see at first hand just what was happening there. One of bis minor missions concerns toe life of the South Pole station. When it was first built—he was then the scientific leader at the station—in 1956-57 he assessed its life as 10 years. Now there was a possibility of a nuclear reactor being built there, it might be time for a reassessment. The installation of nuclear power in Antarctica would

i eonridere&iy reduce costs, I but Dr. Siple seid he bei lieved it would have been : more economic if geothermal ’ power from ML Erebus bad ■ been ured i He eaid he felt the conti- : newt one day would be i settled by people other titan scienteffs. Once the scieti- . ttete completed their initial i work, other people could continue observations. As i living condatione improved : settlers would be attracted. V—