The Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration
This map shows the routes of Scott, Amundsen, Shackelton, and other explorers of the heroic age of Antarctic Exploration. Map from PBS
Antarctica remained a mystery until the early eighteen and nineteen hundreds when explorers first began looking for land in the far south latitudes. Among the most well known of the early expeditions was that of Admiral Sir James Clark Ross. In 1839 he sailed from England with two ships, the Erebus and the Terror. After a voyage through the Atlantic and on to New Zealand, he entered Antarctic waters on New Years Day, 1841. He continued south and was the first European to see what are now called Mt. Erebus and Mt. Terror which were named for his two ships. The island on which these mountains are located was later named Ross Island in his honor. This is the island on which McMurdo Station is located. Ross continued his exploration, trying to go further south, but he was unable to go sail through the ice.
Many other explorers sailed south over the next 60 years, exploring some coastal areas and adding to the knowledge of the edges of the continent, but none explored the inland areas of the Antarctic until the 1900’s. In 1901 Commander Robert Falcon Scott left England to conduct a scientific exploration of the Antarctic contintent. On board his ship the Discovery was another man who would also make history, Earnest Shackleton.
Commander Robert Falcon Scott
Commander Robert Falcon Scott in Antarctica. Photo from BBC
The first Scott expedition reached the Ross Sea in early January of 1902. They built a hut on what is now known as Discovery Point, next to the McMurdo Station. It was used during 1902 and 1903, although it was found to be a poor accommodation for the Antarctic climate because it apparently was colder than the tents the parties used at the time.
The hut built by Scott and his men in 1902 from a kit. It turned out to be a poor design for the Antarctic and they subsequently often lived next to it in tents to have warmer quarters.
Scott returned in 1911-1912 to make a run for the South Pole. As it turned out he was in a race with Roald Amundsen, a Norwegian, to reach the pole first. Amundsen beat Scott to the pole by one month. Scott found that Amundsen had left a flag and note at the South Pole. Disheartened by not being first to the pole, Scott turned around and headed back to his hut on McMurdo Sound. He and his party never made it back. They were trapped by storms only from a supply depot. Here Scott and the 4 men with him died in March of 1912. His notes and diary were recovered later that year. The story of hardship and tragedy which was the Scott expedition remains one of the great epics of Antarctic Exploration.
The Terra Nova, Scotts ship on the 1912 expedition. From Daily Mail.
The hut is an international historic site, protected and maintained in its original condition. The WISSARD team visited the hut on Friday, November 23. These pictures show the actual supplies still within the hut today. Think about the conditions that Scott and his men endured spending a dark winter in this small building, eating the goods they brought with them as well as seal meat and blubber (fat), all cooked on a smoky, sooty stove that was fueled by seal blubber.
Many of the providers had their cases specially made to advertise the items that were on the Scott expedition.
The crates are the originals brought by Scott in 1910.
Scott used sled dogs and ponies to haul sleds in 1912. These were the cases in which the dog biscuits were shipped for the expeditiion
These are the clothing used by Scott and his men. They were constantly mending their clothes to try to keep them usable.
This is a block of seal blubber used for fuel. It was obtained in 1912 and has remained whole since then because of the extreme cold and dry conditions of Antarctica.
This is the stove used by Scotts men to cook their meals. It used seal blubber (fat) for fuel. The whole hut interior is covered with the soot from the stove. It made for a very unpleasant experience for the men living in the hut.
Biscuits (crackers) used by Scotts team on their South Pole trek.
Here I am on Discover Point when we were exploring the hut. Thanks to John Winans for snapping this picture.