Camp Academia ( bg, лагер Академия, lager Akademiya, ) is a geographical locality in eastern

Livingston Island Livingston Island (Russian name ''Smolensk'', ) is an Antarctic island in the Southern Ocean, part of the South Shetlands Archipelago, a group of Antarctic islands north of the Antarctic Peninsula. It was the first land discovered south of 60 ...

South Shetland Islands The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the nearest point of the South Orkney Islands. By the Antarctic Treaty of 1 ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...

, named for the

Bulgarian Academy of Sciences The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (abbreviated BAS; bg, Българска академия на науките, ''Balgarska akademiya na naukite'', abbreviated ''БАН'') is the National Academy of Bulgaria, established in 1869. The Academy ...

in appreciation of Academy’s contribution to the Antarctic exploration. The site was first occupied in the 2004/05 austral summer, and has been designated since 2004 as the summer

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional se ...

Tangra 1091, the southernmost branch of the Bulgarian Posts Plc.

Access and survey routes

Camp Academia is strategically situated in upper Huron Glacier,

Wörner Gap Wörner Gap (Sedlovina Wörner \se-dlo-vi-'na 'vyor-ner\) is a flat saddle extending 3 km in the south-north direction between Friesland Ridge and Bowles Ridge in eastern Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. Its ele ...

area, at elevation 541 m in the northwestern foothills of Zograf Peak, central

Tangra Mountains Tangra Mountains (in Bulgarian ''Тангра планина'', 'Tangra planina' \'tan-gra pla-ni-'na\) () form the principal mountain range of Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. The range had been nameless until 2 ...

. The site is accessible by 11-12.5 km routes from the Bulgarian base St. Kliment Ohridski and the Spanish base

Juan Carlos I Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Novem ...

respectively. Camp Academia offers convenient overland access to the main range of

to the south (with survey and climbing routes leading from Camp Academia to

Lyaskovets Peak Lyaskovets Peak ( bg, връх Лясковец, vrah Lyaskovets, ) is the easternmost peak of Friesland Ridge in the Tangra Mountains, eastern Livingston Island and has an elevation of 1,473 m. The peak is bounded by Catalunyan Saddle on the we ...

and Mount Friesland via

Catalunyan Saddle Catalunyan Saddle (Katalunska Sedlovina \ka-ta-'lun-ska se-dlo-vi-'na\) is a saddle of 1260 m height in the Friesland Ridge of the Tangra Mountains on Livingston Island, in the South Shetland Islands. The saddle is bounded by Lyaskovets Peak to ...

, and to Levski Peak, Great Needle Peak and Helmet Peak areas via Lozen Saddle); to

Bowles Ridge Bowles Ridge ( bg, хребет Боулс, hrebet Bouls, ) is the central ridge of eastern Livingston Island. The ridge extends 6.5 km in the east-west direction and is 1.5 km wide. The summit of the ridge is Mount Bowles which ris ...

, Vidin Heights,

Kaliakra Glacier Kaliakra Glacier ( bg, ледник Калиакра, lednik Kaliakra, ) is a glacier in northeastern Livingston Island, Antarctica extending in east-west direction and in north-south direction, and situated southeast of Saedinenie Snowfield, ...

and Saedinenie Snowfield areas to the north; to Huron Glacier to the east; and to Pliska Ridge, Burdick Ridge, Perunika Glacier and Huntress Glacier to the west.

Tangra 2004/05 Survey

Camp Academia hosted the base camp of the Bulgarian topographic survey

Tangra 2004/05 The Tangra 2004/05 Expedition was commissioned by the Antarctic Place-names Commission at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria, managed by the Manfred Wörner Foundation, and supported by the Bulgarian Antarctic Institute, the In ...

from 3 December 2004 until 2 January 2005. The survey was both shipborne from the ships ''Vanguardia'' and ''Akademik Vavilov'', and onshore at Livingston Island and Half Moon Island, and was carried out from 25 November 2004 until 11 January 2005 by the two-member team of Lyubomir Ivanov and Doychin Vasilev who covered either on ski or on foot an overall distance of some 200 km, mostly in harsh weather conditions and challenging unfamiliar terrain in Tangra Mountains, Bowles Ridge, Vidin Heights and the glaciers Huron, Kaliakra and Perunika. First ascents were made of the peaks of

Lyaskovets Lyaskovets ( bg, Лясковец ) is a town in central northern Bulgaria, located in homonymous municipality of Veliko Tarnovo Province, 10 km northeast of Veliko Tarnovo, 2 km southeast of Gorna Oryahovitsa and 5 km south of ...

