page_title: Japanese Antarctic Expedition
section_title: Second Antarctic season
hierarchical_section_title: Japanese Antarctic Expedition / Expedition / Second Antarctic season
caption_attribution_description: Ross Ice-Shelf
context_page_description: The Japanese Antarctic Expedition of 1910–12, in the ship Kainan Maru, was the first such expedition by a non-European nation. It was concurrent with two major Antarctic endeavours led respectively by Roald Amundsen and Robert Falcon Scott, and has been relatively overlooked in polar history. After failing to land in its first season, the Japanese expedition's original aim of reaching the South Pole was replaced by less ambitious objectives, and after a more successful second season it returned safely to Japan, without injury or loss of life.
  The brainchild of an army reserve lieutenant, Nobu Shirase, the expedition was privately funded. It left Japan in November 1910, and after its first season's failure was forced to spend the winter of 1911 in Australia. In its second Antarctic season, 1911–12, it made no major scientific or geographical discoveries, but could claim some significant achievements. These included the first landing on the coast of King Edward VII Land, the fastest recorded sledging journey, and the most easterly point along the Antarctic coast, to that date, reached by a ship. It also became only the fourth team to travel beyond the 80°S mark.
context_section_description: Kainan Maru left Sydney in fair weather, and made good progress southwards. After celebrating New Year's Day in the traditional Japanese manner, on 4 January 1912 the expedition reached Coulman Island, the turning point of the previous season. The Ross Sea was open, and Kainan Maru proceeded swiftly south, so that on 10 January they had their first sight of the Great Ice Barrier. Appearing first  as a faint line on the horizon, as they grew closer it took on, Shirase later wrote, the appearance of "a gigantic white snake at rest". The next day,  close to the Barrier edge, they turned east to look for a likely landing place in the vicinity of King Edward VII Land. As they sailed beyond the Bay of Whales, the ship was attacked by a school of killer whales, who soon withdrew when they realised the nature of their attempted prey, but not before they had caused considerable alarm to the deeply religious Ainus, who prayed fervently throughout the attack.
  On 16 January, at 78°17'S, 161°50'W, Kainan Maru came upon a small inlet in the Barrier edge, which appeared to offer a suitable landing place. An advance party ascended the Barrier to examine the surface and judge its suitability for travel.  They reported that the terrain was full of crevasses, some thinly covered with ice and snow, and that surface travel for any distance would be well-nigh impossible. After naming the inlet Kainan Bay, they sailed away.
   
  Shirase now decided to divide the expedition into two parts. One party would land at the Bay of Whales and form a "Dash Patrol" that would make a southern march across the Barrier, with the dogs. Meanwhile, Kainan Maru  would take a second party to King Edward VII Land, where it would land and explore. This decided, the ship turned westward towards the Bay of Whales; as they approached, they found to their astonishment that another ship was there. After an initial speculation about  pirates, they saw as they drew nearer that the ship was flying the Norwegian flag, and realised that this was Amundsen's ship, Fram.   Thick sea ice had formed in the inner part of the bay, so Kainan Maru could  not approach the Barrier edge, and had to moor to the ice some distance away.
  On 17 January, two officers from Fram, Thorvald Nilsen and Kristian Prestrud, paid a brief visit to the Japanese ship. Communication  proved difficult, although the Norwegians were received hospitably, with wine and cigars.  Shirase had apparently gone to bed, and did not meet with these visitors.
caption: An inlet on the Great Ice Barrier edge
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