Chapter 14 Chapter Fourteen: What the Albatross Did May Be Unprecedented and Unseen

The next day, it was July 24th.However, July 24th in the southern hemisphere is equivalent to January 24th in the northern hemisphere.The fifty-sixth parallel, which had just been flown, corresponds to that which passes through Scotland via Edinburgh. Therefore, the temperature displayed on the thermometer is always below zero.This requires a little artificial heat to meet the heating needs of the aircraft. Needless to say, on June 21st, after the winter solstice in the southern hemisphere, the days are getting longer every day.But because the Albatross went straight down to the poles, the days were much shorter.

The result is that the skies over the southern Pacific Ocean adjacent to the Antarctic Circle are too dark to see and very cold at night.To ward off the cold one had to dress like the Eskimos and Fuegorians.Fortunately, there are many such exotic clothes on the aircraft, so that the two colleagues can stay on the platform in strict clothes, concentrating on their plans and how to implement them.Moreover, they hardly saw Robier now.The engineer had not spoken to them since the confrontation in Timbuktu. As for Friccolin, he stayed in the kitchen all day long, hardly ever going out, because there, FrancoisTapa day will desperately entertain him, of course, the condition is that he is the chef's helper.To have such a good thing, after the black man obtained the consent of the owner, he agreed very willingly.In addition, if you lock yourself up like this, you will not be able to see what is happening outside. In this way, you will first have a sense of security psychologically.He is so good at eating, and so simple-minded in thinking, isn't he the same as an ostrich?

Which corner of the earth is the Albatross flying to now?Does it really have the guts to venture out over the Antarctic sea and over the mainland in the middle of winter?Under such cold conditions, even if the chemicals in the battery can withstand the cold without freezing, can the people on the aircraft be guaranteed not to die?Guaranteed not to be horribly frozen to death?Robier was fine flying Antarctica during the hot season, but in the endless nights of Antarctic winter, it was irrational! The president and secretary of the Welton Society thought so.Now, they have been brought to the end of the New World. Although it is still the American continent, it is no longer the America where the United States is located!

What on earth does this difficult Robbiel want to do?If not destroying this machine now to end this trip, when? It is certain that on the 24th the contact between Robier and his foreman was very frequent.Tom.Turner and him looked at the barometer several times this time, not to judge the flight altitude, but to record some data related to the climate.Undoubtedly, there are signs that cannot be ignored. Uncle Prudden also noticed that Robier was carefully counting the remaining various supplies: including supplies for the propulsion of the aircraft and the elevation of the aircraft and supplies for the people.The operation of people on the aircraft cannot be ignored either.

Everything indicated that Robier was already thinking of returning. Return!Phil.Evans said, back to where? Where Robill could replenish his supplies.Uncle Prudang replied. It must be some small island in the Pacific, with a gang of rogue settlers who like their leader. I think so.Phil.Evans, I guess, is heading west, and at his speed it won't be long before he reaches his destination. If he gets to the destination, then all our plans will be in vain. He can't make it, Phil.Evans. The engineer's plan was apparently partly guessed by the two colleagues.On this day, after flying towards the Antarctic coast for a while, the Albatross will definitely retreat completely, and there is no need to doubt it.Ice pushing into the waters of Cape Horn means that the entire southern Pacific Ocean has been covered by ice peaks and ice sheets.The natural barrier formed by these ice floes is even for the strongest ship.Even the bravest navigator can never go beyond.

Of course, if the Albatross flapped its wings faster, it could fly over the icebergs gathering on the surface of the ocean, and fly over the majestic mountains standing on the Antarctic continent, if this is really a continent that covers the top of the southern hemisphere like a hat.However, in the long Antarctic night, to fight against the cold of minus 60 degrees, does it have the guts?Certainly not. So, after flying southward for more than a hundred kilometers, the Albatross began to turn its head westward, heading towards an unknown island in the Pacific Islands. Below the aircraft is the endless liquid plain sandwiched between the two continents of Asia and America.The color of the water at this moment is very unique, and it is this color that has earned it the name of the Sea of ​​Milk.The entire surface of the Pacific Ocean was opalescent in a gloom that the sun's feeble rays could not dispel.Looking down from a high altitude, it seems to be a vast snowfield without ups and downs.Even if the entire ocean were to freeze, it is estimated that its color would not change.

It is now clear that this phenomenon is caused by swarms of glowing particles and phosphorescent microbes.Some might wonder how this clumping milky glow can be seen beyond the surface of the Indian Ocean. After daybreak, the barometer, which had remained high for hours, suddenly dropped.Evidently there had been some symptom which would have alarmed the ship but which the aircraft could have dismissed.To be sure, though, a storm has just hit the Pacific Ocean. One o'clock in the afternoon, Tom.Turner approached the engineer and said: Captain Robill, look at that black dot on the horizon, isn't there a rock just to the north of us?

