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On This Day: Roald Amundsen Becomes First Man to Reach South Pole
December 14, 2008 06:00 AM
by
findingDulcinea Staff
On Dec. 14, 1911, the Norwegian explorer raised his country’s flag at the South Pole, beating Britain’s Capt. Robert F. Scott by just over a month.
A Change of Plans
Amundsen’s first intention had been to reach the North Pole, but he secretly abandoned that idea after the Americans Robert Peary and Frederick Cook achieved that feat.
In 1903, he had displayed his skills and determination by becoming the first to take a ship through the icebound Northwest Passage, a task that took three years.
When he got back to Norway he learned that the Englishman Ernest Shackleton was drawing up plans to head to the South Pole. After that attempt failed, Amundsen started to work on his own scheme, and was ready by 1910.
Amundsen, who was noted for his careful preparations as well as his taciturn personality, landed in the Antarctic on Feb. 10, 1911, and set up supply caches along part of his selected route. In October, his party set out for the final drive under unusually cooperative weather conditions, accompanied by more than 100 Arctic sled dogs. He allegedly referred to the dogs as “our children” and considered them central to achieving his goal.
Scott decided to supplement his dogs with Siberian-bred ponies, and set out on his expedition three weeks later than Amundsen, when the weather conditions had worsened. After he arrived at the pole, Scott found a note addressed to him left in a tent by Amundsen.
On their way back, Scott and his two remaining companions ran out of supplies and died in heavy blizzards and temperatures that sank below minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Amundsen and his crew, meanwhile, returned to their base camp on Jan. 25, 1912, 99 days and 1,860 miles after their departure.
In 1903, he had displayed his skills and determination by becoming the first to take a ship through the icebound Northwest Passage, a task that took three years.
When he got back to Norway he learned that the Englishman Ernest Shackleton was drawing up plans to head to the South Pole. After that attempt failed, Amundsen started to work on his own scheme, and was ready by 1910.
Amundsen, who was noted for his careful preparations as well as his taciturn personality, landed in the Antarctic on Feb. 10, 1911, and set up supply caches along part of his selected route. In October, his party set out for the final drive under unusually cooperative weather conditions, accompanied by more than 100 Arctic sled dogs. He allegedly referred to the dogs as “our children” and considered them central to achieving his goal.
Scott decided to supplement his dogs with Siberian-bred ponies, and set out on his expedition three weeks later than Amundsen, when the weather conditions had worsened. After he arrived at the pole, Scott found a note addressed to him left in a tent by Amundsen.
On their way back, Scott and his two remaining companions ran out of supplies and died in heavy blizzards and temperatures that sank below minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Amundsen and his crew, meanwhile, returned to their base camp on Jan. 25, 1912, 99 days and 1,860 miles after their departure.
Historical Context: The Northwest Passage
Athropolis.com presents maps of the Northwest Passage, which Amundsen was the first to successfully navigate by ship. The site also provides a history of the many previous explorations to find a route from the Atlantic to the Pacific. In the words of Amundsen, “The North West Passage was done. My boyhood dream—at that moment it was accomplished.”
Key Players: Amundsen and Scott
Roald Amundsen (1872–1928)
Amundsen’s list of achievements included being one of 16 aboard an airship in 1926 that flew from the Norwegian Arctic island of Spitsbergen to Teller, Alaska. They became the first men to fly from Europe to America. As they passed over the North Pole, 16 hours into their flight, they threw out American, Norwegian and Italian flags.
Source: Reisenett
In this excerpt from his own account, “At the Pole,” Amundsen says, “The regions around the North Pole—well, yes, the North Pole itself—had attracted me from childhood, and here I was at the South Pole. Can anything more topsy-turvy be imagined?”
Source: Explorer Journal
Capt. Robert Scott (1868–1912)
South-Pole.com has a profile of Capt. Robert Scott, who died trying to retrace his steps after reaching the South Pole.
Source: South-Pole.com
The British explorer’s last letter to his wife has been on display for all to see since January 2007 at the Scott Polar Research Institute at Cambridge University. It was addressed “To my widow.”
Source: USA Today
Reference: The trek to the South Pole
A detailed account of the trek to the South Pole, with pictures of some of those who took part, is available online.
Source: South-Pole.com
But how did Amundsen know he had actually reached the pole? A USA Today article explains the technicalities involved in navigation over frozen ice and snow.
Source: USA Today
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