Rodney Marks (astrophysicist) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Rodney Marks was an Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n astrophysicist

Astrophysics

Astrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of celestial objects, as well as their interactions and behavior...

who died from methanol

Methanol

Methanol, also known as methyl alcohol, wood alcohol, wood naphtha or wood spirits, is a chemical with the formula CH3OH . It is the simplest alcohol, and is a light, volatile, colorless, flammable liquid with a distinctive odor very similar to, but slightly sweeter than, ethanol...

poison

Poison

In the context of biology, poisons are substances that can cause disturbances to organisms, usually by chemical reaction or other activity on the molecular scale, when a sufficient quantity is absorbed by an organism....

ing while working in Antarctica.

Life and death

Marks was born in Geelong, Australia

Australia

and educated at the University of Melbourne

University of Melbourne

The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...

, later obtaining a PhD

Doctor of Philosophy

Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...

from the University of New South Wales

University of New South Wales

The University of New South Wales , is a research-focused university based in Kensington, a suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

.

Marks had wintered over at the South Pole station in 1997–1998, before being employed at the South Pole

South Pole

The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole...

with the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory

Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory

The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory is a research institute of the Smithsonian Institution headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where it is joined with the Harvard College Observatory to form the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics .-History:The SAO was founded in 1890 by...

, working on the Antarctic Submillimeter Telescope and Remote Observatory

Antarctic Submillimeter Telescope and Remote Observatory

Antarctic Submillimeter Telescope and Remote Observatory, or AST/RO, was a 1.7 meter diameter off-axis telescope for research in astronomy and aeronomy at wavelengths between 0.2 and 2 mm...

, a research project for the University of Chicago

University of Chicago

The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...

at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station

Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station

The Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station is the American scientific research station on the high plateau of Antarctica. This station is located at the southernmost place on the Earth, the Geographic South Pole, at an elevation of 2,835 meters above sea level.The original Amundsen-Scott Station was...

. He was engaged to Sonja Wolter, who was overwintering as a maintenance specialist at the base in order to be with him. Scott-Amundsen Pole Station is run by the National Science Foundation

National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...

, a United States government agency, although much work is subcontracted to Raytheon

Raytheon

Raytheon Company is a major American defense contractor and industrial corporation with core manufacturing concentrations in weapons and military and commercial electronics. It was previously involved in corporate and special-mission aircraft until early 2007...

’s Polar Services.

On 11 May 2000 Rodney Marks became unwell while walking between the remote observatory and the base. He became increasingly sick over a 36-hour period, three times returning increasingly distressed to the station's doctor. Advice was sought by satellite, but Dr Marks died on 12 May 2000 with his condition undiagnosed.

The National Science Foundation issued a statement saying that Rodney Marks had "apparently died of natural causes, but the specific cause of death ha[d] yet to be determined". The exact cause of Marks' death could not be determined until his body was removed from Amundsen-Scott Station and flown off the continent for autopsy. The case received media attention as the "first South Pole murder", although there is no evidence that Marks died as the result of the act of another person.

Investigations into death

Marks' body was held for nearly six months over winter before it could be flown to Christchurch

Christchurch

Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, the base for American activities in Antarctica, for autopsy. Once in New Zealand

New Zealand

, a post mortem established that Dr Marks had died from methanol

Methanol

poisoning. Both the United States and Australia agreed to a coroner's inquest being held in New Zealand.

Jurisdiction issues in the Antarctic are complicated; most American operations within Antarctica—including the South Pole base—are within the Ross Dependency

Ross Dependency

The Ross Dependency is a region of Antarctica defined by a sector originating at the South Pole, passing along longitudes 160° east to 150° west, and terminating at latitude 60° south...

territory claimed by New Zealand, from where supplies are dispatched. Without accepting New Zealand’s territorial claim, Americans have not questioned application of New Zealand law to their citizens operating in the Antarctic from Operation Deep Freeze

Operation Deep Freeze

Operation Deep Freeze is the codename for a series of United States missions to Antarctica, beginning with "Operation Deep Freeze I" in 1955–56, followed by "Operation Deep Freeze II", "Operation Deep Freeze III", and so on...

