60th Anniversary of the Formation of the British Antarctic Territory - 2022 Proof Fine Silver with Goldclad® £2 Coin - BAT

The Territory includes the South Shetland Islands, South Orkney Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula, and extends to the South Pole. The British Antarctic Territory forms the largest and most southerly of the UK’s 14 Overseas Territories, with over 99% of the Territory covered in a permanent ice sheet. The UK’s claim to this part of Antarctica is the oldest of any made on the continent. The permanent UK presence in Antarctica began in 1944 with Operation Tabarin, which continued through the Falkland Islands Dependency Service (FIDS). For the past 60 years, the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) has provided a year-round presence in the British Antarctic Territory, leading the UK’s scientific research in Antarctica, and playing a crucial role in understanding the impacts of climate change on the continent.