From August 2 to 5 information will be delivered by tours, demonstrations, videos and lectures to school groups and the wider public across various location in Hobart.

This includes tours of Royal Australian Air Force planes, and pre-booked tours of the Aurora Australis and MV Investigator.

There will also be an exhibition featuring antarctic vehicles, aircraft, equipment and tourism information, open days at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies and the CSIRO, polar history tours and a huskie meet.  

Australian Antarctic Festival director Paul Cullen said many people did not realise what happened in Antarctica.

“Australia has three bases in Antarctica, Casey Station, Davis Station and Mawson Station,” he said. 

“There are many scientists working down there, but they also need support crews as well, so there are truck drivers, electricians and many more people who go down every year to help run these three stations.

“Most Australians won’t get down there so we bring Antarctica to town, making it possible for people to see, feel and talk about what is down there, instead of simply reading about it or hearing about it second hand.”

Mr Cullen estimated about two thirds of Tasmanians would be connected to Antarctica or know people who have been there for work, research or holiday purposes.

“It allows us to celebrate these connections to the last great wilderness in Antarctica.”

Antarctic oceanographer Damien Guihen has been on five missions to Antarctica, the latest being a seven week journey last year onboard a Korean ship.

Dr Guihen is now based in Launceston working within the Antarctic Gateway Partnership, and said Tasmania has always had a historical connection to Antarctica.

“It is one of only a few gateway cities around the world,” Dr Guihen said. 

“Historically sailors, prospectors, and whoever else would call in to restock and maybe re-crew their ships before heading South.”

His latest research work has looked at Antarctic ice shelves and their connections to rising sea levels.

“There is a huge volume of fresh water locked up in the continent of Antarctica and the release of that has the potential to raise sea levels by metres,” he said.

“Understanding what will happen, when it will happen, and to what degree will be important for future city planning, especially in places like Sydney and Melbourne where you have a lot of valuable, waterfront property.”  

He said the UBC Gavia, an autonomous underwater vehicle, was used to take measurements of the Nansen Ice Shelf, which is a sheet of ice 48 kilometres long and 16 kilometres wide that sits in New Zealand Antarctic territory.

“The vehicle was tasked with getting underneath the ice shelf to take measurements, but it also carried a whole lot of instruments.”