ANTARCTIC EXPLORATION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20627, 28 January 1929, Page 8

ANTARCTIC EXPLORATION.

FLIGHT OVER KING EDWARD LAND. MR R. G. BROPHY’S CABLE. to Daily Times.) AUCKLAND, January 26. _ ll Commander Byrd 17111 make his next flight in the Antarctic over King Edward Land,” states a private cable received in Auckland this morning by Mr Richard G. Brophy, second in command of the Byrd Expedition, who arrived from Wellington by the Limited express. Mr Brophy has come north to complete arrangements for the shipment of a team of 15 dogs which will arrive by the Niagara to-morrow from Vancouver. These dogs, under the charge of Mr Innes Taylor, who is aviation pilot and dog driver, will be sent south by a fast goods train on Monday evening, and will be transported from Wellington to Lyttelton on Wednesday night. Arrangements have been made to place them in quarantine at Dunedin until they are shipped on the Eleanor Bolling next month. A quantity of scientific gear which Is being brought from America will also be loaded on the Eleanor Bolling at Dunedin. An aeroplane, two tractors, 8000 gallons of aviation petrol, 4000 gallons of kerosene' for heating the houses af “Little America” (Commander Byrd’s home in the Antarctic), and 2000 gallons of ordinary petrol for tractors and automobiles make, up a bulky portion* of tne shipment now in store at Dunedin. Also, tJiere are four portable houses, specially insulated and built to withstand a blizzard of 150 njiles an hour, and foodstuffs to augment the supplies sufficiently to meet the requirements o); 40 men' for iS months. “The City of New York,” said 'Mr Brophy, “ will have to be out of the Antarctic before March 15, and consideration is being given to the possibility of a cruise of the South Pacific during the winter to carry out charting investigations with the aid of a sonic depth-finder installed on board.” "Personally, I don’t expect to visit the Antarctic until next year,” continued Mr Brophy. “I shall go by the City of New York on her first trip after winuV" During the interval Mr Brophy may have to revisit America to arrange for the raising of the balance of the funds necessary for the expedition. “We have received numerous contributions in cash and merchandise from friends and supporters of the expedition in New Zealand, and for these we are very grateful,” Mr Brophy remarked. He added that the expedition was steadily being built up to its full strength. Its total financial value, when completed, would be 1,500,000 dollars, including the two steps now in use, four aeroplanes, two large crawler tractors, two automobiles, expensive scientific equipment, and 15.000 dollars' worth of fur clothing and bools and shoes, some of which cost 50 dollars a pair. So large are some of the loots that there will be no difficulty in accommodating four or five pairs of thick socks. Regarding the problem of transport, Mr Brophy said the use of tractors to relieve the dog teams should he a treat success. The caterpillar type had teen well tested in snow conditions in North America, and such tractors were in constant use in lumbering and mining Districts in temperatures as much as 40 degrees below freezing point. This was made possible by using kerosene for a cooling system. The expedition also had an automobile equipped with skis on front and caterpillar tread on the rear wheels, and Mr Brophy had arranged to take his personal car to the Antarctic, where he expected to find it adaptable to snow traveh