The Arctic misadventures of William Barents

  • 📰 TheEconomist
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 46 sec. here
  • 2 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 22%
  • Publisher: 92%

United States Headlines News

United States Latest News,United States Headlines

In “Icebound” andreapitzer sails the seas to recount an earlier, nail-biting feat of seafaring

, a Dutch navigator, sailed to the Arctic in 1594, he was pursuing the dream of a warm northern ocean first posited by the Greeks. The idea of a polar trade route to the Orient—above North America or the Russian Far East—enticed European explorers for centuries. Yet it proved a “lethal delusion”, and Barents’s missions a template for many harrowing trials.

Backed by Dutch merchants keen to make their fledgling state a maritime power, Barents made three journeys north in the 1590s. Ms Pitzer relies not just on a 19th-century translation of the journals of Gerrit de Veer, who accompanied the voyages, but on a previously untranslated account by a merchant representative. The polar ice was insurmountable on the first two expeditions; they were largely uneventful and barely stir a reader’s blood.

Of the men themselves, 13 live through this long polar night—eight months of what the author neatly terms “the monotony of survival”. They dig out from continual blizzards, scavenging for fuel and Arctic foxes whose meat contains just enough vitamin C to sustain them. Still, the journey is filled with wonders: optical phenomena and mysteries unravelled, such as where European songbirds go each summer. Ms Pitzer’s descriptions of the region sing.

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.

andreapitzer Misadventure? Or illegal migrants?

We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 6. in US

United States Latest News, United States Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

'Icebound' Follows The Footsteps Of Polar Explorer William Barents' Daring Arctic QuestsBarents and his crew ventured to the Arctic three times in the late 1500s in hopes of finding a sea passage to China. Instead, they found themselves stuck on the ice for 10 months, fighting off polar bears to survive. WBUR WBUR good WBUR jesus WBUR DAYYYYYYYYYYUMMMMMMMMMM..... 😵😵😵😵😵😵😵
Source: NPR - 🏆 96. / 63 Read more »

Mining magnets: Arctic island finds green power can be a curseIn the tenth century, Erik the Red, a Viking from Iceland, was so impressed with the vegetation on another Arctic island he had found he called it 'the green land.' Today, it's Greenland's rocks that are attracting outsiders - superpowers riding a green revolution. JacobGronholt reutersEricO this is terrible news JacobGronholt reutersEricO Bulldust. Calling it 'Greenland' was, pure and simple, a ploy by young Eric to convince others to emigrate there to his financial advantage. The world's first recorded property scam? JacobGronholt reutersEricO This reminds me of Pebble Mine in Alaska, and how the stakeholders pushed so hard to get it through. But the stakeholders were not even Alaskans... For that matter, they were not even from the U.S... PebbleMine
Source: Reuters - 🏆 2. / 97 Read more »

NASA Finds 2021 Arctic Winter Sea Ice Tied for 7th-Lowest on RecordSea ice in the Arctic appears to have hit its annual maximum extent after growing through the fall and winter. This year’s maximum extent peaked at 5.70 million square miles, making it the seventh-smallest on record and tied with 2007. Earth 😵🥴😲 Earth Humans on Earth 🌍 But Earth is not safe by humans. Earth reminder that sea ice doesn't add to sea level rise, because it's already in the ocean
Source: NASA - 🏆 672. / 51 Read more »

Mining magnets: Arctic island finds green power can be a curseIn the tenth century, Erik the Red, a Viking from Iceland, was so impressed with the vegetation on another Arctic island he had found he called it 'the green land.' Today, it's Greenland's rocks that are attracting outsiders - superpowers riding a green revolution. Couple of months ago I came across a recommendation about Michael_homas9 wealth how he helped investors to earn lots of money with their investments. and I decided to give a trial with the little I have. Now my little has turned into something great which was not my expectation Recently my friend's baby was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia & needs a stem cell transplant. Jason & his wife are first-time parents caring for a sick baby & could use some help. If you are in a place to donate or share, it would be appreciated. Honestly i never thought to earn as much as have earn now Though i don't know the trading process at first Wilhelmdenni thought me steps to earn from Bitcoin trading have been earning massively trading with Mr wilhelmdenni Get your BTC and DM the account manager Wilhelmdenni
Source: Reuters - 🏆 2. / 97 Read more »

Satellite images show huge Russian military buildup in the ArcticRussia is amassing unprecedented military might in the Arctic and testing its newest weapons in a region freshly ice-free due to the climate emergency, in a bid to secure its northern coast and open up a key shipping route from Asia to Europe. ✨🙏👇 Çavuşolu: Statement of retired officers in Turkey, an evocation of the coup. For the last 4 years while Putin had his puppet in power in the US they could do what they wanted without ever having any worry of being called out for it.
Source: CNN - 🏆 4. / 95 Read more »