Wrap up warm and take a journey to the icy ends of the earth.
From attempts to find the North-West Passage in the Arctic Circle to the race to reach the South Pole, discover the history, triumph, tragedy and legacies of polar exploration.
Visit the Polar Worlds gallery
See relics and artefacts from historic expeditions up close at the National Maritime Museum
Antarctica and the race to the South Pole
History of Antarctic explorers
From first sighting to reaching the South Pole, discover the history of exploring Antarctica
The race to the South Pole: Scott and Amundsen
What was the race to the South Pole and who reached it first?
Sir Ernest Shackleton
In 1907, Ernest Shackleton embarked on an expedition to the South Pole aboard his ship Nimrod. He was almost successful, falling just 97 miles short.
Roald Amundsen
Roald Amundsen is one of history's most celebrated explorers, famous for navigating the North-West Passage and being the first to reach the South Pole.
Robert Falcon Scott
In the early 20th century the race was on to reach the South Pole. Robert Falcon Scott led the first British expedition.
The North-West Passage
The North-West Passage is the route between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Many explorers have risked and lost their lives in searching for this passage, which would be a trade route between Europe and Asia
HMS Terror and Erebus - the story of Franklin's lost expedition
Find out more about the history of Franklin's fatal voyage, and the continuing work to explore the Erebus and Terror shipwrecks
What happened to the crew of Erebus and Terror?
Sir John Franklin's final voyage in 1845 in HMS Erebus and HMS Terror became the worst disaster in the history of British polar exploration
New discoveries from the wrecks
Archaeologists exploring the shipwrecks of HMS Erebus and Terror have recovered over 350 objects from the lost Franklin expedition.
Delve deeper
