Monday, March 21, 2022

The Explorers' Club, № DCCCLXXII

The Endurance—A three-masted barquentine with a steam engine, launched in 1912 as the Polaris, she was purchased by Sir Ernest Shackleton for the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (1914-1917); the Endurance was purpose-build for Arctic voyages & was heavily reinforced; trapped in the sea ice of the Weddell Sea near Vahsel Bay in January 1915, she was crushed & sank in November 1915.
Commentary: The wreck of the Endurance was discovered on 5 March 2022 by the Endurance22 expedition operating from the R.V. S. A. Agulhas II. Not one of Shackleton's crew perished aboard the Endurance, so she isn't a grave, yet no artifacts were salvaged because the shipwreck is protected by the Antarctic Treaty System.

Bonus! Song o' the Day: The Endurance
Bombskare, "Sink or Swim" from A Million Ways to Die (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

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