One of the most legendary and unexplored shipwrecks was discovered over the weekend, 107 years after the ship sank. It is the wreck of the Endurance, the ship that carried explorer Ernest Shackleton to Antarctica in 1915 before it was crushed by ice and sank. Scientists discovered and filmed the wreck nearly 10,000 feet below the surface of the Weddell Sea.
The ship was found just four miles south of the last position recorded in 1915 by Frank Worsley, the ship's captain.
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The Endurance22 expedition (as the shipwreck search mission was called) began its search in early February. Braving freezing temperatures, the team searched for more than two weeks in a 150-square-mile area around the spot where the ship sank in 1915. Using the icebreaker Agulhas II and autonomous underwater drones , the team located the ship and sent high-resolution cameras to record the find.
Images from the wreck show that the Endurance is in very good condition. Its timbers, although damaged, are still well-jointed, and the name -Endurance- can be seen on the stern. Of course, there is marine life, but it has not caused serious damage to the ship. The ice conditions in the Weddell Sea have largely prevented the accumulation of organisms that could destroy its wood.
“This is by far the best wooden shipwreck I’ve ever seen,” said Mensun Bound, exploration director at Endurance22. “It’s standing, proud on the seabed, intact, in excellent condition.”
According to the Antarctic Treaty, the wreck of the legendary ship Endurance is protected as a historic site and cannot be touched.
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One of the reasons for the delay in discovering the wreck is because the Weddell Sea is covered in thick ice, the same ice that sank the Endurance. Even with modern icebreakers, scientists have had difficulty reaching the area where the Endurance sank. However, this year the sea ice in Antarctica was at lower levels. The Weddell Sea was still frozen, but conditions were favorable for the research vessel Agulhas II.
The Endurance wreck is one of the most famous, leading to one of the most famous Antarctic survival stories. The Endurance became trapped in the ice in February 1915 and survived the winter months until it sank on November 21. Shackleton and his crew (27 men) were stranded on the drifting sea ice, making makeshift camps and boats.
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The crew eventually reached Elephant Island, off the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula, before Shackleton and a crew of five set out for the island of South Georgia. They completed the 800-mile journey and were able to obtain help for the stranded men from a whaling station on the island. The story is famous for Shackleton's leadership and the fact that no human life was lost.
Source: CNET
