Scientists have found one of the greatest ever undiscovered shipwrecks after it sank in the Antarctic 107 years ago, in what has been labelled the “world’s most challenging shipwreck search”.
The Endurance, the lost vessel of Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton, was found by scientists at the weekend, 3,008 metres below the surface of the Weddell Sea.
The 144ft ship has become a legend of exploration history after it was crushed by sea-ice and sank in 1915, forcing Shackleton and his men to make an astonishing escape on foot and in small boats.
Footage of the remains show Endurance to be in remarkable condition, preserved by the icy underwater conditions and the absence of wood-eating organisms.
The Endurance22 expedition, which set off from Cape Town a month ago, found the ship on the 100th anniversary of Shackleton’s funeral.
Who was Shackleton, what is the history of the ship and how did it sink?
Sir Ernest Shackleton was an Anglo-Irish explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic.
Back in 1914, Shackleton and his crew set out to achieve the first land crossing of Antarctica, on the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition.
But Endurance did not reach land and became trapped in dense pack ice, forcing the 28 men on board to eventually abandon ship. Shackleton and the crew somehow managed to escape the ice-trapped Endurance and get to safety, by camping on sea ice until it melted before sailing across the ferocious seas in small lifeboats.
The voyage became stuff of legend, widely known for the amazing escape. The journey of 720 nautical miles (830 miles) is the explorer’s most famous exploit.
Timeline of Shackleton’s expedition
- December 1914: Endurance departs South Georgia
- February 1915: Ship is thoroughly ice-locked
- October 1915: Vessel’s timbers start breaking
- November 1915: Endurance disappears under the ice
- April 1916: Escaping crew reaches Elephant Island
- May 1916: Shackleton goes to South Georgia for help
- August 1916: A relief ship arrives at Elephant Island
How did Ernest Shackleton die?
In 1921 Sir Ernest returned to the Antarctic but died aged 47 from a heart attack while his ship was moored at South Georgia.
How was the ship found?
It was already known with good accuracy where Shackleton's Endurance vessel ended up after sinking more than 100 years ago. Until now, however, it has not been seen since 1915. All attempts to spot it on the Antarctic seafloor have been fruitless.
In February this year, scientists and historians embarked on the Endurance22 Expedition from Cape Town on a mission to locate it. For more than two weeks they combed a predefined search area, investigating various possible targets.
The vessel was finally uncovered off the coast of Antarctica, approximately four miles south of the position originally recorded by its captain, Frank Worsley.
The wreck is protected as a Historic Site and Monument under the Antarctic Treaty, ensuring that whilst the wreck is being surveyed and filmed it will not be touched or disturbed in any way, according to the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust. No physical artefacts have therefore been brought to the surface.
What condition is the ship in?
Even though it has been sitting in 3km (10,000ft) of water for over a century, the ship looks much the same as when photographed for the last time by Shackleton’s filmmaker, Frank Hurley, in 1915.
The name, Endurance, is still clearly visible on the stern. The ship is upright, the wheel is intact, and Polaris, the five-pointed star, after which the ship was originally named, can be seen clearly below the ship’s name.
This is because the Antarctic circumpolar current has acted as barrier to the larvae that could have degraded the ship's wood.
Marine archaeologist Mensun Bound, who is on the discovery expedition, told BBC News: “Without any exaggeration this is the finest wooden shipwreck I have ever seen—by far.”
Why is the discovery so groundbreaking?
The Endurance has long been seen as one of the most unreachable shipwrecks in the world. The Weddell Sea is almost permanently covered in thick sea-ice, the same ice that caused the Endurance to sink in 1915. Therefore getting anywhere near where the shipwreck was presumed to be, let alone conducting a search, is incredibly difficult.
Even in the age of satellites and metal icebreakers, it has represented an impossible task.
However, the conditions over the past month were unexpectedly favourable, as it saw the lowest extent of Antarctic sea-ice ever recorded during the satellite era, which dates back to the 1970s.
Dr John Sears told the BBC: “We have successfully completed the world’s most difficult shipwreck search, battling constantly shifting sea-ice, blizzards, and temperatures dropping down to -18C. We have achieved what many people said was impossible.”
