China’s 40th Antarctic scientific expedition, made up of more than 460 people from over 80 domestic organizations, departed from Shanghai on November 1. (PHOTO: XINHUA)

By Staff Reporters

China’s40th Antarctic scientific expedition, made up of more than 460 people from over80 domestic organizations, departed from Shanghai on November 1. They will travelmore than 30,000 nautical miles, build a new base station, and return in April2024.

Thenew Antarctic station will be built around the Ross Sea in Antarctica, and willbe China’s fifth expedition base in the South Pole. The team is expected toarrive at the construction site around December and complete their work in 60days.

“Thestation to be constructed … is China's first expedition station facing thePacific sector,” said Wang Zhechao, leader of the Ross Sea new station team.

Wangsaid the new station will be used for multi-circle, multi-disciplinaryobservation and monitoring and scientific research on the atmosphericenvironment, basic marine environment and biological ecology.

Accordingto Zhang Beichen, leader of the expedition, Chinese polar exploration vessels XueLong and Xue Long 2 will carry out a series of investigation and monitoringmissions in the adjacent sea area of the Antarctic Peninsula. The team willresearch the biological ecology, water and sedimentary environments, the atmosphericenvironment and pollutant distribution.

Whilethe two vessels left Shanghai, a third, the cargo ship Tianhui, departed fromZhangjiagang city in Jiangsu province, east China, carrying materials for theconstruction of the new station. For the first time, China's Antarcticscientific research is being logistically supported by three ships.

Chinasigned the Antarctic Treaty in 1983 and became a treaty consultative party twoyears later. In 2017, China’s State Oceanic Administration released a documentthat said China will carry out extensive international exchanges andcooperation on Antarctic exploration.