A satellite view of Antarctica is seen in this undated NASA handout photo obtained by Reuters on February 6, 2012.
Melbourne:
Cold storage!
A box of 22 photographic negatives, containing never before seen images of Antarctica, has been discovered, lying for nearly a century in a famous explorer's hut in the frozen continent.
The clumped together cellulose nitrate negatives were found in a small box in a hut that British explorer Robert Falcon Scott set up at Cape Evans, Antarctica during his ill-fated South Pole expedition from 1910-1913.
Scott wanted to be the first person to reach the South Pole, but found that a Norwegian group had beaten him.
On their return journey, Scott and his four comrades died from a combination of exhaustion, starvation and extreme cold.
The recently discovered negatives were removed by New Zealand's Antarctic Heritage Trust earlier this year.
According to the trust, the photographs are from Ernest Shackleton's 1914-1917 Ross Sea Party, which spent time living in Scott's hut after being stranded on Ross Island when their ship, the Aurora, blew out to sea.
"It's an exciting find and we are delighted to see them exposed after a century," said Nigel Watson, Antarctic Heritage Trust's Executive Director.
One of the most striking images is of Ross Sea Party member Alexander Stevens, Shackleton's Chief Scientist, standing on-board the Aurora.
Although many of the images are damaged, the Antarctic Heritage Trust was able to recognise landmarks around McMurdo Sound.
However, the identity of the photographer remains unknown.
The discovery was made as part of the Ross Sea Heritage Restoration Project which has seen more than 10,000 objects conserved at Scott's Cape Evans hut.
A box of 22 photographic negatives, containing never before seen images of Antarctica, has been discovered, lying for nearly a century in a famous explorer's hut in the frozen continent.
The clumped together cellulose nitrate negatives were found in a small box in a hut that British explorer Robert Falcon Scott set up at Cape Evans, Antarctica during his ill-fated South Pole expedition from 1910-1913.
Scott wanted to be the first person to reach the South Pole, but found that a Norwegian group had beaten him.
On their return journey, Scott and his four comrades died from a combination of exhaustion, starvation and extreme cold.
The recently discovered negatives were removed by New Zealand's Antarctic Heritage Trust earlier this year.
According to the trust, the photographs are from Ernest Shackleton's 1914-1917 Ross Sea Party, which spent time living in Scott's hut after being stranded on Ross Island when their ship, the Aurora, blew out to sea.
"It's an exciting find and we are delighted to see them exposed after a century," said Nigel Watson, Antarctic Heritage Trust's Executive Director.
One of the most striking images is of Ross Sea Party member Alexander Stevens, Shackleton's Chief Scientist, standing on-board the Aurora.
Although many of the images are damaged, the Antarctic Heritage Trust was able to recognise landmarks around McMurdo Sound.
However, the identity of the photographer remains unknown.
The discovery was made as part of the Ross Sea Heritage Restoration Project which has seen more than 10,000 objects conserved at Scott's Cape Evans hut.
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