| "Belgica" was initially
a Norwegian whaler that sailed for a long time under the name
"Patria". It was made of wood and measured 32 m
in length, 6.5 m in width, having a total loading capacity
of about 260 t. It had 3 wooden masts and a 160 hp steam-engine
that allowed it 7 running-knots.
The crew consisted of 19 people out of which 2 were mechanics
and 8 sailors. Except for skipper de Gerlache, the
general staff included the Belgian Georges Lecointe
(second captain), the Norwegian Roald Amundsen (first
officer, and the man who first reached the South Pole in
1911), the Belgian's Jules Melaerts (second officer)
and Emile Danco (physicist), the Romanian Emil
Racovita (biologist), Poles Henrik Arktowski (geologist
and oceanographer), and his assistant Anton Dobrowoloski
and the American Frederick Cook (doctor and cameraman).
"Belgica" left Anvers (Belgium) in August 16,
1897 and Punta Arenas (Chili) in December 14, 1897. It was
out of any kind of communication after it passed the States
Island in January 14, 1898. Ten days later the expedition
discovered new territories west of Graham Land, later called
Gerlache Strait. Along its 170 km, the explorers
disembarked 22 times making as many scientific investigations
as the other polar expeditions all together. In March 10,
1898 the ship was blocked by the ice pack and had to wait
for the polar summer to come. Until March 14, 1899 when
the ship was again able to sail (after the explorers cut
out a 75 m long channel in the 2 to 6 m thick ice sheet
to connect the ship with free waters) the crew experienced
a dramatic period, the ice threatening to crush their ship
several times. While the ship was blocked, it moved some
3,500 km due to the drift. The southernmost point it reached
in March 31, 1898 was 71o 36'.
The scientific results obtained by the "Belgica"
Polar expedition were extremely valuable. They provided
the first meteorological data recorded hourly during a whole
year as well as important information concerning oceanic
streams and terrestrial magnetism. Several rock, botanical
(400) and zoological (1200) samples were collected. All
these materials were entrusted to 80 scientists (74 of them
being biologists). Their studies undertaken on these samples
were published in 10 large volumes. It is the most palpable
evidence that this expedition completed its mission.
This text has been written by Dr. Gheorghe Racovita
Courtesy of: Romanian
Speleology
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