Amundsen Becomes First to Reach South Pole, December 14, 1911 - Scientific American Scientific American Amundsen Becomes First to Reach South Pole, December 14, 1911 Under the command of Roald Amundsen, the South Pole was discovered 100 years ago Advertisement | Report Ad One hundred years ago today the South Pole was reached by a party of Norwegian explorers under the command of Roald Amundsen. The existence of the pole had been known, but the inhospitable landscape presented a barrier until Amundsen’s party made the dangerous trek across ice and snow to stand at the geographical South Pole on this day a century ago. One of Amundsen’s competitors, Robert Falcon Scott and his party, achieved a different kind of fame: they arrived on January 17, 1912 to find they were second in the race to fame, and they perished on their way back north. News of Amundsen’s achievement was telegraphed to the world on March 7, 1912, on his return to Hobart, Australia. From Scientific American, Vol. CV1, No.

11, March 16, 1911 The Discovery of the South Pole It is much too early to give any critical account of Capt. Roald Amundsen's achievement. Many weeks must elapse before we are in complete possession of all his data. Yet even the laconic account, which he has cabled to the press, throws a flood of light on the mystery of Antarctic geography. Amundsen seems to have collected enough evidence to substantiate the theory that the great chain of mountains which extends almost uninterruptedly from Alaska to Patagonia finds its continuation in a ridge connecting Victoria Land and King Edward VII Land, and which, in honor of his queen, he has named "Queen Maude's Range." The ice barrier, which had proved for a century and a half a formidable obstacle to Antarctic exploration, is found to terminate in a bay, lying between the southeast mountain range running from South Victoria Land and a range which is probably a continuation of King Edward the VII Land and which extends in a southwesterly direction. Contrary to his original plan, Amundsen despatched one of his officers, Lieut.

Prestud, to survey the Bay of Whales and the great ice barrier and to explore King Edward VII Land, of which practically nothing is known. No doubt the spur of competition played its part in unfolding the secrets of the last unexplored frigid region of the earth. Amundsen and his party at the geographic South Pole, December 14, 1911. CREDIT: PHOTO COURTESY OF NORWEGIAN-U.S. SCIENTIFIC TRAVERSE OF EAST ANTARCTICA No less than four other expeditions were in the Antarctic regions at the time while Amundsen was forcing his way south. Besides Amundsen's, there was the Japanese expedition under Lieut. Shirase, which had to retreat to Australia last spring in order to replenish its supply of dogs, and which Amundsen says landed on January 16th at the Bay of Whales, two weeks before he sailed for home; Dr. Mawson's Australian expedition, for which $215,000 had been raised up to November 1st last, and which was to land three parties between Cape Adare and Gaussberg; the German expedition under Lieut.

Filchner in the "Deutschland," elaborately equipped with wireless, magnetic, and meteorological apparatus, full of the hope of establishing a base southwest of Coats Land in as high a latitude as possible; and lastly, Capt. Scott's English expedition in the "Terra Nova," which left New Zealand in November, 1910, badly damaged by stormy weather; so badly, indeed, that the necessary repairs and the cost of making good the stores that had been lost seriously depleted the resources of the party. Amundsen seems to have been helped by exceptionally favorable weather conditions. To be sure, there were storms, but not those frightful hurricanes which thwarted Shackleton. It was cold, so cold that the dogs suffered visibly; yet the average temperature was no lower than that in many an inhabited part of Canada. Amundsen himself states that part of his journey was much like a pleasure trip--"excellent ground, fine sledging, and an even temperature." The glaciers and crevasses make detours necessary, yet, despite them, progress was remarkably rapid. The party climbed up 2,000 to 5,000 feet in a day.

Throughout much of his journey Amundsen covered entirely new ground. Therefore he will bring back absolutely new information of Antarctic geography. He made up his mind that he would reach the plateau on which the Pole is situated by another route than that of Beardmore Glacier. Luck, instinct, experience, call it what you will, the new route proved easier than that which either Shackleton or Scott took on their expeditions. To that comparatively easy route, coupled with exceptionally favorable weather, may be attributed Amundsen's success. From Scientific American, Vol. CVI, No. 12, March 23, 1912 Amundsen's Attainment of the South Pole Progress of Antarctic Exploration By G. W. Littlehales, Hydrographic Office, United States Navy The legendary limits of the Terra Australis of ancient and medieval cartographers, whose northerly coast was represented in art in the time of Ptolemy as extending eastward from Southern Africa toward China and inclosing the Indian Ocean, began to recede to the southward on the map of the world in the generation which produced Columbus, da Gama, and Magellan and disclosed America, the route to the Indies, and the circumnavigation of the globe.

In the latter part of the sixteenth century the number of maps representing had noticeably lessened, and, by the end of the eighteenth century, it had faded from the minds of geographers. The voyages of Cook in the latter part of the eighteenth century constituted the first circumnavigation of the south polar regions. He reached latitudes in some parts of his circuit which have even at the present time been scarcely surpassed, and, disproving the ancient beilef in a great Terra Australis Incognita extending northward of the sixtieth degree parallel of south latitude, the state of geographical knowledge such that the maps after his time mark "Antarctic Ocean" across the regions of the South Pole. The sum total or added knowledge in the sixty years following Cook's voyages had led to a general belief that around the South Pole was a scattered archipelago and not a continental mass, a state of geographical information that was not materially changed until the discovery by Charles Wilkes that after all there is a great Antarctic land, even if it is smaller than the land of legend.

It will be remembered that, during the year 1839, after having examined many of the island groups with which the vast area of the Pacific Ocean is studded, the United States Exploring Expedition, of which Wilkes was the commander, had reached the Australian shores. On the day after Christmas in 1889 the " Vincennes," "Peacock," "Porpoise," and "Flying Fish" headed southward from Sydney and, falling in with the land in latitude 64 degrees south and longitude 158 degrees East of Greenwich, on the 16th of January following, skirted the border of a new continent to the westward as far as longitude 97 degrees East of Greenwich.

