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Learn About Explorers in Antarctica
By CruiseDirector | February 17, 2010
In 1912, Captain Robert Falcon Scott perished while making his journey back from the South Pole. Along with his fellow adventurers, he perished from lack of food and heat. Because of his ambition and persistence, and even though he lost the race to the South Pole and perished, he is known as a national hero. You can get the best antarctic tours information by visiting this website.
Because of several studies conducted through the years, we now know what types of severe conditions to expect when exploring Antarctica. In the winter, you can expect lows to drop down to a ridiculous minus 90 degrees Celsius and the wind can howl around 67 kilometers per hour. Scott’s team endured these circumstances and had little understanding of the true hazards they would face.
Letters he wrote to his wife while carrying out his research duties in the Polar Regions had heavy overtones of extreme seclusion. Even scientists today using modern communication devices feel this overwhelming isolation. When Scott was taken by the wilderness he left his wife and young son behind.
When Captain Scott’s body was discovered a few months after his death, correspondence to his wife were found as well. The doomed expedition was found only 11 miles from the supply camp. Scott’s wife was informed of her demise as she awaited his return back in New Zealand. To get a closer look on antarctica vacation visit this site.
There is a lot historians can get out of the letters found on Scott’s body. They begin by describing a man in excellent shape, who took pleasure in a good hot meal. The cold didn’t seem to be a problem, as the hot food made up for the bitter cold.
As the excursion progressed, though, and proper nutrition was growing scarce, Scott began to change his tune. Scott began to focus on the fact that the frigid weather was challenging and unrelenting. Letters express hunger, while taking an 11 mile trek, that Scott and company faced. They rationed there portions to one meal a day – one day hot, next two days cold.
Scott was an icon of the great age of exploration, but his journey was twice cursed. First, the race to the South Pole was lost to a Norwegian named Roald Amundsmen. Scott and his team arrived at the South Pole on January 18, 1912, while Amundsen arrived almost a month earlier on December 21, 1911.
Scott was referred to as a national hero due to his previous explorations of Antartic during the years 1902-1904. Nearing the end of the 1912 expedition, along with Lt. Henry Bowers and Dr. Edward Wilson, he fought for survival until the very end. Two others, Petty Officer Edgar Evans and Captain Lawrence Oats, had already died.
When they reached 20 miles from the supply post, the explorers put back some supplies. They had quickly run out of food and supplies. Scott wrote in his letters to his wife that she should remarry if he were to die, his letters described weathering temperatures 70? below zero in nothing but a tent.
It is evident from Scott’s last letters, that he never regretted the choice he made, to go on this trek that ultimately led to his death. He described the journey, saying he preferred it over relaxing at home in comfort. Many generations of British youths have been inspired by Scott’s courage and determination.
Although his journey was not a first place victory in reaching Antarctica (second to Amundsen by only weeks), Captain Robert Scott’s legacy is still unquestionable. Captain Robert Falcon Scott perished on March 29th of 1912. “Scott’s Last Expedition” is the book that was published in 1913, and it is Scott’s personal journal.
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