Vale Rob Easther

Station Year Season
Davis 1986 Winter

The ANARE Club sadly advises that Rob Easther, OIC at Davis 1986, passed away on Wednesday 7 February 2024.

Rob Easther was a 1998 Antarctic Medal recipient.  He worked more than 20 years for the Australian Antarctic Division as a highly regarded Antarctic Station Leader, Voyage Leader and Field Leader, then an inspiring Expedition Manager for the Mawson’s Huts Foundation.  He took part in the 1983 “Anaconda II” yacht expedition to Heard Island.  Rob was was an enthusiastic sailor, pilot and motorcyclist, and had an impressive stable of aging vehicles.  And yet there was nothing he enjoyed more than shooting the breeze over a cuppa with good mates.

There will be a private cremation at Rob’s request. A celebration of Rob’s life is planned for 14 April, which would have been his eightieth birthday.

(Emails received from Phil Barnaart, 11 February 2024 and Jan Adolph, 13 February 2024)

Robert Easther’s Antarctic Medal Citation 1998

Robert Easther made outstanding contributions to the Australian Antarctic Program. In 1986, as well as his substantial duties as Station Leader, Robert organised and developed a safe, marked route across the Sørsdal Glacier and along the sea ice to enable a biology program at Amanda Bay to be conducted.

At Head Office as Station Manager he played a significant part in ANARE’s field program through his participation in operational planning committees for the Prince Charles Mountains, Heard Island, Lambert Traverse, Amery Ice Shelf and Bunger Hills field programs. Robert also played a major role in the selection and training of new expeditioners and in 1996, successfully acted as a mediator at Casey when difficulties arose within the station.

Robert led five Antarctic voyages and was cargo supervisor on another. He also served as Project Manager for the AAP Mawson’s Huts Foundation, which mounts expeditions to Cape Denison to carry out essential conservation work on the historic huts.

Source: Australian Antarctic Division

Contributions to the ANARE Club Aurora Journal

Antarctic Place Names

Easther Island, -69.3745, 76.2366

An island in the Larsemann Hills which somewhat resembles the letter “H”. Plotted from air photographs taken by the Lars Christensen Expedition 1936-37 and called Upsxy by Norwegian cartographers.

Named after Robert Easther, Officer-in-Charge at Davis in 1986, who helped to establish Law Base.