**TODAY ONLY**

January 19

Part of Antarctica Claimed for US
On this day in 1840, an expedition of six ships, headed by explorer Charles Wilkes, sailed within sight of the eastern coast of Antarctica. Wilkes began to map the continent. This One's On Me. The expedition was the first maritime exploration funded by the US government. In 1836, Congress passed an amendment to "send out a surveying and exploring expedition to the Pacific Ocean and the South Seas." $300,000 was set aside for the expedition. The purpose of the expedition was not only to aid commerce and navigation, but to "extend the bounds of science and to promote knowledge." A History Moment. Wilkes' group set out two years earlier, sailing around South America to the South Pacific, on beyond Australia, and on to Antarctica. There they sailed along the edge of the ice pack for 1500 miles along a stretch of the eastern Antarctic coast that later became known as Wilkes Land. Wilkes became the first to provide proof of the existence of an Antarctic continent. Link for More. Charles Wilkes: A Brief Bio. A virtual tour of Antarctica. Virtual exploration of Antarctic islands.	Home at Last. In 1842, the expedition returned to New York, having circumnavigated the globe. Antarctica is the last vast wilderness on the planet. Ships That Pass In The Night... Near Antarctica. At the same time as the Wilkes expedition, there were expeditions from Great Britain and France. The French expedition, commanded by Dumont d'Urville, explored the Antarctic Peninsula in 1838, landing on the Adélie Coast, and in 1840, on the other side of Antarctica. The British Expedition under James Clark Ross explored the Ross Sea from 1840-41 and returned the following year. The 1842-43 season was spent on the edge of the Weddell Sea. Who Saw it First? Antarctica was discovered by European and American explorers in the early part of the nineteenth century.	In April 1838, four naval vessels were assigned to the expedition, with the Vincennes, a sloop of war of 780 tons, designated as the flagship. Permission to Come Aboard? On February 7, 1821, the first landing on the Antarctic continent was made by American John Davis at Hughes Bay on the Antarctic Peninsula. Whose Antarctica Is It, Anyway? Over the next century, many nations, including the US, made claims to portions of the virtually uninhabitable continent. Treaty Time. In 1959, the Antarctic Treaty made Antarctica an international zone. It set guidelines for scientific cooperation, and prohibited military operations, nuclear explosions, and the disposal of radioactive waste on the continent.

TODAY ONLY

January 19

Part of Antarctica Claimed for US

On this day in 1840, an expedition of six ships, headed by explorer Charles Wilkes, sailed within sight of the eastern coast of Antarctica. Wilkes began to map the continent.

This One's On Me. The expedition was the first maritime exploration funded by the US government. In 1836, Congress passed an amendment to "send out a surveying and exploring expedition to the Pacific Ocean and the South Seas." $300,000 was set aside for the expedition. The purpose of the expedition was not only to aid commerce and navigation, but to "extend the bounds of science and to promote knowledge."

A History Moment. Wilkes' group set out two years earlier, sailing around South America to the South Pacific, on beyond Australia, and on to Antarctica. There they sailed along the edge of the ice pack for 1500 miles along a stretch of the eastern Antarctic coast that later became known as Wilkes Land. Wilkes became the first to provide proof of the existence of an Antarctic continent.

Link for More.

Charles Wilkes: A Brief Bio.

A virtual tour of Antarctica.

Virtual exploration of Antarctic islands.

Home at Last. In 1842, the expedition returned to New York, having circumnavigated the globe.

Antarctica is the last vast wilderness on the planet.

Ships That Pass In The Night... Near Antarctica. At the same time as the Wilkes expedition, there were expeditions from Great Britain and France.

The French expedition, commanded by Dumont d'Urville, explored the Antarctic Peninsula in 1838, landing on the Adélie Coast, and in 1840, on the other side of Antarctica.
The British Expedition under James Clark Ross explored the Ross Sea from 1840-41 and returned the following year. The 1842-43 season was spent on the edge of the Weddell Sea.

Who Saw it First? Antarctica was discovered by European and American explorers in the early part of the nineteenth century.

In April 1838, four naval vessels were assigned to the expedition, with the Vincennes, a sloop of war of 780 tons, designated as the flagship.

Permission to Come Aboard? On February 7, 1821, the first landing on the Antarctic continent was made by American John Davis at Hughes Bay on the Antarctic Peninsula.

Whose Antarctica Is It, Anyway? Over the next century, many nations, including the US, made claims to portions of the virtually uninhabitable continent.

Treaty Time. In 1959, the Antarctic Treaty made Antarctica an international zone. It set guidelines for scientific cooperation, and prohibited military operations, nuclear explosions, and the disposal of radioactive waste on the continent.