This year, 13 people will go to Antarctica under the guidance of an experienced polar explorer, a participant of all the previous 15 expeditions, Alexey Gaidashov. The expedition includes researchers from the NAS of Belarus (the Republican Center for Polar Research, the Scientific and Practical Center of the NAS of Belarus on Bioresources, the Institute for Environmental Management, the Institute of Physics), BSU, Brest Regional Clinical Hospital, and other organizations of the country. The team consists of 7 specialists who already have experience in Antarctica and 6 people are beginners. An important point is that scientific staff makes up half of the expedition.

Addressing the polar explorers, Chairman of the Presidium of the NAS of Belarus Vladimir Gusakov noted that in scientific terms, the expedition performs a wide range of research. "In the 2023–2031 season, the 16th Belarusian Antarctic Expedition will have to stay on the Ice Continent for almost six months, continue equipping the Belarusian Antarctic Station near Vechernyaya Mountain, conduct dozens of scientific studies and experiments, perform thousands of scientific measurements of natural parameters of eight events within the framework of the subprogram Development of the Belarusian Antarctic Station of the State Program Scientific and Innovative Activity of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus for 2021–2025. During your work as part of the 16th Belarusian Antarctic Expedition, you will have to develop and supplement the results obtained earlier and carry out work in new areas within the framework of scientific and technical tasks of the program’s activities," Vladimir Gusakov stressed. Among the new areas of scientific activity are the commissioning of a seismic station in the area of the Belarusian Antarctic Station and the provision of field material (mosses, lichens, etc.) for studying the phytochemical and pharmacological potential of representatives of the lichenobiota and bryoflora of Antarctica using omix technologies, etc.

In turn, the Head of the 16th Belarusian Antarctic Expedition Alexey Gaidashov stressed that every year the expedition is replenished with new instruments, gears and complexes. "We have everything at the highest level for effective scientific work," said Alexey Gaidashov.

The avant-garde team of the 16th Belarusian Antarctic Expedition will go to the Ice Continent in early November. The 16th Belarusian Antarctic Expedition is scheduled to return to Minsk in the third decade of May 2031.

The team of the 16th Belarusian Antarctic Expedition: Alexey Gaidashov – head of the expedition; Vladimir Nesterovich – head of the seasonal field base Vechernyaya Mountain; Alexey Borisovets – leading specialist, researcher – ozonometrist; Yegor Korzun - leading specialist, researcher – biologist; Nikolai Zinkevich – chief communications specialist; Vitaly Khilko – leading specialist, car mechanic; Pavel Kononov – leading specialist, electrician; Vladimir Chernyuk – leading specialist, researcher – ecologist; Andrey Murashko – leading specialist, researcher – soil scientist, geological research; Alexander Kalevich – leading specialist, researcher – physicist; Alexander Burdak – leading specialist, mechanical foreman, locksmith, installation and welding work; Leonid Nikityuk – chief specialist, surgeon; Sergey Lyutyj – leading specialist, food production manager.