Man has always considered himself the master of the Earth and wanted to know as much as possible about his "home". Distant lands and unexplored places have attracted explorers of all times and peoples. Russian navigators F. Bellingshausen and M. Lazarev were lucky to make the discovery of Antarctica, the legend of whose existence lived for many centuries. On January 27, 1820, they approached the shores of Antarctica and were amazed by its endless expanses of ice. This event went down in history as the most significant achievement in the field of world geography.
In February 1821, a team of sailors led by Captain John Davis made the first landing on the icy continent. Travelers spent the whole winter in harsh conditions on the mainland, they managed to save them only in the summer. Many historians do not believe in this fact, since Antarctica is the most inaccessible area.
The first assumption that the sixth continent exists, tried to confirm the English navigator James Cook. However, he did not swim to the mainland and argued that it was impossible to go further south than he did. Therefore, attempts to find the mysterious land stopped for a while, and the discoveryAntarctica took place almost 40 years later.
Some researchers believe that the history of the discovery of Antarctica began before the 19th century. There is an assumption that even in ancient times people knew about the existence of this icy continent. One of the mysteries of the mainland is the theory of the life of ancient peoples on the territory of modern Antarctica. This theory says that ancient geographers learned about Antarctica from the "Antarcticians" - the inhabitants of the Southern Continent.
Plato claimed that Antarctica was inhabited by people before the glaciation. The ancient Greek philosopher based his assumptions on the texts and descriptions of the ancient Egyptian civilization. To these peoples Plato attributed magical abilities and extensive knowledge about the origin of the universe. It is not known only whether these were just guesses and theories or exact information, but the fact that the existence of the sixth continent is mentioned in ancient writings is a fact.
The discovery of Antarctica has revived many mysteries and myths. Studying the ancient maps of navigators, scientists came to the conclusion that before Antarctica was not covered with ice, and the climate on the mainland was mild. Ancient navigators compiled these maps using even older sources whose origins are still unknown.
American researchers studying the alleged Atlantis noticed that the outlines of Atlantis and Antarctica are very similar. It can be assumed that the mysterious Atlantis is hidden under the thickness of the ice.
The discovery of Antarctica is significantevent in the history of world finds. About two hundred years have passed since the discovery, but we could learn very little about this continent. Antarctica keeps a lot of secrets and mysteries generated by the human imagination. What is there, under the ice, is still unknown. And the processes taking place on the surface of the continent have also not yet been studied. One can only speculate, based on the very remote and vague readings of modern instruments. One can only hope that the mysteries of Antarctica will one day be solved. However, it is safe to say that there will be enough secrets for many more generations to come.
