030 The Quest for the South Pole

What this episode covers

Conquering the South Pole was probably the last great feat of the age of exploration. It is located in one of the most remote and inhospitable locations on earth. The nearest sea is 1,300 km away and it sits on top of a 2,700 m thick icy plateau. But Antarctica was also one of the last places to be discovered and investigated and the main events could be outlined as: 1820 Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen on the Vostok and Mikhail Lazarev on the Mirny are the first to report about Antarctica. 1821 John Davis and his crew are the first humans to set foot on Antarctica, but for a very short time. 1839-42 Charles Wilkes commands the U.S.Exploring Expedition that surveys large stretches of the coast of Antarctica. 1839-43 James Clark Ross commands an expedition that aims at determining the position of the magnetic South Pole, but from his circumnavigation and attempts to force the sea ice, it is determined that the continent is inaccessible by ship. 1901-04 During the Discovery Expedition, Robert Falcon Scott, Ernest Shackleton and Edward Wilson reach 82°17′S on dog sleigh on 30 December 1902. Jan 9 1909 during the Nimrod Expedition Ernest Shackleton, Jameson Adams, Frank Wild and Eric Marshall reach 88°23'S, just 180 km from the South Pole, before having to turn back. 14 December 1911 Roald Amundsen, Olav Bjaaland, Oscar Wisting and Sverre Hassel are the first humans to reach the South Pole. 17 January 1912 During the Terra Nova Expedition Robert Falcon Scott, Edward Wilson, Lawrence Oates, Henry Robertson Bowers and Edgard Evans also reach Pole but perish on the way back to the base. 1914 Ernest Shackleton endeavors a trans-Antarctic expedition but his ship Endurance is crushed by the ice and the resulting journey is a fight for survival. 1929 Richard E. Byrd with Bernt Balchen at the commands fly an airplane over the South Pole. 1956-57 during the International Geophysical Year the Amundsen-Scott base is established at the South Pole. 1989 Victoria Murden and Shirley Metz are the first women to reach the South Pole taking an overland route. 1989 Reinhold Messner and Arvid Fuchs are the first to reach the South Pole without animal or motor help. 2011 Christian Eide is the fastest and reaches the South Pole in 24 days. Announcement: New Photography-Podcast with Chris: The Future of Photography