New 3D scans reveal stunning details of Shackleton's doomed Endurance expedition to Antarctica

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The Endurance shipwreck spent 107 years submerged in Antarctic waters before being rediscovered and later scanned in 3D.

A top-down 3D scan of the Endurance shipwreck as discovered in 2022.
The Endurance became trapped in sea ice and sank during Sir Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic expedition. (Image credit: Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust)

The intricate details of the sunken Endurance, the ship lost on Sir Ernest Shackleton's doomed 1914 Antarctic expedition, have been revealed through 3D scans and underwater photographs.

The images, taken by the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust, provide a close-up look at the 144-foot-long (44 meters) ship that had been hidden under ice and the frigid waters of the Weddell Sea for over a century. Although the mast and some of the railings have decayed, sections of the upper deck look nearly pristine. In close-ups, plates and other dinnerware are scattered on the deck, and a single boot lies among the collapsed rigging. Through the detritus, some of the old linoleum floor still bears a star pattern.

After 10 months of bearing the weight of crushing ice floes, the ship fell apart and sank in front of the crew, leaving them with limited supplies and a few rowboats. Gathering their meager supplies in lifeboats, the crew voyaged until April 1916, when they reached the uninhabited Elephant Island, about 150 miles (241 kilometers) off the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula.

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Photo of the deck of the Endurance wreck. Plates and ropes can be seen.
Plates lay scattered on the deck of the Endurance. (Image credit: Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust)

Realizing the dire situation, Shackleton set out with five other crew members to search for help. They sailed over 800 miles (1,200 km) in a 22.5 foot-long (6.9 m) rowboat to reach a whaling station on the island of South Georgia. It took an additional four months to organize a rescue party for the rest of the stranded crew. But miraculously, when they reached the isolated island, Shackleton found that every single crew member had survived.

"Endurance" premieres on National Geographic on Nov. 1, and on Disney+ and Hulu on Nov. 2.

Sierra Bouchér
Sierra Bouchér
Staff Writer

Sierra Bouchér is a Washington, D.C.-based journalist whose work has been featured in Science, Scientific American, Mongabay and more. They have a master's degree in science communication from U.C. Santa Cruz, and a research background in animal behavior and historical ecology.