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Australia’s Aurora Expeditions celebrates 25th year

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Polar Pioneer will make an 18-day anniversary voyage later this year
Aurora Expeditions, founded by Greg Mortimer who was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for his mountaineering exploits and his wife,  adventure travel specialist Margaret Werner, is celebrating its 25th birthday this year.

Aurora Expeditions, named in honour of Sir Douglas Mawson’s ship, made  its first journey to Antarctica with a small group of intrepid  travellers in 1992.

The company has specialised in ship charters to take small groups of  passengers to the world’s wildest and remotest places. Over the years it has expanded its scope from polar exploration to include off-the-
beaten-track destinations, like Papua New Guinea and the Russian Far  East.

To mark its quarter of a century, Aurora will operate a ‘25 Year Anniversary’ expedition to Antarctica and South Georgia aboard Polar Pioneer, built in Finland in 1985 as a Russian research ship and 
refurbished in St Petersburg in 2000 to provide comfortable accommodation for 54 passengers.

The 18-day anniversary voyage aboard the ice strengthened 1,753gt vessel departs Ushuaia, Argentina, on December 27 and arrives in Santiago, Chile, on January 13, 2018.

One of Aurora’s original expedition leaders, Gary Miller, will be on board with other polar specialists. Dr Miller, who is a Research Fellow at the University of Western Australia, has had almost 30 
years’ experience in Antarctica and 15 in the Arctic.

Passengers will attend a special anniversary dinner on board and will receive a commemorative book, with photographs from the past 25 years.