National Institute of Polar Research

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History of the National Institute of Polar Research

May 1961

The Science Council of Japan advised the creation of the “Institute of Polar Research” (tentative) to the government

(April 1962) (“Polar Department” of the National Science Museum established)
(April 1970) (“Polar Department” reorganized as “Polar Research Center”)
September 1973 The National Institute of Polar Research established
Four research divisions, two document and data divisions, a management department, and an administrative department
April 1990 Arctic Environment Research Center (Current Arctic Research Center) established
Information Science Center (Current Communications and Computing Science Center) established

April 1993

NIPR became a Foundational institution for the Graduate University for Advanced Studies (SOKENDAI)
April 1995 Antarctic Environmental Monitoring Research Center established (~March 2004)
April 1998 Antarctic Meteorite Research Center established (Current Polar Science Resources Center SHRIMP Laboratory)
April 2004 NIPR was reorganized as part of Research Organization of Information and Systems (ROIS)
Center for Antarctic Programs established
Polar Science Resources Center established
May 2009 NIPR relocated to new campus in Tachikawa
July 2010 NIPR Polar Science Museum opened
April 2014 Ice Core Research Center established
April 2018 Central Administration Department Tachikawa Administration Department established
April 2022 Advanced Radar Research Promotion Center established
April 2023 International Polar and Earth Environmental Research Center established
September 2023 50th anniversary

History of Antarctic Expeditions

January 1912 Nobu Shirase Antarctic Expedition team reached lat. 80º
November 1956 First Antarctic expedition team departed upon the icebreaker ship “Soya”
January 1957 “Syowa Station” established
February 1962 “Syowa Station” closed temporarily
November 1965 Research vessel “Fuji” launched
January 1966 “Syowa Station” reopened
February 1969 Round-trip to the South Pole achieved
December 1969 First Antarctic meteorite discovered
February 1970 Observation by rocket
June 1970 “Mizuho Station” (observation base) established
October 1982 “Ozone hole” observed
November 1983 Research vessel “Shirase” launched
March 1985 “Asuka Station”established
February 1995 “Dome Fuji Station” established
December 1996 Ice core drilled to a depth of 2,503m
February 2002 Specialized ship was added for South Pacific expedition
February 2004 Intelsat satellite communication system activated
Obtained consistent Internet connection
January 2005 Aircraft observation base established on the continent of Antarctica
January 2007 Ice core drilled to a depth of 3,035m
November 2009 New “Shirase” launched
Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology's training ship "Umitaka-Maru" joined Antarctic research project
April 2010 Over 17,000 Antarctic meteorites collected
March 2011 “PANSY” large-scale atmospheric radar began recording data
April 2016 Japanese Antarctic Research Project Phase IX started (finished on March 2023)
March 2018 Initiated Totten Glacier observation
April 2022 Japanese Antarctic Research Project Phase X started
December 2022 Second deep ice-core drilling site at Dome Fuji area established

History of Arctic Researches

August 1976 Japan-France International Joint Observation in Norway
August 1977 Geomagnetic Conjugate Point Observation in Iceland
August 1984 Bipolar Aurora Conjugate Observation in Iceland started (up to now)
January 1991 Ny-Ålesund Research Station established
Joined International Arctic Science Committee (IASC)
April 1996 Joined European Incoherent Scatter Scientific Association (EISCAT)
March 1998 Japanese-German airborne Arctic expedition
April 2008 North Greenland Eemian Ice Drilling (NEEM) began (finished on 2012)
July 2011 GRENE - Arctic Project started (finished on March 2016)
April 2015 "Arctic Science Summit Week" was held in Toyama
September 2015 ArCS (Arctic Challenge for Sustainability) Project started (finished on March 2020)
April 2016 J-ARCNet started (finished on March 2022)
March 2018 Joined SIOS (Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System)
April 2019 Relocation of Ny-Ålesund NIPR Observatory
September 2019 June 2020 ArCS II (Arctic Challenge for Sustainability II) Project started
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