Returning to Sydney, Wilkes announced his discovery, in the following words, in a report to the Secretary of the Navy, dated March 11th, 1840: "It affords me much gratification to report that we have discovered a large body of land within the Antarctic Circle, which I have named the Antarctic Continent, and refer you to the report of our cruise and accompanying charts, enclosed herewith, for full information relative thereto." At one or two points along this coast line, the French expedition under D’Urville, at nearly the same time, confirmed the existence of the land thus reported. Wilkes' work was not only important because he traced this coast for 1,700 miles, but also on account of the geological collections made by the expedition led by him, which showed that the land is formed of granite, massive sandstones, and other rocks of continental type, and further on account of the magnetic observations which were so numerous and well taken us to permit of the deduction of the earliest assigned position of the south magnetic pole.

A year later the extension of Wilkes Land to the eastward and the southward was charted by the famous British expedition under James Clark Ross, which discovered Victoria Land and the mountains of Erebus and Terror and surpassed all previous records in the Antarctic by reaching the latitude of 78 degrees. After the voyages of Wilkes and Ross, there was a long interval before serious work in the Antarctic was renewed. Until the close of the nineteenth century there was no part of the world about which less was known, and none about which so little interest was taken. This was probably due in part to its distance from the center of wealth and thought, and in part also to its dearth of animal and vegetable life and to its unpeopled state. It is only from the scientific side that human interest can he evoked in the desolate wastes of Antarctica. That this continent, whose present unexplored and unvisited extent is twice the area of Europe, was larger in former geological ages is scarcely to be doubted. In all probability it has been connected with Africa, South America, Australia, and New Zealand, although most likely not with all of them at the same time. This is suggested by the living and fossil floras and faunas of these lands.

At the time of the revival of Antarctic exploration in the beginning of the present century, knowledge of Antarctica was of two grades: in some areas the approaches from the sea had been explored; of the rest nothing was known, Knowledge of the first grade existed only in relation to two or three parts of the continent. They were Palmer Land with its associated islands, the coast of Victoria Land with the adjacent Ross Sea, and, to a lesser extent, the coast of Wilkes Land, The rest of the continental limits of the Antarctic was known only through the interpretation of imperfectly recorded observations and the speculations arising from distant and uncertain views.

The work of Krech, Gerlache, Borchgravink, and Bruce had not yet been done; the examinations of the “Belgica,” the “Francais,” and the “Pourquoi Pas” had not yet made known the extension of Palmer Land to the southwestward along the southern confines of the Pacific Ocean ; the explorations of the German Antarctic Expedition in the "Gauss" had not yet confirmed the conclusion of Wilkes that the long coast which he had discovered in 1840 extended still farther to the westward ; the Antarctic Continent had not yet been entered at any point and consequently that acquaintance with the general topography which constitutes the first essential to the scientific investigation of a country was wholly wanting, It was the British National Antarctic Expedition of 1901 to 1904, under Capt. R. F. Scott, that first penetrated Antarctica. This expedition landed on the southwestern confines of the Ross Sea, and, by its explorations, showed that the great ice barrier is in reality the front of an enormous ice field or glacier, mainly floating on the surface of an extended bay or sea, and fed by glaciers coming down from the elevated land on the westerly side and probably also on the eastern.

Scott traveled southward up the western margin of the ice field 400 miles to a point in latitude 82 deg. 16 min. 33 sec. south. He also climbed from his headquarters on MacMurdo Sound to the summit of the high table land to the westward. Map of Amundsen’s journey, from Scientific American, Vol. CVI, No. 12, March 23, 1912. CREDIT: SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN Shackleton's expedition of 1907 to 1909 penetrated at the same place that Scott entered, and traveled up the western border of the ice field along the route which had been pursued by his predecessor until he reached a great glacier, named Beardmore Glacier, coming down from the highlands to the westward. He followed up this glacier to the summit of the plateau and then continued to the southward until he reached a point in latitude 88 deg. 23 min. south, only 97 miles from the South Pole. At this point the elevation was 10,000 feet above the level of the sea.

While this journey to the southward was in progress, another party of the expedition climbed Mount Erebus, and a third party reached the south magnetic pole and located it, in 72 deg. 25 min. south, and 155 deg. 16 min. east, in a position 40 miles distant from the position deduced from the surrounding magnetic observations of the expedition under Scott. The observations in either case were not sufficient, however, to warrant drawing a conclusion as to the actual change in the position of the magnetic poled between 1903 and 1909. Five expeditions were sent to the Antarctic during the past year, for the purpose of reaching the South Pole, or for the exploration of the Antarctic Continent, or both. The first is the British Expedition under the command of Capt, R. F. Scott, who was the leader of the British National Antarctic Expedition of 1901 to 1904. He sailed from Port Chalmers, New Zealand, in his ship, the "Terra Nova" November 29th, 1910.

He made a successful landing at a point near his former situation in MacMurdo Sound, and continued to be engaged in exploration to the southward. A German expedition under Lieut. Wilhelm Filchner left early in the year 1911, intending to make a landing somewhere on the shore of the Weddell Sea, perhaps on Coats Land, on the opposite side of the Antarctic Continent from Capt. Scott’s headquarters. No reports have yet been received from him. A Japanese expedition started for the Antarctic, intending to make a landing upon King Edwrd VII Land. Before reaching its projected landing place, however, this expedition suffered a series of mishaps, the chief of which was the loss of nearly all the dogs upon which relicance had been placed for transportation. Near the close of the year 1911, another expedition started for it field of exploration in the Antarctic. This is the Australian expedition under the leadership of Dr. Douglas Mawson, geologist of the Shackleton expedition.

The “Aurora,” a barkentine of 580 tons with auxiliary steam-propulsion in which the expedition sailed, has recently returned to Australia bringing the report that two separate parties have been landed on those part of Wilkes Land known respectively as Adelie Land and Termination Land. Capt. Roald Amundsen, the discoverer of the Northwest Passage, left Norway in June, 1910, in the “Fram,” seemingly with the intention of sailing around Cape Horn, however, he sailed to the westward across the South Pacific, and made a landing at whale Bay on the ice sheet covering Ross Sea. This place is in King Edward VII. Land, near the eastern end of the ice front, and on the opposite shore of the Ross Sea, from the point at which Scott and Shackleton have made their successful entrances into the interior of the continent. The expedition was in winter-quarters at Whale Bay until September, 1911, and, on the 20th of October. the main party made the final start for the South Pole, leaving a subsidiary party to carry on explorations and make a geological collection in King Edward VII Land. In less than a month.

the south-bound expedition had cleared that vast plain of floating ice which flows down from the great mountains of the interior and covers the southern part of Ross Sea throughout an area above 20,000 square miles with an ice sheet approximately 800 feet in thickness, and had begun to climb the heights which form the mountainous embayment at the head of Ross Sea. The glacial streams descending through the depressions among the mountain slopes constituted the usual lines of travel, and the route developed was new and independent, passing among mountain peaks rising to the height of 15,000 and 18,000 feet above the sea and gradually mounting to a maximum level before the Pole was reached and thence descending very gradually for 140 miles over a vast plateau to the position which was occupied on December l5th and 16th, 1911, and determined to be the South Pole.

