Join us for Aerospace New Zealand Meet-Up #33 - Aerospace in Antarctica! At this event, we will hear from scientists and aerospace professionals discussing their latest projects and technology being used in Antarctica. This event promises to be a valuable opportunity for networking, knowledge sharing, and inspiration.

Location:

231 High Street, Christchurch Central City, Christchurch 8011, New Zealand

Please note the below event information:

5.00pm - Networking 

5.30pm - Presentations commence

Tickets: To help cover our organisation's running costs, we are now charging $20 per ticket. It's still free if you're an Aerospace New Zealand Associate, Christchurch Antarctic Office Member or are live streaming. You can become an Associate via our website.

Online Option: For people who can't attend the event, we will be offering a live webinar, so please register for that and select the Online Ticket option under ticket type. ZOOM LINK HERE

Planned Presentations include:

• Michelle La Rue - Associate Professor, University of Canterbury
  Emperor penguin populations are challenging to monitor because of the species’ life history and remoteness. However, high-resolution satellite imagery has drastically advanced our ability to learn about the species, since we can see places on the ground that we cannot physically get to. In this presentation, Michelle will talk about a recent study where we estimated a comprehensive population trajectory over a recent 10-year period, finding with 81% probability that the global population of adult emperor penguins declined between 2009 and 2018 by about 9.6% (95% credible interval (CI) -26.4% to +9.4). We cannot explain this trend yet, especially as we observed an apparent population up-tick toward the end of time series. Our work potentially establishes a framework for monitoring other Antarctic coastal species detectable by satellite, while promoting a need for research to better understand factors driving biotic changes in the Southern Ocean ecosystem.
  

• Prof. Wolfgang Rack - Director, Gateway Antarctica - University of Canterbury
  Aerospace solutions for solving a sea-ice mystery
  How can we measure Antarctic sea-ice thickness over an area twice the size of Australia, when it is driven and crushed by hauling winds over the polar ocean? Thickness and size combined determine the total ice mass – but size we know, thickness we don’t. This matters, as mass controls the efficiency of world-wide deep ocean circulation. Urgent questions are asked about the climate impact of the recent dramatic decrease in sea ice area, quite likely not compensated by thickness growth. Wolfgang will showcase a strategy to unravel the Antarctic sea-ice mystery from air and space, which includes reference measurements on the icy ground. His team’s innovative radar solutions for drones and aircrafts - made in Aotearoa - form part of this strategy.
  

• Dr Daniel Price - Chief Scientist, Kea Aerospace
  In 2017, for the first time since Edmund Hillary as part of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition in 1957, New Zealand needed to work out how to take a heavy vehicle traverse across Antarctica. To support world-leading climate science, the challenge was to work out how to get 1,000 km from one side of the Ross Ice Shelf to the other. In this presentation, Dan will tell the story of how the Siple Coast Traverse was achieved and how aerospace played a critical role in its success.
  

• Chris Martin - Lead Consultant, Vela Science 
  Planes, balloons, and tractor trains: Doing science while flying 38km above Antarctica
  Doing science from Antarctica is as much about logistics as discovery.  Come learn how ultra long duration balloons are launched, used, and recovered to make observations that couldn't be easily made anywhere else.

  See you there!

Aerospace New Zealand

A special thank you to our Gold Event Sponsor, Christchurch Antarctic Office!