The achievements of the late Antarctic explorer and much-loved UQ staff member Dr Alf Howard AM have been brought to life in a new book.
Author Dr Anna Bemrose pored through archives, conducted dozens of interviews and completed a five-week voyage across the Southern Ocean to write the biography, which honours the last surviving member of Mawson’s 1929-31 British, Australian and New Zealand Antarctic Research Expedition (BANZARE).
A bronze bust of Dr Howard greets visitors in the School of Human Movement Studies, where he worked as an honorary research consultant for two decades. In 2005 he generously donated $80,000 for the school to build a student computer lab, and also bequeathed a postgraduate travel scholarship.
Dr Bemrose, an honorary research adviser within the School of English, Media Studies and Art History, met Dr Howard 20 years ago after reading about him in UQ News.
“One could catch a glimpse of him crossing The University of Queensland campus with a knapsack on his back and sporting a cloth hat,” Dr Bemrose said.
“His white hair, moustache and spectacles conjured up images of Albert Schweitzer and David Livingstone.”
To mark Dr Howard’s 100th birthday in 2006, Dr Bemrose curated a special exhibition on his life at the UQ Library.
Dr Howard was the youngest member of the Antarctic expeditions, which took place across two successive summers on the Discovery, the same ship used by Robert Falcon Scott.
Dr Bemrose said Australia’s ambitious claim of 42 percent of the Antarctic continent was largely based on these voyages, which explored the coastline of Greater Antarctica and incorporated scientific studies in areas including geology, zoology and botany. Much of the research conducted during this time was not built upon until the 1970s.
The team’s hydrologist, Dr Howard conducted oceanographic experiments which marked the first contribution by an Australian chemist to Antarctic science.
“Our expedition accomplished a lot. We collected an enormous amount of data considering the limited means at our disposal and we opened a lot of doors,” Dr Howard said in a previous interview.
“But I think our greatest achievement lay in pointing to areas where research was inadequate or non-existent, such as determining exact Antarctic currents. We showed what still needed to be done.”
Dr Howard’s commitment to lifelong learning saw him earn a Bachelor of Arts with honours in linguistics at age 72. In 1993, he was awarded a UQ honorary doctorate, and in 2000 was named Senior Australian of the Year for his service to science through Antarctic exploration.
Mawson’s Last Survivor: The Story of Dr Alf Howard AM is published by Boolarong Press and can be purchased online. A book signing event with the author will take place at the Co-op Bookshop, UQ St Lucia, on November 16 from 12pm-2pm.
Media: Dr Anna Bemrose (0417 387 042, a.bemrose@uq.edu.au) or Cameron Pegg at UQ Communications (07 3365 2049, c.pegg@uq.edu.au)
