1947. The rush to the poles marked the beginning of an incredible human adventure to discover the last-remaining unknown lands. In France, Paul-E?mile Victor persuaded the government to finance expeditions to explore the Arctic and Antarctic. For the pioneers the conditions were Dantean, all in the name of science.
The Transantarctic expedition led by the American Will Steger and the Frenchman Dr. Jean-Louis Étienne took place between July 1989 and March 1990. It was the first successful attempt to cross the entire extent of Antarctica without the use of motor power. Six men of various nationalities, including Viktor Boyarksy (Soviet Union), Geoff Somers (Great Britain), Qin Dahe (China) and Keizo Funatsu (Japan), crossed Antarctica from east to west for seven months on dog sleds pulled by 63 sled dogs, covering a total distance of 6,048 kilometers, with temperatures as low as minus 45 degrees Celsius and long-lasting storms. Their aim was to draw global attention to the continent's endangered future and the early signs of climate change. The documentary relives this great human adventure, which took more than three years from the first meeting of the participants to the final success.
Jean-Louis Étienne (born 9 December 1946) is a French doctor, explorer and scientist. He is well known for his Arctic explorations, where he was the first man to reach the North pole alone in 1986, and his Antarctic explorations, including the famous 1990 International Trans-Antarctica Expedition. Jean-Louis Étienne was born in Vielmur-sur-Agout in the department of Tarn. He studied at the technical high school of Mazamet where he graduated with a CAP (Certificat d'Aptitude Professionnelle) in machining, then his technical high school graduation in Castres, and at the Faculté de Médecine of the Paul Sabatier University of Toulouse. He obtained a doctorate in general medicine graduated with a DESS (Diplôme d'Études Supérieures Spécialisées) in Dietetics and food, as well as a diploma in biology and sports medicine. Jean-Louis Étienne is also a licensed doctor of the Merchant navy. Jean-Louis Étienne got interested in medical matters and human psychology in extreme conditions. In order to further his research, he participated in several expeditions in Himalaya (Broad Peak and North of Mount Everest), Greenland and Patagonia. He was a teammate on the Pen Duick VI under Éric Tabarly for its race around the world in 1977–78. He is well known for his expeditions in the Arctic and Antarctica, with scientific as well as pedagogical goals, which attracted media coverage, disseminating knowledge and research, and promoting protection of the environment. He became famous with the feat of the 1990 International Trans-Antarctica Expedition, a 6,300 km crossing on foot, with dogs, of the Austral continent. In 2007 and 2008, Jean-Louis Étienne was the general director of the Institut océanographique de Paris and the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco. Source: Article "Jean-Louis Étienne" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
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