No, Tom, there's no land around here. Either a boat, or at least a dinghy. Uncle Prudden and Phil.Evans also came to the front of the platform to watch Tom.That black dot Turner was pointing at. Robier asked someone to bring a nautical telescope, and carefully observed the discovered object. It was a small boat, he said, and there must be people on board! Is it in trouble?Tom shouted. Yes, they were shipwrecked, and they probably abandoned their big ship as a last resort, Robbier went on to say, these poor people, they don't know where the land is, so they will die of hunger and thirst!bring it on!Don't let people say that the Albatross is dying!

An order was immediately communicated to the mechanic and his two assistants.The aircraft began to descend slowly.When it reached a height of 100 meters, it stopped descending, and flew north rapidly under the drive of the propeller. It was indeed a boat.The sails were hoisted to the mast, and it could hardly move without wind.It can be concluded that no one in the boat has the strength to row. There were five men in the boat who, if not dead, must have passed out from exhaustion, or were immobilized. The Albatross came over them and began to descend slowly. Judging from the name on the stern of the small lifeboat, it can be known that the original big ship that the crew was forced to abandon should be the Jeannette of Nantes (Note: French city.), a French ship.

Hello!Tom yelled. It should be audible from the boat, the aircraft is within eighty feet of the boat. no answer. Fire the gun!Robier said. The gunshot rang out, and the sound of the gunshot echoed on the water for a long time. At this time, one of the victims sat up with difficulty, his eyes were startled, and his face was as thin as a skeleton. Upon seeing the Albatross, it was first a frightened reaction. do not be afraid!"We have come to save you," cried Robier in French. Who are you? The three-masted ship Jean Nate's crew.I'm the first mate.the man replied. Fifteen days ago we left the ship when it was sinking and we now have neither water nor food!

