Australia

Brief description

The Antarctic Division took over from the Antarctic Section of the Administrative Division of the Department of External Affairs with the appointment of Phillip Law as Officer-in-Charge. The decisions to create the Division were taken in 1948. The Division appears to have assumed the name "Australian Antarctic Division" sometime in the 1990s. From their Web site 19 July 2000: 'The Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) is the lead agency for Australia's Antarctic Program. The AAD is responsible for the co-ordination and management of the ASAC (Antarctic Science Advisory Committee) programs; for conducting research in high-priority areas of Antarctic science; for co-ordinating and managing Australia's shipping and field program in Antarctica; and for administering the Australian Antarctic Territory and the subantarctic Territory of Heard and Macquarie Islands.'