Sydney Lorrimar Kirkby, (born 1933) is an Australian surveyor and

Antarctic The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...

explorer.

Work

Syd Kirkby was first appointed as Surveyor at

Mawson Station The Mawson Station, commonly called Mawson, is one of three permanent bases and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Mawson lies in Holme Bay in Mac. Robertson Land, East Antarctica in the Austra ...

for 1956, the third year of

ANARE The Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions (ANARE ) is the historical name for the Australia: Antarctic Program#Australian Antarctic program, Australian Antarctic Program (AAp) administered for Australia by the Australian Antarctic D ...

operations in

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 contine ...

. Syd Kirkby was Surveyor and/or Station Leader of the ANARE 16-month wintering party at Mawson Station for three years: 1956-57, 1960–61, 1980-81. Additionally, he was a member of the summer operations team for four years: 1961-62, 1962–63, 1964–65 and 1979-80. Kirkby's many accomplishments in Antarctica include establishment of the easternmost, westernmost, and southernmost astrofixes in

Australian Antarctic Territory The Australian Antarctic Territory (AAT) is a part of East Antarctica claimed by Australia as an external territory. It is administered by the Australian Antarctic Division, an agency of the federal Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Env ...

. During his first expedition (1956–57), he was the first man to venture into the

Prince Charles Mountains The Prince Charles Mountains are a major group of mountains in Mac. Robertson Land in Antarctica, including the Athos Range, the Porthos Range, and the Aramis Range. The highest peak is Mount Menzies, with a height of . Other prominent peaks a ...

with sled dogs. In the autumn of 1960, he and his team journeyed 400 kilometres through

Enderby Land Enderby Land is a projecting landmass of Antarctica. Its shore extends from Shinnan Glacier at about to William Scoresby Bay at , approximately of the earth's longitude. It was first documented in western and eastern literature in February 183 ...

from the

Napier Mountains The Napier Mountains are a group of close set peaks, the highest being Mount Elkins, at about 2,300 meters above sea level. This mountain range is located in Enderby Land, in the claimed Australian Antarctic Territory, East Antarctica. Location ...

to Mawson station. Between 1961 and 1965, he surveyed more Antarctic territory than any other explorer. His contributions have made a significant impact on the fields of regional

geochronology Geochronology is the science of determining the age of rocks, fossils, and sediments using signatures inherent in the rocks themselves. Absolute geochronology can be accomplished through radioactive isotopes, whereas relative geochronology is pr ...

petrology Petrology () is the branch of geology that studies rocks and the conditions under which they form. Petrology has three subdivisions: igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary petrology. Igneous and metamorphic petrology are commonly taught together ...

tectonics Tectonics (; ) are the processes that control the structure and properties of the Earth's crust and its evolution through time. These include the processes of mountain building, the growth and behavior of the strong, old cores of continents k ...

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

orogeny Orogeny is a mountain building process. An orogeny is an event that takes place at a convergent plate margin when plate motion compresses the margin. An ''orogenic belt'' or ''orogen'' develops as the compressed plate crumples and is uplifted t ...

glaciology Glaciology (; ) is the scientific study of glaciers, or more generally ice and natural phenomena that involve ice. Glaciology is an interdisciplinary Earth science that integrates geophysics, geology, physical geography, geomorphology, climato ...

, geomagnetism, and

paleomagnetism Paleomagnetism (or palaeomagnetismsee ), is the study of magnetic fields recorded in rocks, sediment, or archeological materials. Geophysicists who specialize in paleomagnetism are called ''paleomagnetists.'' Certain magnetic minerals in rock ...

