Aurora (ship)

:"This article is about the 19th century whaling ship, Aurora, for other ships with the same name see Aurora (Disambiguation)"

The "Aurora" (SY "Aurora") was a steam yacht built by Alexander Stephen & Sons Ltd. shipbuilders in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1876, for the Dundee Seal and Whale Fishing Company. Her primary use was whaling in the northern seas, and she was built sturdily enough to withstand the heavy weather and ice that would be encountered there. That strength proved useful for Antarctic exploration as well, and between 1911 and 1917 she made five trips to the continent. Both for exploration, as well as rescue missions.

Whaling

Between the years 1876 and 1910, the "Aurora" made the annual trip from Dundee, Scotland to St. John's, Newfoundland to take part in the whale and seal hunt in the Arctic waters. There were a couple of notable events in this time. In 1884, the "Aurora" made a failed attempt to rescue the Greely Expedition to claim the reward money, and in 1891, the ship came to the rescue of the crew of the "Polynia" when it was crushed in sea ice.

Douglas Mawson Expedition

In 1910, she was bought by Douglas Mawson for his Australasian Antarctic Expedition. The "Aurora" made the journey from Hobart, Australia to Macquarie Island, Mawson's base of operations, in December 1911. After establishing the base, they sailed south again, and arrived in Commonwealth Bay Antarctica, on January 7,1912. At Cape Denison, her crew unloaded Mawson and his team, and helped set up the camp (Mawson's Huts), but then departed to return to Hobart so as not to get trapped in the sea-ice over the winter.

In December 1912, the "Aurora" returned to find that Douglas Mawson, Xavier Mertz, and Belgrave Ninnis had set out on a sled expedition, and were overdue on their return. The captain attempted to wait for the expedition to return, but poor anchorage and extremely strong winds combined to cause the anchor chain to break. At the end of January the ship had to leave or risk getting stuck for the winter. "Aurora" left a team of six, including a radio operator, behind with ample supplies, and departed. Mawson, the sole survivor of the three, arrived in time to see the "Aurora" disappearing over the horizon. A radio call brought the "Aurora" back, but bad weather forced it to depart again, leaving Mawson and party behind.

"Aurora" returned to Commonwealth Bay on December 12, 1913, to pick up the seven men, and return to Australia.

Trans Antarctic Expedition

In 1914, Sir Ernest Shackleton tasked the "Aurora" to help set up supply depots along the route for his Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition. After being delayed by sea ice in McMurdo Sound in January 1915, the "Aurora" managed to make her way further south, and sent teams off to set up the depots. Eventually she made her way to Discovery Bay on March 12, 1915, where she anchored and continued to offload supplies. In May, the "Aurora" was trapped in the ice, and was carried out to the sea, stranding the men that were setting up the depots. It was not until February 12, 1916 that the ship escaped from the ice, making it back to Dunedin, New Zealand on April 3.

1917 Ross Sea Party rescue

The Australian, New Zealand and British governments agreed to fund the refit of the Aurora for the rescue of the Ross Sea Party. Shackleton's expedition funds were fully expended. After his legendary ordeal on the "Endurance" in the Weddell Sea sector, Shackleton arrived in New Zealand during December 1916. The three governments involved were adamant that he would not lead the rescue expedition and at their insistence John King Davis was appointed to captain the "Aurora". After negotiation Shackleton sailed aboard the Aurora, but Captain Davis had total authority on the voyage. On January 10, 1917, the ship pulled alongside the pack ice near Cape Royds and worked its way to Cape Evans. One week later, the seven survivors of the original ten members of the "Ross Sea Party" were headed back to Wellington, New Zealand aboard the "Aurora".

Fate

The "Aurora" was last seen in 1917, when she departed Newcastle, New South Wales, bound for Iquique, Chile with a cargo of coal. Lloyd's of London posted the ship as missing on 2 January 1918; it was believed she was a casualty of World War I.

Tributes

A number of Antarctic features are named for the "Aurora". These include:

*Mount Aurora
*Aurora Heights
*Aurora Subglacial Basin
*Aurora Peak
*Aurora Glacier

Captains

This is a partial list of Captains of the "Aurora":

*J. Fairweather (c.1882-c.1886)
*Jackman (c.1895)
*John King Davis (1911-1914, 1916–17)
*Lieutenant Æneas Mackintosh R.N.R. (1914)
*J R Stenhouse (1914-1916)

References

* [http://www.orf.i.net.au/SYAurora.html The SY Aurora]
* [http://www.explorenorth.com/whalers/features/whalecaptains1.htm List of Arctic Whaling Captains]
* [http://www.coolantarctica.com/Antarctica%20fact%20file/History/antarctic_ships/aurora.htm The Aurora in Antarctic Expeditions]