The Endurance, the ship of Ernest Shackleton's expedition, was located in the Weddell Sea. The vessel lies at a depth of 3000 meters in Antarctica. Its state of preservation is remarkable after 107 years underwater. The discovery closes a historic search and offers a time capsule from the heroic age of polar exploration.
The technology behind the discovery in extreme conditions 🤖
The success is attributed to the use of the SAAB Sabertooth, a hybrid vehicle between an underwater drone and an ROV. Operated from the icebreaker S.A. Agulhas II, this equipment withstood extreme pressures and navigated under sea ice. Its side-scan sonars and high-definition cameras allowed mapping the seabed and capturing detailed images in an area with near-zero visibility and sub-zero temperatures.
Shackleton and the art of parking the ship poorly for posterity 🅿️
It must be acknowledged that Shackleton chose a prime location for the museum of his ship. At 3000 meters and surrounded by perpetual darkness, the absence of sunlight and wood-boring organisms has done a preservation job that many shipyards would envy. Perhaps his greatest achievement was not the survival of the crew, but having parked the ship in the only place where it would not rust. A master of long-term parking.