As a result of Amundsen's expedition, important additions may be laid down upon the map of Antarctica in the sector of the earth’s surface extending from the South Pole to the 80th degree parallel of latitude between the meridians 160 degrees and 180 degrees west of Greenwich. The theory of the structural unity of the Pacific is well established, and, according to it, the Pacific Ocean must be bounded on the south by a coast of the “Pacific type.” With one exception in Central America. the whole of the known coasts of the Pacific belong to this type. The main characteristic of this form of coast is that the trend is determined by mountain ranges running parallel to the shore. In the South Pacific, this type is well exemplified in New Zealand on one side and by the Andes of South America on the other. In the southern part of Patagonia the Andes are turned from their meridional course and run eastward across Tierra del Fuego. The tectonic line of the Andes is then apparently bent southward, and reappears in Palmer Land.

It is probably continued around the southern Pacific meeting the end of the New Zealand line and the Victoria Range in the mighty mountains which Amundsen, in his approaches to the South Pole, discovered in the shape of what he has named the Maude Range stretching off to the southeastward as far as 88 degrees south. The principles of geomorphology would also suggest that from the lofty mountain axis bordering the Pacific there should slope downward, across the Pole, a broad plateau to Weddell Sea on the one side and the bight between Wilkes Land and Enderly Land on the other; and this interpretation is borne out by the description of the plateau conditions which were found to exist around the South Pole. So far the facts published concerning the information gathered by Amundsen are chiefly geographical and topographical. and hence the illustration of the nature of the scientific hearings of the accessions to knowledge which his expedition has produced are drawn from these materials; but, as other branches of the information embraced in his observations are unfolded, other theoretical applications will appear for the advancement of philosophy and such of the geographical sciences as meteorology and terrestrial magnetism, concerning which the observations made in the South Polar regions tend in some respects to deliver the deciding stroke in the elaboration.

Roald Amundsen | 13 of history's greatest polar explorers | MNN - Mother Nature Network 13 of history's greatest polar explorers By: Laura Moss on Nov. 16, 2011, 8:52 a.m. 6 of 15 Roald Amundsen Roald Amundsen is one of the most famous polar explorers. He led the first successful Antarctic expedition to the South Pole, he was the first man to fly over the North Pole, and he was the first to traverse the Northwest Passage. Although Amundsen’s voyage to the South Pole was difficult, his team was well-prepared. His team had a much smoother journey than Robert Falcon Scott and his crew, who were also attempting to be the first to reach the pole. After trekking hundreds of miles through unexplored Antarctic territory, Amundsen and his men reached the pole on Dec.

14, 1911, and named the area Polheim, or “Home at the Pole.” Amundsen left a note for Scott that read, “Dear Captain Scott — As you probably are the first to reach this area after us, I will ask you to kindly forward this letter to King Haakon VII. If you can use any of the articles left in the tent please do not hesitate to do so. The sledge left outside may be of use to you. With kind regards I wish you a safe return.” Scott and his entire crew died during their expedition. 14 amazing sinkholes Roald Amundsen Roald Amundsen is one of the most famous polar explorers. He led the first successful Antarctic expedition to the South Pole, he was the first man to fly over the North Pole, and he was the first to traverse the Northwest Passage. Although Amundsen’s voyage to the South Pole was difficult, his team was well-prepared. His team had a much smoother journey than Robert Falcon Scott and his crew, who were also attempting to be the first to reach the pole. After trekking hundreds of miles through unexplored Antarctic territory, Amundsen and his men reached the pole on Dec.

14, 1911, and named the area Polheim, or “Home at the Pole.” Amundsen left a note for Scott that read, “Dear Captain Scott — As you probably are the first to reach this area after us, I will ask you to kindly forward this letter to King Haakon VII. If you can use any of the articles left in the tent please do not hesitate to do so. The sledge left outside may be of use to you. With kind regards I wish you a safe return.” Scott and his entire crew died during their expedition. SPONSORED 14th December 1911: Roald Amundsen reaches the South Pole - YouTube 14th December 1911: Roald Amundsen reaches the South Pole Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. The interactive transcript could not be loaded. Loading... Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later.

Published on Dec 13, 2015 On the 14th December 1911, Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen led a team of four others to become the first to reach the South Pole. They arrived five weeks ahead of British explorer Robert Falcon Scott, and successfully made it back to their basecamp whereas Scott did not. Amundsen originally planned to become the first to reach the North Pole, but changed his target to the South Pole after he learned of the now-disputed claim by rival American explorers that they had already reached it. Keeping his new plan secret, even from his crew, his ship departed Norway on the 9th August. He only told them of their destination a month later, shortly before they left their final port on the island of Madeira. Amundsen’s ship arrived in an Antarctic inland known as the Bay of Whales on the 14th January 1911, where the crew established a base known as Framheim. They then spent the next three months preparing depots across the Ross Ice Shelf, prior to the onset of Antarctic winter.

As soon as the sun returned at the end of August, Amundsen attempted to reach the pole but was forced to turn back due to the harsh conditions. A second attempt that began in mid-October was much more successful, seeing them arrive at the pole almost 2 months later. As well as being the first expedition leader to reach the South Pole, Amundsen is also the first person to be universally recognised as reaching the North Pole as a result of his 1926 air expedition, making him the first person also to reach both poles. Category Antarctic Explorers: Roald Amundsen 1872-1928 Roald Amundsen, born in 1872 near Oslo, Norway, left his mark on the Heroic Era as one of the most successful polar explorers ever born. His career of adventure began at the age of 15, originally studying medicine, but dropping out to go to sea where he soon moved his way up to the rank of mate. His first experience in the Antarctic was with Adrien de Gerlache 's 1899 BELGICA EXPEDITION.

