It’s likely not realistic for everyone, but if you can, go.
Scientist here. I recommend going if you have a reason. I don't endorse tourism in Antarctica. I can confidently say, if we fuck up Antarctica, we fuck up the world, and if we fuck up the world, we're fucking with Antarctica. Both are true and while I think the thing that ecotourism does best is to promote existence value so that research can continue to get funding, I think we also shouldn't be encouraging everyone to go.
I spent an evening touring Antarctica via Google Earth and it was totally fascinating and scratched my curiosity itch. That's probably a better way of going about it. You can visit the various research stations that countries have set up. No additional gear required.
I loose sleep every night thinking about the increase in Antarctica tourism. I know you need permission to go to certain parts but exploration around the area has increased significantly… at a time when every break in an iceberg is felt
What exactly is the danger of some tourists walking around looking at penguins and icebergs? Antarctica is in serious danger from global warming, it's hard to image some extra footsteps are going to make much of a difference.
I assume (hope?) that tourism volume is strictly limited for just this reason. When I've looked it was around $15,000 or more for a cruise there from Tierra del Fuego.
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u/number93bus 5h ago
Scientist here. I recommend going if you have a reason. I don't endorse tourism in Antarctica. I can confidently say, if we fuck up Antarctica, we fuck up the world, and if we fuck up the world, we're fucking with Antarctica. Both are true and while I think the thing that ecotourism does best is to promote existence value so that research can continue to get funding, I think we also shouldn't be encouraging everyone to go.