After a harrowing journey that included rescuing a man from an ice fissure, a pair of Icelanders have finally reached the South Pole.
Freyr Jónsson and Eyjólfur Teitsson, of the Icelandic company Arctic Trucks, have been assisting the Indian National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research in their journey across Antarctica. They set off on 10 November, and their expedition has been mostly smooth sailing.
However, last Friday an employee of the travel company Novo fell into an ice fissure. Fissures in Antarctica are often hard to spot, as they can be covered with snow and ice. Once you fall into one, assuming you survive, time is of the essence – hypothermia, shock and shifting walls of ice are real dangers in such a situation. With the use of a crane that Arctic Trucks designed, they were able to rescue the man.
Yesterday, they posted a journal entry online which reads: “We are at the South Pole! After driving for 18 hours we reached the South Pole! The drive down here has been unbelievable and almost without problems. The last two days we drove almost 900 kilometers, keeping the average speed of around 40-50. We are extremely happy and proud of how the cars are coping with the difficult situation here.”
This wouldn’t be the first expedition for Arctic Trucks. They have been to Antarctica several times, as well as the polar ice cap, Greenland, and Dubai.
You can follow the current expedition on their home page.
(Photo: Arctic Trucks)
Buy subscriptions, t-shirts and more from our shop right here!
