Iced In: Ten Days Trapped on the Edge of Antarctica

By Chris Turney

“The Antarctic Factor: if anything can go wrong, it will. It's basically Murphy's Law on steroids.” —Chris Turney
 
On Christmas Eve 2013, off the coast of East Antarctica, an abrupt weather change trapped the Shokalskiy—the ship carrying earth scientist Chris Turney and seventy-one others involved in the Australasian Antarctic Expedition—in densely packed sea ice, 1400 miles from civilization. The forecast offered no relief—a blizzard was headed their way.
 
As Turney chronicles his ordeal, he revisits the harrowing Antarctic expedition of famed polar explorer Ernest Shackleton on his ship, Endurance, as well as the legendary explorations of Douglas Mawson. But for Turney, the stakes were even higher: he had his wife and children with him.
 
Turney was connected to the outside world through Twitter, YouTube, and Skype. Within hours, the team became the focus of a media storm, and an international rescue effort was launched to reach the stranded ship. But could help arrive in time to avert a tragedy?
 
A taut 21st-century survival story, Iced In is also an homage to all scientific explorers who embody the human spirit of adventure, joy in discovery, and will to live.
 
“Traveling in the footsteps of the great explorers Ernest Shackleton and Douglas Mawson, Turney draws on records from their journeys, making comparisons versus his own struggle in this enjoyable armchair adventure.”
—Booklist
 
“A classic adventure tale of a fight for survival. Turney’s account brings a chill to the spine.”
—Herald Sun, Melbourne
 
“Exciting and compelling reading.”
—Good Reading
 
With a New Epilogue by the Author

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Sep 26, 2017
• ISBN: 9780806538549

Chris Turney

Earth scientist CHRIS TURNEY is the author of 1912: The Year the World Discovered Antarctica; Bones, Rocks and Stars: The Science of When Things Happened; and Ice, Mud and Blood: Lessons from Climates Past. His numerous awards include the Sir Nicholas Shackleton Medal for pioneering research into climate change (2007). He is currently Professor of Climate Change and Earth Science at the University of New South Wales, Australia. Please visit his websites: www.christurney.com and www.intrepidscience.com.

Reviews for Iced In

[pamv-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Oh MYYYYYY, what an interesting book. I have read and enjoyed a few things about Shackleton and his Artic Expedition. This is similar but oh so very different. Turney, family and crew had the hope of rescue that Shackleton and others did not have. This group had Twitter, Facebook etc...

This was a great read that was full of adventure, cold and suspense.

My thanks to Netgalley and Citadel Publishing for providing me with this advanced readers copy

[janarose1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

On a scientific voyage to Antarctica, Chris, his family, and his team, were iced in by a sudden weather change. With ice all around, the ship's hull was breached, rescue ships were also stuck, and disaster seemed inevitable. Beginning with his idea for the trip, Chris paints a vivid picture of both the science and adventure behind his story. Throughout his story, Chris also shares the story of Ernest Shackleton, a previous Antarctic explorer whose team was frozen in. Well written and engaging, this is a fascinating story. Highly recommended.

[librarycin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The author, Chris Turney, gathered together many people in 2013/2014, mostly scientists, to travel to Antarctica to do some research. Antarctica is a dangerous place, as the weather and ice conditions can change in a heartbeat. This group was lucky enough to start off with a number of good weather and ice days, but things quickly changed on Christmas Eve and they ended up locked in by ice. This was really good. Turney also recounts Ernest Shakleton’s story of being trapped 100 years earlier, so he goes back and forth between his crew and Shakleton’s. As the leader of the expedition, and impressed by how Shakleton had handled things in his time, Turney made decisions based on “what would Shakleton do?”. It’s a different world now, though, as compared to during Shakleton’s time when no one knew what had become of Shakleton and his crew. With Turney’s group, they kept in connection via radio, satellite phone, social media, and were able to call in for help. Even still, there were times where things were dicey, and they really weren’t sure when or if they’d be able to get everyone out safely.