Antarctic Adventure: Shackleton'S
Antarctic Adventure: Shackleton'S
ANTARCTIC
ADVENTURE
The greatest survival story of all time.
TEACHERS GUIDE
to accompany the giant-screen film
2001 WGBH Educational Foundation
Contents
2 Who Was Sir Ernest Shackleton?
6 A Journey Unexpected
Activity 1: Track the Expedition
Students use latitude and longitude coordinates to track
Shackletons epic journey.
10 Ice-Cold Continent
Activity 2: All About Antarctica
Kelly Tyler/WGBH
24 Resources
The 19011904 Scott expedition aboard the ship Discovery came within a record-
breaking 400 miles (643.7 km) of the South Pole, but was ultimately unsuccessful
in reaching its destination.
Shackleton returned to England, married, and tried to establish a name for himself
in journalism, business, and politics.
By 1908, however, Shackleton was again drawn to the Antarctic. Deciding to
attempt the South Pole trek himself, he raised the funds for his own Nimrod expe-
dition. But the Nimrods quest for the Pole failed, too. His crew got within a scant
100 miles (160.9 km) of the Polefarther south than anyone had gone before
Sir Ernest when Shackleton was forced to turn back because of the partys ill health and dwindling
Shackleton supplies.To the dismay of Englands citizens, boasting rights to the Pole went three years
later to Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen.
At this juncture, Britain had now been beaten to both the North and South Poles.
Web Shackleton set out to gain Britain the honor of what he called the largest and most striking
Trek of all journeysthe crossing of the Continent.
More on Shackleton To recruit the crew of his British Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, who would sail
www.pbs.org/nova/shackleton/ aboard the Endurance, it is said that Shackleton posted the following notice:Men wanted
Find more information about for hazardous journey. Small wages. Bitter cold. Long months of complete darkness.
Shackletons expedition, Constant danger. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success.
including sounds and interactive Shackleton chose 27 men to serve a variety of positions, such as running and navigating
activities, on Shackletons the ship, cooking the meals, and
65W
65W 60W 55W 50W 45W 40W 35W
Key
Intended route
Actual route
45S
55S
ROSS
SEA WEDDELL
SEA
ANTARCTICA
60S
Curriculum Connections
Subject
Activity
Science Health Mathematics Social Studies English
1. Track the Expedition
2. All About Antarctica
3. Whats on Your Plate?
4. In Your Words
5. Craft the Caird
6. Find Your Latitude
A Journey Unexpected
Background
Web
When Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew members left South Georgia Island on
Trek
December 5, 1914, they sailed south into the Weddell Sea.Their destination was
Vahsel Bay, where they would disembark the Endurance and begin their southwest
Mapping Terra
Incognita
trek across the Antarctic continent toward the Ross Sea. Shackleton brought
www.pbs.org/nova/shackleton/ 69 Canadian sledge dogs to aid the expeditions transcontinental passage, and he
surviving/mapping.html arranged for a separate crew to travel inland from the Ross Sea to deposit addi-
Presents the evolution of tional supplies he and his crew would use during their crossing. Everything
Antarctic mapmaking, seemed set.
from ancient Roman times
to present day.
But what Shackleton and his crew members didnt anticipate was the amount of
pack icesolid or broken up ocean icethat they would encounter. And so,
Satellite Image about a month and a half into their journey, they found themselves on a very
of Antarctica
terraweb.wr.usgs.gov/TRS/
different expedition from the one they had so carefully planned: The Endurance
projects/Antarctica/AVHRR.html became trapped by pack ice, which crushed the ship 10 months later. This left
Posts various satellite images Shackleton and his 27 men stranded on the ice with only three lifeboats, limited
courtesy of the U.S. Geological provisions for food and shelter, and little hope of rescue.
Survey.
ARGENTINA
50S
Punta
Arenas Equator
Falkland Is.
55S
Latitude
Ushuaia S. Georgia I.
