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Time of India
3 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
Body of British scientist found 66 years after vanishing in Antarctic ice
Dennis Bell, whose body has been found in Antarctica after more than half a century (Photo: British Antarctic Survey) Sometimes, the end of the story is far from imaginary. What if a person died over half a century ago, and his corpse is found now? That's what happened with a young British scientist who vanished in one of the coldest, most remote places on Earth. Sixty-six years ago, an Antarctic glacier swallowed a young British scientist during a routine expedition, Dennis 'Tink' Bell, a meteorologist whose life became tethered forever to the frozen frontier. His disappearance, once framed in mystery and sorrow, has finally met its epilogue through the patient work of scientists and the movement of glaciers. What exactly happened? In January 2025, a Polish research team stationed at the Henryk Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station made a discovery that would rewrite a decades‑old chapter of Antarctic exploration. Human remains, emerging from the melting edge of Ecology Glacier on King George Island, were found embedded among rocks and remained surprisingly preserved after some sixty‑six years of disappearance, according to a press release by the British Antarctic Survey. Those remains were confirmed through DNA analysis at King's College London. Forensic geneticist Professor Denise Syndercombe Court matched them with samples from Dennis 'Tink' Bell's siblings, concluding the likelihood of their relationship was 'more than one billion times' greater than not. Who is Ben, and how did he die? Bell, then 25, was a meteorologist with the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey, predecessor to today's British Antarctic Survey. In July 1959, while on a survey mission at Admiralty Bay, he fell into a hidden crevasse. His colleague Jeff Stokeseen again lowered a rope, and Bell secured it around his belt. As he neared the surface, the belt snapped, and Bell fell back into the chasm, never to be seen again. In early 2025, after the first discovery on January 19, a larger team of experts, including archaeologists, glaciologists, and anthropologists, returned to the site in February to carefully search the area. They recovered more of Dennis Bell's remains, along with over 200 of his personal belongings. These included items like parts of his radio, a flashlight, ski poles, a Swedish Mora knife, an engraved wristwatch, and even the stem of his old pipe. Once the recovery was complete, his remains were respectfully transported on the British research ship 'Sir David Attenborough' to the Falkland Islands. From there, with help from the Royal Air Force, they were flown to London. The process was overseen by Malcolm Simmons, the coroner for the British Antarctic Territory. Dennis's brother expresses grief Bell's brother David, now based in Australia, expressed the family's deep relief to the British Antarctic Survey, 'When my sister Valerie and I were notified that our brother Dennis had been found after 66 years, we were shocked and amazed. The British Antarctic Survey and British Antarctic Monument Trust have been a tremendous support, and together with the sensitivity of the Polish team in bringing him home, have helped us come to terms with the tragic loss of our brilliant brother. ' Dennis on the extreme right (Photo: BAS) Dennis Bell is now memorialized by Bell Point on King George Island. As his family determines how best to honour him, this belated homecoming is like a final measure of closure to a lost story of science, exploration, and enduring human connection.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Body of Antarctic researcher found 66 years after he disappeared exploring glacier
The remains of a 25-year-old Antarctic researcher have been found 66 years after he disappeared when he fell into a crevasse in 1959 during a survey mission, officials said. Dennis "Tink" Bell's remains were found among rocks exposed by a receding glacier at Admiralty Bay on King George Island, situated off the Antarctic Peninsula after he fell into a crevasse on July 26, 1959, and his team was unable to recover his body after the accident, the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said. Over 200 personal items were also found, including the remains of radio equipment, a flashlight, ski poles, an inscribed Erguel wristwatch, a Swedish Mora knife, ski poles and an ebonite pipe stem, the BAS confirmed. MORE: Prisoner escapes custody at airport while being transported by Department of Corrections officers MORE: $30,000 of stolen Labubus recovered in major California bust 'The remains were carried to the Falkland Islands on the BAS Royal Research Ship Sir David Attenborough and handed into the care of His Majesty's Coroner for British Antarctic Territory, Malcolm Simmons, who accompanied them on the journey from Stanley to London, supported by the Royal Air Force,' officials said. Samples of his DNA were then tested and compared to samples from his brother, David Bell, and his sister, Valerie Kelly, by Denise Syndercombe Court, a professor and forensic geneticist at King's College London, who was able to confirm that the remains found were that of Dennis Bell. 'When my sister Valerie and I were notified that our brother Dennis had been found after 66 years we were shocked and amazed,' said David Bell, who is now living in Australia. 