Not even Antarctic explorers were spared the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2022-11-15 06:00

Australia; TAS; ACT

Photo by NOAA on Unsplash

Although they were generally portrayed as some of the people most protected from catching COVID-19, and most prepared for the difficulties of long isolation and lockdowns, not even Antarctic explorers were spared the disruptions of the pandemic according to Aussie research. The team interviewed Antarctic expeditioners from the Australian Antarctic Program about their experiences during the pandemic and found that they grappled with many of the same problems as the global isolated 2020 workforce–they managed new work contexts, had minimal preparation to build teams and socialise in a digital environment, negotiated social distancing, and felt the uncertainty that comes with changing hygiene protocols and not having a set expedition end-date.

News release

From:

Journal/
conference: PLOS ONE

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: The Australian National University, University of Tasmania, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS)

Funder: MN received funding from the Australian Antarctic Division (www.antarctica.gov.au) to conduct this study. The funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

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