He became the first to travel the Northwest Passage, in his ship Gjoa in 1903-06. After this expedition, plans were assembled to drift across the North Pole in Nansen's famous FRAM, but news arrived of Peary's successful attainment of the pole which caused Amundsen to make new plans--covert plans--for an expedition to the Antarctic and the subsequent capture of the South Pole. On December 14, 1911, Amundsen and four others stood at the South Pole, a month before Robert Scott . This expedition was an incredible masterpiece of organization. Here is the story... "The North Pole is reached!" was the news that flashed all over the world...it was September 1909 when the news reached Amundsen. The original plan of the FRAM'S third voyage--the exploration of the North Polar basin--was quickly called off. In order to save the expedition, Amundsen immediately turned his attention to the South simultaneously emphasizing to his financial contributors that the FRAM'S Arctic voyage would be, in every way, a scientific expedition and would have nothing to do with record-breaking.

Therefore, as far as the supporters were aware, Amundsen's Arctic voyage would not be influenced one way or another by Peary's accomplishment. Since he was so heavily in debt, Amundsen felt his change in plans to head south and capture the South Pole should be kept a secret. In his own words, Amundsen wrote, "I know that I have been reproached for not having at once made the extended plan public, so that not only my supporters, but the explorers who were preparing to visit the same regions might have knowledge of it. I was well aware that these reproaches would come, and had therefore carefully weighed this side of the matter". As hinted at, he also felt it important to keep his intentions secret from his peers. "Nor did I feel any great scruples with regard to the other Antarctic expeditions that were being planned at the time. I knew I should be able to inform Captain Scott of the extension of my plans before he left civilization, and therefore a few months sooner or later could be of no great importance.

Scott's plan and equipment were so widely different from my own that I regarded the telegram that I sent him later, with the information that we were bound for the Antarctic regions, rather as a mark of courtesy than as a communication which might cause him to alter his programme in the slightest degree. The British expedition was designed entirely for scientific research. The Pole was only a side-issue, whereas in my extended plan it was the main object". Amundsen must have been in a dream world as this simply was not true. Scott's intention to try for the Pole had been widely publicized and was certainly not a side issue...one only need turn to Scott's Antarctic Expedition announcement in the September 13, 1909, issue of The Times of London. Amundsen admitted that he was heavily in debt and knew that his best chance of raising money was to bring off a spectacular triumph. Amundsen wrote, "If at that juncture I had made my intention public, it would only have given occasion for a lot of newspaper discussion, and possibly have ended in the project being stifled at its birth. Everything had to be got ready quietly and calmly.

My brother, upon whose absolute silence I could blindly rely, was the only person I let into the secret of my change of plan, and he did me many important services during the time when we alone shared the knowledge". The only other man to know of the change in plans was the ship's commander, Lieutenant Thorvald Nilsen. Amundsen kept his plans so secret that only these two men, along with Lieutenants Prestrud and Gjertsen (told on the eve of the FRAM'S departure), knew of them before the FRAM reached Madeira, ostensibly on the way to Buenos Aires and then northwards to the Arctic; the Madeira trip was supposed to be mainly for the purpose of oceanographical research. The Norwegians left Christiania on August 9, 1910, eight weeks after Scott's TERRA NOVA EXPEDITION had departed Cardiff. On board were 97 Greenland dogs, the key to Amundsen's success, along with a hut and provisions for two years in the Antarctic. A month later, on September 6, the FRAM arrived at Madeira where fresh water and other provisions were taken on board.

A few minor repairs were made to the ship as the crew enjoyed some free time ashore. On the evening of the 9th, some three hours before departing for Antarctica, Amundsen called the crew to his attention. Many of the men were quite puzzled and unhappy to be interrupted as they were quickly writing final letters for home. As they came on deck, Amundsen was standing next to a map of Antarctica pinned to the mainmast. Amundsen spoke, "...it is my intention to sail Southwards, land a party on the Southern continent and try to reach the South Pole". Gjertsen wrote, "Most stood there with mouths agape staring at the Chief like so many question marks". Amundsen personally asked each man if he would like to join him on this historic journey. The last man to go ashore was Amundsen's brother, Leon. His charge would be to mail the men's letters and cable Scott...but not until the beginning of October when Amundsen knew he would be beyond the point of recall. Once Amundsen left Madeira, he vanished, bound for an unknown destination...Scott never dreamt it would be the Ross Sea.

Scott, on board the TERRA NOVA, arrived in Melbourne on the evening of October 12, 1910. Among the mail waiting for him was Amundsen's telegram, sent from Madeira, which came as a complete surprise: "Beg leave inform you proceeding Antarctic. Amundsen." Although there is no record of Scott's reaction, Evans later recalled, "we considered that he [Amundsen] would go to the Pole from the Weddell Sea side". In London, Sir Clements Markham eagerly put forth his opinion: "She [the FRAM] has no more sailing qualities than a haystack. In any case, Scott will be on the ground and settled long before Amundsen turns up, if he ever does". Markham gleaned information from his sources in Norway and reported to the Royal Geographic Society's secretary, on October 15, that Amundsen had "quietly got a wintering hut made on board and 100 dogs and a supply of tents and sledges. His secret design must have been nearly a year old.

They believe his mention of Punta Aranas and Buenos Aires is merely a blind, and that he is going to McMurdo Sound to try to cut out Scott...If I were Scott I would not let them land, but he is always too good-natured". Whatever the rights and wrongs of the matter, the general view among those involved in Scott's expedition was that Amundsen's behavior was underhanded. It took the FRAM four months to reach the Ross Ice Shelf, on January 14, 1911. Amundsen chose the Bay of Whales as winter headquarters for a number of reasons. First, they could sail a whole degree farther south than Scott could hope to get in McMurdo Sound, putting them 60 miles closer to the Pole; secondly, they could set up their headquarters right on top of their field of work; thirdly, animal life in the Bay of Whales was extraordinarily rich and offered all the fresh meat the men required in the form of seals, penguins, etc. Besides, it offered a favorable site for an investigation of the meteorological conditions in all directions and was very easy to reach by ship.