'The British Antarctic Survey and British Antarctic Monument Trust have been a tremendous support and together with the sensitivity of the Polish team in bringing him home have helped us come to terms with the tragic loss of our brilliant brother.' MORE: Coast Guard suspends search for missing fisherman after boat with 4 crew members capsizes MORE: Royal Caribbean water slide malfunction injures cruise ship guest Dennis Bell set out from the Antarctic base with three other men and two dogs on July 26, 1959, and attempted to climb a glacier leading to an ice plateau they were trying to get to so that they could carry out survey and geological work. As they ascended the glacier, Bell, along with surveyor Ben Stokes, negotiated a crevassed area and believed that they were in the clear, according to the BAS. 'The deep soft snow made the going difficult and the dogs showed signs of tiredness. To encourage them Bell went ahead to urge them on, tragically without his skis,' officials with the BAS said in their statement recounting what happened. 'Suddenly he disappeared leaving a gaping hole in the crevasse bridge through which he had fallen.' MORE: 2 hikers rescued by helicopter from remote beach after rising tides cut off exit route MORE: Denmark zoo asks for people to donate their pets to feed its predators 'Despite the terrible conditions and the ever-present risk of falling into another crevasse they continued to search for the scene of the accident,' officials recounted. 'Ken Gibson [witness] remembers 'It was probably twelve hours before we found the site and there was no way he could have survived.'' The remains were discovered on the Ecology Glacier earlier this year in January by personnel from the Henryk Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station on King George Island, though officials made their discovery public on Monday. MORE: 9-year-old dies at Hersheypark's water park in Pennsylvania MORE: Man sentenced to time served for trying to open plane door, stab flight attendant in neck The family will now decide how to mark Dennis's memory. 'Dennis was one of the many brave FIDS personnel who contributed to the early science and exploration of Antarctica under extraordinarily harsh conditions,' Director of BAS Professor Dame Jane Francis said. 'Even though he was lost in 1959, his memory lived on among colleagues and in the legacy of polar research. This discovery brings closure to a decades-long mystery and reminds us of the human stories embedded in the history of Antarctic science.' Solve the daily Crossword
6 days ago
- Science
Body of Antarctic researcher found 66 years after he fell into crevasse while exploring glacier
The remains of a 25-year-old Antarctic researcher have been found 66 years after he disappeared when he fell into a crevasse in 1959 during a survey mission, officials said. Dennis "Tink" Bell's remains were found among rocks exposed by a receding glacier at Admiralty Bay on King George Island, situated off the Antarctic Peninsula after he fell into a crevasse on July 26, 1959, and his team was unable to recover his body after the accident, the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said. Over 200 personal items were also found, including the remains of radio equipment, a flashlight, ski poles, an inscribed Erguel wristwatch, a Swedish Mora knife, ski poles and an ebonite pipe stem, the BAS confirmed. 'The remains were carried to the Falkland Islands on the BAS Royal Research Ship Sir David Attenborough and handed into the care of His Majesty's Coroner for British Antarctic Territory, Malcolm Simmons, who accompanied them on the journey from Stanley to London, supported by the Royal Air Force,' officials said. Samples of his DNA were then tested and compared to samples from his brother, David Bell, and his sister, Valerie Kelly, by Denise Syndercombe Court, a professor and forensic geneticist at King's College London, who was able to confirm that the remains found were that of Dennis Bell. 'When my sister Valerie and I were notified that our brother Dennis had been found after 66 years we were shocked and amazed,' said David Bell, who is now living in Australia. 'The British Antarctic Survey and British Antarctic Monument Trust have been a tremendous support and together with the sensitivity of the Polish team in bringing him home have helped us come to terms with the tragic loss of our brilliant brother.' Dennis Bell set out from the Antarctic base with three other men and two dogs on July 26, 1959, and attempted to climb a glacier leading to an ice plateau they were trying to get to so that they could carry out survey and geological work. As they ascended the glacier, Bell, along with surveyor Ben Stokes, negotiated a crevassed area and believed that they were in the clear, according to the BAS. 'The deep soft snow made the going difficult and the dogs showed signs of tiredness. To encourage them Bell went ahead to urge them on, tragically without his skis,' officials with the BAS said in their statement recounting what happened. 'Suddenly he disappeared leaving a gaping hole in the crevasse bridge through which he had fallen.' 'Despite the terrible conditions and the ever-present risk of falling into another crevasse they continued to search for the scene of the accident,' officials recounted. 'Ken Gibson [witness] remembers 'It was probably twelve hours before we found the site and there was no way he could have survived.'' The remains were discovered on the Ecology Glacier earlier this year in January by personnel from the Henryk Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station on King George Island, though officials made their discovery public on Monday. The family will now decide how to mark Dennis's memory. 'Dennis was one of the many brave FIDS personnel who contributed to the early science and exploration of Antarctica under extraordinarily harsh conditions,' Director of BAS Professor Dame Jane Francis said. 'Even though he was lost in 1959, his memory lived on among colleagues and in the legacy of polar research. This discovery brings closure to a decades-long mystery and reminds us of the human stories embedded in the history of Antarctic science.'
