116 Mysterious Antarctic Murders

Published: Dec. 15, 2020, 5 a.m.

Watch this on video | Buy us a coffee: Chris / [Henry (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/aguycalledpaul)\nEven the most remote continent without a native population and only roughly a thousand scientists during wintertime is not free from crime. And maybe it is precisely the desolate location and seclusion that drives some people out of their minds. Enclosed in a very small space with a handful of people who cannot be chosen with six months of total darkness people are under significantly higher stress and the stress induced by harsh winter conditions on the continent has been known to take its toll on residents and explorers of the Antarctic. If you\u2019re stuck there with somebody you really can\u2019t stand, too bad. You\u2019re stuck with them. And if you\u2019re missing somebody who\u2019s far away, too bad. You\u2019re stuck without them. Apart from that, Antarctic stations are largely not designed to be your fancy home away from home, they can be dull places to live. They\u2019re designed to minimise construction cost, rather than keep people amused, interested and comfortable, and extreme weather can make stepping outside for a change of scenery difficult, dangerous or impossible.\nUnder these conditions, some people thrive by developing a sense of solidarity and teamwork. Others may become depressed and change their behaviour. One station cook began serving unpalatable meals to his crew-mates after a love affair with a co-worker went sour until the group revolted and frightened him back into line. In an extreme case at Russia\u2019s Vostok station in 1959, a scientist became unhinged after losing a game of chess, and murdered his opponent with an axe. Chess was subsequently banned at Russian Antarctic stations. And in 2000 an Australian astrophysicist died mysteriously from methanol poisoning at the Amundsen\u2013Scott South Pole Station. Due to complicated jurisdiction in Antarctica the scientist\u2019s body was held for nearly six months over winter before it could be flown to Christchurch, New Zealand, the base for American activities in Antarctica, for autopsy. Until today, the circumstances of his death remain a mystery.