Madhouse at the End of the Earth

In the vein of David Grann, Nathaniel Philbrick, and Hampton Sides, this is the terrifying true survival story of an early polar expedition gone horribly wrong, with the ship stuck in ice and the crew trapped within for the whole dark Antarctic winter.

Thirty-one-year-old commander Adrien de Gerlache set off on the Belgica in August 1897, driven by a deep spirit of adventure and aspirations to bring honor to his beloved Belgium. His aim was the cold continent of Antarctica, the last unexplored region on Earth. However, every obstacle would be in the way of the commandant's three-year expeditionary mission to reach the magnetic South Pole. The ship had already broken down, ran aground, and lost numerous important crew members before it even left South America, leaving a crew with questionable expertise for such an ambitious expedition.

The skipper was forced to decide whether to turn around and save his troops the possibly disastrous repercussions of becoming stuck or to sail the ship recklessly deeper into the ice pack in an attempt to gain notoriety and glory. He continued to sail, and soon the Belgica was firmly lodged in the Antarctic continent's cold grasp. Winter would come to the ship on the ice. Frustrated by a strange, crippling sickness and overwhelmed by the routine of their days, the crew began to lose their strength as their days passed in cramped, claustrophobic quarters and their chances of survival decreased day by day. The ship's inhabitants were sentenced to months of isolation throughout an unending night as the days became shorter as winter drew near. The sun finally set on the breathtaking polar scene one last time.

Antarctica, sculpted by ice and forged by fire, proved to be a tough opponent for the ragtag group. Frederick Cook was one of them, an American physician who was equal parts scientist, adventurer, and P.T. Barnum. His unconventional approaches helped several of the crew overcome the horrifying symptoms of scurvy, and his unwavering optimism kept them going during the chilly, long polar night. Then there was young Roald Amundsen of Norway, who went on to become one of the greatest arctic explorers of all time, surpassing even de Gerlache's highest expectations in commanding the first expeditions to reach the South Pole and cross the Northwest Passage.

Sancton recounts the narrative of the Belgica's lengthy, solitary confinement on the ice, drawing on first-hand recollections of the ship's journey and unique access to the logbook. NASA is currently researching isolation for upcoming Mars missions. Sancton describes the numerous reasons that propelled these individuals to the verge of insanity in vivid, spine-tingling writing.