Amid federal research cuts, some Antarctic tourist cruises are sponsoring scientists

During Antarctica’s warm season, the sleek Norwegian passenger ship known as the MS Fridtjof Nansen departs regularly from Argentina for its journey south across the turbulent Drake Passage, down to the Antarctic Peninsula.

During Antarctica’s warm season, the sleek Norwegian passenger ship known as the MS Fridtjof Nansen departs regularly from Argentina for its journey south across the turbulent Drake Passage, down to the Antarctic Peninsula. The cruise carries wealthy adventurers, bucket listers and, increasingly, polar scientists looking to gather data as public funding for Antarctic research vanishes under the Trump administration. 

The National Science Foundation is one of the largest funders of scientific research in the world, with an annual budget of roughly $9 billion that supports the bulk of U.S. Antarctic research. Over the last few months, the Trump administration has ordered deep cuts to the agency, leaving scientists to wonder how they’ll study everything from melting glaciers and ice sheets to the impact of pollution from power plants and wildfires.

On Thursday, Sethuraman Panchanathan, the director of the National Science Foundation, resigned after the White House directed him to slash the agency’s budget and staff by more than half, according to exclusive reporting from Science. 

Panchanathan’s resignation follows an earlier order from Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to freeze funds for all new research grants at the National Science Foundation, and last week’s announcement that DOGE will be terminating over $200 million in “wasteful” research grants awarded by the agency. 

Some experts are concerned that the Trump administration’s ongoing cuts to the National Science Foundation may signal the end for American research in Antarctica.