(1473 m), Ongal (1149 m), Zograf (1011 m), Komini (774 m), Melnik (696 m),

Miziya Mizia (, ) is a town and municipality in Vratsa Province, northwestern Bulgaria near the Danube river. As of December 2009, the town has a population of 3,354 inhabitants. The town's original name was Bukyovtsi (Букьовци); an urban-type s ...

(604 m), and several lesser peaks, as well as the third ascent of the summit Mount Friesland (1700 m). Extensive geodetic and geographic information was gathered, including coordinates and elevation data, actual sea shoreline and ice-free zones configuration, as well as a detailed photographic documentation of previously unexplored and remote areas in the interior of

and Greenwich Island. Based on the survey, some 150 geographical features were mapped for the first time and a new 1:100000

topographic map In modern mapping, a topographic map or topographic sheet is a type of map characterized by large- scale detail and quantitative representation of relief features, usually using contour lines (connecting points of equal elevation), but histori ...

of the two islands was published in 2005. Data from the topographic survey Tangra 2004/05 was used also in the 2008 Bulgarian map of Livingston, Greenwich,

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

Snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughou ...

, and Smith Islands. Field work carried out from Camp Academia during the Tangra 2004/05 survey has been noted by Discovery Channel, the Natural History Museum, the

Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King Charles III and overseen by the ...

and the

British Antarctic Survey The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) is the United Kingdom's national polar research institute. It has a dual purpose, to conduct polar science, enabling better understanding of global issues, and to provide an active presence in the Antarctic on ...

as a timeline event in Antarctic exploration.

Subsequent occupation

Camp Academia hosted the base camps for the first ascent of Great Needle Peak () by the Bulgarians Doychin Boyanov, Nikolay Petkov and Aleksander Shopov on 8 January 2015, and the first ascent of St. Boris Peak by Boyanov and Petkov on 22 December 2016.D. Boyanov and N. Petkov
The Peaks of Tangra Mountains: Project Report Part Two 2016/17.
Sofia, February 2017 (in Bulgarian)

Tangra 1091 Post Office

The post office Antarctica Tangra 1091 of Bulgarian Posts Plc operated during the entire duration of the expedition Tangra 2004/05 in Antarctica from 25 November 2004 until 11 January 2005, in Camp Academia from 3 December 2004 until 2 January 2005. The office was given the postcode 1091, and was run by Postmaster Lyubomir Ivanov in compliance with standard Bulgarian postal regulations and procedures. The

mailing address An address is a collection of information, presented in a mostly fixed format, used to give the location of a building, apartment, or other structure or a plot of land, generally using political boundaries and street names as references, along ...

of the office was: Camp Academia; 1091 Tangra; Livingston Island; Antarctica. The mail (i.e. its

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...

s) was cancelled by a standard circular Bulgarian handstamping cancellation seal (metal issue) with an inscription “POSTE BULGARE ANTARKTIKA TANGRA 1091” on its periphery and date/hour counter in the centre. Other occasional cachets applied on Tangra 1091 mail often included the triangular cachet of Camp Academia with an inscription “ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION TANGRA 2004 CAMP ACADEMIA” and/or other personal, station and

ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

postmarks. A total of 517 outgoing mail consignments (

letters Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech; any of the symbols of an alphabet. * Letterform, the graphic form of a letter of the alpha ...

and

postcard A postcard or post card is a piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, typically rectangular, intended for writing and mailing without an envelope. Non-rectangular shapes may also be used but are rare. There are novelty exceptions, such as woo ...

s) were shipped, 364 of them via

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...

, 150 via Punta Arenas, and 3 via the St. Kliment Ohridski post office. These were distributed geographically between 30 country destinations as follows: Bulgaria – 146, Germany – 144, Belgium – 54, Chile – 50, Britain – 18, U.S.A. – 15, Spain – 13, New Zealand – 11, France – 9, Argentina – 7, Australia – 7, Austria – 7, Switzerland – 7, Falkland Islands – 5, Antarctica (Livingston Island) – 3, Afghanistan – 2, Czech Republic – 2, Italy – 2, Japan – 2, Portugal – 2, Uruguay – 2, Denmark – 1, Greece – 1, Indonesia – 1, Iraq – 1, Montserrat – 1, Slovakia – 1, Slovenia – 1, South Africa – 1, Vanuatu – 1.L. Ivanov
Bulgarian mail services on Livingston Island (1995/96 and 2004/05 seasons).
Sofia, March 2005

Location

Camp Academia is situated at , which is 3.6 km east of

Orpheus Gate Orpheus Gate (Orfeeva Porta \or-'fe-e-va 'por-ta\), also ''Orpheus Pass'', is the 548 m high and 380 m wide pass in eastern Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica, bounded by Pliska Ridge to the southeast and Burdick Ridge ...

