The Doomed Arctic Balloon Expedition That Vanished For 30 Years
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ก.ย. 2024
- On August 5, 1930, a group of men on a sealing expedition made their way across a rarely exposed ice sheet in the Svalbard Arctic Region along the Norwegian archipelago only to discover a scene that was long thought to have been lost to history. While the group, named the Bratvaag Expedition, had intended to hunt seals and study the structure of the glaciers in the area, they instead found themselves unintentionally excavating the remains of the disappeared S.A. Andrée Expedition, which had gone missing in that very region of the Arctic over 30 years before.
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#balloon #arctic #weirdhistory
Cameraman always doing his job capturing every moment and leaving people to slowly die.
I know! I have always wondered about the camera person; like why are there pictures of certain situations?!
In this case, they probably died with everyone else. Or these are pictures from other crews + balloons,
What did you want them to do? Befriend a polar bear and ride them all to safety? They were all stranded and couldn’t do anything. They might as well take some pictures to show what happened.
@@caitthourot3968 you see, cameraman survived the Big Bang and the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs. He can save everyone in 1 second but decided he didn't want to.
This expedition was dramatized in the 1982 Swedish movie THE FLIGHT OF THE EAGLE, directed by Jan Troell and starring Max Von Sydow as Andree.
And that was actually a pretty good movie, if memory serves me! I remember it as both fascinating, sad and very melancholic. Now I want to see it again!
Something like this sounds insane to us these days but you really have to admire the courage that it has taken through the ages to bring us everything that we have and know now.
Like 3 dudes strapping their butts on top of a 3,100 ton rocket (edit: heavier than some Naval destroyers) and telling everyone "Laters! Heading to the Moon. _And coming back_ ..."
Don’t conflate ignorance for bravery. People will beg to go to space not knowing how dangerous it is. Adventure seems great until you are dead or dying
There's a hell of a difference between courage and fool hardiness. The guys who changed their minds were absolutely right to do so-any way you slice it, they weren't properly prepared for the inevitable switch from air travel to foot travel. They would have had a much better chance at surviving, if they'd skipped the stupid balloon idea and used dog sleds, or something similar, like maybe reindeer.
TBH, what killed them was poor risk assessment. That's something a rather large percent of people have.
"But journal entries show that he maintained a chipper attitude in public, while mourning privately"...... We still do that today.
Yeah, until the bottled emotions make you have a psychotic episode
Exactly.
How are you?
I'm fine. You?
Good, good...
Both totally wrecked & crying inside😑
Story of my life.
I recall hearing about this in a parasitology book.
It mentions that a contributing factor to their deaths was thought to be due to a parasitic infection from consuming raw polar bear meat.
A type of parasitic worm that inhabits muscle cells.
The worm turns these cells into nursing cells that provide nutrition for it.
That theory has been soundly discredited for years. Trichinosis is rarely fatal, and the men never reported fever in their journals nor used any of their fever medication.
Additionally, legendary arctic explorer Fridtjof Nansen had earlier survived in the same area for more than 15 months eating almost exclusively polar bear meat.
So was the balloon filled with hydrogen or hot air? It's referred to as a hot air balloon several times but it's also mentioned that it was a hydrogen balloon. It's hard to imagine they would have been able to carry enough fuel to maintain lift using hot air. Either way, it was a ridiculous plan doomed to failure before it even started.
It was a hydrogen balloon. And that is one of the many reasons why the expedition failed. The fact that the narrator says "hot air balloon" in practically every second sentence is extremely annoying! It indicates very poor reseach 😞
Oh boy, what a doozy!
Wow! Fascinating!
Thanks for the video! 🌟
Do a video on the Barkely Marathon. Things insane.
Spice Trader Odyssey!
Having ANOTHER Weird History taste test!
Taste Testing Rosemary*†...while watching this Weird History video!
Inspired by the Spice Girls, studio album Parsely, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme by Simon & Garfunkel, and Rosemary Potatoes my friend Matt made for me once.
* Spice is on the video "Why the Hell Do People Love Pumpkin Spice So Much?" (Is Pumpkin Spice the lost twin of Ginger Spice?)
† It is in a 0.7 oz bottle where it is unclear what brand of rosemary it is.
o I am using the PSST! method of Taste Testing (Palm Swirl Sniff Taste - no reason to look up that acronym because I just made it up) when a person puts it in their palm, swirls it to crush it, sniffs it to identify its scent, and then tastes it on their tongue.
