Opponents of arctic exploration argue the area poses too many unknown challenges, but those objections ignore the industrys 50year history of successful operations in the arctic, including the. In the late 1800s, arctic fever swept across the nation as dozens of american expeditions sailed north to the arctic to find a sea route to asia and, ultimately, to stand at the north pole. The 20 best books about the arctic and antarctic to read. Hes written about hiphop spectacular vernaculars, 1995 and the history of polar exploration arctic spectacles, 2007, as well as a novel, pyg. Nature, exploration and exploitation mccannon, john on. A brief history of the age of exploration thoughtco. Kane the arctic hero antique 1866 book boys exploration polar regions elisha picturesque america 1872 the land we live in volume 1 div.
This book fundamentally altered the paradigm through. Arctic exploration is the physical exploration of the arctic region of the earth. While containing an almost insatiable wealth of information, this book is. History of arctic slope oil exploration journal article. The story of a basecamp doctor who spends fourteen months at an isolated british research.
Time to eat the dogs a podcast about science, history. The authors provide a thorough and thoughtful analysis of the history of arctic exploration. See more ideas about arctic explorers, arctic and antarctica. Arctic regions discovery and exploration british history 19th century shipwreck at cape flora. Arctic timeline from 20072008 north polar chart, showing international polar stations, 18821883 from the scottish geographical magazine volume i, no. The storied history of arctic exploration isnt over. In striving to enrich the lives of all readers, teachingbooks supports the first amendment and celebrates the right to read. The age of exploration ended in the early 17th century after technological advancements and increased knowledge of the world allowed europeans to travel easily across the globe by sea. Few of these missions were successful, and many men lost their lives en route.
T he faded sign is nothing more than a simple wooden board, a faint white hand painted on its center, the index finger pointing ahead. Exploration of north america, american history to 1607, viking discovery of america, voyage of christopher columbus, spanish explorers in america. Included are the contributions of the norse, irish, iberians. The spectral arctic is a book i can only strongly recommend a book that is both a fascinating and pageturning read, as well as a thorough scholarly engagement with historical, cultural, and political geographies. The untold story of a 165year search, was published in. Arctic horror series the terror is one of the best new shows of 2018. Lopez offers a thorough examination of this obscure worldits terrain, its wildlife, its history of eskimo natives and intrepid explorers who have arrived on their icy shores. They knew about the arctic named arktos the bear, from the constellation the great bear and decided that in order to balance the world, there should be a similar cold southern landmass that was the same but the opposite ant arktos opposite the bear. This strangeness fascinated audiences in nineteenthcentury britain when the idea of the heroic explorer voyaging through unmapped zones reached its zenith. Mccannon discusses polar exploration and science, nationbuilding, diplomacy, environmental issues, and climate change, and the role indigenous populations have played in the arctic s story. Filled with historical, cultural and environmental facts, professor mccannon weaves the many story lines into a very useful work that fills in many of the gaps other books leave out. In a history of the arctic, awardwinning polar historian john mccannon provides an engaging overview of the region that spans from the stone age to the present. Cohen antarctica travel icebergs against a dark sky antarctica may only be the fifth largest continent, but in many other ways it is ahead of the pack.
The expeditions of benjamin leigh smith, englands forgotten arctic explorer calgary. The last photo of mawsons far eastern party, taken when they left the australasian antarctic partys base camp on november 10, 1912. A brief history of antarctic exploration south american. The best books on polar exploration five books expert. New book introduces the unsung heroes of arctic exploration. Free online books on voyages and expeditions of discovery in north america and the world until the jamestown settlement in. The exploration of the arctic during the modern era that gave rise to todays currently claims in the region. A few scientific findings did come out of the expedition. Bibliography includes bibliographical references p. A history of the arctic by john mccannon from reaktion books. Polar exploration in the arctic and antarctic weareteachers.
This fascinating volume details two millenia of arctic exploration driven by a hunger for commercial routes to the orient, colonization, exploitation of the natural resources of north america, and the pursuit of fame and glory. Author ken mcgoogan says his latest book, dead reckoning. Tina adcock talks about the controversy over george putnams baffin land expedition and why it tells a bigger story about the changing culture of exploration in the 1920s. A brief history of antarctic exploration october 12, 2019 alan r. The lands of silence, a history of arctic and antarctic. The earliest references to arctic exploration are shrouded in obscurity as a result both of inaccurate ideas of the shape of the earth and of primitive navigation techniques, which make it difficult to interpret early maps and accounts of voyages. I found the book to be refreshing while offering fresh ideas and analysis of a large body of knowledge. Mccannon discusses polar exploration and science, nationbuilding, diplomacy, environmental issues, and climate change, and the role indigenous populations have played in the arctics story. History of international collaboration on the exploration and development of the arctic.