, 5.25 km east-southeast of

Rezen Saddle Rezen Saddle ( bg, Rezenska Sedlovina \'re-zen-ska se-dlo-vi-'na\) is a geographical feature on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. The 600 m long horseshoe-shaped flat saddle of elevation 420 m lies between Rezen Kno ...

, 3.2 km south-southeast of

Omurtag Pass Omurtag Pass (Omurtagov Prohod \o-mur-'ta-gov 'pro-hod\) is a 720 m high pass between Mount Bowles and Ticha Peak in Bowles Ridge, Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica and is part of an overland route between the Wörne ...

, 4 km southwest of

Pirdop Gate Pirdop Gate (Pirdopska Porta \pir-'dop-ska 'por-ta\) is a 300-m wide pass between Maritsa Peak and Atanasoff Nunatak in eastern Bowles Ridge, Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. It has an elevation of 376 m at its north ...

, 1.68 km west of Lozen Saddle, 7.1 km west of

Karnobat Pass Karnobat Pass (Karnobatski Prohod \kar-no-'bat-ski 'pro-hod\) is a 220 m wide and 720 m high pass in Levski Ridge in Tangra Mountains, Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. It is bounded by Helmet Peak to the south and In ...

, and 2.68 km north-northwest of

Gallery

File:Academia-4.jpg, Camp Academia with

and

File:Academia-3.jpg, Camp Academia with

File:Academia-5.jpg, Camp Academia with Zograf Peak and

File:Academia-6.JPG, Camp Academia with Zograf Peak,

and

File:Camp-Academia-02.jpg, Camp Academia on New Year's Eve File:Academia-2.jpg, Post office Tangra 1091 File:Tangra-Mail.jpg, A letter from Camp Academia File:Camp-Academia-Map.jpg, Camp Academia on a 2005 map of Livingston Island File:Tangra-2004-5-Survey-Route.png, The central-eastern region of Livingston Island with Camp Academia and the expedition route of the

Survey File:Livingston-Island-Map-2010-15.png, Topographic map of Livingston Island with the bases and base camps on the island

Maps

* L.L. Ivanov et al. Antarctica: Livingston Island and Greenwich Island, South Shetland Islands (from English Strait to Morton Strait, with illustrations and ice-cover distribution). Scale 1:100000 topographic map. Sofia: Antarctic Place-names Commission of Bulgaria, 2005. * L.L. Ivanov. Antarctica: Livingston Island and Greenwich, Robert, Snow and Smith Islands. Scale 1:120000 topographic map. Troyan: Manfred Wörner Foundation, 2010. (First edition 2009. ) * L.L. Ivanov. Antarctica: Livingston Island and Smith Island. Scale 1:100000 topographic map. Manfred Wörner Foundation, 2017.
Antarctic Digital Database (ADD).
Scale 1:250000 topographic map of Antarctica. Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR). Since 1993, regularly upgraded and updated.

Notes

Sources

* L.L. Ivanov
Livingston Island
Tangra Mountains, Komini Peak, west slope new rock route; Lyaskovets Peak, first ascent; Zograf Peak, first ascent; Vidin Heights, Melnik Peak, Melnik Ridge, first ascent, ''The American Alpine Journal'', 2005, 312-315.
Antarctica: Livingston Island
''Climb Magazine'', Issue 14, Kettering, UK, April 2006, 89-91. * Ivanov, L.L
''Bulgaria in Antarctica. South Shetland Islands. Livingston Island and Greenwich, Robert, Snow and Smith Islands''.
Sofia: Manfred Wörner Foundation, 2009. 16 pp., with a folded map. * Ivanov, L. and N. Ivanova
''The World of Antarctica''.
Generis Publishing, 2022. 241 pp.
2014 Bulgarian edition of the book
* Ivanov, L
General Geography and History of Livingston Island.
In: ''Bulgarian Antarctic Research: A Synthesis''. Eds. C. Pimpirev and N. Chipev. Sofia: St. Kliment Ohridski University Press, 2015. pp. 17–28.

External links

(in German)
Antarctic Place-names Commission of Bulgaria

Spanish Antarctic Base Juan Carlos I
(in Spanish)
Camp Academia locality.
Copernix satellite image {{Antarctica Outposts of the South Shetland Islands Bulgaria and the Antarctic Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Geography of Livingston Island Postal systems Outposts of Antarctica 2004 establishments in Antarctica