Awards and recognition

Many geographical features in and around Australian Antarctic Territory have been named for Syd Kirkby. Some of these are: *

Mount Kirkby The Porthos Range is the second range south in the Prince Charles Mountains of Antarctica, extending for about 30 miles in an east-to-west direction between Scylla Glacier and Charybdis Glacier. First visited in December 1956 by the Australian Natio ...

in the

Porthos Range The Porthos Range is the second range south in the Prince Charles Mountains of Antarctica, extending for about 30 miles in an east-to-west direction between Scylla Glacier and Charybdis Glacier. First visited in December 1956 by the Australian Natio ...

of the

Kirkby Head Kirkby Head is a sheer coastal outcrop on Tange Promontory in Enderby Land, Antarctica, which is claimed by Australia as part of the Australian Antarctic Territory. Continental ice reaches almost to the top on its southern side. It is located at t ...

Tange Promontory Tange Promontory is an ice-covered peninsula just west of Casey Bay on the coast of Enderby Land in Antarctica. Kirkby Head is a sheer coastal outcrop on Tange Promontory, at the east side of the entrance to Alasheyev Bight. Tange Promontory was ...

, near the Russian Molodezhnaya Station *

Kirkby Shoal Kirkby Shoal is a small shoal area with depths of less than extending about westwards and south-southwestwards, about from the summit of Shirley Island, Windmill Islands, and northwest of Stonehocker Point, Clark Peninsula. Discovery and na ...

Newcomb Bay Newcomb Bay is a sheltered bay about 1 mile (1.6 km) in extent, between Clark Peninsula and Bailey Peninsula in the Windmill Islands area. First mapped from U.S. Navy Operation Highjump aerial photographs taken in February 1947. In Februar ...

, near

Casey Station Casey Station, commonly called Casey, is one of three permanent stations and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Casey lies on the northern side of the Bailey Peninsula (Antarctica), Bailey Peninsu ...

Shirley Island Shirley Island is a rocky island lying north-west of the western end of the Bailey Peninsula, in the Windmill Islands of the Budd Coast, Wilkes Land, Antarctica. It is mostly ice-free with undulating, rocky terrain. It was first mapped from ae ...

Windmill Islands The Windmill Islands are an Antarctic group of rocky islands and rocks about wide, paralleling the coast of Wilkes Land for immediately north of Vanderford Glacier along the east side of Vincennes Bay. Kirkby Shoal is a small shoal area with de ...

Kirkby Glacier Kirkby Glacier is a glacier, in length. This glacier drains the central Anare Mountains of Antarctica and flows northwest to the sea from Cape North, and just north of Arthurson Bluff, northern Victoria Land. Richardson Bluff rises from its e ...

on the eastern boundary of Australian Antarctic Territory in the

Trans Antarctic Mountains The Transantarctic Mountains (abbreviated TAM) comprise a mountain range of uplifted (primarily sedimentary) rock in Antarctica which extend, with some interruptions, across the continent from Cape Adare in northern Victoria Land to Coats Land. ...

Oates Land Oates Land is a region of Antarctica. It is variously defined as a portion of the East Antarctica near the coast stretching along and inland from the Oates Coast (see map) and as an officially delineated wedge-shaped segment of the Australian A ...

Other awards and recognition include: * the

Polar Medal The Polar Medal is a medal awarded by the Sovereign of the United Kingdom to individuals who have outstanding achievements in the field of polar research, and particularly for those who have worked over extended periods in harsh climates. It w ...

(1957) * Member of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(1965) * the Gold Medal of the

Australian Geographic Society Australian Geographic is a media business that produces the ''Australian Geographic'' magazine, ''DMag'' magazine, specialist book titles, travel guides, diaries and calendars and online media. It published editions of the Australian Encyclopa ...

as Adventurer of the Year (1997) * nominated by the newspaper

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition, ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964.Bruns, Axel. "3.1. The active audience: Transforming journalism from gatekeeping to gatew ...

as one of the ten greatest Australian adventurers of the 20th century (1999)

References

External links

Australian Antarctic Names and Medals Committee (AANMC)
*
United States Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS)

Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR)

PDF Map of the Australian Antarctic Territory

Mawson Station
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirkby, Sydney L. 1933 births Living people Explorers of Antarctica Australian Antarctic scientists Australian scientists Australian explorers Officers of the Order of Australia Australian Members of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Polar Medal

Work

Awards and recognition

References

Further reading

External links