Polheim ("Home at the Pole") was
Roald Amundsen
Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (, ; ; 16 July 1872 – ) was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He was a key figure of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.
Born in Borge, Østfold, Norway, Amundsen beg ...
's name for his camp (the first ever) at the
South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole, Terrestrial South Pole or 90th Parallel South, is one of the two points where Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on Earth and lies antipod ...
. He arrived there on December 14, 1911, along with four other members of his expedition:
Helmer Hanssen
Helmer Julius Hanssen (24 September 1870 – 2 August 1956) was a Norwegian sailor, pilot and polar explorer. He participated in three of the polar expeditions led by Roald Amundsen and was one of the first five explorers to reach the South Pole ...
,
Olav Bjaaland
Olav Bjaaland (5 March 1873 – 8 June 1961) was a Norwegian ski champion and polar explorer. In 1911, he was one of the first five men to reach the South Pole as part of Amundsen's South Pole expedition.
Biography
Olav Olavsen Bjaaland ...
,
Oscar Wisting
Oscar Adolf Wisting (6 June 1871 – 5 December 1936) was a Norwegian Naval officer and polar explorer. Together with Roald Amundsen he was the first person to reach both the North and South Poles.
Biography
Oscar Wisting was born in ...
, and
Sverre Hassel.
Calculations
At the first estimated position of the South Pole, Amundsen declared ''"So we plant you, dear flag, on the South Pole, and give the plain on which it lies the name
King Haakon VII
Haakon VII (; born Prince Carl of Denmark; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was the King of Norway from November 1905 until his death in September 1957.
Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen as the son of the future Frederick VI ...
's Plateau."'' Both the
Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
and ''
Fram
Fram may refer to:
Ships
* ''Fram'' (ship), an arctic exploration vessel from Norway
* MS ''Fram'', expedition cruise ship owned by Hurtigruten Group
Places and geography
* Fram, Paraguay, a town in Itapúa, Paraguay
* Fram Formation, a se ...
's'' flag were planted.
Due to the historical disputes over the claims of polar explorers prior to Amundsen's expedition, particularly the competing claims of
Frederick Cook
Frederick Albert Cook (June 10, 1865 – August 5, 1940) was an American explorer, physician, and ethnographer who claimed to have reached the North Pole on April 21, 1908. That was nearly a year before Robert Peary, who similarly clai ...
and
Robert Peary to have reached the
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's rotation, Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distingu ...
first, Amundsen took special care in making his polar observations.
Approaching the
Geographic South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole, Terrestrial South Pole or 90th Parallel South, is one of the two points where Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on Earth and lies antipod ...
(or North Pole) the meridians of
longitude
Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east– west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lette ...
converge, eventually making a measure of longitude meaningless, as a degree of longitude will become smaller and smaller. At the pole itself, assuming one has accurate enough instruments, all meridians meet. Amundsen reasoned that the extra effort in obtaining longitude could be saved, and he focused on
latitude
In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pol ...
. Amundsen had adopted this strategy after attending a lecture at
The Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
in November 1909, given by the British astronomer and geographer,
Arthur Robert Hinks. In his lecture on Surveying and Cartography at
Cambridge University
The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...
, Hinks put forward this theory when discussing the subject of determining positions near the Pole.
With the instruments he had, Amundsen estimated that he could determine the position of the pole by no better than a nautical mile (1.85 km). In order to ensure that there was no doubt that his expedition had in fact reached the South Pole, he determined to encircle, or "box" the pole.
Three members of the expedition were sent out from the current estimated position of the pole, one continuing on the current expedition track and two at right angles to this direction. Each skier continued and erected a spare sledge runner with a black flag and note for
Robert Falcon Scott
Captain Robert Falcon Scott, , (6 June 1868 – c. 29 March 1912) was a British Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the ''Discovery'' expedition of 1901–1904 and the ill-fated ''Terra Nov ...
when and if he arrived. Scott did not arrive until more than a month later. The note contained the position to Amundsen's camp.
