Phil Beacall
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Status: Offline | The ice explorers: Royal Navy sailors enter an amazing underground world in Antarctica
The ice explorers: Royal Navy sailors enter an amazing underground world in Antarctica hundreds of miles from civilisation
Royal Marines on the Navy’s HMS Protector have been exploring Antarctica after the ship ventured further south than ever before delivering vital supplies to polar scientists.
Crew serving on the Portsmouth-based icebreaker had the rare opportunity to scout out Rothera Point on Adelaide Island after making an aviation fuel delivery to the largest station of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS).
The hub used for scientific surveys is based 800 miles south of Cape Horn - the southern-most tip of the Americas - the most southerly point the ship has sailed to yet.
And during the rare visit, three of HMS Protector’s all-terrain vehicles were craned ashore, allowing 24 crew members to explore with the BAS team and capture these incredible photographs of the continent’s stunning natural beauty.
Two dozen Marines also took part in a ‘winter Olympics’ with a cross-country ski race against the BAS team – beating the scientists on their home turf - against a backdrop of the Adelaide mountains.
HMS Protector’s dentist Surg Lt Jenna Murgatroyd told NavalToday: ’It was a truly amazing experience.
’The awe inspiring backdrop to the games made for a perfect afternoon to try something new on the ice - this was a unique opportunity I will not forget.’
They then took part in some crevassing supervised by the BAS team and the ship’s mountain leader Sergeant Ian Freeman.
Marine Thomas Lemar said: ’Once we were down in the crevasse it was a truly mind-blowing experience.
’It was like being in Superman’s secret lair with huge ice crystals shooting out in every direction, reflecting light in deep vibrant blues.’
The island of South Georgia was the first Antarctic land to be discovered was by the English merchant Anthony de la Roche in 1675.
Rothera Point on Adelaide Island - located 800 miles south of Cape Horn - was discovered in 1832 by a British expedition led by John Biscoe
Rothera Point on Adelaide Island - located 800 miles south of Cape Horn - was discovered in 1832 by a British expedition led by John Biscoe
But the first confirmed sighting of the continent of Antarctica didn’t occur until much later during a Russian expedition by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev in 1820.
Adelaide Island was discovered in 1832 by a British expedition led by John Biscoe. The island was first surveyed by the French Antarctic Expedition under Jean-Baptiste Charcot.
The Antarctic region has no indigenous population but now a few thousand transient scientific and other personnel work across several dozen research stations situated on the continent.
The first human born in the Antarctic was Solveig Gunbjorg Jacobsen in October 1913 in Grytviken, South Georgia.
Despite its remote location, 40,000 tourists visit Antarctica annually.
HMS Protector is now travelling north back towards the UK.
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