Unloading started on January 15 with camp established two miles inland. The first sledge was loaded with supplies, hitched to eight dogs and led away by Amundsen. For the next three weeks, five sledges, 46 dogs and five men transferred some 10 tons of supplies daily to base camp. Meanwhile, the carpenter, Jorgen Stubberud, supervised the assembly of the prefabricated hut. After a visit from Scott's TERRA NOVA, the base camp was christened Framheim--"The home of Fram"--and the depot-laying journeys began. Within a three-week period, depots were established at 80°S, 81°S and 82°S...more than a ton and a half of supplies had been stored within 480 miles of the Pole. On April 21 the sun finally sank and the long winter night began. FRAM, taken by a crewmember aboard TERRA NOVA A great deal of work had to be done over the next four months. Amundsen was well aware of potential problems brought by nine men cramped into close quarters over the long winter nights so a strict routine was quickly introduced.

Six days a week the men would rise at 7:30 am, have breakfast, start work at 9:00 and have lunch at noon. They would return to their work at 2:00 pm and end at 5:15, with the balance of the day to be used as they pleased. Each man took his turn as the week's housekeeper emptying ashtrays, sweeping up and generally keeping the hut clean. Each man had two hooks on which to hang clothes, while the rest of their small stuff was kept out of sight in a clothes sack nearby. In addition to the hut in which they lived, fifteen 16-man tents were erected to store fuel and supplies. Bjaaland and Hassel built a Scandanavian staple...a sauna. A bottomless box, on a platform raised two feet off the ice floor, was built large enough to slip over the man, allowing only his head to protrude. A tin box, fitted between the platform and the ice floor, was heated by two paraffin stoves. As the water boiled, the compartment would fill with steam.

When the man was finished, a rope-and-pulley system would lift the box clear, exposing a naked man, who then had to make a dash back to the hut. Exposure to the elements would quickly seal the pores...the event became a Saturday night ritual. Over the winter, every man had specific chores. Kristian Prestrud, assisted by Hjalmar Johansen, made scientific observations; Sverre Hassel, assisted by Helmer Hanssen, was nicknamed the "Managing Director of Framheim's Coal, Oil and Coke Company Limited", the position responsible for supplying lamps and heaters with fuel. Johansen packed the sledges with pemmican, chocolate, milk powder and biscuits. Remodelling and overhauling of the expedition's sledging equipment was left to the skilled carpenter, Olav Bjaaland, assisted by Jorgen Stubberud. Bjaaland was an expert at reducing unnecessary weight on the sledges. As well as preparing two sets of skis for each man, Bjaaland lightened the weight of the sledges by nearly one third. Stubberud achieved similar results with the sledging cases.

When Bjaaland was finished, Hanssen and Oscar Wisting would assemble the sledge using rawhide lashings. In a tiny snow cave off the main storage room, Wisting spent most of the winter at a sewing machine where new tents were made, complete with floors, from weight-saving windcloth. The new tents weighed nearly nine pounds less than the tents brought on the expedition. The camp's cook was an overweight and jolly man named Adolf Lindstrom. Lindstrom would rise each morning at 6:00 am to prepare a breakfast of hot buckwheat cakes spread with whortleberry preserve, plus wholemeal bread enriched with wheatgerm, butter and cheese. Amundsen said Lindstroms' cakes "slipped down with fabulous rapidity". As for lunch, various meals were prepared from fresh or frozen seal meat, supplemented with tinned meats by the end of winter. For dessert, tinned California fruits, tarts, pudding, pies and pastries, all made by Lindstrom, were served. Supper was seal steak, bread with butter, whortleberry jam and cheese. Coffee was the staple beverage although brandy was served on Saturday evenings, birthdays and holidays.

Amundsen made certain the food at Framheim was very nutritious since he'd learned first-hand the effects of scurvy while on the BELGICA EXPEDITION in 1897. The men actually enjoyed getting together each evening over supper. Since they had worked in different parts of the camp during the day, rarely was there a lack of conversation come evening time. Card games, dart matches, reading and needlework took place often around the main table. Occasionally the gramophone was brought out and a few records played. But, despite the relative easy passing of winter nights, Amundsen remained worried about Johansen's quick temper. Forced abstinence from alcohol made Johansen quite difficult to deal with at times. To make matters worse, Johansen had as much experience in polar exploration as Amundsen; he had been to the Arctic with Nansen. Johansen felt this put him, at worst, on level par with Amundsen. And then there was the matter of Robert Scott...how far had the English advanced? Amundsen was aware that Scott was using motorized sledges although he doubted their efficiency. Little did he know of what was going on at McMurdo Sound.

Fridtjof Nansen By August 24 the sun had reappeared and the packed sledges were ready to be taken out from their underground storage. But two long, frustrating months would pass before the weather was warm enough for them to start the journey to the Pole. Tensions increased as each day passed. Amundsen would have the men and dogs prepared for departure only to cancel at the last moment due to inclement weather. The weather had to be clear for their first run to the 80°S depot, or there was a real risk of missing it. Finally, on Friday, September 8, 1911, they sped off across the snow...eight men with sledges pulled by 86 dogs; only Lindstrom was left behind as custodian of Framheim. Amundsen wrote that "the going was splendid" and they covered 31 miles over the next three days. However, on the morning of the 11th they awoke to frigid temperatures nearing -70°F. By the next day, conditions were even worse as the fluid in their compasses froze solid. Amundsen determined that it was simply too risky to continue on towards the Pole.

That evening a decision was made to make a run for the depot, weather permitting, unload their sledges and race back to Framheim. The weather co-operated and they arrived at the depot on Thursday. The next evening Hanssen and Stubberud discovered their heels were frostbitten. As well, a number of the dogs were suffering from the cold; two of the dogs froze to death in their sleep. At 7:00 the next morning they set off for Framheim. Johansen They would normally keep in sight of each other but the first two sledges moved so rapidly that the others were soon left behind. The sledge teams continued to break up, with Bjaaland and Stubberud reaching Framheim first at 6 pm, followed two hours later by Amundsen's group. A half an hour after that Hassel arrived and six hours later, at 12:30 am, Johansen and Prestrud finally stumbled into camp. Johansen and Prestrud were totally exhausted, having found Framheim in the dark and fog only by following the barking of the dogs.

