Adventure in 60 Seconds: This Week in Exploration
ByMary Anne Potts
March 13, 2009
2 min readText by Tetsuhiko Endo
As we gear up for the Himalayan climbing season, the "Three Sopranos"—namely Edurn Pasaban, Gerlind Kaltenbrunner, and Nives Mero, who have each climbed eleven of the world's 8,000 foot peaks—are readying themselves for the final sprint in the race to be the first queen of all fourteen. They swear there is no competition involved (k2climb.net).
On Baffin Island, another group of intrepid ladies, the eponymously named Baffin Babes, finally got their expedition to research climate change and indigenous cultures underway—and are already dealing with a broken GPS (theadventureblog.blogspot.com).
All the equipment is working fine for intrepid Scot Pen Hadow and Co. on the Caitlin Arctic Survey, but the weather and the ice are acting up a bit (news.bbc.co.uk). You can follow all their -40 degrees-falling-through-the-sea-ice-fun on Twitter (twitter.com/ArcticSurvey).
A little snow isn’t slowing everyone down though. At around the halfway point in the Iditarod, Alaskan Lance Mackey (news.bbc.co.uk) and 16 of his closest canine buddies have jumped into the lead (iditarod.com). But he still needs to watch his back. Race favorite, Canadian Sebastian Shnuelle, who looks like a bit of a wolf man himself, is stalking Mackey from third place (news.bbc.co.uk).
Related Topics
Go Further
Animals
- How can we protect grizzlies from their biggest threat—trains?How can we protect grizzlies from their biggest threat—trains?
- This ‘saber-toothed’ salmon wasn’t quite what we thoughtThis ‘saber-toothed’ salmon wasn’t quite what we thought
- Why this rhino-zebra friendship makes perfect senseWhy this rhino-zebra friendship makes perfect sense
- When did bioluminescence evolve? It’s older than we thought.When did bioluminescence evolve? It’s older than we thought.
- Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?
Environment
- Are the Great Lakes the key to solving America’s emissions conundrum?Are the Great Lakes the key to solving America’s emissions conundrum?
- The world’s historic sites face climate change. Can Petra lead the way?The world’s historic sites face climate change. Can Petra lead the way?
- This pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilienceThis pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilience
- Listen to 30 years of climate change transformed into haunting musicListen to 30 years of climate change transformed into haunting music
History & Culture
- Meet the original members of the tortured poets departmentMeet the original members of the tortured poets department
- Séances at the White House? Why these first ladies turned to the occultSéances at the White House? Why these first ladies turned to the occult
- Gambling is everywhere now. When is that a problem?Gambling is everywhere now. When is that a problem?
- Beauty is pain—at least it was in 17th-century SpainBeauty is pain—at least it was in 17th-century Spain
Science
- Here's how astronomers found one of the rarest phenomenons in spaceHere's how astronomers found one of the rarest phenomenons in space
- Not an extrovert or introvert? There’s a word for that.Not an extrovert or introvert? There’s a word for that.
- NASA has a plan to clean up space junk—but is going green enough?NASA has a plan to clean up space junk—but is going green enough?
- Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?
Travel
- Could Mexico's Chepe Express be the ultimate slow rail adventure?Could Mexico's Chepe Express be the ultimate slow rail adventure?
- What it's like to hike the Camino del Mayab in MexicoWhat it's like to hike the Camino del Mayab in Mexico
