The Scottish National Antarctic Expedition (1902–04) established the first manned meteorological station in Antarctic territory, discovered new land east of the Weddell Sea, and returned with a trove of biological and geological specimens aboard the Scotia (pictured). It was led by William Speirs Bruce, then Britain's most experienced polar scientist, who had spent most of the 1890s on expeditions to the Antarctic and Arctic regions. After his application to add a second ship to Robert Falcon Scott's Discovery Expedition had been dismissed as "mischievous rivalry" by the president of the Royal Geographical Society, he used private sponsors to fund an independent expedition. Bruce never received formal recognition from the British Government for his work, and never again led an Antarctic expedition, although he made regular Arctic trips. The expedition's members were denied the prestigious Polar Medal despite vigorous lobbying. His focus on serious scientific exploration rather than territorial discoveries was out of fashion with his times, and his achievements soon faded from public awareness, unlike those of the polar adventurers Scott, Shackleton and Amundsen. The expedition's Orcadas weather station has been in continuous operation since 1903 on Laurie Island in the South Orkneys.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_National_Antarctic_Expedition
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1771:
Dene men, acting as guides to Samuel Hearne on his exploration of the Coppermine River in present-day Nunavut, Canada, massacred a group of about 20 Copper Inuit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Falls_Massacre
1863:
The New Zealand Wars resumed as British forces in New Zealand led by General Duncan Cameron began their Invasion of the Waikato. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_the_Waikato
1945:
Joseph Stalin, Winston Churchill, and Harry S. Truman (all three pictured), leaders of the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States respectively, met in Potsdam to decide what should be done with post-war Germany. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potsdam_Conference
1973:
Mohammed Zahir Shah, the last King of Afghanistan, was ousted in a coup by his cousin Mohammed Daoud Khan while in Italy undergoing eye surgery. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammed_Zahir_Shah
2009:
Two suicide bombers detonated themselves at two separate hotels in Jakarta, Indonesia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_Jakarta_bombings
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
disconsolate: 1. Cheerless, dreary. 2. Seemingly beyond consolation; inconsolable. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/disconsolate
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Blessed is He Who made constellations in the skies, and placed therein a Lamp and a Moon giving light; And it is He Who made the Night and the Day to follow each other: for such as have the will to celebrate His praises or to show their gratitude. And the servants of (Allah) Most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility, and when the ignorant address them, they say, "Peace!" --Qur'an https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Qur%27an