Radiocarbon age determinations on marine shells in lateral moraines and other deposits several kms behind the present day termini of tidewater outlet glaciers from the Prince of Wales Icefield, east-central Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Arctic Canada, as well as tidewater glaciers from two nearby ice-caps, show that these glaciers have fluctuated considerably through the Holocene, both in length and in thickness. The terminus of Leffert Glacier, for which the best documentation is available, has been more than 20 km west of the position that it occupied in 1898–1899, when it was mapped for the first time. Leffert Glacier was much reduced in size for a period of several thousand years, between roughly 6450 and 1850 14C years BP. Other major outlet glaciers that have experienced significant fluctuations of their termini during the Holocene are: 1) MacMillan, Ekblaw and Tanquary glaciers in the Baird Inlet area, 2) Stygge Glacier and adjacent unnamed glaciers at the head of Jokel Fiord, 3) Benedict Glacier at the head of Sawyer Bay and 4) Parrish Glacier, the southernmost outlet glacier from the Agassiz Ice Cap. Of the glaciers investigated, only Alfred Newton Glacier, south of Cape Herschel, has surged during the period of field observation (1977 to 2009), and this glacier is now receding from the position attained in a surge which commenced in 1981. The terminus of Ekblaw Glacier, at the head of Baird Inlet, is now well forward of the position it occupied in 1950, when the first aerial photograph coverage was achieved.

With this instalment of our list, the Klondike gold rush reached its height and, nearly as quickly, began to decline as the miners’ interest turned to newer strikes in Alaska. The great influx of prospectors to the Klondike region led to the passage of the Yukon Act and to the extension into the area of the enforcement of Canadian laws by the North West Mounted Police. In most other respects, the important trends noticed in the previous instalment continue: the officers of the Geological Survey of Canada and other scientists continued their careful and productive surveys; missionaries extended their efforts to remoter tribes; and sportsmen ranged still farther afield in search of big game. The number of expeditions each year steadily increased, and we are having to be increasingly selective in the ones we list. It has been impossible to include individual journeys to the Klondike, even of those persons who published narratives.

This paper traces France’s role in the Antarctic from 1840, when explorer Jules Dumont d’Urville discovered the slice of the white continent he named Terre Adélie, to the present day. Since World War II, Terre Adélie has been the site of a host of performances of sovereignty: the French have built bases, drawn maps, conducted scientific investigations and erected plaques. But France’s commitment to Terre Adélie has been tested and has fallen into crisis several times. The history of France in Antarctica is a tale of ambition, ambivalence, trade-offs and political strategy. This paper aims to elucidate this story, focusing on the concept of sovereignty and the nexus of scientific and political interests. I argue that France’s relationship with the Antarctic has been characterised by continual tension, by peaks and troughs and by brinkmanship on the part of actors with their own stakes. While there is broad agreement that Terre Adélie serves a fundamental national interest, I show that France’s ambitions on the white continent are far from decided. With its focus on France, which has largely been left out of the growing body of literature on the Antarctic, this paper contributes to building a robust historical understanding of Antarctic claims.

Possession Island was one of the first landing places in the Antarctic region, now more than 180 years ago, yet there is little scientific knowledge of this island archipelago in the western Ross Sea. Although the islands are often passed and have been landed on for a few brief hours a number of times, the area is a challenging environment to visit or work in, as weather, sea and ice conditions can be unpredictable.

This paper documents the discovery of the islands, and their history of exploration, the broad range of fleetingly conducted science endeavours, weather and climate and since the 1990s, eco-tourism visits. The islands deserve to be better known, and their rich history provides a foundation for future research and eco-tourism.

During the resurgence of Arctic exploration in the early years of the nineteenth century, James Rennell was the leading British geographer. He had a deep interest in exploration, and was a close friend of many naval and scientific men involved in Arctic research. Rennell used the observations of a number of explorers in his major work on the currents of the Atlantic — the first scientific treatise on ocean currents. These observations led Rennell to form opinions on where northwest passages would and would not be found, in particular, that Prince Regent Inlet would prove to be a cul-de-sac. Rennell was also doubtful of the practicality and usefulness of such passages — his brief, commonsense dismissal being in stark contrast to many statements of his contemporaries. This paper sets out his relationship with the explorers of the time and his role as a scientific interpreter of their data.

The understanding of ice, especially of sea ice, is basic to Canada's defence and economic development and yet, up to 1956, little had been done in Canada to study the formation, development and degeneration of sea ice. The National Research Council had been engaged in ice studies, but the emphasis here had been on fresh-water ice. Glaciological studies had been carried out by several universities, by the Geophysics Section of the Defence Research Board, and by other government departments.

Activity patterns of native people in the Northwest Territories include a complex mixture of employment in the modern economy, full-time or part-time engagement in traditional pursuits, and leisure. This study identifies characteristics of participants in each activity which assist in interpreting the allocation of time among employment in the modern economy, the pursuit of traditional activities, and leisure. Three hypotheses—traditionalist, modernist and culturalist — were identified from current literature and tested statistically, using data collected in interviews held with 11,164 NWT residents in 1984. The hypotheses were: (1) engagement in the traditional sector is preferred to holding a job in the modem economy; thus, wage employment primarily facilitates pursuit of traditional activities; (2) engagement in the modern economy is preferred; those unable to work in it turn to traditional activities, which are easier to enter; (3) the traditional sector is an arena in which a cultural heritage can be maintained, a preferred sustenance obtained, or where one can demonstrate his prowess apart from any material gain that might be realized. The data do not unequivocally support any of the hypotheses, but this study suggests an alternative approach to the interpretation of activity patterns, based upon an analysis of individual preference functions.

Polish expeditions to Vestspitsbergen between 1956 and 1960 were organized in connexion with the Third IGY and its continuation. The main area chosen for scientific investigations was Hornsund, Vestspitsbergen, in which, at Isbjørnhamna, the main station was built (lat. 77° N., long. 15° 30′ E.). The areas covered by investigations were mainly southern and central parts of Wedel Jarlsberg Land and Torell Land, to the north of Hornsund, and the northern part of Sørkapp Land, to the south of Hornsund. Brief investigations were also carried out to the south of Van Keulenfjorden, in north-west Torell Land, and along the western, southern and eastern coasts of Sørkapp Land.

The texts of the Decisions and Resolutions, and the text of Measure 1 (2004), together with a summary of the Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Managed area No. 2, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Southern Victoria Land, adopted at XXVII ATCM were reproduced in SCAR Bulletin No 155, October 2004. A summary of the Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Managed Area No. 3, Cape Denison, Commonwealth Bay, George V land, together with Measures 2–4, are reproduced here. The full versions of all the Decisions, Measures and Resolutions are on the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat website at http://www.ats.org.ar/