CHILE
65S
Antarctic
Peninsula
70S
International Date Line
WEDDELL SEA
Longitude
Antarctic Circle
About Latitude
and Longitude
Vahsel Bay
Ronne Ice Shelf Latitude lines represent
Coats Land the distance north or
south of the Earths
equator. Longitude lines
A N TA R C T I C A represent the distance
east or west of the prime
meridian, or the
1915
December 30 January 10 January 18 February 22
The Endurance crosses the The Endurance crew rst The Endurance becomes The Endurance drifts to its
Antarctic Circle. sights the Antarctic continent trapped in the pack ice. farthest point south.
(Coats Land). Lat: 77S Long: 30W
Lat: 72S Long: 16W
Pack ice
Elephant Island
Whaling station
1916
December 23 December 29 January 21 February 29
The crew again begins marching Shackleton abandons the A blizzard blows the In honor of Leap Year Day, the
toward open water, averaging march; the crew sets up ice oe on which the camp crew enjoys three full meals.
just a mile and a half a day. Patience Camp is located north across the
on the ice. Antarctic Circle.
Patience Camp
Ice-Cold Continent
Background
Web
Antarctica is one of the most remote and hostile places on Earth; it was the last
Trek
continent to be explored.When Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew started their
1914 journey to the continent, no one had yet successfully crossed it from sea
Explore Antarctic
Islands
to sea.Today, the ice-laden region hosts about 4,000 scientists and visitors during
www.pbs.org/nova/shackleton/ the Antarctic summer. As the fth largest continent, Antarctica comprises
1999/islands.html about 10 percent of the Earths land surface and lays claim to being the coldest
Displays 360-degree QuickTime and windiest continent on the planet. Seventy percent of the worlds fresh water
virtual reality scenes of the resides there.
Drake Passage, the Weddell Sea,
and the Antarctic islands.
Antarctica is governed by the international Antarctic Treaty of 1959, which
establishes the continent as an area of scientic research.The treaty prohibits
CIA World Factbook military activity like weapons testing, but military personnel and equipment may
www.odci.gov/cia/publications/
factbook/index.html
be used for scientic research or peaceful purposes. A special protocol to the
Features information about indi-
Treaty in 1991 added environmental protection measures. One measure was the
vidual countries as compiled for banning of non-indigenous species, so all sled dogs were airlifted to a new home
the Central Intelligence Agency. in arctic Canada.
The 50 States
www.50states.com
Offers links to state facts such as
climate, economy, and geography. Activity 2 : All About Antarctica
State Fact Sheets
www.ers.usda.gov/epubs/other/ Objective
usfact Students learn basic information about How many people live there? What
Lists state-specic facts on pop- Antarctica and compare the continent kind of work do they do?
ulation, employment, income, to the places where they live.
and agriculture.
What kind of wildlife lives there?
Materials for each student 2. After students have answered these
Counties of England
copy of All About Antarctica questions,organize them into groups and
www.camelotintl.com/heritage/
counties/england/index.html activity sheet on page 11 give each group a copy of the All About
Offers facts and short features access to print or Internet resources Antarctica activity sheet.Review with
about each of Englands counties. that include information about where students the various facts about
students live Antarctica found on the student page.
Procedure 3. Have students use print and Internet
Extension 1. Ask students what they know about resources to nd out information about
Antarctica. Specically: where they live. As students nd the
Have students nd ways to information, have them ll in the chart
visually represent the differences How big do they think it is compared
comparing facts about their home to
between their home and to where they live?
Antarctica, such as showing the facts about Antarctica.
difference in size between the How cold is it compared to where
4. Once students have completed the
two locations or the different they live?
chart, have them answer the questions
kinds of wildlife that exist in
each place.
What does the landscape look like? listed on the student activity page.
Antarctica is vast and cold. But what does that mean exactly? One way to
understand what it is like in Antarctica is to compare it to something that About Living
in Antarctica
you are already familiar withlike where you live now. Look at all the facts
Did you know that the Antarctic
below about Antarctica and see if you can nd information for the same winter happens during June, July,
categories about your home.Then compare how Antarctica and your home and August? And that night is
are alike and contrast how they are different. theoretically six months long at
the geographic pole, where it is
continuously twilight or dark
during the winter months? The
Features Facts About height of Antarctic summer is in
Where I Live January, bringing 24 hours of
Land area continuous sunlight.