Please do the 1960s
......Soooo do we know whether or not Apollo 11's lunar lander was named after this vehicle? hmmmm...
Franklin expedition?
Hot air with no burner? Not helium either? Try something explosive like the Hindenburg. Good ol hydrogen! 🔥🔥🔥
It was hydrogen
Headless body?
WtF happened??
5 Weeks in a Balloon 🎈 would terrify me I don't like heights as it is being in a passenger plane is better.....Svea what does that mean in English...... Me go out on a hot air balloon I'd rather ride the Hindenburg
...at the end of the world...
I’m the king of the world!! 👑💀
My question is if the balloon crash landed and was lost where the hell did all the pictures come from?
Everyone thought they had died in the snow, but then we found that they… had died in the snow.
Yes, but different snow than the first snow they thought killed the group. Super important distinction.
😂
@@taoofjester4113 😂
"Was every available scientist named Niels?"
Niels Bohr did not find this amusing.
I'm confused why freezing to death isn't the main theory of cause of death...
Cos one of them was found decapitated lol
Well it was July. Believe it or not, but in the Arctic, it can be above freezing during the short summer…
@C B the temperature doesn't need to be freezing or below in order to die from hypothermia.
I think hypothermia was ruled out due to the condition of the bodies. Specifically they were all still clothed. An interesting part of freezing to death is the victims will often start to feel extremely hot and start taking off their clothes.
Because of many things. Death by polar bears and/or suicide has also been mentioned as posible causes.
I barely want to consider a semi-tethered hot air balloon ride in the carribean summer just for funs....these guys were insane.
0:09 Sealers came upon something *"…way more **_gruesome"_* ?! More gruesome than clubbing the seals to death? Doubtful!
I wish they had seal clubbers at my high school job fair. What a job, just think of the stress relief.
@@billm2078 what school was that
@@doom4167 I said, I wish. Whale harpooner would have been another interesting job.
This needs to be a movie. Such a good story I never knew that I needed to know 👏
It would be a good movie. Tragic element of grief, "only had his mother and his balloons" I think he rushed the trip clouded by his grief. I'm sure his mother encouraged his passion.
Better idea for a flic than 99% of movies these days
It is a movie called ”Ingenjör Andrées luftfärd” from 1982 With Max von Sydow. But it is in Swedish lol.
Any movie would have to focus on how grossly ill prepared they were, unless you fabricate, embellish interpersonal dramas. I would turn it off.
It's simple. They froze to death in their sleep during a cold snap in the middle of the night.
Are you sure that the pole didn't pop the balloon? It maybe sharp at the top end...
Please make a video about Emma Goldman! Here in Sweden Andrée has become someone that is talked about when describing a blue eyed naïve person. I do believe although we should remember the good parts of the ill fated life and voyage he led.
Not a hot air balloon. Was filled with hydrogen. Also... Most expeditions to the arctic were made by boat, as there's no land at the North Pole. You had to go as far as you could by boat, and then you were on the ice. Max Von Sydow starred in a movie about the expedition ( Swedish with English subtitles ) th-cam.com/video/lG6uUsj1fJQ/w-d-xo.html
Well this channel isn’t really about accuracy
So a gas balloon vs. air? Thanks for the rabbit hole for tonight.
They actually mention it at 6.11 when the first guys backed out . I think he just kept them name because most people call it hot air
There's also another one called Valley at the top of the World 🤣 I think Disney put it out
Yes! Exactly what I came here to write! The fact that the narrator says "hot air balloon" in practically every second sentence is extremely annoying! This indicates very poor reseach 😞
Brief but pedantic note: it *wasn't* a 'hot-air' balloon - it was a *gas* balloon. Hot air was fairly quickly superseded by hydrogen and coal gas in early ballooning, and did not become widespread again until well into the 20th c., with the introduction of compressed propane fuel.
The repetition of this misnomer throughout the video is rather grating.
So...his headless body?
Polar Bear: Brains, Yum!
A nice follow-up story on people getting in over their heads in remote icy places would be the Italian General Umberto Nobile's 1928 disastrous Arctic expedition aboard the airship (balloon) Italia. Not to forget the collateral dommage: the disappearance of renowned Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen when trying to find Nobile & his frozen group.
