South Pole

by BRANDT, ANTHONY

• ISBN13: 9780792267973
• ISBN10: 0792267974
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-10-05
• Publisher: National Geographic

Summary

Terra Australius Incognito. Long before its discovery the ancient Greeks surmised that a continent must exist at the bottom of the world, writes Anthony Brandt in his introduction to this marvelous history of Antarctic exploration. The quest to find and explore Antarctica has consumed men and women ever since. The South Pole weaves together some of the great Antarctic adventure stories, as told by the explorers themselves: Ernest Shackleton's modest bravery rescuing his stranded crew: Roald Amundsen's account of being first at the Pole; Robert Falcon Scott's touching, tragic death. The book also includes little-known accounts that vividly describe the hardships, beauty, and extreme challenges of life in the most hostile environment on Earth. Readers will be surprised to discover Edmund Halley's amusing first description of penguins, Captain Cook's speculations regarding the source of Antarctica's huge tabular icebergs, and Douglas Mawson's heroic solo trek across the ice after losing his companions and his food. Anthony Brandt's authoritative narrative places this tapestry of characters and adventures into context and brings the story of Antarctic exploration from the ancient Greeks to the modern era. Book jacket.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION BY ANTHONY BRANDT	ix
PART ONE THE MYTH OF ANTARCTICA	1	(45)
EDMUND HALLEY	5	(8)
FROM The Three Voyages of Edmund Halley in the Paramore
CAPTAIN JAMES COOK	13	(33)
FROM The Journals of the Second Voyage 1772-1775
PART TWO ANTARCTICA UNVEILED	46	(92)
JAMES WEDDELL	51	(11)
FROM A Voyage Towards the South Pole Performed in the Years 1822-24
MR. JOHN BRISCOE, R.N.	62	(9)
Recent Discoveries in the Antarctic Ocean from the Log Book of the Brig Tula, 1833
MR. JOHN BALLENY	71	(19)
Discoveries in the Antarctic Ocean in February, 1839, including remarks by Charles Darwin
CHARLES WILKES	90	(27)
FROM The United States Exploring Expedition
JAMES Ross	117	(21)
FROM A Voyage of Discovery and Research in the Southern and Antarctic Regions, 1839-43
PART THREE THE TIME OF THE HEROES	138	(262)
ROBERT FALCON SCOTT	145	(21)
FROM The Voyage of the Discovery
OTTO NORDJENSKJOLD	166	(8)
FROM The Journal of the Swedish Antarctic Expedition
ERNEST SHACKLETON	174	(17)
FROM The Heart of the Antarctic
APSLEY CHERRY-GARRARD	191	(62)
FROM The Worst Journey in the World
ROALD AMUNDSEN	253	(52)
FROM The South Pole: An Account of the Norwegian Antarctic Expedition in the Fram
ROBERT FALCON SCOTT	305	(43)
FROM The Diaries of the Terra Nova Expedition
DOUGLAS MAWSON	348	(16)
FROM The Home of the Blizzard
ERNEST SHACKLETON	364	(36)
FROM South
PART FOUR THE SCIENTIFIC AGE	400
ADMIRAL RICHARD BYRD	404	(18)
"APRIL 1: GOD OF 2.5"
FROM Alone
LINCOLN ELLSWORTH	422	(24)
"My Flight Across Antarctica" FROM NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE, June 1936
SIR VIVIAN FUCHS AND SIR EDMUND HILLARY	446
"South Ice to the South Pole"
FROM The Crossing of Antarctica