Assumptions that somewhere in the South there is land completely covered with ice were made by ancient Greek scholars. Aristotle, for example, believed that there was a mainland connected to Africa, which balances the northern continents.

The first attempts to search for Antarctica belong to the Portuguese expedition, which included the Florentine navigator Amerigo Vespucci (future Columbus associate). In 1501-1502, the expedition ships approached the island of South Georgia, but could not advance further due to unbearable cold.

During his trip around the world in 1772-1775, the English navigator James Cook farthest penetrated the Antarctic waters. He said that he had almost completely examined the southern hemisphere, but did not find the mainland there. Then, attempts to break through the ice of the Antarctic were made by James Ross, but all were unsuccessful.

Then, exactly 200 years ago, in 1820, the sixth mainland was discovered. Today, whose particular expedition was and who were the discoverers of Antarctica, there are several versions. And each has its facts and arguments. Therefore, we will not adhere to only one position here. Each of you will be able to choose a side close to him. All three expeditions from three countries were likely successful, with a difference of several days or months. And all three were equally important to humanity as a whole.

It is reliably known that the first landing on the coast of Antarctica and the first wintering on Cape Adare was made by the Norwegian expedition Carsten Borchgrevink in 1895. They had two houses and 70 dogs. After that, the study of the coast of the continent and its interior began. Numerous studies were conducted by the English Antarctic expeditions led by Robert Scott (1901-1904, 1910-1913) and Ernest Shackleton (1907-1909, 1914-1917), the Norwegian Antarctic Expedition (1910-1912), Roald Amundsen, and the Australian Antarctic Expedition (1911— 1914) Douglas Mawson and others.

In 1911, the Norwegian expedition of Roald Amundsen (which, in addition to him, included Olav Bjaaland, Oscar Wisting, Helmer Hanssen, and Sverre Hassel) was the first to reach the South Pole, slightly ahead of Robert Scott’s expedition, who died on the way back.

Since the middle of the last century, thanks to the development of technology, the intensive development of Antarctica has begun. More than 60 bases from 11 countries were built on the mainland. In 1959, the Antarctic Treaty was signed, fixing it the status of a territory free from military and industrial activities, and devoted exclusively to scientific.

In continuation, for each new and exclusive track we will publish short fascinating stories and notes from expeditions and long life on Antarctica that we have produced and translated from different languages.

Take care and be strong,

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