Xa umhloli waseMerika uRichard E. Byrd wayehleli yedwa kwindlu yakhe eAntarctica ngowe-1934, isiqingatha sinomkhenkce nesiqingatha sinetyhefu yecarbon monoxide, wayeneepiphany. U-Byrd wabhala ukuba yena kunye namanye amadoda abambe iqhaza ekuhloleni izibonda babebeka ubomi babo esichengeni ngaphandle kwesizathu esivakalayo. U-Byrd wasinda kobo bunzima, kodwa amava akhe awayephantse afe amthomalalisa.
UMary Knaus uthi amava akhe okusondela ekufeni amenza wanesibindi. Yiyo loo nto emi e-Antarctica namhlanje.
“Ngowe-1999, kwafunyaniswa ukuba ndinomhlaza wamabele yaye ndandikwinqanaba lokuqala nesifo esasifuna i<em>mastectomies yamazwe amabini, ichemotherapy. Kwakubonakala ngathi kuqhubeke ngonaphakade, kwaye bendinexesha elininzi lokucinga,” utshilo uKnaus. “Kwaye ndacinga … ndiza kuyitshintsha indlela endenza ngayo izinto. Andizukwala xa abantu bendicela ukuhamba, ndiya kuthi ewe! Kwaye ndiza kuzama ukubona ihlabathi. "
UKnaus ufundisa ipsychology yeklinikhi kwiYunivesithi yaseHouston. Ungomnye wamadoda angaphezu kwama-200 - kunye nabasetyhini - bezenzo abatyelela i-Antarctica okokuqala. Nokuba i-epiphany yabo iza ngaphambi kokuba bafike okanye emva kokuba befikile apha ayinakwenzeka. Baguqulwa.
“I-Antarctica imele umsitho okhethekileyo kum, kuba usuku lwam lokuzalwa lweminyaka engama-60 ibikwinyanga ephelileyo kwaye eli lilizwekazi lam lesixhenxe kwaye ndiziva ngathi ndiyifezile injongo yam,” utshilo uKnaus encumile.
Kubahambi abazimiseleyo, ukufikelela kuwo onke amazwekazi asixhenxe kukufumana eyona ilungileyo yobuqu. Uhambo lwase-Antarctic alukho rhabaxa njengoko lwaluqhelekile, kodwa alugudi. Njengabo bonke abanye abantu abalapha, uKnaus wabhabha waya eTierra del Fuego ukuze adibane nenqanawa yaseNorway. Wahamba ngenqanawa ngaphezu kweeyure ezingama-40 enqumla kwamanye awona manzi anenkathazo ehlabathini. Kwaye ngoku, ugqogqa kunxweme olunegrabile kwindawo ebizwa ngokuba yiJugular Point, kwincam esemantla elona lizwekazi lisemazantsi ehlabathi.
IAmazon emhlophe ethambileyo
Inqanawa yokuhamba ngenqanawa ilandela ikhondo lefiligreed elijikeleze iziqithi ezincinci ecaleni kwePeninsula. Apho umkhenkce uvumela khona, inqanawa iyama, sifumba kwizikhephe ezinenjini size siye elunxwemeni. Apho umkhenkce ungqingqwa kakhulu ngaselunxwemeni, sima kumgangatho wenqanawa size sibukele. Kodwa kuyonwabisa ngakumbi ukukhubeka kumatye amnyama kunye nomkhenkce onemithanjana eluhlaza kunye nokubona iifellas ezincinci ezisibulisa emhlabeni: oonombombiya.
Kwincam zeAntarctica likhaya leentlobo ezincinci zeentaka kunye neminenga kunye namantini, kodwa oonombombiya balawula ngokwenani elipheleleyo. Akunyanzelekanga nokuba uzikhangele — landela impumlo yakho nje.
“Xa uqala ukunyusa isikhephe baze bame, ubethwa ngolu donga lwevumba elibi elivela kwi-penguin poo,” uyahleka uMichelle Globus, umakhi weshishini wasePrinceton, eNew Jersey.
Ngaphandle kwevumba, le ndawo iyamangalisa. I-North Pole ngumkhenkce wonke, kodwa i-Antarctica ngumhlaba onqabileyo ngokwenene. KuMjelo weLemaire, iintaba ezigqunywe yiqabaka ezimnyama zinyuka ngaphezu kwamanzi omkhenkce anzima njengamanqindi kaZeyus. Umkhenkce omhlophe uveza imithambo umbala wetopazi eluhlaza. Kwaye ukukhanya kukhaphukhaphu kangangokuba i-horizon yesilivere - engamakhulu eekhilomitha kude - ibonakala ngathi ungasolula isandla sakho kwaye uyichukumise.
