Finding Endurance

Mini Fact: Endurance’s crew included 28 men and one cat, Mrs. Chippy.

In the early 1900s, explorers were competing to reach the South Pole. Doing so was a huge challenge, but two men in particular were determined. Roald Amundsen, a Norwegian, reached the pole in November 1911, and Englishman Robert Scott was close behind him in January 1912.

Ernest Shackleton, who was born in 1874 in Ireland but grew up in England, had missed his chance to be first to the pole. Instead, he hoped to be first to cross the continent of Antarctica.

His expedition didn’t go as planned, though, and his ship, the

Endurance, eventually sank in the Weddell Sea. This February, an expedition called Endurance22 set out to find Shackleton’s ship on the ocean floor. This week, The Mini Page learns more about the original adventure and the attempt to locate the ship’s remains.

Shackleton’s idea

Shackleton hoped to cross Antarctica from the Weddell Sea to the Ross Sea by way of the South Pole. His plan called for two ships, the Endurance and the Aurora. The second ship would sail to the far side of the continent and leave supplies for Shackleton’s crew so they could complete their journey home.

Endurance and its crew began their journey on Dec. 5, 1914, almost immediately sailing into icy waters. By Jan. 19, 1915, the Endurance was completely frozen in an ice floe in the Weddell Sea. (A floe is a floating sheet of ice.)

Living on the ice

Shackleton and his crew moved onto the ice and used the trapped ship as a winter station. But in October 1915, the Endurance began to break up because of the pressure of the ice pressing on the wood. On Nov. 21, the ship sank below the surface.

Saving his crew

The men had saved the lifeboats from the Endurance, and after floating on ice for five months, Shackleton ordered them into the boats. After rowing for five days, they landed at Elephant Island, but there was no help there.

Shackleton chose five of the crew to make a risky crossing of more than 700 nautical miles to South Georgia whaling stations, where he knew there would be help. They left in an open boat on April 24, 1916, and landed on May 9 on the southern shore of the island, where there were no people. Eleven days later, after crossing 32 miles of mountains on foot, they reached the whaling station.

Rescue

When a small tugboat borrowed from the Chilean navy reached Elephant Island, all 22 men were still alive after being stranded for 4 1/2 months. They were welcomed home as heroes.