What was Douglas mawson's expendition vessel?

Answer 1

The ship bought by Sir Douglas Mawson for the Australasian Antarctic Expedition was a steam yacht called the SY Aurora. The Aurora was built in Glasgow in 1876, and was intended for use as a whaling ship in the North Sea. From 1876 to 1910,she was involved in the North Sea whaling trade. In 1910, Mawson bought her from the Dundee Whaling and Seal Fishing Company for use as his expedition ship. She was refitted for this purpose, and sailed for Antarctica in December 1911, arriving at her destination of Commonwealth Bay on 7 January 1912. After unloading her crew and equipment, Aurora returned to Hobart, Australia, to avoid being crushed by sea ice. She returned to Commonwealth Bay twice more, in December 1912 and December 1913 to pick up members of the expedition.

After returning to Australia, Aurora was sold by Mawson to Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton in 1914, for use by the Ross Sea Party of his Imperial Transantarctic Expedition, which aimed to be the first to cross the Antarctic continent from coast to coast. The Ross Sea Party had the important job of laying depots for Shackleton's party. However, she was in poor condition, and the Ross Sea Party was delayed in leaving for Antarctica because she needed a costly refit. The Master of the Aurora, Joseph Stenhouse, decided to follow what he thought were Shackleton's orders and let the ship be frozen in by the sea ice over Winte, mooring her at Ross Island. However, in May 1915 she broke her moorings and was carried out to sea, leaving the Ross Sea Party stranded. Thanks to Stenhouse's excellent navigation, Auroramanaged to break free of the ice and return to New Zealand, despite having no coal to fuel her engines and only a broken rudder to steer with. After arriving in New Zealand, she was refitted for another voyage to rescue the Ross Sea Party, which she did in January 1917.

Answer 2

The Aurora