Yet failure did little to dampen the enthusiasm of new explorers or the crowds at home that cheered them on. A tale of deadly obsession in the amazon by david grann, endurance. It refers to the historical period during which mankind has explored the region north of the arctic circle. However, we are most concerned with the history of atlantic arctic exploration here, particularly that which concerns the svalbard archipelago. Nature, exploration, and exploitation kindle edition by mccannon, john. Vilhjalmur stefansson a chronological account based largely on original narratives of the work of explorers and of expeditions in various sectors of the arctic, with chapters on the franklin search, first international. Author and journalist roland huntford picks the best books on the early history. Adcock is an assistant professor of history at simon fraser university. Nature, exploration and exploitation, john mccannon is published by reaktion books. Visitors to the arctic enter places that have been traditionally imagined as otherworldly. Search the history of over 431 billion web pages on the internet.
Historical records suggest that humankind have explored the northern extremes since 325 bc, when the ancient greek sailor pytheas reached a frozen sea while attempting to find a source of the metal tin. Nature, exploration and exploitation is a monograph of exceptional quality, which should be read by anyone, irrespective of academic background, who is interested in understanding or cares for the future of this vastly important region of our world. Mccorristine enthusiastically peppers his prose with ghost, ship, and snow metaphors. The greatest survival story in the history of exploration mar 3, 2014. Cold and isolated, yet home to some 4 million people. Michael f robinson in the late 1800s, arctic fever swept across the nation as dozens of american expeditions sailed north to the arctic to find a sea route to asia and, ultimately, to stand at the north pole. Explore the long history of exploration of the arctic from 330 bc to the present. Barry lopezs national book awardwinning classic study of the far north is widely considered his masterpiece. And, given its open access availability by ucl press, i have no doubt it will reach a wide readership. But arctic exploration really took off in the 16th century with attempts to find an arctic sea passage from the atlantic that would ease trade with asia. This book compiles science, natural history, poetry, history, what it feels like to be in antarctica and why people decide to go there to capture the whole story of the white continent. The creation of permanent settlements and colonies created a network of communication and trade, therefore ending the need to search for new routes. Summary describes the ice cap above the northernmost shores of asia, north america, and greenland, and the expeditions that crisscrossed it in search of the north pole.
Arctic obsession drove explorers to seek the north pole. Revenues from hydrocarbon production there account for about 85% of alaskas total unrestricted revenues and are building a fund in which all alaskans will share in the future. A history of dreams and ghosts in polar exploration. British, dutch, norwegian, russian and danish adventurers spent four centuries attempting to find a route west and east through the seemingly impenetrable ice. A comprehensive narrative stretching from the voyage of pytheas the massilia, the first to record reaching the edge of the ice, to the moment a russian icebreaker arrived at the north pole in 1991 is interleaved with a study of the development of polar. But mystery shrouds much of the story behind this 19thcentury signpost. Exploration of north america american history to 1607. It was the ancient greeks who first came up with the idea of antarctica. Arctic exploration and a fascination with disaster research. The greatest ever account of polar exploration literary hub. He, wilson and bowers had performed one of antarctic historys. A history of the arctic by john mccannon is a very readable book and the best ive read so far on the subject ive read over 25. Francis spuffords first book, i may be some time, traces the history of polar exploration and its place in the cultural imagination, in particular.
Arctic exploration and a fascination with disaster the. Documenting more than 2500 years of arctic exploration, from the earliest seafarers of antiquity and the great naval and mercantile voyages in search of the northwest and northeast passages, to the conquest of the north pole and even beyond, a history of arctic exploration is the definitive account of expeditions made throughout the great northern polar expanse. With the character of the arctic in a dramatic state of flux, and arguments over sovereignty once again rising to the surface, it is timely that a history of the exploration of this remote region be published. The chapter discusses the key lines of international collaboration in the fields of exploration and development of the arctic, from the first autonomous.
Now we have a history of the region on a suitable scale. How george putnams arctic expedition got into trouble. How to build the 2018 lego set 60195 this set has 786 pieces and is suitable for ages 7 12 buy this article on. Polar exploration in the arctic and antarctic by guest blogger joann wasik at recently, i read a harrowing account of a doomed 1912 arctic expedition, where a ship seeking new hunting grounds became frozen in the pack ice of the kara sea. Take an arctic exploration on the atlantic there have been many notable arctic explorers who left their marks in the annals of polar exploration history. Featured texts all books all texts latest this just in. The debate on global warming has focused international attention on the arctic. Captain scotts antarctic sacrifice, an examination of the enduring appeal of the scott story, the drive to explore hostile environments and the.
A history of the arctic nature, exploration and exploitation john mccannon. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. His book the open polar sea, published in 1867, captured. These arctic explorers and their books are the real northpolar stars, according to john r. The history of north pole expeditions national geographic. Max joness top 10 books about exploration books the. Peterscomprising meteorology and topography of the arcticwas published by national geographic. The untold story of the northwest passage, is the more inclusive narrative of. This book turns away from men and their maps and considers the history of arctic exploration more like a mutable, unpredictable and opaque force which shadowed the ship p. Probably the first to approach the arctic regions was a greek, pytheas, who in the 4th century bce made a. History of international collaboration on the exploration.
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