THE POLAR REGION

The North and South Poles are – metaphorically as well as physical – poles apart. The North Pole is a point over the sea, capped by ice which in the summary starts to move and melt, making progress difficult. There are a few other hazards too, such as polar bears.

The South Pole is a different story together. The Antarctic is an enormous continent fringed by penguins. It is bigger than Australia, half as big again as the Continental US, 58 times as big as Britain. It is almost entirely covered by ice, and every winter the area covered by the solid frozen stuff doubles. The ice is thick too; in some places up to 4.5km. Eighty-seven per cent of all the world’s fresh water is stored there. If it melted the oceans would be 60m higher than they are now.

The North Pole is at sea level. The South Pole is more than 9000 feet high. Getting there is something explorers have to do a bit at a time. Sir Ernest Shackleton did not actually reach it, but his story remains one of the greatest performances of exploration.