Illustration
This map illustrates the exploration of the continent of Antarctica from the first voyages of the 18th century to the research stations of the 21st century. The map also shows the varied and competing national claims to slices of the Great White Continent.
Exploration of the continent began in earnest with James Cook crossing the Antarctic Circle and circumnavigating the continent in 1773 without seeing land. In 1820, Fabian Bellingshausen led a Russian expedition that circumnavigated Antarctica and recorded one of the first sightings of the mainland. Over the following decades, explorers like Edward Bransfield, James Weddell, and Jules Dumont d’Urville charted sections of the coastline, while James Clark Ross discovered the Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf in the 1840s. In 1899, Carsten Borchgrevink led the first expedition to overwinter on the Antarctic mainland.
The Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration (1897–1922) followed, defined by the race to the South Pole. Roald Amundsen reached it first in 1911, shortly before Robert Falcon Scott. An expedition led by Ernest Shackleton (1914–1917) attempted a continental crossing but failed. It wasn’t until 1957–1958 that the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition, led by Vivian Fuchs with support from Edmund Hillary, completed the first successful overland crossing.
The 1959 Antarctic Treaty established the continent for peaceful, scientific purposes. Today, multiple countries operate permanent research stations, enabling ongoing international collaboration.
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Cite This Work
APA Style
Netchev, S. (2025, March 20). Map of Antarctica: Discovery and Exploration. World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/image/20240/map-of-antarctica-discovery-and-exploration/
Chicago Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of Antarctica: Discovery and Exploration." World History Encyclopedia. Last modified March 20, 2025. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/20240/map-of-antarctica-discovery-and-exploration/.
MLA Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of Antarctica: Discovery and Exploration." World History Encyclopedia. World History Encyclopedia, 20 Mar 2025. Web. 21 Mar 2025.