Truly we need a follow-up to that
A+ video!
Such an epic and unique story, those expeditioners really wanted to go big.
Fun to see something we learn about in Swedish schools here
Hydrogen balloon, NOT a "hot air balloon".
It's not crazier than climbing into a spaceship and flying 250,000 miles to the moon and back.
They literally sent dogs and monkeys first. And the real challenge with space flight is getting into orbit. Any idiot can fly to the ice if they had the means. Space flight had the backing of superpower nation pride and money. Flying to a frozen hell just means you're willing to lose your cock to frostbite 😂
I know they were shook when they saw miles and miles of ice. Literally
I live in Albuquerque where there is a balloon fiesta every year. I see them from the back yard and traveling to work. You couldn’t pay me to get on one.
Fellow New Mexican here... No way would I voluntarily get in one, much less pay someone to do it. Didn't one hit a power line during the last fiesta with an experienced balloonist at the helm? I'll admit it is pretty to see them all up in the sky, though.
I know they didn't succeed but imagine the excitement leading up to the expedition. It would have been euphoric. He probably felt like he was in a fairy tale
That expedition was a disaster from the beginning.
This expedition definitely has eerie parallels to the Titan's ill-fated trip down to the Titanic, from an ill equipped/structurally unsound vessel to crew/engineers having warned the head honcho of the dangers. Sad stuff.
So was it a hydrogen balloon or a hot-air balloon? Please do easy fact-checking in the future. Also the steering ropes intended to drag on the ground and supposed to give some help with the direction, failed because they were long and joined by a screw-joint and the lower section simply unscrewed itself. But the expedition planning was flawed as well. Wiki: "After Andrée, Strindberg, and Frænkel lifted off from Svalbard in July 1897, the balloon lost hydrogen quickly and crashed on the pack ice after only two days."
Sources don't say that Andrée was found decapitated, but sitting inside the refuge. He might have committed suicide by ingesting morphine after his companions died.
I wouldn't do this shit with modern day technology, gotta commend these folks for their bravery
People were a lot tougher back then.
I can't tell if these guys were incredibly brave or incredibly stupid!
Yes
protection from extremely cold weather is one thing. pooping and peeing, does andrees' crew had any idea how are they gonna go #1 & #2 during the expedition?
Over the side
On the poop deck.
md Bea Usman got so obsessed of the Andre expedition that she left her job as art director to become a medical doctor so she could study the remains of the crewmen at the Andre museum in Gränna/sweden. She concluded they got attacked by polar bears and committed suicide. She has written a best seller book and done radio talks about it.
Came here to comment about this.
Have you made any videos about the Mississippian mound cultures?
Before he died he probably shouted "Made it Ma, top of the world"
I think hot air balloons are badass, definitely a line item on my bucket list.
How is it possible that a team of healthy, fairly young men die in a frozen wasteland full of hungry snow beasts. It just doesn’t add up. I guess some mysteries will forever elude us.
hypothermia
I’m wondering, how is it that you don’t have a clue how these men died, no matter how young, old or healthy they were. 🤦♀️
They had food and could’ve melted ice for water. One guy even said he liked sleeping on the ice. So yeah… kind of a mystery
@@shawnmaria9064 I think they're being facetious
Funniest comment here lol
Good stuff as usual! Be cool to see one on ponce de Leon, Coronado and the American explorers
Has anyone made the 'Chinese Spy Balloon' joke yet?
They have? 7085 times?
a'ight.
Courage and stupidity are two sides of the same coin. So sad.
Ay August 5th that’s my birthday 🎂🎊🎉
Plz do a video on Pocahontas
You have to be one crazy S.O.B. To travel by hot air balloon from Sweden to the North Pole.
never not ever
What happened to Andrea’s… head?
Don’t worry king. We will succeed or I will loose…
About same time in Canada. Pair of miners were searching for gold river Nahanni valley, were found without their heads. Natives tell stories of man eating monkeys and other monsters. Area is off limits for adventures.
6:06: "He probably deduced that the balloon wouldn't be able to retain the HYDROGEN..."
I guess at some point he announced to all they weren't in Sweden anymore.
2:00 They took off on the 25th anniversary (Silver Jubilee) of Doane Unversity (established on July 11, 1872).
Interesting as always!
