MAWSONS EXPEDITION

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 28 February 1913, Page 7

MAWSONS EXPEDITION

OBJECTS OF THE EXPEDITION

THE SOUTH MAGNETIC POLE

])r Mawson's expedition lias boon down south for about fourteen month* (said the Sydney "Daily Telegrapn of Tuesday lust). It was purely of a scientific nature, but the discovery or mineral wealth was considered probable, and investigations were to bo mado also in regard to whaling and sealing. This field lies due south of Australia and less than 2000 miles troni shores, the latitude being I rem <0 degrees to Go degrees south. In olliei words, the latitude corresponds to that of the north of Ireland,, in Europe, or of part of the Yukon Valley in Alaska. It hounds, in fact-, the post northerlylands of Antarctica, with the tion of the outjutting port-ion of (<iaham Land, to the south of Cape fioiii. Professor David stated last year in all probability its would, though severe, ho quite compatible with permanent occupation ijy man. However, this question will be settled bv the experiences of the expedition, j The distance from Australia at its nearest points is about equal to thai, between Melbourne and Perth. The original discoverer was the !< renc-n navigator, Dumont d'Urville, who .sailed from JHobart early in 1840, and ".wv. back there in seven weeks. havy.ig sailed along some hundred 1 -''- ol mile-; of the coast, lande-d a party, ed the part still known as • Land. In the interim none had yiiVcted a landing there, and few had even sighted the coast. . In laying out the plan* or 'iis pediticn, l)r Mawson stated tiiau plastically evert member of the lar.d party would be a specialist in a particular branch of science, most of lineni being graduates of Australian and Ne.\\ Jand universities. It was intended to land at intervals three sopa-n-to •shore parties, each equipped with the necessities for wintering. It was thoir special desire to accomplish a geographical and magnetic survey between .Cape Ad are and Gaussberg. This would be elfecoed by sledging parties proceeding along the coa>st on either hand from the wintering stations. One inland party .vuu.d be despatched to the Magnetic L'olo, conjiing in on it from the opposite duection" to the approadh made by the Shackelton expedition By this journey it was hoped to complete the magnetic data that were wanting in the vicinity of the South Magnetic Pole. The .sledging journey would be accomplished- by man .hauling, dog-teams, and motpr sledges. Sledging over sea ico in the early spring might be. possible; such journeys would be accomplished with seal meat and blubber as food, collected en route. Scientific knowledge of this area was entiieiy wanting. The magnetic chartmg would ho of value to navigation. The want of geographical data from ilicie was keenly felt, especially in Australia, where there was a dependence of the local geology upon that of Antarctic. Biological researches must be rich in new discoveries. It might- be that there was the 'habitat cf some of the rare tvpes of seals and Antarctic birds. Certainly the Southern in th a t- vicinity, abounded in 7.7ia!e ftncl seal life, ana it they cou_establish convenient harbours or discover sub-Antarctic islands there was sure to follow commercial enterprise on these lines. The meteorology of this area was, he said, very important in connection with shipping along the southern coast of Australia and 'New Zealand. An effort would be made to -disco 1 , ei whether a- deep gull existed to tr.e west of Gaussberg. The waiter was to bo spent in oceanographic work on L ho Hues ftc' , op'te'd by the Prince ol' [ Monaco. Deep-sea tiawling.s fioui between 500 and 2000 fathoms would be made in this hitherto unexplored sea. ■rr.d alluo.st o\'C't\V spec.eG bn.ught up must bo now to science. Before leaving for the Antarctic, Dr Mawson, in describing the scheme of his proposed operations in what may he termed Australian Antarc.-ica (as it is directly south of Australia) said they would extend from C ape Actare to Gausseberg, in Kaiser Wilhehn Land (named by Gausse in lUUl). This represents a sailing distance of about miles. All this iengchy coast line is unexplored, 'i lie -.small portions of coast-line filled in on the map were sighted in the distance by various expeditions and Antarctic navigators. These c'harting-s lack reliability, as no landing was ever- made upon tlie coast except by the expedition under Dumont d'Urville. In 1840 Wilkes coasted along and mapped a continent with high mountains close to the coast, but as instancing the reliability that may be placed on his data, it may be "mentioned that Ross afterwards sailed over some of those high mountains! .Dr Mawson continued: —"We m- ' "'i-cl to send one -paro.v to the South Magnetic Pole from the novch . coast. In sh-acKleton.'s oxpedru.n we came to it from the east. In this way we •oiii up with our old traverse, an/ thereby complete a geological -section across that corner of the Antarctic Continent. There are active volcanoes along the coast which we intend to visit, also threeupon islands. We intend to establish -several winter quartern along the coast, as the ship could" not skirt the whole of it —she would be blocked by the ice. It will be the duty of the parties left at these huts to make long sledging journeys, <.u each of the winter quarters, and knit up the whole of the coast line. In this way. the whole of the area will be thoroughly explored, and our survey will enable us to fill up all the blanks in the map. The expedition wil start from Sydney, Melbourne, or Hobart, according to the amount of support we receive. In order to economise our stock of coal, we shall employ sails, and, taking advantage of the 'rnoring forties and .shrieking fifties.' call first at Cape Adnro. We shall leave a small party there, but +he main party will be left at Adobe Land."