Emilio Palma

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Palmaand the second or maternal family name is Morella.

Emilio Marcos Palma
Born	Emilio Marcos de Palma (1978-01-07) 7 January 1978 (age 47) Esperanza Base, Trinity Peninsula, Antarctica [a]
Citizenship	Argentine
Known for	Being the first human born on the Antarctic mainland
Relatives	Jorge Emilio Palma (father) Silvia Morella de Palma (mother)

Emilio Marcos de Palma Morella (born 7 January 1978) is an Argentine man who was the first person born on the continent Antarctica. ^{[1] [2]}

Biography

Palma was born in Fortín Sargento Cabral at the Esperanza Base, near the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, and weighed 3.4 kg (7 lb 8 oz). His father, Captain Jorge Emilio Palma, was head of the Argentine Army detachment at the base. ^[3]

In late 1977, Silvia Morella de Palma, who was then seven months pregnant, was airlifted to Esperanza Base, in order to complete her pregnancy in the base. ^[4] Emilio Palma was born in 7 January 1978 and baptized at the Chapel of St. Francis of Assisi on the base. ^[5]

He is featured in the Guinness Book of Records as the first person born on the continent. ^{[6] [ better source needed ]}

See also

• Demographics of Antarctica
• Solveig Gunbjørg Jacobsen

Notes

1. This area was and is still disputed between the Argentine Antarctic Territory, British Antarctic Territory and Chilean Antarctic Territory.

References

1. Alexander Kumar; Sophie Duong (2012). "Surviving on the Edge: Medicine in Antarctica" (PDF). Issues (100). Control Publications: 24. ISSN   0819-8101.
2. Frye, Ellen C. (2022). "8 - The ant-architecture of religion and spirituality in Antarctica". In Kelman, Ilan (ed.). Antarcticness - Inspirations and imaginaries (PDF). Google Scholar: UCL Press. p. 119. ISBN   978-1-80008-146-8.
3. "Life found under S Pole ice shelf". The Times. 10 January 1978.
4. "Born Freezing: Meet Antarctica's First Citizen". WebEcoist. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
5. "Chapel of San Francisco de Asís. Base Esperanza (WAP ARG-Ø4)". Worldwide Antarctic Program. 2018-04-21. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
6. The Guinness Book of Records. 1986. p. 17.