Most definitely not on an expedition like that. Not even in today’s modern time. Because I absolutely hate snow and coldness. Even though I am a crazy Swede.
Another thing that could have contributed to their deaths was from eating polar bear liver and developing vitamin A toxicity in addition to, well, all the other stuff.
A “Captain” or expedition leader who doesn’t know how to control his own contraption, expedition members pulling out for good, but ignored, reasons, inadequate and unreliable clothing for the extreme conditions, insufficient food….what could possibly have gone wrong? And when it did go south, no way to summon help. Marconi and others were still tinkering with and perfecting wireless and no sat phones for ~80 years. One of many doomed polar expeditions. At least these fellas (what was left anyway), were finally found and returned for burial. Fascinating stuff.
If only the expedition had literally gone South, they may have survived.
Though all mentions but one of the type of balloon are "hot air", once, you mention hydrogen. I'm wondering why you would mention hydrogen at all.
I've come to the conclusion that many daring explorers, mountain climbers, BASE jumpers, spelunkers, and divers are not entirely sane. Far too often, these people go off into extremely dangerous places without proper planning or equipment. Even of those who have planned well, and are as well-equipped as possible, often, foolish little mistakes take their lives.
It seems kind of obvious that this guy didn't entirely care if he made it home alive. The two that went with him had no one to blame but themselves for going on a hare-brained expedition. The fact that he thought he'd gotten enough experience with balloons is further evidence that something was off in his head. It's no surprise that anyone could accurately predict the outcome....
Polar bear attack - read The Expedition: The Forgotten Story of a Polar Tragedy by Bea Uusma
Crazy idea
Could you imagine a time before the north and south poles were exploited for natural resources. Must have been beautiful.
ehh, could've gone worse for 'em. they could've been attacked by condors ;)
whoever gets the reference first gets the whole cookie factory
You said headless body but then didn't explain where his head was. God that is annoying me
I vote that the Polar Bear did it. It took his gun and took revenge for them eating other Polar Bears and propped up his body.
Calling a hydrogen-filled balloon a hot air balloon is blatantly irresponsible. Chalk and Cheese! 👎
Not a hot air balloon. Get your facts straight. It was a hydrogen balloon.
Really? the opening ad is for weed? You need to rethink your sponsorship options.
People do stupid things chasing fame from sex videos to doomed expeditions
Why didn't they just take the eagles to Mordo- I mean the north pole.
Very good video. I'd never heard of this expedition. Sure is a lousy place to die.
When you know these days the time to be prepared and the amount of materials you have to get, to go to the north or south pole.
What about lost ships?? I love anything on here really!!
It wasn't a hot air balloon-it was hydrogen filled.
I don't even like flying. No way I would go out in a hot air balloon.
No wonder the expedition was so difficult if he didn’t have a head.
Theres nothing more gruesome than a seal hunt.
Well he had the right general idea at least. The first time any humans ever reached the North Pole was over 30 years later in an airship.
Do the history of instant noodles!! I love your videos!
I hate to admit it but I looked up the Swedish word 'Svea', the name of their first balloon, using my Google Translate and it means 'Burn' in English. Coincidentally the Swedish word for 'The Eagle', their second balloon, is 'Örnen'....which sounds like a bit of an omen when it comes to their entire expedition, doesn't it?
Yes they were kind of doomed to begin with, mainly because it’s a crazy idea. The second balloon was called Örnen, probably because it’s a majestic bird. But Svea does not mean burn, there’s something wrong with google translate when it comes to that word. There is a similar word “svedja” which means to burn, but Svea is a female name which represents Sweden. “Moder Svea” means Mother Svea which is a poetic form of “Sweden the motherland”.
Was a hydrogen balloon, not hot air.
Thanks for this! 🎈 #WeirdHistory #Arctic #Balloon
……north pole trip………….nah im good
Hot air balloon or hydrogen balloon?
I'd love to hear about the world's first balloon ride from the two French men....... no I wouldn't be caught dead in a hot air balloon 🎈 I'm afraid of heights
On the bright side, ya only crash like once 😂 and I bet you are the first one to the crash sight also 😂
Heights don’t hurt you, the fall does.
@@oilersridersbluejays How true that is
🎈
Did he find Santa Claus?
🤔
Jesus! Do we need the dad jokes?
Should do the ocean gate
Feels weird being in the first 1000 viewers for one of these videos.
Why was he headless? 👀