SIR Ernest Shackleton and Sir Douglas Mawson are synonymous with Antarctica, as was their ship, Aurora.

At 165 ft long, 31 ft wide and 18 ft deep, the 580 tons gross vessel was built for Arctic conditions in Dundee in 1876.

Based in Liverpool, it was used as a whaler and sealer, going on its first polar expedition in 1882 when the ship went to the relief of the Greeley Arctic expedition.

A new boiler was fitted in 1905, then in 1911 was sold to Sir Douglas Mawson and fitted out for the Australasian Antarctic expedition.

In 1914 Sir Mawson transferred Aurora to Sir Ernest Shackleton for his expedition.

The vessel returned to New Zealand with the survivors in early 1917, then in July Shackleton sold the ship and it was fitted out as a merchantman by Messrs W R Grace and Co of the New York and Pacific Steamship Company.

While in Australia Aurora sprang a leak, then after repairs went to Newcastle to load coal, but after another leak, went to Sydney.

The cargo was sold and the ship extensively repaired at Mort’s Dock, then it returned to Newcastle on 18 June 1917.
On 20 June Aurora left Newcastle, bound for Iquique in Chile with a cargo of coal.

Concerns for Aurora and the crew were raised when the ship became overdue, but substantially grew when Captain Petrie of the Coombar reported wreckage off the Solitary Islands.

Two weeks later in early December he picked up Aurora’s lifebuoy 92 miles from Hacking Point lighthouse.

While the lifebuoy’s ropes were in good condition, one side of the buoy was covered in small barnacles.

Sir Mawson was convinced the ship had been lost to foul play or submarine attack, explaining how, during his expedition, Captain J K Davis navigated the ship over 30,000 miles in high southern latitudes in the worst possible weather ‘proving the ship to be an exceptionally fine sea boat’.

However, the ship and crew were never seen again.

By Karen FILEWOOD