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One hundred years ago, in June 1911, Robert Falcon Scott and 32 explorers—most of them British scientists, naval officers or seafarers—were huddled in the darkness of the Antarctic winter, when the sun never rises above the horizon and up to eight feet of ice seals the surrounding sea. Winter temperatures on Ross Island, the southernmost piece of exposed land reached by Scott’s ship, can plunge below –50 degrees Fahrenheit. Blizzards rise up often. Lacking wireless communication and totally cut off from the outside world, the explorers waited for the longer, warmer days of spring, in October, when some of them would set out to cross nearly 900 miles of ice shelf, mountains and the Polar Plateau to arrive at a spot of no particular interest to anybody except for its location at the bottom of the earth.

This article was originally published with the title Greater Glory.

3 Comments

1. 1. ravenrose 11:12 AM 5/27/11

   Bah with only giving access to articles through Facebook. What's WRONG with you people??? Think about it. LOL

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2. 2. ironjustice 08:12 AM 5/30/11

   One might wonder how this article 'fits' the health section ?

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3. 3. sleipner 04:30 PM 8/2/11

   In reference to the article “Greater Glory” by Edward J. Larson. Scientific American, June 2011, pp. 78-83.
   
   This article is flawed in several important areas. It lacks scientific integrity, it lacks broad subject-matter expertise, and displays widespread confirmation bias. It is an attempt to re-write polar history.
   
   Firstly, Scott’s diaries and the subsequent publication “Scott’s Last Expedition” were purged of all passages showing signs of Scott’s incompetence as a leader and explorer. This began with Kathleen Scott who, at her husband’s request, dealt with his papers and reputation (ref 1). Having failed at his primary goal of being the first person to reach the south pole, the emphasis shifted to bolster Scott's ties to scientific elements of the expedition.
   
   Edward Larson also argues that “assigning Scott’s best Nordic skier, Tryggve Gran, to the scientific party rather than his own group showed Scott’s commitment to science”. In truth, Scott did not want Gran to join him in the party racing to the pole because he was Norwegian - he did not want to plant the Union Jack on the south pole with a foreigner.
   
   Larson goes on to state that “Scott’s push for the pole was designed for safety, not speed”. Having poor cold-weather clothing, bringing along heavy tractors that fell through the ice, and old Siberian Ponies that froze to death (ref 2) hardly constitutes a “safety” plan. This, along with man-hauling equipment or placing 5 men in a four-man tent with inadequate food supplies are not “safe” endeavors, they are examples of poor planning.
   
   Scott’s main goal was recognition and glory. Science was, at best, a distant secondary goal. In fact, the Royal Society pushed for Professor J.W. Gregory to lead the landing party, and viewed Scott as the captain of the ship to bring the expedition to the Antarctic continent and back (ref 1). Prof. Gregory thought Scott “a bad organizer, and that he was trying to get all the glory of the show...that Scott’s slack methods would land us in some holes”. Sir Clements Markham stepped in to ensure domination by Royal Navy personnel.
   
   Lastly, the on-line subtitle "Why Scott let Amundsen Win the Race to the South Pole" speaks for itself as childish and uninformed. It is very troubling that the Scientific American magazine did not catch these errors during the review stage.
   
   References:
   1. Huntford, Roland, The Last Place on Earth. 1999. Random House, Inc. 589 pp.
   2. Cherry-Garrard, Apsley, The Worst Journey in the World, 1997. Carrol & Graf Publishers, Inc. New York. 607 pp.

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