Kodwa kukho imigaqo yokuzibandakanya e-Antarctica. Abakhenkethisi bathi kufuneka ugcine izandla zakho kuwe. Izilwanyana zasendle eziethe-ethe zeli lizwekazi zixhomekeke ekuzibambeni komntu.
Ngabo bonke abantu abeza kweli lizwekazi, umphandi uSteve Forrest uthi, kufanele ukuba ichaphazele i-ikholoji yase-Antarctica. “Ngezinye iintsuku sisenokubona abantu abangama-600 ngosuku,” utsho uForrest, osebenza neOceanities/WWF. IForrest ibihamba ibuya ibuya phakathi kweBozeman, iMontana, kunye nePetermann Island rhoqo ehlotyeni kule minyaka ili-13 idlulileyo. Uthi i-Antarctic tourism boom ihambelana nokunyuka kwamaqondo obushushu bamanzi kule minyaka ilishumi idlulileyo, ngoko ke akanakuhlekisa ukuba ubushushu bamanzi okanye ukhenketho ngunobangela, kodwa, uthi, ezinye iipenguin ziyafa.
Kunyaka ophelileyo, inqanawa yokuhamba ngenqanawa eyayithwele amawaka eegaloni zamafutha kubonakala ukuba yabetha i-iceberg yaza yazika. Kwaye nathi, i-penguin paparazzi, asinakuthenjwa. Phezu kwazo nje izilumkiso eziqatha ezivela kuluhlu lwabakhenkethi, umntu omnye okanye ababini kwinqanawa yethu babefaka iingqalutye ezipokothweni ukuze bagoduke nazo. Nokuba yeyiphi na indlela, isandla somntu siyayiguqula i-Antarctica.
“I-Antarctica kum ifana … neAmazon emhlophe,” utsho uAry Perez, umyili waseSao Paolo, eBrazil. Utsaleleke e-Antarctica ukuze abone ukugqibelela kwayo kwendalo. “Kuphantse kuthi kwaye … ikhephu nezinja zolwandle. Luhlobo oluthile lweparadesi.”
Ukubanjwa nguMkhence
Kwaye nantsi i-rub. Kwaloo mvakalelo yenza kube nzima ukuba abantu bavumele obu butyebi bungumkhenkce. URick Atkinson ngumphathi kwiSikhululo sasePort Lockroy kwiSiqithi esikufuphi saseGoudier. Wayene-epiphany yakhe e-Antarctic, eyakhokelela ekubeni ancede ahlaziye isiseko esidala sase-Bhritane ngoku esiqhayisa nge-ofisi yeposi yeemayile kuphela. U-Atkinson ubone uninzi lwabakhenkethi bethandana nale ndawo. Uthi luhlobo oluthile lwenguqu.
“Ubanjwe ngumkhenkce,” utshilo uAtkinson. “La mazwi amnandi endawava kukhapteni ngaxa lithile xa umntu wayekhwela enqanaweni. 'Ulumkele umkhenkce!' - kwaye lo mfo wacinga ukuba uthetha ukuba ungatyibiliki emkhenkceni ... kwindlela yemigulukudu. Kodwa into awayeyithetha yayikukuba umkhenkce ojikeleze wena e-Antarctic uza kukufumana. Kwaye xa sele ufikile kwaye ufunyenwe ngumkhenkce, ungafuna ukuqhubeka ubuyela kuwo. "
Kuninzi lwabemi behlabathi, i-Antarctica iseyiBrigadoon enomkhenkce, intsomi engaphezulu kunenyani. Kodwa ngoku, ndimi kwiSiqithi saseGoudier, akukho nto ibonakala iyinyani ngaphezu komkhenkce oluhlaza kunye nenkunkuma yepenguin epinki kunye nomhlaba omnyama phantsi kobusika obumhlophe. Ngoku lonke ihlabathi libonakala liyintsomi kunenyani. Kutheni kwakhiwe izixeko xa kukho isibhakabhaka esinje? Kutheni ubhala iiopera xa usiva umkhenkce uwela elwandle? Kutheni uzikhathaza ngezinto ezincinane ngoxa kukho izinto ezintle kangaka eziya kufunyanwa?
Isebenza njalo ingqondo xa ibanjwe ngumkhenkce.
npr.org
