Endurance: Shackleton's lost shipwreck found off Antarctica ending incredible 107-year-old mystery

The wreck of Sir Ernest Shackleton's ship Endurance has been found 107 years after it became trapped in sea ice and sank off the coast of Antarctica.

Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust said the wooden ship, which had not been seen since it went down in the Weddell Sea in 1915, was found at a depth of 9,868 feet (3,008 metres).

Remarkable footage of the wreck shows it has been astonishingly preserved, with the ship's wheel still intact and the name 'Endurance' still perfectly visible on the ship's stern.

The Endurance22 Expedition had set off from Cape Town, South Africa in February this year, a month after the 100th anniversary of Sir Ernest's death on a mission to locate it.

Endurance was found approximately four miles south of the position originally recorded by the ship's captain Frank Worsley, but within the search area defined by the expedition team before its departure from Cape Town.

Back in 1915, Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew set out to achieve the first land crossing of Antarctica, but Endurance did not reach land and became trapped in dense pack ice, forcing the 28 men on board to eventually abandon ship.
For the mission, the expedition team worked from the South African polar research and logistics vessel, S.A. Agulhas II, assisted by non-intrusive underwater search robots.

The wreck is protected as a Historic Site and Monument under the Antarctic Treaty, ensuring that whilst the wreck is being surveyed and filmed it will not be touched or disturbed in any way, according to the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust.

The expedition's director of exploration said footage of Endurance showed it to be intact and 'by far the finest wooden shipwreck' he has seen.

'We are overwhelmed by our good fortune in having located and captured images of Endurance,' said Mensun Bound, maritime archaeologist and director of the exploration.

'It is upright, well proud of the seabed, intact, and in a brilliant state of preservation. You can even see Endurance arced across the stern, directly below the taffrail.

'This is a milestone in polar history.'

Bound also paid tribute to the navigational skills of Captain Frank Worsley, the Captain of the Endurance, whose detailed records were 'invaluable' in the quest to locate the wreck.

Dr John Shears, the expedition leader, said his team, which was accompanied by historian Dan Snow, had made 'polar history' by completing what he called 'the world's most challenging shipwreck search'.

'In addition, we have undertaken important scientific research in a part of the world that directly affects the global climate and environment,' Dr Shears said.

Dr Adrian Glover, a deep-sea biologist at the Natural History Museum, not involved with the expedition, led a 2013 research paper predicting very good wood preservation for Endurance, based on experimental work.