Landfall! Guests of National Geographic Endurance made their first continental landing this morning while enjoying the penguin colony at Brown Bluff. A blustery Antarctic morning gave way to a peaceful afternoon of ethereal polar light as we walked on sea ice while surrounded by Weddell seals and curious Adelie penguins.
12/9/2024
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National Geographic Resolution
At Sea
Christmas is coming to the ship! Almost overnight blow-up snowmen and decorations filled the hallways and bars. Sometimes, when one spends so much time in snowy places, as I do for ten months a year, it is a surprise to see snow featured as a special thing. And yet, of course it is very special. Without it, there would be no glaciers or ice caps. We would be able to sail the ship almost up to the south pole as the continent itself is only held together with the snow/ice combination. Take away all the white stuff and Antarctica would be a scattered mass of small islets and huge mountain chains. Once warm, we would find evidence of its former tropical nature. Fossils of giant penguins more than 2-meters tall would pop out of layers of sedimentary rocks while the dinosaurs that once roamed our now icy world would be apparent to those that know where to look, a secret I’m not sharing! Imagine a world without ice and tell me how you do it because I cannot.