At breakfast the next morning, Amundsen finally succeeded in knocking the chip off Johansen's shoulder when Amundsen asked why it had taken them so long to make it back to Framheim. Johansen exploded, angrily accusing Amundsen of panicking and displaying poor leadership qualities when the group had been allowed to split up. In the dead silence that followed, Amundsen remained speechless. It was what Amundsen had always feared--a confrontation with the one man in the expedition with experience to equal his own. This brought to an end the harmony amongst all the men as Amundsen never forgave Johansen or spoke to him unless absolutely necessary. Amundsen's excuse to the others was that Hanssen was suffering too severely from frostbite to linger behind...the men were not totally convinced. At noon, Amundsen announced to his men a change in plans. Amundsen would lead one party to the Pole while Prestrud--with Johansen--would lead a second party to explore King Edward VII Land. Amundsen's decision was not a revengeful one as he felt that if the Pole party were not successful, at least there might still be a "first" gained for Norway.

Amundsen then spoke to each man individually (ignoring Johansen), asking for his pledge of loyalty...all gave it. And so, on October 20, 1911, Amundsen, Bjaaland, Wisting, Hassel and Hanssen departed on their historic journey to the Pole. Four sledges were used, each pulled with 13 dogs. They made good progress, other than a little trouble with crevasses, and arrived at 80°S depot on the 24th. They uncovered the provisions and gave the dogs a feast of seal meat and blubber. The next day the party left with all five men on skis. On the way south, they spotted a cairn still standing as they had built it the prior April. Thus proving reliability, another 150 similar cairns were built on the journey south, each left with a written record inside stating the distance and bearing to the next cairn. Each day, as they built their cairn, lunch was eaten..."nothing very luxurious", wrote Amundsen, "three or four dry oatmeal biscuits, that was all. If one wanted a drink, one could mix snow with the biscuit".

They arrived at 82°S depot on November 4. Two days later they left...they were accomplishing 20 miles each day, in only five hours, after which they would build their cairn, in an hour and a half, and then rest for the remainder of the day. On November 11 the peaks of mountains were seen in the distance, which Amundsen later named Queen Maud's Range, after the Queen of Norway. At the foot of the range they camped and discussed strategy for the final push to the Pole, some 340 miles distant. The final plan was to take supplies and provisions for 30 days, along with the remaining 42 dogs, and make the climb. After reaching the top, 24 of the dogs would be shot, since they would no longer be needed, using the remaining 18 in the final dash for the Pole. Once reached, six more would be slaughtered to provide food for the remaining twelve on the trip back to Framheim. On November 17 they started the climb up the Axel Heiberg Glacier.

The weather was warm and the climb even better as they covered 11.5 miles before making camp at 2000 feet. Four days later, on November 21, they found themselves at the summit. They'd managed to carry a ton of supplies to an altitude of 10,000 feet. Twenty-four dogs were shot and the party stayed at "The Butcher's Shop", as it was now called, for four more days before heading off into a raging blizzard. They had already waited two days longer than planned so they had no choice but to push on. For the next ten days they struggled, five men and 18 dogs, against driving snow in 35 mph winds and thick fog. At last they reached the plateau, only to be confronted by "The Devil's Ballroom", a glacier with a thin crust of snow covering a number of dangerous, deep crevasses. This proved to be the last major obstacle. On December 8, with the sun shining brightly, they passed Shackleton 's farthest south, 88°23'S. They were only 95 miles from the South Pole.

The dogs were hungry and exhausted, the men had many sores and frostbitten faces, yet still the party pushed on. The closer they came to the Pole, the more Amundsen worried that Scott had already beaten them. The temptation to race on, at full speed, was shared by everyone. At 3:00 pm, on Friday, December 14, 1911, there was a simultaneous cry of "Halt!" as the sledge meters registered their arrival at the South Pole. They had achieved their goal. Symbolic of their struggle in unity, each of the men, with their weathered and frostbitten hands, grasped the Norwegian flag and planted it firmly at the geographical South Pole. Amundsen named the plain King Haakon VII's Plateau. There were festivities in the tent that evening with each man sharing a little seal meat. At midnight observations were taken that put them at 89° 56'S. Arrangements were now made to encircle the camp with a radius of approximately twelve and a half miles. At noon, on December 17, the observations had been completed and it was certain the men had done all that could be done.

In order to come a few inches closer to the actual Pole, Hanssen and Bjaaland went out four geographical miles and promptly returned. Bjaaland surprised Amundsen when he pulled out a cigar-case full of cigars at dinner. A cigar at the Pole! Following the festival dinner, preparations for departure began. A tent was erected, naming it Poleheim, with Amundsen leaving a message inside for Scott, along with a letter for King Haakon. Thirty-nine days later the party returned to Framheim, as planned, with all five men and 11 dogs "hale and hearty". The month-long voyage back to Tasmania was a frustrating time for Amundsen, who was now quite anxious to be the first to announce the news of their achievement. On March 7, 1912, Amundsen finally cabled his brother Leon with the historic news. During World War I Amundsen made a significant amount of money from supplying "neutral" shipping. He went on to build the MAUD in order to continue his Arctic drift. He managed to complete the Northwest Passage around Siberia--only the second to do so--but failed in his attempt to proceed farther north.

Subsequently, he left the ship in 1921. Amundsen now became consumed with flying, but was soon facing extreme financial hardship before gaining support from Lincoln Ellsworth. Together with Ellsworth, history was made when they flew the airship NORGE from Spitsbergen to Alaska via the North Pole. This was the first trans-Arctic flight right across the Pole. Amundsen, fulfilled by his reputation, now retired. Unfortunately, he never could come to terms with the British reaction to his secret change of plans in 1910. Mill, of the Royal Geographic Society, described him as the most unhappy of all the polar explorers he had ever met. In 1928, while searching for survivors of an airship disaster, Amundsen's plane crashed and he disappeared without a trace.

Ham Radio QSL Card Confirming My 2-Way Radio Contact With the South Pole <MAP NAME="boxmap-p16"> <AREA SHAPE="RECT" COORDS="10, 322, 100, 329" HREF="" > <AREA COORDS="0,0,10000,10000" HREF="" > </MAP> <img src="" width="468" height="336" border="0" usemap="#boxmap-p16" alt="Shop at Amazon.com"> Race to the South Pole | TIME For Kids Race to the South Pole Today marks the 100th anniversary of the first successful expedition to the globe's southernmost point December 14, 2011 Print GETTY IMAGES After arriving at the South Pole on December 14, 1911, explorer Roald Amundsen (left) spent three days there with his companions: Oscar Wisting, Sverre Hassel, Helmer Hanssen and Olav Bjaaland (the photographer, not pictured).

