This journal is brought to you by:
- Brenda Silberman and her 4th grade APEX students at Bailey Station Elementary
- Mrs. Virden and her 5st grade CLUE students at Campus School
- The Pink Palace 3-5 grade homeschoolers
Closer Look at Antarctic Explorers. Photo taken at the entrance of Shackleton's Hut - another famous Antarctic explorer.
Antarctic Explorers - Part 1
Besides amazing sights and wildlife, Antarctica also has a fascinating history. There was a time when exploring Antarctica and trying to be the first to reach the South Pole became an obsession for a small number of resourceful and bold men. Their discoveries made news in their home countries and abroad. And when the quest to reach the South Pole turned into a competition, their story captured the attention of the entire world!
Robert Falcon Scott
Robert Falcon Scott (an impressive name, don’t you think?) was born near Devonport, a town in southwest England, in 1868. Scott’s family had a long tradition of military service, so it made sense for Scott to follow in their footsteps. He began preparing to join the navy at a very early age. Scott became a cadet on a training ship when he was only 13! He became an officer two years later. Over the next 15 years he built a successful career serving on several different ships in the British Royal Navy. Eventually he was made captain of a small ship. Along the way Scott impressed Sir Clements Markham, head of the Royal Geographical Society. In 1899 Markham offered the young officer a life changing opportunity to command an Antarctic expedition.
Signed photograph of Robert Falcon Scott after the Discovery expedition. Image courtesy of the British Royal Collection.
Map showing approximate location of Scott's home. Map courtesy of europe-maps.blogspot.com
Scott led the Discovery Expedition to Antarctica, spending 1901–1904 in Antarctica. This voyage that included experienced explores Edward Wilson and Ernest Shackleton. Despite all their experience they had plenty of trouble. Their ship, the Discovery became stuck in pack ice for two years in McMurdo Sound, which is home base for my own adventure. During the winter here, the entire sea turns into a thick sheet of ice. When Scott and his crew finally made it home, their adventure had captured the peoples’ imagination. Scott became a celebrity at home in Britain and abroad.
Present day McMurdo Station in McMurdo Sound. Photo courtesy of the United States Antarctic Program.
On June 15th, 1910, Scott and a crew of 65 men (chosen from 8,000 applicants) set out from Britain on what would become their most famous expedition. A competition had developed over who would reach the South Pole first: new expeditions by Australian, Japanese, and Norwegian explorers were either planned or in progress. And when it came time for Scott’s own voyage, he found himself in a race with Roald Amundsen.
Roald Amundsen
Amundsen was born to a family of Norwegian ship-owners and captains in the town of Borge, near Oslo, the capital of Norway. Like Scott, his family history drew him to the sea. However, unlike Scott, Amundsen knew he wanted to be an explorer from the start.
Photo of Roald Amundsen taken by Polish photographer Ludwik Szacinski. Image courtesy of Phillips Exeter Academy.
Map showing approximate location of Amundsen's home. Map courtesy of europe-maps.blogspot.com
He was a first mate on the Belgica during Adrien de Gerlache’s Belgian Antarctic Expedition (1897–99). The Belgica was trapped in the sea ice off Alexander Island, west of the Antarctic Peninsula, and the crew became the first to spend the winter on ship in Antarctica. Of course this would not be Amundsen’s last trip to the continent.
The Belgica trapped in pack ice. Photo credit: NOAA Photo library.
Amundsen originally made plans to go to the Arctic. However, after Frederick Cook (in 1908) and then Robert Peary (in 1909) claimed they reached the North Pole, he set his sights on Antarctica instead. But he did not make these plans known, hiding them from Scott, who was preparing his own expedition. Leaving on June 3, 1910 on his ship Fram, Amundsen did not even tell his crew that they would be heading to Antarctica until they reached the island of Madeira (located in the Atlantic Ocean near Spain). After he was on his way, Amundsen sent a telegram to Scott with a simple message: 'BEG TO INFORM YOU FRAM PROCEEDING ANTARCTIC—AMUNDSEN'
How do you think Scott felt after receiving this message?