Basic Info

Sir Douglas Mawson is one of Australia's most famous polar explorers. He went on four expeditions, but his first two are the most famous. He didn't explore for the wealth and fame, but to advance science. Douglas wanted to see the continental ice cap. Mawson gave up almost his life to explore the beauty of the harsh nature of the Antarctic.

Early Life

 ✳ Born on 5th of May, 1882 in Shipley, Yorkshire, England
✳ second son of Robert Ellis Mawson and his wife Margret Ann née Moore
✳ moved to Rooty Hill When Douglas was 2
✳ education: Fort Street High School and University of Sydney (1899-1902) and studied Mining Engineering.

Shackleton's Expedition

✳ joined Ernest Shackleton's expedition at the age of 26 in 1907
✳ team focused on reaching South Pole first, but Mawson wanted to advance science

✳ the team was first of man-kind to climb to the top of Mt Erebus, one of Antarctica's volcanos

✳ Mawson and his mentor, Professor Edgeworth David completed the longest man-hauling sledge journey (122 days)
✳ they coped with hunger, hidden crevasses, frostbite and exhaustion
✳ when they arrived back in Adelaide, they were given a well earned hero's welcome back

Mawson's Expedition

✳ became the leader of the first Australasian expedition to Antarctica in 1911, aim: map and explore coastal areas closest to Australia
✳ engaged to Paquita Delprat, who lived in Adelaide
✳ sailed in the Aurora
✳ crew sailed through 1500km of pack ice to reach the Antarctic coast

✳ first built a safe hut called 'Home of the Blizzard' because the hut met winds 300km per hour

✳ in spring 1912, parties were made and set out on foot. Mawson's party consisted of: Swiss scientist Dr Xavier Mertz, Lieutenant Belgrave Ninnis and a pack of Greenland huskies to pull the sleds along
✳ the team travelled over 1000km, mapping the coastline, collecting geographic samples and discovering huge glaciers
✳ success altered into failure quickly
✳ bad weather, poor light and had to drag themselves and their supplies over slippery ice-covered rocks and crevasses

✳ within 5 weeks, Ninnis and some huskies that were pulling the sled with majority of their food supply disappeared down a hidden crevasse. Mawson & Mertz had no choice but to turn back, shoot and eat the remaining dogs for their survival. It was hard for Mertz because he was close to the dogs and was a vegetarian
✳ Mertz eventually died from weakness and sickness from the toxic levels of vitamin A in the dogs' livers
✳ Mawson's feet were bloody and skin was falling off the bottom, and had lost a lot of weight
✵Mawson was slowly dying
✳Mawson one day fell down a hidden crevasse. he felt tempted to cut the rope. he thought of Paqutia, his fiancé, and found strength and spirit t pull himself up
✳he was taking risks to reach the hut in time
✳ travelled 160km to the hut, when he saw the Aurora in the distance in the sea, leaving him stranded. then he saw others that were left there in case Mawson came back
✳ he often thought of Paquita that year until the Aurora came back for them
✳ when they arrived back in Adelaide in 1914, he was knighted for contributing to scientific understanding of the Antarctic continent

Later Life

-married his fiancé, Paquita Delprat on 31st of March, 1914, at the Holy Trinity Church of England in Balaclava, Victoria

-Patricia (daughter) was born in 1915 in March at Melbourne

- Jessica (daughter) was born in October 1917

-Sir Douglas Mawson died In October on the 14th, 1958 at the age of 76 at Brighton