The Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs (COMNAP)

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COMNAP brings together the National Antarctic Programs from 29 countries [1] from Europe, Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australasia, with two more [2] in the process of joining. The functional basis for COMNAP, within the Antarctic Treaty System is that, as a Council of managers and operators, it is competent in the realm of operational implementation, safety, technology and information sharing. It provides the Antarctic Treaty, on request, with technical advice developed using members' pool of expertise.

The "National Antarctic Programs" are those agencies tasked by their government to implement and manage their national activities in Antarctica, including organising expeditions. While most of these activities focus on the support of scientific research, they do also contribute to the governance and environmental protection of the Antarctic region under the auspices of the Antarctic Treaty.

The National Antarctic Programs have their foundation in the early expeditions sent to explore, map and study Antarctica in the 19th and 20th centuries. These early expeditions already relied on international cooperation, as illustrated by the first two winter expeditions: on board the Belgica (1897-1899) under Belgian Adrien de Gerlache and at Cape Adare (1898-1900) under Norwegian Carsten Borchgrevink. These first two wintering parties involved 29 men [3] from 9 different nations, all part of today's 31 COMNAP nations. COMNAP has its roots in this long-standing, ongoing tradition of international collaboration in the conduct of Antarctic expeditions.

The National Antarctic Programs established COMNAP in 1988. Its primary function and activities are related to the exchange of practical, operational information with a view to improving the way all National Programs can fulfill their various missions, together or independently. That includes mutual support in the design, ongoing improvement and operation of Antarctic facilities and transport infrastructure.

The infrastructure includes year-round and seasonal stations, ships, airfields and aircraft. In 2006, COMNAP members operate in the Antarctic Treaty area 37 year-round stations and a number of seasonal stations and camps with a combined average winter population a little over 1000 and a peak summer population of around 4000 people. At the same time, they operate in the Antarctic Treaty area around 40 vessels of between 1,400 and 40,000 tons displacement.

COMNAP includes a permanent Standing Committee on Antarctic Logistics and Operations (SCALOP) and a number of other groups focused on various areas of expertise. The bulk of COMNAP's work is achieved through these technical groups. Their continual exchange of information provides a vehicle for addressing a wide range of issues, sometimes highly technical, to identify practical solutions in the support of Antarctic Programs.

A COMNAP Executive Committee (EXCOM) is responsible for COMNAP matters between full meetings of the Council. A secretariat provides a central point of contact, operates common communications support infrastructure and a central information repository and maintains coordination between the members.

COMNAP, in addition to supporting its members, works with the other Antarctic bodies to support effective, sustainable Antarctic expeditions and the success of the Antarctic Treaty System.

More information on COMNAP Members and COMNAP Groups

See /workspaces for a range of information on the member National Antarctic Programs and the COMNAP technical groups (committees, working groups, networks, etc...).

Contact Details

COMNAP Secretariat Suite 25, Salamanca Square, Hobart, Tasmania

• Postal address: COMNAP Secretariat, GPO Box 824, Hobart, TAS 7001, Australia
• Phone +61 3 6233 5498 - Fax +61 3 6233 5497
• Email sec@comnap.aq

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[1] The National Antarctic Programs Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Russia, South Korea, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Uruguay.

[2] The National Antarctic Programs from Estonia and România

[3] 3 National Antarctic Program stations in operation today are named after 3 of these 29 men: Norwegian Roald Amundsen (Amundsen-Scott), Pole Henryk Arctowsky (Arctowsky) and Romanian Emil Racovita (Law-Racovita) .