We didn’t see that coming! Today we found out that the Endurance 22’s ship, the Agulhas, got stuck in the ice while searching for Shackleton’s famous ship in Antarctica.
Just a few weeks ago a team of adventurers and scientists, organized and funded by The Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust (FMHT) started a new 35-day expedition to attempt to locate, survey, and film the wreck of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance. Shackleton’s ship was trapped and crushed by the ice and sank in the Weddell Sea in 1915. The new Endurance 22 teams’ goal is to find the wreckage by using new underwater technology.
On February 22, 2022, the Agulhas found itself in a similar situation to Shackleton’s ship. The new team of explorers ended up getting stuck very close to where the original vessel sank more than a hundred years ago.
Thankfully, the Agulhas was prepared with the technology to free itself. It used its powerful engine and mechanical crane to loosen the grip of the ice. It was able to use one of the cranes to swing a shipping container back and forth to create some movement. After several hours, it was able to escape the grips of the ice and continue the mission.
The Endurance 22 team plans to be at sea for 35 days, but up to 45 days if required, and will be run from the SA Agulhas II, the South African icebreaking polar supply and research ship belonging to the South African Government and managed by the South African company African Marine Solutions (AMSOL).