Average temperature
Average rainfall
Average elevation
Typical terrain
Government Land area
Population size 5,500,000
square miles
Common life forms (14,000,000
sq km)
Natural resources
Average rainfall
24 inches (5.010.2 cm) (est.)
A N TA R C T I C A
Extension
Have students list all the food Activity 3 : Whats on Your Plate?
they would ideally take on an
expedition to a freezing-cold Objective
climate.Then have them consider Students compare the nutritional value 2. Organize students into teams and
why this food would or would and variety of their own meals to those distribute the Whats on Your Plate?
not be good to bring (for eaten by the early Antarctic explorers. and Calorie Counts activity sheets.
example, weight, perishability,
Have students characterize the food
nutrition, variety) and revise Materials for each student
their lists based on the discussion. listed in the explorers meal charts by
copy of the Whats on Your Plate?
How many of their foods would placing a check in the appropriate food
activity sheet on page 13
make the revised list? What category or categories (carbohydrate,
kinds of new foods would they copy of the Calorie Counts activity protein, and/or fat).Then have students
now consider? sheets on pages 1415 add up the estimated calories that crew
additional print and Internet members consumed.
references for calorie counts 3. Have students ll in the charts with
Procedure what they ate yesterday for breakfast,
1. Tell students that when Sir Ernest lunch, and dinner.Then have students
Shackleton and his men started their categorize their meals (some foods may
journey, they had a variety of foods to qualify for more than one category) and
meet their nutritional needs. But six use the information listed in Calorie
months before they were rescued, their Counts and other resources to nd
diet was mainly seal steaks, stewed seal, their total daily calories consumed.
penguin steaks, stewed penguin, and 4. When students are nished, have them
penguin liver. answer the questions listed on the student
activity page.
How does the food you eat compare to what Enter everything you had for breakfast, lunch, and
Endurance crew members ate at the beginning and dinner yesterday.When youve nished, put a mark
later on in their Antarctic voyage? To compare,rst in the box or boxes that most closely describes the
categorize the kind of foods the explorers ate,and type of food you ate.Then add your total calories
then use the Calorie Counts activity sheets and together and compare your daily menu to some of
other resources to examine the kind of foods you eat. those of Shackleton and his crew.
Questions
1. What was the easiest part of
your day to remember? The most
difcult?
2. List all the feelings you had
today. Which one was the
strongest?
3. Think about your day one week
ago. What can you remember?
How do the facts differ from what
you remembered about your day
today?
Sources
(1) Shackleton, Ernest. South: A Memoir (2) Shackleton. South, 9394. (5) Shackleton. South, 231.
of the Endurance Voyage. New York: Carroll (3) Shackleton. South, 93. (6) Shackleton. South, 222223.
& Graf Publishers, Inc., 1998, 73. (4) Shackleton. South, 104105.
Sir Ernest Shackleton had three lifeboats from which How big was the Caird? To nd out, use the informa-
to choose for his journey. He chose the James Caird tion on this page to scale up the total length, width,
because it was the largest of the three. Shackleton and depth of the Caird replica used in Shackletons
had the Caird modied to make it as seaworthy as Antarctic Adventure.Then use your string, scissors,
possible, including outtting the top with a canvas and tape to make an outline of the boats dimensions.
cloth to try to keep the men dry and warm.
In addition, the Caird needed to bring along extra About the Caird
weight, called ballast, to keep the boat from tipping Besides the men,supplies such as stoves, parafn, matches,
over.The crew lled the boat bottom with about and sleeping bags had to be carried on the journey.
According to Shackletons memoir,the food and instruments
1,800 pounds (816.5 kg) of rocks and gravel, which
they brought along included:
all six men had to both crawl around and sleep on.
