South Pole countries. Who first reached the South Pole? No watch needed

16.01.2021

By the beginning of the 20th century, the era of geographical discoveries on Earth had practically ended. All were mapped tropical islands, tireless explorers traveled along and across Africa and South America.

Only two points remained unconquered by people - the North and South Poles, which were difficult to reach because of the barren ice desert surrounding them. But in 1908-09, two American expeditions (F. Cook and R. Peary) took place to the North Pole. After them, the only worthy goal was the South Pole, located on the territory of the mainland covered with eternal ice - Antarctica.

History of Antarctic exploration

Stay at the southernmost point the globe sought by many researchers. The beginning was laid by the famous Amerigo Vespucci, whose ships in 1501 reached the fiftieth latitudes, but were forced to turn because of the ice. More successful was the attempt of J. Cook, who reached 72 degrees south latitude in 1772-75. He, too, was forced to turn back before reaching the Pole, because of the mighty ice and icebergs that threatened to crush the fragile wooden ship.

The honor of discovering Antarctica belongs to the Russian sailors F. Bellingshausen and M. Lazarev. In 1820, two sailing sloops came close to the shore and recorded the presence of a previously unknown mainland. After 20 years, the expedition of J.K. Rossa circled Antarctica and plotted its coastline on a map, but still did not land on land.

The first person to set foot on the southernmost continent was the Australian explorer G. Buhl in 1895. Since that time, reaching the South Pole has become a matter of time and preparedness of the expedition.

Conquest of the South Pole

The first attempt to reach the South Pole took place in 1909 and was unsuccessful. The English explorer E. Shackleton did not reach him for about a hundred miles and was forced to turn back, as he ran out of food. In the polar spring of 1911, two expeditions went to the South Pole at once - an English one led by R. Scott and a Norwegian one led by R. Amundsen.

Over the next few months eternal ice Antarctica witnessed the grandiose triumph of one of them and the no less grandiose tragedy of the other.

The tragic fate of R. Scott's expedition

British naval officer Robert Scott was an experienced polar explorer. A few years earlier, he had already landed on the coast of Antarctica and spent about three months here, walking through the icy desert for about a thousand miles. This time he was determined to reach the Pole and plant the British flag at that point. His expedition was well prepared: Manchurian horses, accustomed to the cold, were chosen as the main draft force, there were also several dog teams and even a technical novelty - a motor sled.

R. Scott's expedition had to travel about 800 miles to reach the South Pole. It was a terrible route, full of ice hummocks and deep cracks. The air temperature almost all the time did not exceed 40 degrees below zero, a snowstorm was a frequent occurrence, during which visibility did not exceed 10-15 meters.

On the way to the Pole, all the horses died from frostbite, then the snowmobile broke down. Before reaching the final point of about 150 km, the expedition split up: only five people went further, harnessed to sleds loaded with luggage, the rest turned back.

Having overcome unthinkable difficulties, the five explorers reached the South Pole - and then Scott and his companions suffered a terrifying disappointment. At the southernmost point of the planet there was already a tent, on top of which fluttered the flag of Norway. The British were late - Amundsen was ahead of them by a whole month.

They were not destined to make their way back. One of the English explorers died of an illness, the second got frostbite on his hands and chose to leave himself, lost in the ice, so as not to become a burden for the others. The three remaining, including R. Scott himself, were frozen in the snow, only eleven miles short of the last of the intermediate food depots they left on their way to the Pole. A year later, their bodies were discovered by a rescue expedition sent after them.

Roald Amundsen - discoverer of the South Pole

The dream of the Norwegian traveler Roald Amundsen for many years was the North Pole. The expeditions of Cook and Peary were rather dubious in terms of effectiveness - neither one nor the other could reliably confirm that they had reached the northernmost point of the planet.

Amundsen prepared for the expedition for a long time, picking up the necessary equipment and supplies. He immediately decided that in the northern latitudes there is nothing better than dog teams in terms of endurance and speed of movement. Having already set sail, he learned about Scott's expedition, which set off to conquer the South Pole, and decided to also go south.

The Amundsen expedition chose a good place to land on the mainland, which was a hundred miles closer to the pole than the starting point of the Scott expedition. Four dog teams, consisting of 52 huskies, dragged sleds with everything necessary. In addition to Amundsen, four other Norwegians participated in the expedition, each of whom was an experienced cartographer and traveler.