On December 14, 1911, Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen and his four-man team became the first people to reach the South Pole, where they raised the Norwegian flag in victory. On Wednesday, exactly 100 years later, Norway’s prime minister gathered with scientists and polar adventurers at the bottom of the world to remember the famous explorer’s achievements. "We are here to celebrate one of the greatest feats in human history," Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said, as he unveiled an ice sculpture of Amundsen. A Great Expedition TIME & LIFE PICTURES/GETTY IMAGES Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen became the first man to reach the South Pole on December 14, 1911. In the early 1900s, there was a race to see who could get to the South Pole first. Amundsen beat his rival, British explorer Robert Flacon Scott, by five weeks. On March 8, 1912, after learning of Amundsen's successful expedition, The New York Times wrote: "The whole world has now been discovered." Amundsen was one of the world’s most notable polar explorers.

In 1903, he became the first to make a ship voyage through the Northwest Passage, the sea route through the Arctic Ocean on the northern coast of North America. After learning that American explorer Robert E. Peary had reached the North Pole first in April 1909, Amundsen made secret plans for a South Pole expedition. At the time, the South Pole was considered to be the last great, undiscovered territory. On October 19, 1911, Amundsen set out from his base, in Bay of Whales, Antarctica, with four companions, 52 dogs and four sleds. His success in reaching the South Pole was aided by careful planning. He took a preliminary trip to drop food and supplies along the first part of his route. His use of sled dogs to carry supplies also helped. Amundsen and his men, along with 11 surviving dogs, made it back to base on January 25, 1912, quicker than expected. In addition to Norway's flag, Amundsen left behind a tent with spare equipment for Scott, and a letter addressed to the King of Norway about his accomplishment.

Though Scott eventually reached the South Pole, he died while returning home. On Wednesday, Norway’s prime minister took time to remember the British explorer’s accomplishments, too. "Scott and his men will forever be remembered for their valor and their determination to reach the most inhospitable place on Earth," Stoltenberg said. The two explorers share the name of the research station now located at the South Pole: the Amundsen-Scott Station. A Land of Research Today, Antarctica is a base for a variety of global scientific research projects, from oceanography to cosmology. Cosmology is the study of the origin and structure of the universe. The land holds many clues to Earth's past and future changes, especially those related to global climate change. Wednesday’s ceremony at the pole also served a reminder of the importance of continuing scientific research in this distant place. "The loss of ice in the Antarctic can have grave global consequences,” Stoltenberg said. “Roald Amundsen and Robert Scott and their men went to extraordinary lengths to accomplish their goals.

We must be prepared to do the same.” TFK Footer Primary South Pole Antarctica - Expedition to the South Pole - South Pole Tours Vacations Share Antarctica is home to the South Pole, which is one of the two points where the planet's axis of rotation intersects the surface. The other point is the North Pole, which can be found in the middle of the Arctic Ocean. You can find the South Pole in the middle of the continent of Antarctica, which is fast becoming a popular travel destination for those who are looking for the next great frontier. At the site of the South Pole Antarctica is where the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station is situated. This research station , which is operated by the United States, is one of many research stations in Antarctica, and visitors to the continent can tour it if they please. South Pole Antarctica expeditions were quite popular in the early 1900s, as various countries were hoping that their representatives would be the first to reach it. The first successful expedition to the South Pole took place in 1911, and it was led by Roald Amundsen. This Norwegian-led expedition reached the pole about a month before the British explorer Robert Falcon Scott arrived with four traveling companions.

South Pole Antarctica is an unforgiving place, thanks to the cold weather, the dry air, and the usually strong winds, and unfortunately, Scott and his party perished on their attempted return to the McMurdo Sound area. It wasn't until 1929 that the first plane flew over the South Pole in Antarctica, and ground visitors did not return until 1956. During the winter months at the South Pole, the sun never rises. As such, it can be an excellent place for astronomical observations in the wintertime. During the summer months, the sun never sets, and those who are enjoying summertime South Pole tours won't want to forget their sunscreen. South Pole Antarctica sits atop an icy plateau that is approximately 9,300 feet above sea level. Thanks to this high altitude, the sunlight is usually very intense. Sunscreen is a must wherever you go in Antarctica, even if you find yourself closer to sea level. That's because all the snow here reflects the sunlight. In addition to sunscreen, anyone planning South Pole tours, not to mention Antarctica vacations in general, will also want to remember to bring sunglasses, as snow blindness is always a risk.

Knowing what to pack for a trip to Antarctica is key to having a pleasant vacation experience. In addition to sunscreen and sunglasses, you'll also want to pack a good hat. Antarctica Map Interestingly enough, the ice at the South Pole in Antarctica is estimated to be about 9,000 feet thick. The land under the ice is actually close to sea level, which is something that you might find hard to believe on your expedition to the South Pole. Even though the sunlight is strong in terms of UV rays at the South Pole, it isn't very warm. In fact, South Pole Antarctica boasts one of the coldest climates on Earth. Because the South Pole is located at such a high altitude in the middle of a land mass, it is much colder than the North Pole is. Even in the middle of summer, the temperatures here only average minus twelve degrees. Come the winter months, an average temperature of around negative 85 degrees is to be expected. Because of all the cold weather and the drifting snow that can be found at the South Pole, some visitors might be surprised to know that the climate here is described as being a desert climate. This has a lot to do with the fact that the area hardly receives any precipitation.

Because of the harsh climate at South Pole Antarctica, you won't find any resident animals or plants in the area. Some visitors have seen birds on occasion, though it is generally determined that these birds are simply flying off course. Hopefully, you won't find yourself off course at any time during your expedition to the South Pole. Should you be interested in South Pole tours, they are usually very expensive, as it's not an easy place to get to. That being said, there are companies that offer tours to this unique destination, so you can certainly arrange a visit with relative ease if you can afford it. For those with funds to spare, private South Pole tours are arguably the way to go, however group tours are more affordable. Compare Travel Sites and Save! The Mathisen Corollary: The South Pole, December 14, 1911 Tuesday, December 13, 2011 The South Pole, December 14, 1911 December 14 is the anniversary of the first successful expedition to reach the South Pole, the Amundsen expedition led by Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen (1872 - 1928).

