The Belgian Antarctic Expedition was a scientific voyage led by the Belgian naval officer Adrien de Gerlache on the ship Belgica. It was the first expedition to spend the winter in the Antarctic region, although this was largely unplanned: the Belgica became trapped in the pack ice of the Bellingshausen Sea and drifted for about a year, with the crew suffering from darkness, cold, scurvy and mental stress. The scientists, including the Polish geologist and oceanographer Henryk Arctowski, gathered valuable data on weather, ice and marine life. The crew included the American doctor Frederick Cook and the young Norwegian first mate Roald Amundsen, who later reached the South Pole. Ingenious efforts freed the ship from the ice in 1899.
Before and after
- 26 May 1897Publication of Dracula
- 12 June 1897Birth of Anthony Eden
- 18 June 1897Founding of Kyoto University
- 24 July 1897Birth of Amelia Earhart
- from 16 August 1897 to 5 November 1899Belgian Antarctic Expedition
- 20 August 1897Ronald Ross shows that mosquitoes transmit malaria
- 12 September 1897Birth of Irène Joliot-Curie
- 25 September 1897Birth of William Faulkner
- 26 September 1897Birth of Paul VI
More in Exploration & discovery
- from 5 June 1799 to 1 January 1804Alexander von Humboldt begins his American expedition
- 22 August 1812Burckhardt rediscovers Petra
- 16 November 1855Livingstone sees Victoria Falls
- 27 October 1858Birth of Theodore Roosevelt
- 16 July 1872Birth of Roald Amundsen
- from 7 December 1872 to 26 May 1876Challenger Expedition
The era
This moment belongs to the Industrial era (1760 CE to 1914 CE), steam, factories and revolutions. You can also browse everything in the 19th century.