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Quarterly science bulletin
Edition 15, October 2026
Pacific voices for climate action
During the pre-COP events in Fiji, I was inspired by the courage and leadership of Pacific Islanders in sharing their experiences from the front line of climate change.
Their stories remind us why our work matters, and strengthens our commitment to understanding how changes in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean will affect Australia and our Pacific neighbours. Through science, we can better prepare for our future.
Many of you on this mailing list – around 400, in fact – attended the Australian Antarctic Research Conference (AARC 2026) in August. It was great to see you in Hobart!
photo: Peter W Allen/UTAS
Hosted by the University of Tasmania, the conference strengthened links between the university research sector and government agencies (as part of delivering the Australian Antarctic Science Decadal Strategy). It fostered collaboration between institutions and across disciplines, from humanities to glaciology, from atmospheric science to technology, from tourism to tipping points.
Welcome to the latest edition of 'Southern Signals' (archive here), a quarterly bulletin to inform decision-makers, policy-shapers, journalists, researchers, stakeholders and the broader community about our science and research activities — and why they matter.
kind regards,
Professor Delphine Lannuzel
Program leader,
Australian Antarctic Program Partnership
University of Tasmania, Hobart
AAPP SCIENCE IN THE SPOTLIGHT
What we don't know might hurt us – Antarctica's unexplored threat
One of the greatest potential contributors to reshaping the natural world and human society is also the least scientifically understood and explored
Ocean drones set to brave the Southern Ocean for science
A 7m-long wind-propelled ‘Saildrone’ is circumnavigating Antarctica to measure carbon dioxide absorbed by the Southern Ocean – crucial for predicting climate change
Sea ice creates hidden highways for young Antarctic krill
Larval krill could be carried far from their birthplace by drifting sea ice, linking distant ecosystems in ways conventional models may miss
“Picket fence effect”: First Antarctic-wide map of grounded icebergs
Training an artificial intelligence tool to accurately recognise 40,000 grounded icebergs from satellite radar images
RINGS around Antarctica: Global proposal for large-scale surveys of entire coast
A bold international plan to target the knowledge gaps that prevent reliable predictions about future sea-level rise
Dr Elizabeth Shadwick from CSIRO/AAPP with Saildrone operational managers Haley Holcomb and Jason Westenburg, after successfully deploying the first of four ocean drones from Hobart, seen in the background (photo: Fraser Johnston)
SOME RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Our scientists publish more than 100 research papers each year
Ocean alkalinity enhancement: a rethink from 'science fiction-flavoured geoengineering intervention' to a 'practical, flexible tool for local carbon management'
Dynamic instability of the Wilkes Subglacial Basin Ice Sheet: 1400km by 400km, more than 4km thick in places, holding an estimated 3–4m of global sea-level rise, if melted
Abstracts from the 2026 Australian Antarctic Research Conference: open-access record of presentations, one per page over 275 pages, arranged by first author alphabetically
Read a multimedia feature story (best viewed on a laptop) about carbon uptake by the Southern Ocean, and its essential service as a climate shock absorber