The entire trip there and back took 99 days. Not a single explorer died, everyone safely reached the South Pole in December 1911 and returned home, covering themselves with the glory of the discoverers of the southernmost point of the planet Earth.

Every inhabitant of the Earth knows that the South Pole is located in Antarctica. Antarctica itself is a huge piece of land surrounded on all sides by water. That is, it is a continent. It should not be confused with the mainland - a huge piece of land surrounded by water and connected by a small piece of land to another mainland. The area of Antarctica is 13.7 million square meters. km. For example, the area of the same Europe is 10.2 million square meters. km, and Australia - 7.6 million square meters. km.

South Pole

Antarctica has concentrated 90% of all fresh water planets. It is fabulously rich in minerals, but fenced off from the whole world by a huge ice crust and bitter frosts. In winter, the temperature on the continent drops to minus 60° Celsius. Summer also does not indulge in warmth. In the most fertile months of December and January, the average temperature is minus 30 °.

All year round they blow over the icy desert strong winds. The animal world lives only in coastal zones Yes, on the Antarctic Peninsula. On this small stretch of land stretched to the north, winter temperatures sometimes reach minus 10 ° Celsius, and in summer it rises to 12 ° Celsius.

It is in Antarctica, among the permafrost and severe cold, that the South Pole of the Earth is located. It is the southernmost point on the planet and is located at 90°S. sh. She has no longitude, since all the meridians converge in this place to one point.

The South Pole has chosen for itself the so-called Arctic Plateau. That is, he did not settle down somewhere in a lowland, but freely settled down at an altitude of 2800 meters above sea level. Hence, there is a lack of oxygen and low humidity, the average value of which is 18%. In this area, the force of gravity is greater than in other areas of the planet by about 15%. Atmosphere pressure below the norm by 150 mm. rt. pillar. Increased solar radiation and magnetic anomalies are also observed.

Speaking of magnetic anomalies. In addition to the South Pole, which is a purely geographical quantity, there is also the South Magnetic Pole. In 2007, its coordinates were 64° 30′ S. sh. and 137° 42′ E. e. This is the D'Urville Sea. Behind it, the waters of the Indian Ocean begin. On the coast of the sea, which is called Adélie Land, is the French Antarctic station Dumont d'Urville. It has been located in this place since 1956.

For the sake of reference, it should be noted that in 1909 the coordinates of the South Magnetic Pole were completely different and equaled 72 ° 25′ S. sh. and 155° 16′ in. e. The pole was located on the mainland, but over the past 100 years it has shifted into the depths of the sea and continues to “creep” to the north. No one knows how this anomalous magnetic phenomenon will end.

Antarctica itself was officially discovered in January 1820. This significant event was accomplished by the Russian expedition. It was headed by Thaddeus Faddeevich Bellingshausen (1778-1852) and Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev (1788-1851). The first to winter on the icy continent was the Norwegian polar explorer Karsten Egeberg Borchgrevink (1864-1934). This historical event took place in 1895.

Once on the coast of the icy continent, the restless human nature decided to find out what is in the depths of the mysterious land. The excitement around the South Pole began in 1909, when the conquest of the North Pole was announced first by Frederick Cook, and then by Robert Peary. Other venerable explorers and travelers decided to glorify their names in the cold south. The first place among them was occupied by the Norwegian polar traveler and explorer Roald Amundsen (1872-1928).

Roald Amundsen

At first, the Norwegian planned to conquer the North Pole and even began to prepare an expedition. But the nimble shameless Americans overtook him, and the trip to the pack ice of the Arctic Ocean lost all meaning.

Amundsen needed sponsors. He found such in the face of the army. The military provided the traveler with food, tents, and other necessary equipment. The generals needed to test the effectiveness of soldiers' rations in extreme conditions, so they went to meet their compatriot.

The Argentine tycoon Don Pedro Christophersen also provided great material support. He was Norwegian by origin and readily supported his countryman.

The path to the shores of Antarctica was carried out on the legendary ship "Fram". From 1893 to 1912, Norwegian expeditions were regularly carried out on it in the northern and southern latitudes. The ship was 39 meters long, 11 meters wide, displaced 1,100 tons, and had a speed of 5.5 knots.

On a significant day on January 13, 1911, the ship anchored in the Bay of Whales off the coast of Ross in Antarctica. From that moment, in fact, the polar expedition began, which glorified Roald Amundsen throughout the world.

