China, already prominent in the study of the Antarctica, will
enhance its arctic studies by setting up its first arctic
scientific research station in Longyearbyen, capital of Norway's
Svalbard Islands in July.
Gao Dengyi, director of the China Yilite-Mornring Arctic Scientific
Expedition and Research Team which is setting up the station, said
it will be a temporary station to accommodate Chinese scientists
expeditions this and the next.
This year's team will include 15 scientists specializing in
aerography, geology, glaciology and botany as well as journalists
from the People's Daily, Xinhua, China Central Television and other
Chinese media.
Arctic and Antarctic study is important for research into global
climatic changes, oceanology, glaciology and other sciences,
scientists say.
Besides their rich reserves of oil, natural gas, krill and other
resources, the two regions are of great value in military and
aviation fields.
As
a northern hemisphere country, China attaches particular importance
to study of the Arctic, as climatic and environmental changes in
the Arctic will have a direct impact on China, scientist say.
Since the 1980s, China has sent 17 official scientific expeditions
to the Antarctica where it has its own icebreaker. It has set up
two Antarctic research stations, namely the Zhongshan and Great
Wall research stations.
The country now boasts a large team of scientists specializing in
many fields of polar study and leads the world in certain areas of
polar research.
China, a latecomer to Arctic study, has stepped up its efforts in
this field over recent years.
Since the 1990s, about 10 groups of Chinese scientists have
independently conducted or participated in international arctic
research projects.
In
1996, China became the 16th member country of the International
Arctic Science Committee.
In
1999, more than 50 Chinese scientists took part in the first
government-sponsored arctic research project aboard the "Snow
Dragon" icebreaker.
According to senior officials with the polar study office of the
State Oceanic Administration, China will conduct its second
official arctic expedition and set up its first permanent arctic
research station before 2005.
The impending Yilite-Mornring scientific expedition, Gao said, is a
three-year mission organized by the China Association for
Scientific Expeditions and sponsored by two Chinese
enterprises.
A
team of scientists visited Svalbard Islands last year, during which
they decided on the site of the research station.
In
addition to setting up the research station, the scientists will
this year focus on a comparative study of the ecological system of
the Islands and China's Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Gao said.
While noting that the coming expedition will gain experience by
setting up the first official arctic research station, Gao also
hopes it will make more Chinese aware of the Svalbard pact.
The pact, which China signed in 1925, allows China free access to
the Islands and the right to engage in scientific study, mining and
other activities not banned by the law of Norway, he said.
It
is not until several years ago that Gao, a veteran polar study
expert, became aware of the pact while on a research mission to the
Islands. Before that, little was known in China about the pact.
(
June 26, 2002)