Cairn at Port Charcot – Antartica - Atlas Obscura
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Cairn at Port Charcot

Antartica

A chilly monument dedicated to the French explorer, Jean-Baptiste Charcot.  

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The Cairn at Port Charcot, surrounded by tourists andyabroad (Atlas Obscura User)
Left: The Cairn at Port Charcot, surrounded by tourists andyabroad (Atlas Obscura User)
Right: The view of Booth Island from the Cairn at Port Charcot. andyabroad (Atlas Obscura User)
The view of Booth Island from the Cairn at Port Charcot. andyabroad (Atlas Obscura User)
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This rock cairn can be found at Port Charcot on Booth Island. It’s comprised of a wooden column and a plaque inscribed with the names of the first French Antarctic expedition led by Jean-Baptiste E. A. Charcot. 

The harbor itself wasn’t charted until the third French expedition to the region. The crew was forced to winter in Antartica in 1904. Although the men were moored, they established a shore station at the port for research. The crew slept on the ship, while reserving the station for scientific observations and as a last-ditch shelter.

It was during this time that the port was named by Jean-Baptiste after his father, Jean-Martin Charcot. At the 1972 Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM), Argentina formally requested the site be labeled a Historic site or Monument.

plaques memorials
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Published
October 4, 2019
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