The German Antarctic North Victoria Land Expeditions, usually referred to by the acronym GANOVEX with an appended Roman numeral to identify a particular expedition, are a series of largely ship-based

geoscientific Earth science or geoscience includes all fields of natural science related to the planet Earth. This is a branch of science dealing with the physical, chemical, and biological complex constitutions and synergistic linkages of Earth's four spheres ...

expeditions, mainly to northern Victoria Land in Antarctica, though some work has been carried out at other Antarctic locations. The expeditions are sponsored by the ''Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe'' (BGR – the German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources) in conjunction and cooperation with government agencies and academic institutions in Germany and elsewhere. Originally work focussed on reconstructing the

Gondwana Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final stages ...

n breakup and relationships between Antarctica, Australia and the micro-continents of Tasmania and New Zealand. Subsequent research includes the geodynamics of the Paleozoic, 500 million year old, Ross Orogen on the edge of the Paleopacific Ocean, and the genesis of the

Cenozoic The Cenozoic ( ; ) is Earth's current geological era, representing the last 66million years of Earth's history. It is characterised by the dominance of mammals, birds and flowering plants, a cooling and drying climate, and the current configura ...

continental Ross Sea Rift and the uplift of its western flank in the area of the Transantarctic Mountains.

Expeditions

The first expedition (GANOVEX I) took place in 1979–1980. The second (GANOVEX II) took place in 1981–1982 but was aborted following the sinking of its supply ship ''Gotland II''. Subsequent expeditions were: * III – 1982–1983 – North Victoria Land * IV – 1984–1985 – North Victoria Land * V – 1988–1989 – North Victoria Land,

Oates Coast Oates Coast () is that portion of the coast of Antarctica between Cape Hudson and Cape Williams. It forms the coast of Oates Land, part of the Australian claim to the Antarctic. The eastern portion of this coast was discovered in February 191 ...

* VI – 1990–1991 – North Victoria Land * VII – 1992–1993 – Victoria Land, Oates Coast,

Marie Byrd Land Marie Byrd Land (MBL) is an unclaimed region of Antarctica. With an area of , it is the largest unclaimed territory on Earth. It was named after the wife of American naval officer Richard E. Byrd, who explored the region in the early 20th centur ...

* VIII – 1999–2000 – Victoria Land, Oates Coast,

George V Land George V Land is a segment of Antarctica part of the land claimed as part of the Australian Antarctic Territory, inland from the George V Coast. As with other segments of Antarctica, it is defined by two lines of longitude, 142°02' E and 153°4 ...

* IX – 2005–2006 – North Victoria Land * X – 2009–2010 – North Victoria Land * XI – 2015–2016 – North Victoria Land

References

Antarctic expeditions Germany and the Antarctic Victoria Land Geology of Antarctica Geological surveys {{VictoriaLand-geo-stub