UK expedition team makes world record by crossing Antarctica in 13 days!

LONDON - A British expedition team to Antarctica has claimed that it has established a new record, the fastest land crossing of the southernmost continent, in less than 13 days.

The team had started from the Union Glacier airstrip on November 25 and arrived on the Ross Ice Shelf earlier on Thursday.

The Moon Regan Transantarctic Expedition said that the 10-man team has broken all previous records by covering a total distance of 1,945.9 kilometres (1209 miles) in just 303 hours.

“The team has crossed the continent! The Moon Regan Transantarctic Expedition team have just completed the fastest ever vehicle crossing of the Antarctic continent,” the BBC quoted a statement of the group’s website as saying.

“The team will now retrace their tracks to the South Pole, and back to the west coast at Union Glacier. They hope to complete the return trip in around nine days; they will then be the only vehicle-based expedition ever to complete the there-and-back journey,” it added.

A propeller-driven biofuelled scout vehicle reportedly led the team of explorers, mechanics and scientists, and two large “monster” trucks followed behind carrying most of the crew and equipment. (ANI)