Polar exploration

Historically, this was accomplished by explorers making often arduous travels on foot or by sled in these regions, known as a polar expedition.

On April 6, 1909, Robert Peary claimed to be the first person in recorded history to reach the North Pole,[1] accompanied by his employee Matthew Henson and four Inuit men Ootah, Seegloo, Egingway, and Ooqueah.

[2][3] Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen had planned to reach the North Pole by means of an extended drift in an icebound ship.

Amundsen then changed his plan and began to prepare for a conquest of the geographic South Pole; uncertain of the extent to which the public and his backers would support him, he kept this revised objective secret.

When he set out in June 1910, he led even his crew to believe they were embarking on an Arctic drift, and revealed their true Antarctic destination only when Fram was leaving their last port of call, Madeira.