The Antarctic Exploration.

Southland Times, Issue 12797, 4 January 1894, Page 3

The Antarctic Exploration.

The Journal of the Royal Geographical Society for November contains the preliminary notices of the reports of the scientific experts appointed to accompany the Dundee whalers last year as surgeons and scientific observers. The society made a grant of instruments, and asked, in return, that the captains should report their observations direct to the society. As yet it seems only Captain Robertson has done so, and his report, together with that of Dr Donald on, who acted as scientist on the same vessel, is being prepared for separate publication by the society. In a preliminary report for the Journal, Dr Donaldson says that Ross was quite correct in his supposition that a passage existed between Joinville Island and Louis Phi'lippe Land, leading from Erebus and Terror Gulf into Bransfield Straits; and near the western extremity of Joinville Island a channel was come upon leading in an easterly direction. Here werefound two large penguin rookeries, and a couple more were hit upon at Cape Alexander, to the east of which a deep fiord running inland was discovered. Dr Donaldson opines that round Cape Lockyer there is a complex series of currents, which collect pack-ice, and thus form an impenetrable barrier to aught save steam-propelled shipping. The steamers Diana and Jansen worked through this obstruction and appr< ached the sixtieth parallel—a more southerly point than the great Ross attained on this meridian. In Dr Donaldson’s opinion an expedition composed of two steamships devoted to scientific investigation solely might do an immense amount, of valuable work there. Such an expedition he believes would not cost more than LBOOO. Dr Wm. S. Bruce accompained the Balwna. His report is likewise in preparation. The Balcena was never within half a dozen miles of the Antarctic land, except in the case of the Danger Islets, sighted on 23rd December lapt year. From that date to the middle of February the Balcena circled about between latitudes 62deg S. and 64deg 40min S., and longitudes 52deg and 57deg W. All the land sighted by her people was snow clad, and no entire day was recorded on which icebergs were not visible. South-east of Danger Islets Dr Bruce saw as many as sixty-five large bergs in one range of the eyes. As to temperature, nearly 430 readings were taken during December, January, and February, and the average worked out at 30’76 Fahr. Dr Bruce concludes that the winter temperature will net show much variation from that figure. The reason of the accumulation of ice in the Antarctic, it seems, is not the severity of the winter, but the lack of summer heat to melt it, as in the Arctic. It is, indeed, a region of eternal winter, where the snow never melts and where no plant is to be found, but where, however, a good many scientific facts are still locked up.