Exploration in the Arctic Circle still offers countless opportunities for fresh discoveries, but it is an adventure which is not to be undertaken lightly. As an occupation, it is more lonely and remote than anything else in the world and at any moment the traveler must be prepared to encounter hazard and difficulty which call for all his skill and enterprise. Nevertheless, such exploration with be carried as long as there are investigated areas to attract the daring and as long as the quest for knowledge inspires mankind.
Investigations have shown that the Arctic zone is rich in mineral deposits, but even if these deposits were themselves of little value, the economic importance of the Arctic would not be appreciably lessened. For it is generally agreed that “weather is made in the North”, and as the success or failure of the harvests all over the world is largely determined by the weather, it follows that agriculture and all those industrial and commercial activities dependent upon it must be considerably affected by the accuracy of the daily weather reports. Modern meteorologists regard the conditions prevailing in the Arctic as of first-rate importance in helping them to arrive at accurate results in their forecasts.
Yet quite apart from any economic or other practical considerations, there is a strange fascination about this vast unconquered region of stern northern beauty. Those who have once entered the vast polar regions like to speak of their inexpressive beauty, the charm of the yellow sun and dazzling ice pack, the everlasting snows and unmapped land where one never knows what lies ahead; it may be a gigantic glacier, which reflects a bean of sunlight over its frozen expanse or some wonderful fantastically shaped cliff which makes an unfading impression on the memory. It may even be an iceberg stately and terrifying, moving on its relentless way, for the Arctic is the birthplace of the great icebergs which threaten navigation.
