Polar Exploration

Shackleton brought everything from trashy novels to accounts of Arctic rescues with him to Antarctica.

Historians Finally Figured Out What Was on Shackleton’s Bookshelf

The brave explorer likely found solace in his library

Polar explorer Henry Worsley (right) with Prince William of Britain in October, 2015.

Antarctic Explorer Dies 30 Miles Short of Goal

Henry Worsley nearly crossed Antarctica, unaided

When the crew felt they had a good chance of freeing the trapped Endurance from the sea ice of the Weddell Sea, they put the sails up. As we know, this and other attempts failed. Realizing the ship wasn't moving, Hurley went onto the ice to take this photograph. New details of sea ice have been revealed.

Restored Photos From Shackleton’s Antarctic Wreck Reveal New Details

Photos taken during Shackleton’s Antarctic expedition have been digitally restored for the first time

Endurance was frozen in an ice floe for months before breaking free and sinking. Shackleton's men eventually used a lifeboat they called James Caird to go for help.

Relatives of Shackleton’s Chief Scientist Want to Finish What He Started

One hundred years after the doomed expedition, James Wordie's descendants plan a 100-mile journey to the South Pole

Arctic Explorers Uncover (and Eat) 60-Year-Old Food Stash

Tins of jam and crackers hidden in Greenland’s Arctic desert made for a delicious surprise

A stone etching on the grave of crewmember Lt. John Irving depicts the dire conditions that the Franklin expedition faced when they reached the Canadian Arctic.

Franklin’s Doomed Arctic Expedition Ended in Gruesome Cannibalism

New bone analysis suggests crew resorted to eating flesh, then marrow

A drawing by explorer John Cleves as he mapped the northern poles.

John Quincy Adams Was an Ardent Supporter of Exploration

The president planned to fund an expedition to the South Pole and South Pacific, but the research trip was canceled by his successor, Andrew Jackson

The 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia left a huge crater, along with a sometimes unexpected legacy.

200 Years After Tambora, Some Unusual Effects Linger

Frankenstein, famine poetry, polar exploration—the "year without a summer" was just the beginning

The underside of this recently flipped iceberg is glassy and free of debris.

An Iceberg Flipped Over, and Its Underside Is Breathtaking

On vacation in Antarctica, filmmaker and photographer Alex Cornell captured an unusual sight

The Shape of Things to Come, Antarctic Sound, February 2010: "As we sailed with the land to our backs, I saw this bright, jagged iceberg with a dark-blue sea," writes Seaman.

These Photos Capture a Decade of Change at Earth's Poles

From courting penguins to moody icebergs, photojournalist Camille Seaman shares her personal journey through polar habitats

The King receives members of Scott's expedition at Buckingham Palace in England here. Shown are Lt. Bennie, Paymaster Drake, Paymaster Drake, Commander Campbell, Commander Evans, Commander Bruce, and Sir Levick, 1913.

Antarctic Explorer’s Journal Found In Melting Ice

George Murray Levick served as a photographer, zoologist and surgeon with the North Party

Sir John Franklin’s Doomed Ship Just Turned Up in the Arctic After 170 Years

The two ships disappeared in 1846 during a British expedition trying to map the Northwest Passage

Ice on Arctic Ocean

Two Men Are Heading to the North Pole, On Foot, As Fast As They Possibly Can

They're attempting to break the speed record for traveling unsupported from Ellesmere Island to the North Pole

These Two Explorers Just Broke the Record for Longest Walk in the South Pole

Last time someone tried this, the entire team wound up dying from the cold

The original lifeboat, the James Caird, built in 1914, had an open top, exposing its inhabitants to the elements.

Reliving Shackleton's Epic Endurance Expedition

Tim Jarvis's Plan to Cross the Antarctic in an Exact Replica of the James Caird

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