In 1931, the American science fiction writer Howard F. Lovecraft publishes the novel "Ridges of Madness", in which members of the Antarctic expedition of the Miskatonic University find strange rock formations that are not at all similar to natural geological formations.
Lovecraft's prophecies
Lovecraft's fantasy opens before the reader a gloomy, lifeless continent, where, as if in a giant refrigerator, traces of an ancient civilization that existed on Earth long before man appeared. Huge dead cities covered with snow, endless tunnels going deep into the earth, the remains of terrifying creatures and a mortal danger threatening anyone who dares to disturb the eternal sleep of the ancient rulers of Antarctica …
Who could have known then, in the distant 30s, that the dark fantasies of the American writer would begin to come true decades later - at the beginning of the XXI century? Or maybe the paintings painted by Lovecraft were inspired by the real evidence of the Antarctic explorers, who may have seen something on the sixth continent that could forever change our understanding of the history of civilization on our planet?
These questions are still awaiting answers, but one thing is beyond doubt - the icy continent is full of incredible mysteries, which will be no easier to get to the answer than to fly to Mars …
Pyramids on the horizon
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Almost a hundred years have passed since the discovery of Antarctica by Russian sailors in 1820 until the first attempts to penetrate deep into the continent began. The expeditions of Amundsen and Scott were of a "sporting nature" - they sought to reach the Earth's South Pole earlier than others; to conduct more detailed studies of the icy continent, they had neither the strength, nor the means, nor the resources. The equipment of the researchers was extremely primitive, so the challenges posed to Antarctica sometimes ended in the most tragic way.
Never before have pioneers found themselves in such extreme environmental conditions. Incredibly low temperatures, the high location of the continent above sea level (average value - 2040 m (!)), Fierce winds: Antarctic expeditions were truly deadly enterprises.
However, this did not stop inquisitive researchers. It was these first expeditions, despite imperfect equipment and all kinds of difficulties, that laid a solid foundation for further study of Antarctica, made it possible to form a general idea of the continent. At the same time, the first geological studies of the continent were carried out, which revealed traces of strange geological anomalies that did not find a scientific explanation and required a more thorough study.
So, for example, in the reports of the Australian polar expedition of 1911-1914, which was headed by Douglas Mawson, there is a mention of rock formations "of the correct pyramidal shape", which the expedition members observed in the Wilkes Land area during one of their trips inland:
“… The edges of these black basalt hills, devoid of ice cover, were unusually regular. We looked at them for a long time in silence, not knowing how to explain this freak of nature. Just imagine - recalled a member of the expedition Samu-el Littleton - you are climbing to the top of the glacier and suddenly you see three pyramids in front of you, as if transferred here from the Giza plateau. We clearly saw them against the background of a bright blue sky …"
Perhaps this incredible find of the Douglas Mawson expedition could have become a real sensation even then, in 1914, if not for the outbreak of the First World War, which put an end to Antarctic research for many years.
Ruins under the wing
In the mid-20s of the last century, interest in the study of Antarctica gained a second wind. The Americans, the British, and the Germans threw considerable resources into the exploration of the ice continent, considering Antarctica as a source of increasing their territories.
In 1929, an expedition led by the American explorer Richard Byrd founded the Little America base on the Antarctic coast, from where the study of the ice continent began with the help of modern technical means. The Americans actively moved inland, making extensive use of aviation and all-terrain vehicles. In particular, for the Byrd expedition in 1939, the Snow Cruiser was built - a huge wheeled all-terrain vehicle 17 meters long and 6 meters wide, which, unfortunately, did not justify itself at all, being tightly stuck in the snow during the first test run. It is said that its gigantic skeleton still lies under a multi-meter layer of snow not far from the American Antarctic station.
If ground technology faced big problems in Antarctica, then airplanes showed themselves in the best possible way. Aviation flights made it possible to see a lot of new things that were previously inaccessible to ground observers. And among what he saw there were many things, to find an explanation for which was very difficult.
Bird and his companions on expeditions have repeatedly mentioned in their reports about "geometrically proportional" rock formations, similar to the ruins of buildings. They also mentioned the "pyramidal peaks" that the pilots observed in the area of Mary Bird Land (named after the wife of the head of the expedition) in the fall of 1929. American newspapermen, who are avid for sensations, even tried to "inflate" the topic of the Antarctic pyramids, but the "sensation" failed - it was overshadowed by the Wall Street stock market crash that broke out in October 1929.
Was it these "sensational" notes that inspired Howard F. Lovecraft?
In the footsteps of the Atlanteans
Tranny finds in Antarctica are often associated with the German Antarctic expedition “New Swabia”, which took place in 1938-39. Unfortunately, the official records of "New Swabia" were lost during the Second World War, so it is no wonder that it was overgrown with many completely incredible legends. But no matter how boundless the imagination of idle conspiracy theorists was, the German expedition achieved quite real results, having conducted a study of a huge area of 600 thousand square meters. km - the so-called Queen Maud Land. Aerial photography of vast areas was carried out from two Dornier seaplanes, and the ice-free Schirmacher oasis was discovered, named after the German pilot who discovered it. This oasis is 35 sq. km is an ice-free area with incredibly soft,compared to the rest of the continent, the climate. Now the oasis houses Russian and Indian research stations. There are a lot of unusual things here. On the Internet, you can find a video essay where the former polar explorer Yevgeny Gavrikov talks in detail about the traces of the ancient civilization of the Atlanteans, which he discovered during his work at the Novolazarevskaya station and which, in his opinion, were hunted by the Nazis.
Upon his return in April 1939, all photographic materials filmed in Antarctica by members of the New Swabia expedition were immediately confiscated by representatives of the SS and classified. There were probably good reasons for this. What - we can only guess.
Antarctic pyramids in the lens
In our age of universal availability of information, the number of secrets and mysteries surrounding the sixth continent has not diminished in the least. Almost every day on the Internet you can find news about new "anomalous" finds in Antarctica - flying saucers frozen in the ice, giant passages into the "underground" world, ruins of cities under the ice shell and, of course, pyramids, which are inquisitive researchers of Google satellite maps found on the icy continent more and more often.
But not only "virtual" finds excite minds around the world. In the summer of 2013, sensational photo and video materials posted by members of a private Antarctic expedition, on which the very same pyramids of Antarctica, which for many years seemed an elusive mirage of the mysterious continent, were clearly visible, flew around the Network. Now their exact location is not a mystery, and there is little to do - you need to get to them, they need to be investigated.
This is a very difficult enterprise that requires significant costs, and, probably, there are forces on Earth that are not interested in discovering the secrets of Antarctica, which will put up all sorts of obstacles in the path of inquisitive researchers.
Maybe everything should be left as it is? Do we need access to the secrets hidden under the miles of polar ice? Is our mind able to maintain clarity when faced with mysteries, the depths of which we may never be able to know?
And instead of an answer - a dreary howl of an icy wind, carrying snow dust to distant basalt peaks, propping up the lifeless vault of a dark blue sky with their regular peaks. They were here before the humans. And they will be here when we are gone. Pyramids of Antarctica: mysterious, inaccessible, eternal …