The discovery of the Terra Nova shipwreck episode artwork

EPISODE · Mar 31, 2026 · 10 MIN

The discovery of the Terra Nova shipwreck

from Witness History · host BBC World Service

In 2012, a team of researchers discovered one of the most famous polar shipwrecks - the Terra Nova.The ship was famous for carrying Britain’s doomed explorers in their race to reach the South Pole more than a century ago.It was later sunk - laying unseen on the seabed for decades.Oceanographer Leighton Rolley tells Megan Jones how he and the rest of his crew used sound waves to find the hidden wreck.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more. Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.(Photo: The SS Terra Nova, Antarctica 1912. Credit: Royal Geographical Society/Getty Images)

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Mar 31, 2026

Embed this episode

Ready to play

The discovery of the Terra Nova shipwreck

0:00 10:57

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of Witness History?

This episode is 10 minutes long.

When was this Witness History episode published?

This episode was published on March 31, 2026.

Can I download this Witness History episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!