ABSTRACT
Scientific cooperation in Antarctica led to the creation of the first treaty ever designed to protect a scientific programme; the Antarctic Treaty. The Antarctic treaty powers have employed the treaty as a framework for a range of scientific research conducted upon both a national and international basis in such spheres as the earth sciences, glaciology, and the marine sciences, and performed by, or organised under the auspices of, such bodies as the BAS, the National Science Foundation in the USA and the Department of Ocean Development in India. Antarctica as a 'frozen time capsule' in recognition of the ice sheet's role as a historical record not only of snow accumulations in Antarctica but also of climatic and pollution conditions in other parts of world. During the post-IGY period scientific investigation in Antarctica has continued to expand and diversify, a process facilitated, indeed fostered, by the Antarctic Treaty System, which includes a contribution from SCAR, whose role should not be under-estimated.
