Overview

• Published in Polar Record, the study by Aalto University professor Jukka Tuhkuri identifies several structural deficiencies that left Endurance less robust than contemporaneous polar ships.
• Key weaknesses included lighter deck beams and frames, an extended machine compartment that weakened a large section of the hull, and the lack of diagonal bracing.
• Archival evidence cited in the paper indicates Shackleton acknowledged the ship’s shortcomings before departure, including remarks in a letter to his wife.
• The findings challenge long‑standing claims that Endurance was the strongest polar vessel of its era and dispute the notion that the rudder was its primary vulnerability.
• The research was spurred by the 2022 Endurance22 discovery of the wreck about 3,000 meters down in the Weddell Sea, with authors noting the reasons for Shackleton’s ship choice remain uncertain.