The Norwegian went to the South Pole on October 19, 1911. He was accompanied by four people. The names of these people are also known to the whole world. These are Oskar Wisting, Helmer Hansen, Sverre Hassel and Olaf Bjoland. All Norwegians. The expedition consisted of four dog teams. Already on December 14, 1911, a small group of courageous people, having overcome 1500 km through the icy desert, reached the desired point. It is this date that is considered the official time of the discovery and conquest of the South Pole.

At the southernmost point of the planet, the travelers hoisted the Norwegian flag and set off back. The expedition returned to the original point of the route after 99 days. Thus, 3000 km was covered in just over three months. It should also be taken into account that the path lay through an icy desert, and besides, it was not even, but with constant ascents, descents, snow drifts and icy winds.

The second to challenge severe frosts and permafrost was the English polar explorer Robert Falcon Scott (1868-1912). He went to the intended goal a month later than Amundsen. The English expedition also consisted of five people. It was in this number that the British reached the South Pole on January 17, 1912.

Robert Falcon Scott

The expedition began on October 24, 1911. It consisted of 12 people. All of them were divided into 3 groups. The first detachment and set off on the specified date. He had to take away several tons of provisions and thus provide for the other members of the expedition.

Scott himself marched with his men on November 1, 1911. He made a serious mistake by taking Manchurian ponies instead of sled dogs. These animals were not adapted to the harsh southern cold and became not a help, but a burden on a difficult journey.

The third detachment, walking on sled dogs, caught up with Scott a week later, and on November 15, all three detachments were reunited. Already on December 4, the expedition reached the foothills of the Arctic plateau. It became obvious that the little horses could not stand the climb, and they had to be shot.

After that, people themselves had to pull up heavy sleds with provisions. And the ascent ended in the first days of January. The snow storm was very disturbing. She delayed the detachment for more than a week.

English expedition (Scott stands in the middle)

Scott took only four people with him to the South Pole. They were Wilson, a physician, zoologist, and artist; Oates, a pony specialist; Bowers and Evans, regular Navy officers. The rest of the expedition went back on December 5.

As already mentioned, on January 17, the British were on target. What was their disappointment when they saw the Norwegian flag, as well as a tent. It contained a friendly letter from Amundsen. All efforts and labors were in vain. Representatives of the English crown ahead.

The return trip was complicated by a strong blizzard. She interfered with walking, took all the strength from people. After a couple of days of travel, Evans received severe frostbite. Behind him, Wilson failed. He fell and injured the ligaments in his leg.

The first tragedy happened on February 17, 1912 - Evans died. This made a deep impression on the small detachment. The body was buried in a glacier and continued on their way. Oates was next to die on March 16th. The rest of the expedition only held out for the next two weeks. The last entry in Scott's diary, which he kept throughout the journey, is dated March 29, 1912.

The expedition leader was the last to die, as the bodies of Wilson and Bowers lay in the tent, neatly tied up in sleeping bags. The search group found the tent itself only on November 12, 1912. The ship's doctor Edward Atkinson examined the dead.

The bodies were not taken with them. They were buried in a tent, having previously removed the stretch marks from it. A pile of snow was piled on top and the skis were crossed.

Upon arrival at the ship, the rescuers made a large mahogany cross. They carved an inscription on it - “Fight and seek, find and not give up” and installed it on top of a high hill called the Observer. Thus ended one of the attempts to conquer the harsh and inhospitable southern land.

The victory over Antarctica was won in 1929 by Richard Baird. This American pilot flew over the South Pole in an airplane. Briton Vivian Fuchs and New Zealander Edmund Hillary were next. In 1958, they made a sledge-caterpillar crossing through the icy desert. These courageous people traveled from the Weddell Sea to the Ross Sea and back. Thus, they crossed the South Pole twice and left 3,500 km behind them.

American Antarctic Station at the South Pole

Today, the American Antarctic station is located at the South Pole. It is a structure on piles. This prevents snow from accumulating near the building. It has a telescope 10 meters high, equipment that predicts magnetic storms, as well as a powerful drilling rig.

Lives at the station total, 200 people. Communication with the outside world is maintained through NASA satellites. Scientists working in this coldest corner of the world are specialists in geophysics, meteorology, physics, astrophysics and astronomy. Living conditions are very difficult. An untrained person is subject to ailments and fainting. There may be thickening of the blood, headaches, muscle cramps. Neglecting basic safety, you can easily get lung burns and frostbite.

