RECENT EXPEDITIONS TO THE ANTARCTIC 



to the surface of the ''Devil's Dancing Floor" at 7,600 

 feet. Again the icy plateau rises to 10,300 feet in lati- 

 tude 88° S. to fall once more to nine thousand at the 

 Pole. 



Another great difficulty in Antarctic flying, especially 

 in dull weather, is to gain an adequate idea of distance. 

 For instance, I have at times been at a loss in Antarctica 

 as to whether a snow hollow before me was three feet 

 or thirty feet deep. This renders it very difficult to 

 make a safe landing with an aeroplane on the icy sur- 

 faces of the southern continent. The greatest difficulty 

 is naturally due to the sudden changes in wind velocity, 

 and my own experiences may be worth recording. 

 Thus, on the last day of May in 191 1 there had been 

 a perfect calm for several hours. Within ten minutes 

 the wind rose to a howling gale of forty or fifty miles 

 an hour. Nearly as rapid a rise occurred a few months 

 later on the first of September. Lastly, there are 

 special difficulties in navigation in flights near the 

 South Pole. It is, of course, only possible by astro- 

 nomical measurements to tell when the South Pole is 

 attained. It is merely an unmarked spot on an illimit- 

 able ice plateau. Moreover, at the South Pole, all 

 routes lead north, and a slight error in returning will 

 land the aviator in the wrong section of Antarctica. 

 Furthermore, at the South Pole ''time" has a special 

 meaning since here all lines of longitude meet. Thus, 

 if the aviator flies around the Pole, he theoretically 

 passes through twenty- four hours of time, though it 

 may take him only as many minutes. 



Food for three months and sledging equipment to 



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