Antarctica and ice shelves south of 60° S for the purposes of the Treaty System. The treaty was signed by twelve countries including the Soviet Union (and later Russia), the United Kingdom, Argentina, Chile, Australia, and the United States. It set aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve, established freedom of scientific investigation and environmental protection, and banned military activity on Antarctica. This was the first arms control agreement established during the Cold War. In 1983 the Antarctic Treaty Parties began negotiations on a convention to regulate mining in Antarctica. A coalition of international organisations launched a public pressure campaign to prevent
End of the Earth: Voyage to Antarctica End of the Earth: Voyage to Antarctica Creating End of the Earth: Voyage to Antarctica is a 2004 book by Peter Matthiessen published by National Geographic Books. The book describes two journeys taken by Matthiessen to Antarctica: the first is embarked upon from Tierra del Fuego in South America to the Antarctic Peninsula west of the Weddell Sea and the second is from Tasmania to the Ross Sea. The second journey was, therefore, taken to a position that is almost on the other side of the continent of Antarctica. These two trips were made between 1998 and 2001. Matthiessen discusses