THE future of a famous ship which carried out expeditions crucial to modern climate science has been secured thanks to a £409,000 funding boost.
The RRS Discovery was the world’s first ship to be designed specifically for scientific research and carried out the first research in the Antarctic under renowned sailor and explorer Captain Robert Falcon Scott – better known as Scott of the Antarctic.
Observations and research gathered on Scott’s first Antarctic expedition in 1901 continue to inform modern climate science.
Now the 120-year-old ship has been safeguarded from severe deterioration.
The National Heritage Memorial Fund has donated £409,000 to the Dundee Heritage Trust, which operates Discovery Point museum where the ship is berthed, to carry out urgent repairs. The trust commissioned specialist ship surveyors who estimated £1.3 million of work is needed for repairs and to prevent future damage.
The funding covers the first stage of this, including repairing timbers, upgrading stanchions to prevent rainwater leaking into the hull and recaulking to ensure the ship is watertight.
Dr Simon Cook, University of Dundee senior lecturer in environmental change, said both the data and samples collected by Scott’s expedition more than 100 years ago provide valuable long-term context for modern climate science.
He said: “This gives us a window back for more than 100 years. That’s where the real value is from this, it just gives the long-term context.”
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