's Christchurch

Christchurch

base, while in accordance with the Antarctic Treaty, New Zealand has not questioned the use of U.S. Marshals in relation to crimes involving only Americans in the Ross Dependency.

An investigation was undertaken by Detective Senior Sergeant (DSS) Grant Wormald, of the New Zealand Police

New Zealand Police

The New Zealand Police is the national police force of New Zealand, responsible for enforcing criminal law, enhancing public safety, maintaining order and keeping the peace throughout New Zealand...

, at the direction of Richard McElrea, the Christchurch

Christchurch

coroner

Coroner

A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...

. A formal verdict has yet to be entered; a 2006 series of Coroners Court hearings and statements to the media raises questions from both the police and the Coroner’s Court if Dr Marks' poisoning was intentional. DSS Wormald said, "In my view it is most likely Dr Marks ingested the methanol unknowingly."

Dr Marks had been a binge drinker, using alcohol to mask his Tourette syndrome

Tourette syndrome

Tourette syndrome is an inherited neuropsychiatric disorder with onset in childhood, characterized by multiple physical tics and at least one vocal tic; these tics characteristically wax and wane...

. However DSS Wormald stated it was not credible to believe he had accidentally drunk the methanol

Methanol

, when he had ready access to a large supply of alcohol. Dr Marks had recently entered a new relationship, had nearly completed important academic work and had no financial problems. He had promptly sought treatment for an illness that confused him, and there was no reason to suspect suicidal intent.

DSS Wormald indicated that Raytheon and the National Science Foundation had not been cooperative. DSS Wormald stated, regarding the NSF conclusion that Dr Marks death was from natural causes: "We wanted the results of [the NSF] internal investigation and to get in contact with people who were there to ask them some questions," said Wormald. "They weren't prepared to tell us who was there "... "they have advised that no report exists. To be frank, I think there is more there; there must be", Wormald said. "I am not entirely satisfied that all relevant information and reports have been disclosed to the New Zealand police or the coroner".

Having obtained details of the 49 other people at the base at the time, DSS Wormald told a newspaper, "I suspect that there have been people who have thought twice about making contact with us on the basis of their future employment position". The U.S. Department of Justice also failed to obtain answers from the two organisations, which appeared to have denied jurisdiction.

In December 2006 the Christchurch Coroner reconvened the investigation, the results of which were widely reported; the coroners hearing in Christchurch was then adjourned indefinitely. Dr Marks' father thanked the New Zealand police, who he said faced an "arduous task of dealing with people that quite obviously don't want to deal with them".

In January 2007, seven years after the death, the case was again front page news in New Zealand, when documents obtained under America's Freedom of Information Act suggested "diplomatic heat was brought to bear on the NZ inquiry".

In September 2008, the written report resulting from the December 2006 inquest was released. The coroner could not find evidence to support theories of a prank gone awry nor foul play nor suicide.

The cause of the fatal methanol poisoning has never been determined, and the Marks family has given up hope of learning what happened. Paul Marks, Rodney's father, is quoted as saying "... And I don't think we are going to try to find out any more in regards to how Rodney died. I'd see that as a fruitless exercise."

Memorial

Mount Marks

Mount Marks is a broad ice-covered mountain rising to 2600 m 5 nautical miles north-northwest of Mount Speyer in Worcester Range. Named after Rodney Marks , an Australian citizen who died while conducting astrophysical research as a member of the 2000 winter party at the National Science...

, a mountain in the Worcester Range

Worcester Range

The Worcester Range is a mountain range in Antarctica standing between the Skelton and Mulock Glaciers on the western side of the Ross Ice Shelf. Probably named after the training ship in the Thames, in which many officers of early British Antarctic expeditions trained. Discovered by the British...

with a height of 2600 metres (8,530.2 ft) (78^o47'S, 160^o35'E) is named after Marks. A plaque was erected at the base, and the site of the South Pole in January 2001 is marked by a memorial to him.

Life and death

Investigations into death

Memorial

Further reading