The Washington times., 1923-05-12
EXPLAINS PLANS
FOR HOP OFF
OVERPOLE
AmundSen Has 80 Per Cent
Chance to Succeed, Says
Expert.

In June Road Ammndsen tUitl
hop off from Alaska for has flight
across the North Pole. What are
has chances? III. II. Hammer, aOhO
arranged details of the daring
flight, says the explorers chances
are so per cent, sVhile lack of gGso-
line, 4OeGthe1' drifts and other I'm
foreseen dangers contribute q
20 per cent risk. Hammer is en-
route to Spttxbergem, where he aOill
greet the explorer If the flight IS
made safely or WiLt try to rescue
i AntaG1adseTc If he fails.
| BY III. HI. HAMMER.
4 written for and Copyrighted, 1928, by
Cosmopolitan News Service)
| EN- ROUTE TO SPITZBERGEN,
May 1.-THE navigation of the
monoplane on Captain Amundsen's
2 ,0O0-mile journey across the Polar
basin is the most interesting SUBJ
ject of his entire undertaking.
! Amundsen spent months on his cal
culations and studies on this par
ticular question.
In principle, the navigation in
the air is the same as on sea. In
flights over known territories, the
navigation is comparatively easy,
but when flying over unknown ter
| ritory, the navigator. will have to
steer after his compass and meas
4 ure his speed. He will then deter
mine his probable position by trac-
| ing his course. and. record the dis
lance flown on his chart. This po-
sition must be, checked through as
! Economical observations.
! What makes the trans Polar flight
4 particularly difficult is the enor-
1 nous deyiations. of :, the compass,
due to the close proximity of the
magnetic North. Pole
/ Flying after arstraight line drawn
/ from Point Barrow to the pole, the
| course, on the compass must be
changed continually, due to the
magnetic influences.
| Continual observations are neces-
sary in order to ascertain the posi-
! ton Of the plane. Observations
must be taken and figured out at
least every l1alf-hour during the en-.
| tire twenty-four hours in the air.
| If Amunsen's observations are in
! correct, and he has misjudged his
/ location, the course which he will
steer will send him in an entirely
wrong direction.
His Greatest Difficulties.
The grea Test difficulties in the
| navigation will be encountered by
Amundsen when he gets on toward
the pole, as calculations have shown
| that he must be in certain narrow
channel running right above the
pole in order to set true course
for Spitzbergen. He may think he
is within this channel and set his
course accordingly. but if his real
| position is slightly outside the chan
mel, the course taken will bring him
| to Siberia instead of Spitzbergen.
In other words, it will take him
almost in the opposite direction of
his goal.
| With nice, clear weather all the
way, sufficient confidence can be
placed in his ability as a navigator
to be sure that he will find his true
position. In that case ability
counts. Should he run into cloudy
weather and be unable to take OBJ.
! u,
| ity, will be the chief factor.
+ In case of bad weather, Amund-
sen has one way out of his diff
Guilty: To abandon his attempt to
4 reach Spitzbergen and take course
for Cape Columbia, on Grantsland.
The deviations do not interfere in
| that direction and he can pick up
a true course for Grantsland from
almost any position above the Arctic
I ocean.
/ The only instrument which
| Amundsen will use is a sextant
co uipped. with an artificial horizon.
4 This and a reliable watch, is all
he requires to take his observations.
@ Must Land at Pole.
1t is natural that Amundsen
would like to make a landing in
the vicinity of the pole. but such
a landing constitutes an additional
danger. Amundsen will only land If
perfectly level ice can be found.
There is a general belief that the
Temperature at the north pole is ex.
tremely low. This is a miscompre.
hension. In midsummer, when the
sun is over the horizon twenty.four
hours OF the day the temperature is
probably slightly above freezing
point. 1t is likely the power of the
sun has melted the surface snow and
there will be water on the ice.
Some stories had it the motor to
be used by Amundsen has de-
Perforated during the winters stor.
age under the severe climatic con.
ditions of the Arctic. Also that the
magnetic influences of the atmos
phere would have affected the mag
neto. These questions have been
investigated and were found to be
absolutely incorrect.
What then are Amundsen'e
chances. Some one has said 80
per cent. Perhaps they are right
Had Maud" stood by him, his
chances could probably have been
estimated at so per cent His
most serious danger in that case
would have been that the motor
would give out during the flight
Now in addition to that he stands
the danger Of running into unfavor
able weather. Still, considering
A uundsen's Judgment and ability
80 per cent is probably a fair esti.
mate.
Maud i'm Good Hands.
The observations Amundsen will
/ make on his flight and his geo
graphical discoveries. if any, will be
Of great value to the Maud" on
her drift, as she will have plenty