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What Happens If There's a Murder in Antarctica?

No single government controls the South Pole, so how do they deal with crime?

Matthew Petti | From the April 2026 issue

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Antarctica is the last terra nullius (no man's land) on Earth. Under the 1959 Antarctic Treaty, no state can claim sovereignty over the frozen continent. But thousands of people pass through every year as part of research projects or tourist expeditions. And where there are human beings, there is violence. So how do they deal with crime at the South Pole?

The boring answer is that Antarctic missions usually fall under the jurisdiction of their home country. For example, the manager of the U.S. Antarctic Program's McMurdo Station is........

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