THE FIRST EXPEDITION TO ANTARCTICA
The logo of the first Italian expedition to Antarctica
The Piri Reis’s map drawn on 1513 represents the Atlantic coasts of Antarctica
Renato Cepparo sponsor, organizer and head of the first Italian expedition to Antarctica
From the Arctic polar circle to the Antarctic. The trip of the Rig Mate from Norway to the Antarctic Peninsula
The participants to the expedition
The Italian flag is hoisted in front of all the participants
The small building of the base once completed
Midnight at Giacomo Bove’s base, with the Rig Mate at the anchorage
The geologists at work in the small laboratory of the base
The canteen of the base
Looking for fossil trees on a small glacial moraine
Fossil trees found by Barbiero on the glacial moraine
Wale’s skeleton on the beach
When:- on 1975-1976
Scope: - Build a small base in Antarctica
Scientific research on paleoclimatology, metereology, geology
experiment new equipment for divers in freezing water
Alpinistic activity with the climbing of several antarctic mountains
Participants:-
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Renato Cepparo – Sponsor, organizer and head of the expedition
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Flavio Barbiero – inspirer and vice-head of the expedition
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Prof. Angelo Gandini, cardiologist
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Dr. Giancamillo Cortemiglia and Dr. Remo Terranova - geologists
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Gianni Arcari, Benvenuto Laritti, Donato Erba e Gigi Alippi – mountaineers
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Luciano Bolzoni e Giampiero Fusello – scuba divers
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Riccardo Cepparo and Dr. Antonio Rezia - responsibles for documenting the activities
and keeping in touch with the media
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Carlo Ottolini – cook
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Ing. Paolo Facini – supplier of the building and logistic equipment
Means:- The Norwegian ship "Rig Mate" with her crew
Itinerary:- Alesund, Lisboa, Las Palmas, Montevideo, Antarctica (Admiralty Bay in the King George Island, Deception Island, Gherlache strait, Neumayer channel,Port Locroy, Wiencke Island,Palmer station), Rio de Janeiro
Achievements:- Built a small base on The King George Island, in the Admiralty bay. The base was entitled to the Italian Navy officer Giacomo Bove.
Found a large number of fossil trees and other minerals
Made geological and meteorological research with later publications
Experimented divers’ equipment
Carried on intense alpinist activity
Visited several location and foreign bases
Produced a film, a book and scientific reports
Go to :
- The second Barbiero's expedition to Antarctica
- Military career
The Norwegian ship Rig Mate chartered by Cepparo to transport the Italian expedition
Antarctica on a map of the cartographer Oronteus Finaeus (1531)
A map of the great catographer Mercator represents Antarctica on its exact location and with its precise profile, but on a larger scale in order to make the Peninsula merge with the tip of South America
King George Island, South Shetland, with the Admiralty Bay . The Italian base was built in the left inlet in a small valley, immediately called "Conca Italia"
The Rig Mate in the Admiralty Bay, in front of the Italian base
An emergency landing-wharf made with the panels of the building allowed to disembark from the Rig Mate all the materials of the base
The floor of the base was built with timber embarked at the last moment in Montevideo, where half of the prefabricated materials were impound by the local authorities
The assembly of the base required two days of hard work
The meteorological station placed near the Italian base by the geologists
The scuba divers at work
The camp from where the mountaineers started the climbing of seven Antarctic mountain tops
A spectacular dive from the top of an iceberg