Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
ANTARCTICA — After withstanding more than 100 years of extreme weather, the huts used by famous Antarctic explorers have been restored to their original condition.
Most people probably won’t be able to make the trip to Antarctica to see the huts in person, but a video posted to YouTube tells the story of the buildings’ restorations and provides a look inside. The three historic buildings were used by Captain Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton, who explored Antarctica in the early 1900s.
It took about a decade to complete the restoration, according to the Antarctic Heritage Trust of New Zealand, which manages the buildings. Conservationists said when they first entered the buildings the floors felt like solid blocks of ice and snow was up to the roof.
The three buildings are Scott’s 1902 “Discovery Hut,” Shackleton’s 1908 “Nimrod Hut” and Scott’s 1911 “Terra Nova Hut,” which are all on Ross Island.
“At the turn of the 20th century Antarctica was the focus of one of the last great races of exploration and discovery, the ‘heroic age’ of exploration (1895-1917),” according to a statement from the Antarctic Heritage Trust. “Expeditions led by some of the most famous names in exploration built simple wooden bases from which they set out to explore the continent. These explorers mapped and undertook the first scientific study of Antarctica.”
In addition to the buildings, workers conserved 18,202 artifacts, according to the trust. They said items included food supplies, clothing, equipment and other personal items. Previously, the trust released details about the recovery of 100-year-old photo negatives and a notebook.
