Belgica Expedition Disaster in Antarctic Ice

The Belgian Antarctic Expedition of 1897–1899 was the first expedition to winter in the Antarctic region.^¹ Led by Adrien de Gerlache de Gomery aboard the RV Belgica, it was the first Belgian Antarctic expedition and is considered the first expedition of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.^¹ Among its members were Frederick Cook and Roald Amundsen, explorers who would later attempt the respective conquests of the North and South Poles.^¹