So the South Pole is not a place for idle rest. Only the very courageous and strong people. The most low temperature, fixed in this place, amounted to a value of minus 74 °. There is no such thing at the North Pole. From here you can imagine the strength of the spirit of those people who a hundred years ago went to this icy desert to conquer it. And they did it, otherwise we would still know nothing about the southernmost point of our planet.

Yuri Syromyatnikov

The point of intersection of the imaginary axis of rotation of the Earth with its surface in the Southern Hemisphere. It is located at an altitude of 2800 m in the Polar Plateau of Antarctica. The Norwegian expedition of R. Amundsen reached the South Pole for the first time in 1911. EdwART. Explanatory Naval ... Marine Dictionary

SOUTH POLE, the intersection point of the imaginary axis of rotation of the Earth with its surface in the Southern Hemisphere. It is located within the Polar Plateau of Antarctica at an altitude of 2800 m. For the first time, the South Pole was reached by a Norwegian expedition led by R. ... ... Modern Encyclopedia

The point of intersection of the imaginary axis of rotation of the Earth with its surface in the Southern Hemisphere. It is located within the Polar Plateau of Antarctica at an altitude of 2800 m. For the first time, the South Pole was reached by a Norwegian expedition led by R. Amundsen in 1911 ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

South Pole- The point of intersection of the Earth's axis of rotation with the Earth's surface in the Southern Hemisphere ... Geography Dictionary

South Pole- pietų polius statusas T sritis fizika atitikmenys: angl. antarctic field; south pole vok. Sudpol, m rus. south pole, m pranc. pôle Sud, m … Fizikos terminų žodynas

South Pole- South Pole … Russian spelling dictionary

The point at which the Earth's imaginary axis of rotation intersects its surface in the Southern Hemisphere. Any other point on the Earth's surface is always in a northerly direction with respect to the south. Located on the continent of Antarctica, closer to … Great Soviet Encyclopedia

The point at which the Earth's imaginary axis of rotation intersects its surface in South. hemisphere. It is located on the Antarctic continent, on the Polar Plateau, at an altitude of 2800 m. bedrocks lie ... ... Geographic Encyclopedia

The point of intersection of the imaginary axis of rotation of the Earth with its surface in South. hemisphere. It is located within the Polar Plateau of Antarctica at vys. 2800 m. For the first time Yu.p. reached Norway. exp. under the hand R. Amundsen in 1911 ... Natural science. encyclopedic Dictionary

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South Pole. Amundsen vs. Scott, Ousland Bjorn. The race to the South Pole was like a dramatic thriller in which the forces of nature decided to compete with strong men by checking them themselves, technical means isobak for strength. In the new…

I have always dreamed of becoming a traveler, dreamed of discoveries. As a child I loved to read about pioneers. Most of all I admired the people who discovered the coldest parts of our planet, for example, South Pole. I want to talk about these brave people.

First attempts

Nothing was known about the South Pole until almost the 20th century. Although attempts to get to it were made repeatedly. Because of lack of proper equipment, and just skills to survive in the cold, this was unattainable. They tried to open the South Pole:

F.F. Bellingshausen and M.P. Lazarev- Russian navigators, in 1722 reached the coast of Antarctica, discovered and gave the name to several islands.
James Ross in 1941 discovered an ice shelf and Antarctic volcanoes.
E. Shelkton in 1907 he tried to reach the south pole using a pony, but turned back;

Who discovered the South Pole

The most desperate and stubborn explorer who discovered the South Pole was Raul Amundsen. Originally from Norway, he knew what cold was, he already had several expeditions in extreme conditions behind him. Preparing to conquer the Antarctic, he studied secrets survival of the Eskimos in the cold. big pay attention to equipment and clothes. His entire team was equipped in fur jackets and high boots. He also selected for the expedition strong eskimo dogs who were carrying sleds during the campaign. And he reached the goal on December 14 1911 and stayed at the South Pole for three more days doing research before returning safely with his entire crew. It is noteworthy that simultaneously with him, a British team led by Robert Scott. At the cost of incredible efforts, he and the remnants of the team reached the pole, late by 34 days, where he found traces of the Norwegians, a tent with provisions and a letter addressed to him ...

