The shipwreck of Endurance, Sir Ernest Shackleton’s famed vessel from the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, has been unveiled in extraordinary detail thanks to newly released 3D scans. The ship, which sank in the icy depths of the Weddell Sea in 1915 after becoming trapped in pack ice, has been lying on the seafloor for over a century, remarkably well-preserved in Antarctica’s frigid waters. The latest scans, created from more than 25,000 high-resolution images, offer an unprecedented view of the wreckage, showcasing the ship’s intricate details and historical significance.
An image of the Endurance as discovered underwater. Credit: Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust / National Geographic
The Endurance was part of Shackleton’s ambitious attempt to complete the first land crossing of Antarctica from the Weddell Sea to the Ross Sea, a journey that was cut short when the vessel became trapped in ice just weeks after departing from South Georgia in 1914. After drifting for nearly ten months, the ship was crushed by the surrounding ice, forcing Shackleton and his crew to abandon the vessel and set up camp on the ice. Shackleton and five of his men later made a daring 800-mile open-boat journey to South Georgia, where they secured help to rescue the remaining crew, all of whom survived the ordeal.
The Endurance shipwreck remained hidden until 2022, when a team of modern-day explorers, led by John Shears, discovered the wreckage nearly two miles below the surface of the Weddell Sea. The scans, made using underwater robots, have now been released to coincide with a new National Geographic documentary titled Endurance.
Directed by Academy Award-winning filmmakers Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, the documentary intertwines Shackleton’s harrowing expedition with the contemporary search for the shipwreck. It premiered at the London Film Festival on October 12, 2023, and will be available for streaming on Disney+ later this year.
A 2022 underwater photo captures a boot resting on the shipwreck at the ocean floor, once worn by Frank Wild, Shackleton’s second-in-command. Credit: Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust / National Geographic
The 3D scan reveals the 144-foot wooden vessel nearly intact, showing its masts toppled and sections of the deck damaged by the ice, but much of the structure remains well-preserved. Marine archaeologist Mensun Bound, director of exploration for the Endurance22 expedition, marveled at the state of the wreck: “The preservation is ridiculous. You could still lean against the standing rails at the bows and peer through the portholes into the inky black cabin where Shackleton slept,” Bound told Hollywood Reporter.
Among the artifacts visible in the scan are everyday items used by the crew, such as dining plates, a lone boot believed to have belonged to Shackleton’s second-in-command Frank Wild, and a flare gun fired by expedition photographer Frank Hurley as a tribute to the ship while it sank. Hurley, who also risked his life to save his photographic equipment, documented the entire expedition, and many of his photographs have been colorized and restored for the documentary.
The documentary brings new life to Shackleton’s story. Artificial intelligence has been used to recreate the voices of crew members reading their own diary entries, and the 3D scans provide insights into how the pack ice crushed the ship’s hull. Experts believe that the scans will continue to serve scientific purposes, allowing researchers to study the wreck further, explore the sea floor’s geology, and analyze the sea life that now inhabits the ship.