New York Times
6 days ago
- Science
- New York Times
Remains of British Researcher Lost in 1959 Are Discovered Off Antarctica
Nearly seven decades after a British researcher plummeted to his death in a glacial crevasse off Antarctica, his remains have been identified and returned to his family, the British Antarctic Survey announced on Monday. The researcher, Dennis Bell, was 25 years old on July 26, 1959, when he fell into a chasm on King George Island, which is part of the South Shetland Islands and is about 75 miles north of Antarctica. Mr. Bell, who grew up in northwest London and was known as Tink, had been working as a meteorologist for the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey, the predecessor of the BAS, which oversees most of Britain's research in Antarctica. Blizzard-like conditions foiled a desperate attempt to rescue him by several other members of the expedition that he was on, according to the organization. This January, while combing through some loose rocks on the island at the front of the Ecology Glacier, which had receded, a research team from Poland discovered human remains that scientists later said matched samples taken from Mr. Bell's brother, David Bell, and sister, Valerie Kelly. 'When my sister Valerie and I were notified that our brother, Dennis, had been found after 66 years, we were shocked and amazed,' David Bell, who lives in Australia, said in a statement provided by the BAS. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Remains of researcher who vanished in 1959 found on Antarctic glacier
The remains of a British researcher who vanished in 1959 in Antarctica when he was 25 years old were discovered amid rocks near a receding glacier and identified using DNA analysis, the British Antarctic Survey said Monday. Dennis "Tink" Bell had been working as a meteorologist for the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey, the predecessor of the British Antarctic Survey, when he died on July 26, 1959, in a crevasse on a glacier at Admiralty Bay on King George Island, located off the Antarctic Peninsula. His body was never recovered. Bell and another man, Jeff Stokes, left the base they were staying in to survey a glacier using a dogsled, according to the survey. The snow was deep and the dogs began to show signs of tiredness, so Bell walked up to encourage them, but wasn't wearing his skis. He suddenly disappeared into a crevasse. According to accounts in the British Antarctic Survey records, CBS News partner network BBC News reported, Stokes lowered a belt to Bell and he was pulled up to the lip of the crevasse. As he reached the lip of the hole, though, the belt broke, and Bell fell again. He then no longer responded to his friend's calls. The Polish team that found Bell's remains also found over 200 personal items, including an inscribed watch, a Swedish knife, radio equipment and ski poles. "When my sister Valerie and I were notified that our brother Dennis had been found after 66 years, we were shocked and amazed," Bell's brother David told the British Antarctic Survey. David Bell said the work of The British Antarctic Survey, British Antarctic Monument Trust and the Polish team that brought Bell's remains home "helped us come to terms with the tragic loss of our brilliant brother." "I had long given up on finding my brother. It is just remarkable, astonishing. I can't get over it," David Bell, now 86, told BBC News. Jane Francis, the director of the British Antarctic Survey, called the discovery a "poignant and profound moment." "This discovery brings closure to a decades-long mystery and reminds us of the human stories embedded in the history of Antarctic science," Francis said. Bodies exposed by melting glaciers in recent years As glaciers melt and recede around the world, there has been an increase in discoveries of the remains of missing skiers, climbers and hikers. Last year, the preserved body of an American mountaineer was found in Peru, 22 years after he disappeared scaling a snowy peak there. In 2023, the remains of a mountaineer who had been missing for 37 years were recovered from a glacier in the Swiss Alps. In 2017, a shrinking glacier in Switzerland revealed the bodies of a couple who went missing in 1942. Jamie Lee Curtis: The 60 Minutes Interview Derek and the Dominos co-founder Bobby Whitlock dies Artisan bakers sparking sourdough boom Solve the daily Crossword
