Monday 21st November Our captivity in the ice didn’t last as long as we expected. After an hour or so, just as we were beginning to discuss who to eat first, we were released from the ice. We pressed on south through this vast frozen plain, and on Saturday morning passed 73o south. It was … Continue reading
Category Archives: Out in the field
Stranded on the ice floes
Tom Sharpe continues his journey in the footsteps of Captain Scott, on the 100th anniversary of Scott’s journey to the South Pole… Friday 18 November As the ice charts showed, we reached the edge of the pack ice on schedule, open pack mainly of first year ice that was easy to move through, so we … Continue reading
Breaking through the Ross Sea ice
We’re breaking through the Ross Sea pack ice at the moment – the ice shelf was named after Captain Sir James Clark Ross who first discovered it in 1841. The Ross Ice Shelf was a popular starting point for early Antarctic explorers – both Scott and Amundsen crossed it to reach the Pole in 1911. Continue reading
Sharpe of the Antarctic
Following in the footsteps of Scott It’s a hundred years since Captain Robert Falcon Scott’s ill fated expedition to Antarctica, and the anniversary is being marked by many events this year and next. I’m currently on my way to visit Scott’s hut at Cape Evans, on the west side of Ross Island, where Scott built … Continue reading
Etna, Stromboli and smelly tshirts part 3: Volcanomics
Nick Petford updates us on his National Geographic filming trip in Italy… Once Catania airport reopened, we flew the short hop to Naples four hours behind schedule, and enjoyed fantastic views of Etna’s summit, Stromboli and the Aeolian Islands. In the summer, you can take a ferry straight from Stromboli to Naples, but unfortunately … Continue reading
Etna, Stromboli and smelly tshirts: part 2
Filming is just about wrapped up here – we had a good morning shoot on the flanks of Stromboli yesterday, now the weather has cleared. The hydrofoil back to Messina stopped off at all the main Aeolian islands, then we hopped in a taxi to Catania airport for a 21.30 hrs flight to Naples. We … Continue reading
Filming on location – Etna, Stromboli and smelly tshirts…
It is hard sometimes to overestimate the amount of time spent faffing around when making a documentary (or any kind of filming for that matter). I am currently on location in southern Italy making a documentary commissioned by National Geographic and produced by Pioneer Productions, a UK firm run out of London and set up … Continue reading
The Geological Society Blog 