More than a century after it sank off the coast of Antarctica, polar explorer Ernest Shackleton’s ship HMS Endurance has been located, apparently intact and in good condition.

The ship, which sank in 1915, is 3,008 meters (1.9 miles or 9,842 feet) deep in the Weddell Sea, a pocket in the Southern Ocean along the northern coast of Antarctica, south of the Falkland Islands.

The discovery was a collaboration between the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust and History Hit, the content platform co-founded by historian Dan Snow.

Who was Shackleton?

Irish-British explorer Shackleton had a longtime obsession with the South Pole and set off on a total of four expeditions toward the White Continent.

Endurance departed from the UK in 1914 and reached Antarctica’s McMurdo Sound the following year on a journey called the the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition.

However, due to the extreme conditions, the ship got stuck amid thick, impenetrable ice in the Weddell Sea. The 28 men on board, including Shackleton himself, abandoned the Endurance and set up rudimentary camp facilities on board ice floes that were floating northward.

Eventually, the team made it to the uninhabited Elephant Island, then some — including Shackleton — volunteered to get in a lifeboat and head toward South Georgia Island, finally crossing it on foot to reach Stromness whaling station, which was then manned by the Norwegians, and organize a rescue of the men left behind on Elephant Island.

Although the expedition was a failure, the team’s survival and eventual rescue months later, without any loss of life, was seen as a triumph of their tenacity and the incredible leadership skills of Shackleton.

Following another expedition later in his life, Shackleton died on South Georgia Island in 1922, at the age of 47, and is buried there.

How was Endurance found?

After being abandoned, Endurance eventually sank into the Weddell Sea, where she has been ever since.

Its resting place is about four miles south of where Captain Frank Worsley, a New Zealander who helmed the ship, had believed it to be.

The discovery team departed from Cape Town on the South African polar research and logistics vessel, S.A. Agulhas II. Fittingly, they dubbed their ship — and mission — Endurance22.

On board were a mixed group including scientists, historians and filmmakers who were capturing footage for an upcoming National Geographic documentary about the journey to locate Endurance.

Once they were close to where they believed the shipwreck was, explorers used Sabertooth hybrid underwater search vehicles made by Saab to locate her.

What happens next?

As per the guidelines of the Antarctic Treaty — which was signed by 12 countries in 1959 and is the closest thing to a constitution for the southernmost continent — Endurance will not be moved or taken apart.

Instead, she will remain where she is and be studied, mapped and photographed there.

While Shackleton’s name and biography are still famous around the world, the Endurance22 mission is as focused on the future as the past.

Dr. John Shears, the expedition leader, said, “We have also conducted an unprecedented educational outreach program, with live broadcasting from on board, allowing new generations from around the world to engage with Endurance22 and become inspired by the amazing stories of polar exploration, and what human beings can achieve and the obstacles they can overcome when they work together.”

Lake Chad is one of the most important lakes, which is historically large, shallow, an endorheic lake located in Africa, and being shared between four countries; Chad (from where the country gets its name), Cameroon, Niger and Nigeria.

Straddling The Borders Of Chad, Nigeria, Niger And Cameroon In West Africa, Lake Chad Has Been A Source Of Freshwater For Irrigation Projects In Each Of These Countries.

Maps drawn from a series of satellite images show a dramatic decrease in the size of the lake over the past 30 years.

Since 1963, The Lake Has Shrunk To Nearly A Twentieth Of Its Original Size, Due Both To Climatic Changes And To High Demands For Agricultural Water.

The Basin of Lake Chad covers a surface area of around 2.3 million square km (888,034 sq mi), but the lake itself in the past covered an area of more than 26,000 square kilometres (10,000 sq miles), making its surface the fourth largest in Africa.

The Chari River, fed by its tributary the Logone River, provides over 90% of Lake Chad’s water, with a small amount coming from the Yobe River in Nigeria/Niger, where despite high levels of evaporation, the lake is fresh water.

Lake Chad Was First Surveyed From Shore By Europeans In 1823, And It Was Considered To Be One Of The Largest Lakes In The World Then.

After the discovery of the lake, and with the increased demand of lake’s water from the local population, the shrinkage has accelerated throughout the years, nonetheless, in the last couple of decades it has shrunken rapidly.

There Are Plans For Diversion Of Some Rivers To Flow Into The Lake, however, due to insufficient funds, and not approving funds/credits from Agencies and Banks that could help, Lake Chad is most of the time “praying” for the flooding of the wetland areas to be greater than usually they are.

This Is One Piece Of African Jewel That Should Be Restored To Its Greatness Not Just For The Lake, But Also For The Population That Lives Around The Lake.