Food Instruments
3 cases sledgling rations sextant
2 cases nut food binoculars
Scale
2 cases biscuits prismatic compass
1 inch = 3.3 feet (2.5 cm = 1.0 m)
1 case lump sugar sea anchor
30 packets of Trumilk charts
1 tin of Bovril cubes aneroid
1 tin of Cerebos salt
36 gallons of water
250 pounds of ice
Questions
1. What do you think were the three most difcult condi- 3. Besides sailing the boat and bailing out water, what
tions for the six Caird crew members 17-day journey? other factors would you need to consider in order to
survive?
2. What might you think about during such a journey?
Celestial Navigation
from Argonauts to Activity 6 : Find Your Latitude
Astronauts
www.mat.uc.pt/~asalves/ Objective
H61ian.htm Students make their own quadrants and marked by an X, through which they
Reviews early navigation instru- use them to determine their latitude. will push the end of a 10-inch (25.4-cm)
mentation, including quadrants, piece of string. Have them tape the end
astrolabes, and sextants. Materials for each student
of the string to the back of the folder.
2 copies of Find a 10-inch
Ursa Minor 3. Then have students attach a weight at
www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/ Your Latitude (25.4-cm) piece
constellations/constellations/ activity sheet of string the other end of the string and tape the
Ursa_Minor.html on page 23 90 end of their quadrant diagram to
a weight, such as
Shows a diagram and provides the 1-inch (1-cm) end of the ruler.
a ruler a large metal nut
directions for locating the star 4. Once the quadrant is made, have
or bolt
Polaris, which lies in the Ursa a manila folder
students try it out at night with an adult.
Minor constellation. glue
a pair of scissors
5. Tell students that while people in the
tape
Northern Hemisphere can use Polaris
Extension Procedure to nd their latitude,Shackleton couldnt
1. Give each student two copies of the see the North Star from the Antarctic.
Have students research and Find Your Latitude activity sheet. Instead, Endurance captain Frank
explain how some other early Have them use one copy to make the Worsley, the navigator, mainly relied on
celestial navigational instruments quadrant and save the other to help nd a sextant.
work, such as the:
the star Polaris in the night sky. 6. When students have tried out the
kamal
2. Have students glue the quadrant quadrant, have them answer the ques-
astrolabe
diagram onto the manila folder, cut it tions listed on the student activity page.
cross-staff
out, and make a hole at the point
back-staff
octant
sextant
Do you want to determine your latitude? All you also known as The Plough, which will point you to
need to do is nd the angle between your position the star Polaris. Raise your quadrant to your cheek-
on Earth and the North Starcalled Polaris bone (careful you dont poke yourself!) and, looking
and you can gure out your latitude. How do you down the length of the ruler, line up Polaris with the
do that? Build a quadrant, using the pattern and end of the ruler. Once you have Polaris correctly
instructions below. sighted, press the string against the cardboard and
Once you have made your quadrant, try it out. record the angle at which the string crosses the
Go out on a clear night and locate the Big Dipper, scale.This is your latitude.
About Polaris
Relative to the Earths movement,
Polaris remains xed in one
position in the sky,almost exactly
above the North Pole.You can
use this fact to determine your
latitude. Measuring the angle
between your position on Earth
and Polaris reveals the altitude
of Polaris, which is equal to your
latitude.
Questions
1. What is your latitude? 3. What would your latitude be if you
were standing at the equator?
2. What would your latitude be if you
were at the North Pole? 4. How many degrees are you away
from the North Pole? The equator?
The BFI London IMAX Cinema, England All rights reserved. Other than discussed above, no part of
Manager of Educational Print
the Shackletons Antarctic Adventure Teachers Guide may be
Sonja Latimore The Science Museum IMAX Cinema,
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by
London, England any means,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recording,
Project Director
or otherwise, without prior written permission of the
Karen Hartley
WGBH Educational Foundation, 125 Western Avenue,
Boston, MA 02134.
Kelly Tyler/WGBH
Paul Marotta/WGBH
Kelly Tyler/WGBH
Paul Marotta/WGBH
Susanne Simpson/WGBH