A rapidly shrinking glacier on the Antarctic Peninsula has revealed the remains of a 1959 expedition led by 25-year-old British meteorologist Dennis 'Tink' Bell, then working for the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey (FIDS), the predecessor of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), which reports the find.
Bell died in a crevasse on the Ecology Glacier in Admiralty Bay, King George Island, off the Antarctic Peninsula , on July 26, 1959, and his body had not been recovered until now. Now, the remains of the researcher and his equipment—approximately 200 items—have been discovered by a Polish research team among the rocks left exposed by the retreat of the glacier. The remains were identified through DNA analysis performed at King's College London, which confirmed their genetic compatibility with Bell's brother David and sister Valerie. Also found were parts of radio equipment, a flashlight, ski poles, an engraved wristwatch, a Swedish pocket knife, ski poles, and an ebonite pipe stem.
According to BAS Director Dame Jane Francis, "Dennis was one of many courageous members of the FIDS who contributed to early scientific discoveries and the exploration of Antarctica under extraordinarily challenging conditions. Although he passed away in 1959, his memory lives on among his colleagues and in the legacy of polar research. This discovery puts an end to a decades-long mystery and reminds us of the human stories embedded in the history of Antarctic science."
(Unioneonline)
