This Post is in reference to the Podcast Episode: From Timekeeping to Antarctica: The human Drive for Wonder and Discovery. To listen to the episode search for “Meridians” wherever you get your podcasts or you can listen to the audio on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/TMsKoBmpAGk?si=EVfwA3zrL-c9NBHZ

I might look back at this and wonder why I chose Timekeeping and Antarctica as topics for the first episode. It doesn’t seem like a set of topics that are very exciting at a first glance. It certainly DID end up being a really interesting topic to learn about, so I’m hoping it resonates.

Our Relationship with The Sky

With Timekeeping, I wanted to try and feel what it was like to live before clocks. Looking back on the episode I wish I would have focused in on the relationship we had with the sky before modern technology.

We relied on the sky as our clock. We looked to the sky to see if a storm was approaching. Nowadays, most people would just look at their phone for either one of those things. The relationship with the sky has sort of dipped away in modern times.

In the city, we don’t have much relationship with the stars at all because of light pollution. I grew up in a small town and used to be able to walk out my front door and see the milky way. I would deliver newspapers before the sun came up and loved staring at the stars in the sky. I have little relationship with the sky as an adult. Now we only commune when I go camping, we’re just old friends now.

Why didn’t they care more about Antarctica?

What I’m still processing, and didn’t really ponder much in the episode is why no one seemed to care about the actual discovery of Antarctica?

It was kind of a let down to me that some people sort of just knew it was there and didn’t seem to really care too much. Its discovery was never marked in the history books the way the ‘discovery’ of North America by Columbus was. My guess is that the harsh conditions to get there combined with the lack of things that the continent offered (no one wanted to live there..) just didn’t create any enthusiasm.

The weird thing though? This was actually kind of (sort of) a similar story to the Americas.

Now I’m looking from a European perspective here so bear with me. Clearly North America had humans on it for thousands of years (There’s evidence humans were in New Mexico 23,000 years ago!) But, from a European perspective, North America wasn’t discovered by Europeans until Columbus. Or was it?

The Norse people visited and possibly settled a small part of America in 1021 CE. Sure, you’ve probably heard that. But did you know that there’s also evidence people may have visited between then and 1492 when Columbus showed up?

There is a document from around 1345 by a Milanese friar that appears to reference the Atlantic coast of North America, suggesting Italian sailors may have been aware of it. Not only that, but some historians believe Portuguese and Basque fishermen may have known about rich fishing grounds off North America before Columbus, but kept it secret. Who else might have known?

So, like Antarctica, for years, there might have been this slight notion in Europe that the Americas existed long before they were explored or colonized. And did they just lack the enthusiasm to travel to it?

I forget, though, that *most* early sailors kept near the coasts or hopped from one island to another. Maritime navigation wasn’t nearly as well known and widespread. The Norse Vikings making it to the New world were kind of amazing, as far as European sailors go. So maybe we can forgive the Europeans for not exploring earlier. I’m also not qualified to answer that question with any educated insight. That’s for the formally educated to weigh in on.

Polynesians, the Natural Navigators

I carefully said ‘as far as European sailors go’, because the Polynesian sailors had no such qualms about traversing a MUCH larger ocean long before Columbus hopped across the pond.

The Polynesians used sophisticated non-instrument navigation techniques to voyage across vast distances of the Pacific Ocean and settle islands like Hawaii. They used the positions of stars, the sun, and other celestial bodies to determine direction and latitude. Navigators memorized the rising and setting points of key stars along the horizon. The Hawaiian star compass, developed by modern navigator Nainoa Thompson, divides the horizon into 32 “houses” to track celestial movements, demonstrating what early Polynesians were capable of. Also, once again showing that early humans had a thorough relationship with the sky.

Getting back to the lack of enthusiasm for discovery of Antarctica; One could argue we are in a period like that right now. There’s some enthusiasm about space travel and discovery with the James Webb Space Telescope coming online. but, in 200-500 years when they look back on us and see that we weren’t absolutely mesmerized by the dawn of space travel, I wonder if they’ll say “why weren’t they more excited?!”

Personally I think it all comes back to time! We all fill our days with so much stuff, we don’t have time to pine over discoveries or scientific achievements. Or time too look up at the sky and wonder, while we’re at it. I don’t even have time to finish this post. I have somewhere I need to be.