Shirase Nobu

Shirase Nobu (Japanese白 瀬 矗; born July 20, 1861 ( traditionally: Bunkyū 1.6.13 ) in Konoura, Yuri -gun (now Nikaho ), Akita Prefecture, † September 4, 1946 in Koromo, Nishikamo -gun ( today: Toyota), Aichi prefecture) was a Japanese army officer who initiated the Japanese Antarctic Expedition 1910-1912 and thereby met the crew of Amundsen. Shirase and his men first entered the Edward VII Peninsula and were celebrated after their return to Japan as heroes.

Shirase Nobus first expedition led him in 1893 to the islands of the Kuril Islands, which lie north of Japan. As an unknown army lieutenant, he applied for the implementation of the Japanese Antarctic Expedition, where he was supported by the former Prime Minister of Japan Okuma Shigenobu. The Antarctic Expedition stabbed on December 1, 1910 in Tokyo, with the Kainan Maru (开 南 丸) in the lake, a small, just 100 feet (30 meters ) long sailing ship. As a farewell, merely a few students gathered at the dock. They reached Wellington in New Zealand on February 7, 1911, started four days later towards Antarctica. Due to the bad weather with storm, heavy snowfall and ice formation Shirase returned to Australia, where he landed in Sydney on 1 May 1911. There, the Japanese had no funds and little food, lived in poverty, camped in a hut and attracted derisive comments to the press. A part of the crew, including Captain returned to Japan to raise funds. Professor Edgeworth David of the University of Sydney, a former member of the Nimrod Expedition by Ernest Shackleton in 1907-1909, not only helped Shirase and his crew, but also joined the Australian public for the Japanese.

Shirase was in no doubt that he could not reach before Roald Amundsen and Robert Scott about the South Pole. Nevertheless, he started again on November 19, 1911 by Sydney from the south and reached on January 16, 1912 the Ross Ice Shelf. At the Kainan Bay named by him, they met on the Fram, Amundsen's ship, which was waiting for his return. Due to linguistic problems they could barely communicate.

Later, the expedition landed in the Bay of Whales on one of the huge ice fields, and a group of seven men was sent out, of which two at the end of the rink set up a base camp. The other five presented to further inquiries. After 160 miles they gave because of blizzards and dwindling forces of crew and sled dogs, put on 29 January, a Japanese flag into the ice and returned to the ship. This area at 80 ° 5 ' S, 156 ° 37' W 80.083333333333 156.61666666667 - called Yamato- slope area (大 和 雪原, Yamato yukihara ). While Shirase with the group was on the road, the Kainan Maru the Bay of Wales direction Biscoe Bay left to King Edward VII Land, to explore the local country. She took the group only on 2 February again, and the team returned over Wellington on 20 June 1912 Yokohama back. They had reached all the goals except the South Pole. When they arrived in Japan, they were hailed as heroes.

The total cost for Shirase were about 120-125000 yen, and despite donations he fell into debt with 40,000 yen ( today: 200 million yen). This he paid off by lecturing throughout Japan.

He died on September 4, 1946 in Koromo (now Toyota) to intestinal obstruction.