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Antarctic Exploration
The First Antarctic Winter
J
ames Clark Ross
(1800-1862) was an
experienced Arctic and
Antarctic explorer.
B
orchgrevink (1864-
1934) wintered here on
Cape Adare. He was the
first to do so.
One sealing company had a keen
interest in scientific exploration. The
Enderby brothers told their captains to
explore new lands while seeking seals.
For 40 years their ships led Antarctic
exploration.
Magnetism
It was scientists in Europe working on
magnetism
who led the next stage of
exploration. Britain, the US, and
France each sent expeditions to find
the South Magnetic Pole.
James Clark Ross was an
experienced Scottish explorer who
had first gone to the Arctic when he
was 12. In 1831 he located the North
Magnetic Pole. In 1839, the British
Admiralty sent him to the Antarctic to
seek the South Magnetic Pole. His
ships,
Erebus
and
Terror
, were heavily-
built. They were strong enough for
Ross in the Antarctic, but were later
lost during Franklin’s expedition to the
Arctic (see pages 24 to 25).
B
etween 1778 and 1815 most of
Europe was at war.
Exploration of Antarctica
was left to sealers, whalers,
and private expeditions.
Searching for Seals
Cook’s voyage had alerted
sealers to the rich harvest
in the Antarctic. Sealers
came mainly from Britain
and the US and later from
Australia and France.
Some are remembered
in the names of places
they found. James
Weddell reached the
southern point 74° 15’S, a record at
the time, in the Weddell Sea. John
Biscoe sailed around Antarctica
finding Enderby Land and the Biscoe
Islands. He was the first person to
confirm seeing the mainland of East
Antarctica, describing black
mountains showing through the ice.