Scott's team is dead on the way back ... It was all to blame insufficient preparation of the team, a small amount of food, clothes, by the way, not fur, and the fact that they used ponies that died almost immediately, and snowmobiles that were not adapted to work in such frosts. I think it also affected depressed state of people because of Amundsen ahead of them. That's the price the South Pole was discovered.

Where is the South Pole

The South Pole is one of the two intersections of the Earth's imaginary axis of rotation and earth's surface where all geographic meridians converge. It is located within the Polar Plateau of Antarctica at an altitude of approximately 2800 m above sea level. Interestingly, the geographical coordinates of the South Pole usually indicate simply 90 ° S. sh., since the longitude of the pole is geometrically defined. If necessary, it can be specified as 0°.

At the South Pole, all directions point north and are therefore tied to the Greenwich (zero) meridian.

Attempts to conquer the South Pole

A general understanding of the geography of the Antarctic coast appeared only in the middle of the 19th century, so the first attempts to conquer the continent began at that time.

In 1820, several expeditions simultaneously announced the discovery of Antarctica. The first of these was a Russian expedition led by Thaddeus Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev, which reached the shores of the mainland on January 16.

But the first proven landing is considered to be the landing of the Borchgrevink expedition in 1895 on the coast of Victoria Land.

Amundsen expedition

Initially, Roald Amundsen was going to conquer the North Pole, but during the preparation for the expedition it became known that it had already been discovered. But the scientist did not cancel the trip, he simply changed the purpose of his trip.

“In order to maintain my status as a polar explorer,” Amundsen recalled, “I needed to achieve any other sensational success as quickly as possible ... And I informed my comrades that since the North Pole was open, I decided to go to the South.”

On October 19, 1911, the expedition set off on a sleigh pulled by dogs. At first he passed through the snowy rolling plain of the Ross Ice Shelf, but at the 85th parallel the surface went up steeply - the ice shelf ended. The ascent began on steep snow-covered slopes. According to the researchers, it was difficult both physically and mentally. After all, they did not know what would happen next.

At the beginning of the ascent, the travelers set up a main food warehouse for 30 days. For the rest of the journey, Amundsen left food at the rate of 60 days. During this period, he planned to reach the South Pole and return back to the main warehouse.

On December 14, Amundsen's expedition reached a point on the white plain, at an altitude of 3000 m, where, according to calculations, the South Pole should have been located. This day is considered the opening of the South Pole. The expedition was also attended by Oskar Wistin, Gelmer Hansen, Sverre Gassel, Olaf Bjoland.

They left a small tent, over which they fixed the Norwegian flag and a pennant with the inscription "Fram" on a pole. In the tent, Roald Amundsen left a letter to the Norwegian king with a short report on the campaign.

In his diary, the Norwegian scientist described in detail his arrival at the desired point.

“On the morning of December 14, the weather was excellent, ideal for arriving at the Pole ... At noon we reached 89 ° 53 ′ by any calculation and prepared to cover the rest of the way in one run ... We advanced that same day as mechanically as always, almost in silence, but looking more and more ahead ... at three in the afternoon, "Stop" sounded from all the drivers at the same time. They carefully examined the instruments, all showed the full distance - the Pole, in our opinion. The goal has been reached, the journey has ended. I cannot say—although I know it would sound much more convincing—that I have achieved my life's purpose. It would be romantic, but too straightforward. I prefer to be honest and assume that I have never seen a person who was more diametrically opposed to his goal and desires than I was at that moment.

Amundsen named his camp "Pulheim" (translated from Norwegian - "Polar House"), and the plateau on which the pole is located was named after the Norwegian king Haakon VII.

Amundsen's entire journey to the South Pole and back lasted 99 days. On March 7, 1912, from the city of Hobart on the island of Tasmania, the scientist informed the world about his victory and the successful return of the expedition.

The Norwegian polar traveler and explorer Amundsen was not only the first to reach the South Pole, but also the first to visit both geographic poles of the planet. The Norwegian made a continuous sea passage through the Northwest Passage (along the straits of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago), later he made the passage through the Northeast Passage (along the coast of Siberia), for the first time closing the circumnavigation distance beyond the Arctic Circle.

The scientist died in 1928 at the age of 55 while searching for the missing expedition of Umberto Nobile. A sea, a mountain and the American research station Amundsen-Scott in Antarctica, a bay and a depression in the Arctic Ocean, as well as a lunar crater are named after the traveler.