A History of Antarctic Science (Studies in Polar Research) [Hardcover]

G. E. Fogg (Author), Margaret Thatcher (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 30, 1992 | ISBN-10: 0521361133 | ISBN-13: 978-0521361132

This book is the first to describe the development of scientific activity in the Antarctic (as distinct from exploration) in all its aspects. Coverage spans three centuries, starting with Halley who laid the foundations of geophysics which was to be the principal driving force behind Antarctic science for most of its history. Although early researchers built up a picture of the main features of the Antarctic environment, the idea of science specific to the continent emerged only later. As the main disciplines of oceanography, earth sciences, the sciences of atmosphere and geospace, terrestrial biology, medicine, and conservation developed, the clear interactions between them within an Antarctic context led to the emergence of the holistic view of Antarctic science which we hold today. For anyone with an interest in the history, conservation or politics of this special part of the world, or in the history of the development of science, this book will provide a mine of information and will act as a rich source of reference for many years to come.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Among the achievements of Antarctic science are the discovery of the ozone hole and the invention of the string vest. This wonderful book deals with both along with most of the other fruits of scientific endeavour.' New Scientist

'The book's great achievement is to sum up concisely and readably the present state of Antarctic science.' New Scientist

'Fogg's book is a splendid resource for the polar scientist, historian, and political scientist. I can envision it too in the collection of many Antarctic research stations, where it deserves to become dog-eared with use.' Eric L. Mills, Science

'Fogg's work is a significant and welcome addition not only to Antarctic literature but to the history of science and technology. Its greatest contribution is making a syustematic and readable account out of hundreds of yeards of historical and scientific sources. It should become a standard background text for specialists from a broad range of scientific disciplines, a model work for historians of science, and a coherent guide for those interested int he complex history of the Antarctic.' The Times Higher

' ... the book is fascinating, and an insight for those not familiar with Antarctic operations or the history of the region. It is also a useful addition for the scientist who wants a perspective of Antarctic research in fields other than their own.' Book Reviews Emma Grove

Book Description

This book describes the development of Antarctic science over three centuries against a background of advances in techniques of travelling and working in the polar environment and changing political attitudes to a remote and unknown part of the world.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 505 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (October 30, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521361133
• ISBN-13: 978-0521361132
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,472,975 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tremendous, October 17, 2001

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[e-mail] (London) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A History of Antarctic Science (Studies in Polar Research) (Hardcover)

Gordon Fogg and Margaret Thatcher have written compelling and thorough history of research in the most remote continent on the globe - from the gung-ho expeditions of the 19th Century to the high-tech exploration of today. The authors' own personal experiences inform their scholarship and give the reader a unique view of this savage continent, and there is even a touch of adventure here and there. There is a gripping account of Margaret Thatcher's 1981 trip to Antarctica when food supplies ran perilously low; undaunted, the Iron Lady dived into the icy seas off McMurdo Sound, ignoring the 15 foot swell, to despatch a Leopard Seal with her bare hands and haul it onto the ice where she butchered it expertly and then performed an exultant dance over its dismembered remains.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Outstanding Work in the History of Science, February 26, 2009

By 

Roger D. Launius "Historian" (Washington, D.C., United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A History of Antarctic Science (Studies in Polar Research) (Paperback)

In terms of exploring Antarctic science, G. E. Fogg's "A History of Antarctic Science" has long been viewed as the recognized starting point. His central thesis is that Antarctic science is just as important as the glamorous exploration and adventure of the continent that has dominated writing about Antarctica. From Edmond Halley's travels in 1700 to the rise of technologically sophisticated and international efforts to understand the region that came after World War II, scientific enterprises represented a fundamental justification--and an appropriate one--for the broad investigation of Antarctica.

Taking a Trinitarian approach Fogg divides the scientific history of Antarctica into three stages: (1) the "heroic era," (2) the period between about 1930 and the IGY, and (3) and the post-IGY era. The result is a historically sophisticated account of the rise of big science, which Fogg insists was necessary to marshal the financial, political, and logistical support necessary to be successful in the Polar Regions. Nationalism dominated the scientific efforts in Antarctica from the beginning, and even in the cooperative ventures of the IGY and later, nationalism played a key part in the story.

A quality of Fogg's account is that it situates Antarctic science in the larger context of international relations and its evolution in the twentieth century. He makes clear that there was also a national style to the science conducted in Antarctica. The United States, for example, concentrated on large, splashy short-term expeditions and projects, while the British committed to a few small and certainly less well-known bases where scientists undertook observations over many years. The American effort succeeded in organizing huge teams of researchers but without the observations of change over time made possible by such encampments as those operated by the British the changes in the Ozone Hole over Antarctica would not have been as quickly understood.

Overall, this approach has been a positive development for science, as the nations involved have made available the latest in technological advances to further science in this hostile environment. One important element in Fogg's study is the central role played by the Scientific Committee for Antarctic Research in the period planning for and conducting the IGY, as well as thereafter. "A History of Antarctic Science" admirably describes the state of science in the region, the hypotheses explored, but especially the observations and their results.