By Michael Holden (Reuters) – The wreckage of polar explorer Ernest Shackleton’s ship “Endurance,” which was crushed by Antarctic ice and sank some 10,000 feet (3,000 m) to the ocean floor more than a century ago, has been found, a team searching for it said on Wednesday.
The three-masted sailing ship was lost in November 1915 during Shackleton’s failed attempt to make the first land crossing of Antarctica.
Previous attempts to locate the 144-foot-long wooden wreck, whose location was logged by its captain Frank Worsley, had failed due to the hostile conditions of the ice-covered Weddell Sea under which it lies.
However, the Endurance22 mission, organized by the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust and using advanced underwater vehicles called Sabertooths fitted with high-definition cameras and scanners, tracked the vessel’s remains down.
Footage showed the ship in a remarkably good condition, with its name clearly visible on the stern.
“We are overwhelmed by our good fortune…,” said Mensun Bound, the expedition’s Director of Exploration.
Ernest Shackleton’s ship “Endurance,”
“This is by far the finest wooden shipwreck I have ever seen. It is upright, well proud of the seabed, intact, and in a brilliant state of preservation.”
The expedition – led by British polar explorer John Shears, operated from the South African ice-breakingship Agulhas II and also researching the impact of climate change – found the “Endurance” four miles (six km) from the position recorded by Worsley.
Despite being stranded on the ice, the 28-man crew of the “Endurance” made it back home alive and theirs is considered one of the great survival stories of human history.
They trekked across the sea ice, living off seals and penguins, before setting sail in three lifeboats and reaching the uninhabited Elephant Island.
From there, Shackleton and handful of the crew rowed some 800 miles (1,300 km) on the lifeboat James Caird to South Georgia, where they sought help from a whaling station.
On his fourth rescue attempt, Shackleton managed to return to pick up the rest of the crew from Elephant Island in August 1916, two years after his Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition left London.
(Reporting by Michael Holden; editing by John Stonestreet, Reuters)
President Donald Trump's administration is considering softening its proposed fee on China-linked ships visiting U.S. ports after a flood of negative feedback from industries that said the idea could be economically devastating, according to six sources.
By Dimitri Rhodes Nov 7 (Reuters) – Belgian oil tanker company CMB Tech says it will focus on the fast growing market in India as it reported third quarter results...
In a bold move amidst Russia’s intensified rocket attacks on civilian ships and Ukrainian ports, Maersk has launched a new weekly container service into Ukraine, signaling resilience in the country’s...
October 20, 2024
Total Views: 2192
Get The Industry’s Go-To News
Subscribe to gCaptain Daily and stay informed with the latest global maritime and offshore news
— just like 109,143 professionals
Secure Your Spot
on the gCaptain Crew
Stay informed with the latest maritime and offshore news, delivered daily straight to your inbox
— trusted by our 109,143 members
Your Gateway to the Maritime World!
Essential news coupled with the finest maritime content sourced from across the globe.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.