Family and friends support

Your friend or a member of your family will be working in Antarctica/The Arctic/on our Ship in the upcoming months, please find below some details of how to get in contact with them.

In Case of Emergency

+44 (0) 1223 221400 (via Reception)

Please do not hesitate to contact us if there is an emergency.  A member of Human Resources is always on call, so we can quickly pass information on to your relative or friend. If you need to pass on bad news to your contact, please inform HR so we can provide any necessary support.

If you change contact details or address, please let us know at employment@bas.ac.uk and please include in your message your relative/friend’s full name.

General Enquiries

+44 (0) 1223 221400 (via Reception) – Monday to Friday 8.30 to 16.30 (UK Time).

Contacting Someone in Antarctica

Email

Please speak to your relative or friend to get their British Antarctic Survey email address, they can also use their personal email address. Due to the way in which Internet is provided in Antarctica and on our Ships, it can be very difficult to receive attachments to emails (photos or videos) and it can be difficult to reply to emails received.

Messages in the field

Personnel in the field will have access to basic email. Their individual email address will be based on their BAS username followed by myiridium.net. For example, jbloggs@myiridium.net. Check with your contact before they leave to get their individual address, if this is not possible, contact servicedesk@bas.ac.uk who will be able to provide these details. This email is very limited so please do not send large attachments and expect delays in any replies.

Should there be a requirement to speak with someone in the field over the phone, please email your contact organising a time and phone number for them to phone. This form of communication is very limited so please bear this in mind when considering this option.

Post for Antarctica

Some post can be sent to Antarctica during the year but can only be delivered during Antarctic Summer (October to April). All post must be sent via Royal Mail, it will be delivered by our Ship, tourist vessels, or Royal Navy Ships and aircraft.  King Edward Point (KEP) can have post delivered throughout the year but in the Antarctic winter deliveries will be sporadic. The route for post varies and could be via Stanley on the Falkland Islands. Please note that due to the outbreak of the COVID-19, the above can be disrupted. For example, if you want to send a Christmas parcel via the Falkland Islands, please send it as soon as possible. We cannot guarantee that staff will receive the parcel on time.

 

You can find the Ship itinerary:

https://secure.antarctica.ac.uk/south/reports/itinerary.ship.php?numTravelTypeID=70

Please note the itineraries are always subject to change and cannot be guaranteed.

 

Post falls into two categories:

  • Letters and small packages (under 2kg) via Air Mail – Takes at least 14 days but can take much longer– Please ensure that you attach a customs declaration, obtainable from the Post Office to any small packages you send.

 

  • Packages (over 2kg) via Ship – Takes around 12 weeks but can take much longer – We strongly advise to insure any parcel sent and to obtain a delivery certificate from the Post Office. Those parcels must be addressed to:

 

Name and Base/Vessel

British Antarctic Survey

Port Stanley

Falkland Islands

FIQQ 1ZZ

South Atlantic

 

Please note that the cost of sending parcels can be prohibitive.

 

Contact Ship during Summer months

The itinerary for the RRS Sir David Attenborough (SDA) changes year on year. It is impossible to issue the itinerary for the coming season to all Next of Kin due to the unpredictability of their movements. Mail should be sent to BAS Cambridge for forwarding on to the ship, however due to the uncertainty of the SDA’s passage, we are unable to guarantee a timescale when the post will be delivered.

Those mail must be addressed to:

Name of Member / Name of Vessel

C/o Kath Nicholson

Attention: Logistic Stores

British Antarctic Survey

High Cross

Madingley Road

CB3 0ET

Cambridge

 

Staff serving on the vessels can be contacted by e-mail during this period in the normal manner.