This year marks the 100th anniversary of that expedition, and thus December 14, 2011 is the 100th anniversary of their arrival at the pole. Amundsen's final successful push to reach the pole departed from their base at Framheim in the Bay of Whales (on sea ice -- Amundsen recorded its latitude as 78° 38'S) on October 19, 1911. In addition to Amundsen, his group consisted of Olav Bjaaland (1873 - 1961), Helmer Hanssen (1870 - 1956), Sverre Hassel (1876 - 1928), and Oscar Wisting (1871 - 1936). Above is one of only two photographs the expedition is known to have taken on their successful journey. They erected a tent and the flag of Norway at the pole and left a letter inside in case they did not make it back alive. They did successfully make it back, reaching Framheim again on January 25, 1912.

Their success would not become known to the world until the expedition landed in Australia in March that year. The British Antarctic Expedition, led by Royal Navy Captain Robert F. Scott, which had been racing to the pole at the same time, arrived at Amundsen's marker over a month later, in January of 1912, to bitter disappointment. Scott's entire party perished on the return journey. Fifty years ago, at the fiftieth anniversary of the race to the pole, in a ceremony held at the South Pole, US Navy Rear Admiral David M. Tyree (commander of the US Naval Support Force in Antarctica from 1959 to 1962) said in his remarks that "Scott and Amundsen added to the sum of man's knowledge; more important, they added immensely to the sum of man's inspiration." The continent of Antarctica is extraordinarily important in terms of clues that it holds regarding the ancient history of the earth and mankind's distant past. Most significantly, it contains clues which point to the fact that the earth experienced a " Big Roll " following the events of a catastrophic global flood.

Some of these clues have been discussed in previous blog posts, including " Antarctica " and " Lake Vostok ." The fact that Antarctica is covered with snow and ice is also a remarkable clue which provides evidence supporting the hydroplate theory of Dr. Walt Brown. Today, Antarctica is one of the most arid places on earth, with less than six and a half inches of precipitation per year over the entire continent on average (qualifying as a desert, which are generally categorized as places receiving less than ten inches of rain a year). Antarctica probably became glaciated during the Ice Age which would have followed the global flood, when oceans were warmer and continents were higher, creating the conditions for heavy precipitation which would have been in the form of snow and ice in many latitudes of the world, including of course the Antarctic. Evidence which suggests seafaring humans may have mapped Antarctica's coastlines before it became fully glaciated is contained in various "portolan" maps drawn in the early sixteenth century AD and almost certainly based upon much more ancient maps. This evidence is discussed in the previous post entitled " The subglacial fjords of Antarctica ." Previous posts discussing the achievement of the Amundsen expedition can be found here and here .

To see a dramatization of the race to the South Pole in the 1985 television drama entitled The Last Place on Earth, see here . Posted by 100 years - and counting - at the South Pole - Photo 10 - Pictures - CBS News Wednesday marks the 100th anniversary of explorer Roald Amundsen becoming the first to reach the South Pole. In this image Amundsen, Helmer Hanssen, Sverre Hassel and Oscar Wisting (l Credit: Olav Bjaaland./ Wikipedia The base at Framheim, February 1911 Wikipedia Over the decades, scientists and support personnel have conducted research at the South Pole on myriad projects. But the conditions are anything but balmy as evidenced by this 1960 photo. The ice sheet below South Pole is nearly two miles thick Credit: U.S. Navy NAVFAC Archives A C-124 Cargo plane airdrops lumber to U.S. Navy Seabees at the South Pole, December 1956 as they went about the construction of a research station. Credit: Dick Prescott National Science Foundation A Dec.

4, 1956 aerial view of the first permanent station at the South Pole Credit: Dick Prescott, National Science Foundation This C-47 was the first airplane to land at the South Pole on Oct. 31, 1956. Credit: Dave Grisez, National Science Foundation Group shot of the U.S. Navy Seabees who built the first South Pole station. Work was completed in late December, 1956 Credit: U.S. Navy, National Science Foundation Today the South Pole Telescope collects data on cosmic microwave background radiation and black matter Credit: Keith Vanderlinde, National Science Foundation The South Pole offers six months of constant sunlight for studying the sun. This 1985 image shows researcher Martin Pomerantz at the Pole Credit: Ann Hawthorne, National Science Foundation Weather balloons launched at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. The base was named in honor of two explorers. Norwegian Roald Amundsen led the first successful expedition to the South Pole 100 years ago.

The other half of the base's name was in memory of British explorer Robert Falcon Scott, who lost the race against Amundsen and arrived at the South Pole more than month later, only to find Amundsen's tent, a Norwegian flag and a letter from Amundsen. Scott and four companions died on the way out. Credit: Calee Allen, National Science Foundation Dome of the South Pole station, which was completed in 1975 Credit: National Science Foundation 1993 overhead shot of the geodisc dome and support tunnels at the South Pole Station Credit: U.S. Navy The entrance to the dome filled up with snow and ice accumulation, as demonstrated in this 1975 photo. It ultimately required the digging of an access tunnel Credit: Peter West, NAtional Science Foundation Korean War vintage Jamesway huts Credit: Patrick Hovey, National Science Foundation U.S. flag, backlit by Southern Lights, flies at half staff in June 2004 in memory of former President Ronald Reagan. The flag was also lowered after the 9/11 terror attacks and the Space Shuttle Columbia loss in 2003 Credit: J.

Dana Hrubes, Space Sciences Laboratory, South Pole Station No longer any need for roughing it. A look at the base recreation room Credit: Peter West, National Science Foundation Isolation of the U.S. South Pole Station. The nearest human habitation is McMurdo Station on Ross Island, about 900 miles away Credit: Scott Jackson, National Science Foundation 2008 ceremony including the 12 original signatory nations of the Antarctic Treaty Credit: Glenn Grant, National Science Foundation July 2005 image taken during the 6-month-long Antarctic night. Credit: Chris Danals, National Science Foundation Aerial photo taken in 2005 of new South Pole station. The older station is at lower left Credit: cot Jackson, National Science Foundation South Pole Infrared Explorer was used to probe areas where new stars form by recording their infrared emissions. Credit: D.A. Harper Center for Astrophysical Research in Antarctica Atmospheric Research Observatory tracks changes in the Earth's atmosphere Credit: NOAA Tumbleweed rover is an experimental device designed to land on other planets. In 2004 tests, it has traveled more than 40 miles around the pole. Credit: National Science Foundation/USAP

Question: In 1911 who led the first successful expedition to reach the South Pole?
Answer: ROALD AMUNDSEN