National Museum of the U.S. Navy

Review the time line and then answer the questions at the end of the page.

1839-1840 America's First Official Expedition to the Antarctic

1850-1851 The Grinnell Expedition

1879 Jeannette Expedition

1881 Greely Expedition

1901-1904 and 1910-1913 Scott Expeditions

1909 Robert E. Peary's Trek to the North Pole

1914-1916 Ernest Shackleton, veteran of Scott's expeditions.

1926 First Flight Over the North Pole

1947-1948 Ronne Antarctic Expedition

1958 Nautilus Sails Under the North Pole

1961 Antarctica Treaty Enacted

Questions

Categorize the expeditions on the timeline under the headings below:

1. Pick one of the countries (other then the United States) that signed The Antarctic Treaty System in 1961. Create a timeline of polar exploration for that country. What sort of research did your country do in the Antarctic? Was it similar to research done by American scientists?



2. Members of the Jeannette Expedition were trapped in the Arctic Sea for many months. How did the survivors escape? What lessons did the Navy learn about the Arctic after this tragic disesater?