While the skiers erected the encircling markers, Amundsen took altitudes of the sun for fixing his position. Since his
theodolite
A theodolite () is a precision optical instrument for measuring angles between designated visible points in the horizontal and vertical planes. The traditional use has been for land surveying, but it is also used extensively for building an ...
had been damaged, observations were made with a sextant, the sun slowly circling the camp in 24 hours, and never setting.
From these calculations, Amundsen determined that their current position was approximately from the mathematical South Pole point. This point had been "boxed" by the skiers.
On December 17 Amundsen proceeded to his estimate of the true South Pole position, and took additional observations for 24 hours, two men standing watch for each observation, and co-signing each other's navigation books. Again, this was to ensure that there was no doubt as to the expedition attaining the pole. Four out of the five men in the polar party were trained navigators, Olav Bjaaland being the only one without such training.
From these calculations, it was determined that they were still from the pole, and two men were sent to erect additional pennants.
Finally, Amundsen added still more pennants to cover the remaining area. In this way, the pole had been boxed three times all told.
![Robert F](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Robert_F._Scott_at_Polheim.JPG)
The official expedition camera had been damaged en route to the pole, so the only photographs taken were from an amateur camera brought by expedition member Olav Bjaaland.
On December 18, 1911, Amundsen's expedition left Polheim, leaving behind his reserve tent, along with a letter for Scott and a letter intended for Scott to deliver to King
Haakon VII
Haakon VII (; born Prince Carl of Denmark; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was the King of Norway from November 1905 until his death in September 1957.
Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen as the son of the future Frederick ...
in case Amundsen failed to return. Both letters were later found with the bodies of Scott and his companions, and were further proof that Amundsen had attained the pole.
When Amundsen's calculations were verified, it was found that his final camp lay within 2.3 km (2500 yards) of the mathematical South Pole. In addition, it had been ascertained that expedition member
Helmer Hanssen
Helmer Julius Hanssen (24 September 1870 – 2 August 1956) was a Norwegian sailor, pilot and polar explorer. He participated in three of the polar expeditions led by Roald Amundsen and was one of the first five explorers to reach the South Pole ...
—one of the expedition members who had been skiing in a grid pattern between the 'box' markers—came to within of the mathematical South Pole on one of his runs.
The tent
The tent has not been seen since Scott's party left it in January 1912. Determining the present location of Amundsen's tent requires consideration of the precision of Amundsen's navigation in 1911, the flow of ice since then, and the amount of burial by intervening snow fall. The present location of the tent has been calculated to be 89° 58′ 51″ S, 46° 14′ E, with around uncertainty in the position. It probably lies below the present snow surface.
See also
*
Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station
*
Framheim
Framheim was the name of explorer Roald Amundsen's base at the Bay of Whales on the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica during his successful quest for the South Pole. It was used between January 1911 and February 1912.
Cabin and tents
The hut was c ...
*
List of Antarctic Field Camps
Many Antarctic research stations support satellite field camps which are, in general, seasonal camps. The type of field camp can vary – some are permanent structures used during the annual Antarctic summer, whereas others are little more than te ...
References
Further reading
* Roald Amundsen wrote about the expedition in ''Sydpolen'' published in two volumes in 1912–1913. The work was translated into English by A. G. Chater, and published as ''The South Pole: An Account of the Norwegian Antarctic Expedition in the "Fram," 1910–1912''. (London: John Murray. 1912)
*
Huntford, Roland (1979) ''Scott and Amundsen'' (Hodder & Stoughton Ltd)
* Huntford, Roland (1999) ''The Last Place on Earth'' (Modern Library Exploration)
{{coord, 90.0000, S, 0.0000, E, source:wikidata, display=title
Outposts of Antarctica
Amundsen's South Pole expedition
1911 establishments in Antarctica
1911 disestablishments in Antarctica