The remains of a British meteorologist, who died in an Antarctic expedition in 1959, were recovered six decades later by a glacier, the British Antarctic survey announced on Monday.
They were identified by DNA tests as that of Dennis “Tink” Bell, who died at the age of 25 when he worked for the dependency survey of Iceland, which became the British Antarctic survey (BAS), the British Polar Research Institute.
Bell died on July 26, 1959 in Admiralty Bay on King George Island, which is located 120 kilometers off the Antarctic coast.
He was stationed on the island for a two -year mission on a small British research base.
Bell and three other men had set off to climb and examine a glacier when he fell through a column – a deep gap in the ice. His body was never recovered.
The remains of mortal, which were exposed by a back glacier, were found on January 19 by a team from the Henryk Arctowski -Polish Antarctic Station.
“This discovery brings a secret of decades and reminds us of the human stories that are embedded in the history of antarctic science,” said bas director Jane Francis.
The bone fragments were brought to the Falkland Islands by the Bas Royal Research Sir David Attenborough and then brought to London to the DNA test.
In addition to its remains, the Polish team also found over 200 personal items, including radio equipment, a flashlight, ski killer, a registered wristwatch and a Swedish knife.
Bell’s brother David Bell, who lives in Australia, said that after 66 years, the discovery “shocked and amazed” him.
“Dennis was the oldest of three siblings and was my hero because he seemed able to be able to transform his hand into everything,” said his brother.
Francis said the confirmation of the remains is “both a moving and a profound moment for all of us in the British Antarctic measurement”.
Bell “was one of the many brave … staff who contributed to the early science and research of the Antarctic under extraordinarily rough conditions,” she added.
AKS/JKB/TW