Wikipedia:Today's featured article/August 24, 2011

Farthest South was the term used to denote the most southerly latitudes reached by explorers before the conquest of the South Pole in 1911. From the late 19th century onward the quest for Farthest South latitudes became in effect a race to reach the pole, which culminated in Roald Amundsen's victory in December 1911. In the years before reaching the Pole was a realistic objective, other motives drew adventurers southward. Initially, the driving force was the discovery of new trade routes between Europe and the Far East. After such routes had been established and the main geographical features of the earth had been broadly mapped, the lure for mercantile adventurers was the great fertile continent of "Terra Australis" which, according to myth, lay hidden in the south. James Cook's voyages of 1771–74 demonstrated conclusively the likely hostile nature of any hidden lands. This caused a shift of emphasis in the first half of the 19th century, away from trade and towards exploration and discovery. After the first overwintering on continental Antarctica in 1899 the prospect of reaching the South Pole appeared realistic, and the race for the pole began. (more...)

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