The other four victims also sat up slowly, all pale, exhausted, and frighteningly thin.They held out their hands towards the craft. Notice!cried Robier. A rope was lowered from the platform, and a bucket of fresh water was lowered into the skiff. Those poor people all rushed forward and drank from the bucket, their greedy appearance made it unbearable to watch. bread!bread!they shouted. A basket containing provisions, tins, a small bottle of brandy, and several pints of coffee was immediately delivered to them.It took a lot of effort for the first mate to stop the other people from gobbling. Then he asked again: Where are we now? Fifty nautical miles from the coast of Chile and the Chonos Islands.Robier replied. Thanks.What should I do if there is no wind?and We come to drag you! who are you? Some of you who were lucky enough to help you.Robier replied simply. The first officer understood that the other party did not want to reveal his identity, so it was inconvenient to ask further questions.As for this flying machine, does it really have the power to drag them forward? no problem!The skiff was tied to the end of a cable more than a hundred feet long, and was pulled eastward by the mighty machine. Land was seen at ten o'clock in the evening, or rather, it was the flickering lights that showed the direction of the land.For the victims of the Jeannette, this sudden rescue came at the right time, and they had every reason to imagine their rescue as a miracle. When the aircraft dragged them to the entrance of the channel of the Chonos Islands, Robier let them loose the cable. As they untied the cable, they blessed their rescuer and the Albatross flew out to sea again. Not to mention, this aircraft really has its strengths, it can actually save sailors lost in the vast sea.If it is a balloon, even the most perfect can do nothing about this kind of thing.Although, based on Uncle Prudang and Phil.With Evans' mood at the moment, they might deny the obvious facts, but they couldn't help but admit the superiority of this aircraft in private. There are always waves rolling on the sea, and various signs are unreliable; the indication on the barometer has dropped a few millimeters.A violent sea wind blew in bursts, causing the Albatross's propellers to make harsh noises, and then stopped completely.In such cases, in the case of a sailing ship, two mainsails and a foresail are generally lowered.Everything points to a sharp turn to the northwest.The pipe for climate change predictions is starting to get uncomfortably cloudy. At one o'clock in the morning, a very strong wind blew up.Even so, the Albatross, with its own propellers, could still beat it, and it could still advance against the wind at a speed of four to five leagues an hour.It couldn't be any faster, though. Clearly, a storm is brewing.At such high latitudes, this phenomenon is extremely rare.People call the wind in the Atlantic Ocean a hurricane, the wind in the China Sea a typhoon, the wind in the Sahara the Simon wind, and the wind on the west coast a tornado.Whatever the name, it was a whirling storm, a terrible storm.As long as any ship is involved in this kind of vortex, the consequences will be unimaginable, because the closer to the center of the vortex, the stronger the wind; only the very center of the vortex is the only calm place. Robbie knew all this.He knew very well that he needed to be very cautious if he wanted to avoid the suction generated by the strong wind when he swirled by ascending to a high altitude, so as to avoid the storm in the end.So far, though, he's succeeded every time.The action must be fast, let alone an hour, even a minute cannot be delayed! The wind is visibly increasing.The waves whose tops were cut off by the wind rolled over the sea surface, causing a white mist to appear on the sea surface.It was clear that the storm would be moving towards the Antarctic region at a frightening pace. Ascend!Rober said. Ascend!Tom.Turner replied. The Albatross climbed up with all her strength, as if moving southwest along a slope. At this time, the air pressure was still falling, and the mercury column quickly dropped another eight millimeters, and then another twelve millimeters.Suddenly, the Albatross' ascent stopped. what reason?Apparently it was due to an air current, a powerful air flow from top to bottom that weakened the support of the atmosphere on which it rose. For a ship traveling against the current, the more rapid the current, the greater the useless work done by the propeller, so the ship will retreat significantly, and even drift with the waves.This is exactly what happened to the Albatross at the moment. However, Robier did not give up trying.His seventy-four perfectly synchronized propellers were running at top speed, but the irresistible suction of the storm's rotation held the craft so tight that it could not escape.When there was a moment of calm, the aircraft could rise again immediately, but then a heavy air current pressed it down again, making it fall straight down like a sunken ship.Doesn't this mean sinking into the vast sea in the dark night that even the lights of the aircraft can't penetrate? Obviously, if the wind of the storm continues to strengthen, the Albatross will be swept away by the storm that can uproot trees, overturn roofs, and tear down city walls like a piece of straw drifting with the wind. Robbie and Tom can only exchange information by hand gestures.Uncle Prudden and Phil.Evans clung to the rail, wondering if nature would play a trick and destroy the flying machine with its inventor and all its secrets. Since it cannot escape the entanglement of the storm in the vertical direction, there is probably only one way for the Albatross to go, which is to go to the center of the cyclone, where, relatively speaking, it is calmer, and it may still be able to control itself.right!go there!But this must break through the circular airflow that holds it in rotation.Does its own machinery provide enough power to get it out of trouble? Suddenly, the upper half of the cloud burst open.The steam condensed into pouring rain. It was two o'clock in the morning.The indication of the barometer fluctuated up and down, the pressure difference reached 12 mm, and the lowest had dropped to 709 mm. In fact, the decrease of the mercury column must be caused by the height of the aircraft above the sea. This kind of storm usually rages between 30 degrees north latitude and 26 degrees south latitude, and it is rare to form outside this range.Perhaps that's why this swirling storm suddenly turned into a vertical downpour.What a ferocious storm!Only the gale in Connecticut in 1882 can be compared with it.The wind speed of that gale was one hundred and ten meters per second, or one hundred leagues per hour. That is to say, the Albatross should escape with the wind like a ship. To put it more precisely: since it cannot rise above the storm and cannot rush out, it should follow the air current and escape during the process.However, if it follows this trajectory, it will fly south, to the South Pole, which Robier does not want to approach.Since it can no longer control its course, it can only drift with the wind, wherever it goes. Tom.Turner held the wheel, and he had to use all his strength to keep the craft from tipping to one side. It was just dawn, if it may be so called, to distinguish it from the blurred color of the horizon, and since Cape Horn the Albatross had passed fifteen more parallels of latitude, that is to say, she had flown more than four hundred far. , into the Antarctic Circle. In July in this place, the night is nineteen hours long.As soon as a sun that neither shines nor heats up on the horizon, it immediately shrinks back.In the polar regions, such long nights last one hundred and seventy-nine days.Everything shows that the Albatross's arrival here is like falling into an abyss where you can't see your fingers. On this day, if observations could be made, the latitude would be 66 degrees 40 south, and the craft would be only 1,400 miles from the pole. The aircraft was involuntarily blown to this inaccessible place on earth.Although the weight of the object is slightly increased due to the slightly flattened poles of the earth, its weight is eaten up by its high speed, as if it did not need to lift the propeller at all.Suddenly, the storm became more violent, and Robier had to have the speed of the propulsion propellers reduced to the minimum necessary to pilot the aircraft and avoid serious damage to the machinery. Facing this series of dangers, the engineer commanded calmly, and the crew comprehended the order. Uncle Prudden and Phil.Evans didn't leave the platform for a moment, and there was no discomfort in being there.There is almost no air resistance at all.The aircraft is like a small boat moving forward in the fluid, floating in the air. It is said that the area of ​​the Antarctic region is 4.5 million square meters.This is a continent?an archipelago?Or is it an ocean that has been frozen since ancient times and will not melt in the long summer?unknown.The only thing that is known is that the Antarctic is colder than the North Pole due to its location on Earth during the Antarctic winter. Looking at the weather, the storm shows no signs of abating.The Albatross will enter the Antarctic region at 75 degrees west longitude.Will it come out at that longitude if it still comes out? As the vehicle traveled south, the days became shorter and shorter.It won't be long before it enters an endless night lit only by the faint light of the moon and the early morning glow of the southern hemisphere dawn.Now, however, at the new moon, Robier and his companions may not even be able to see the face of this region, the mystery of which is still unknown to curious humans. If not, the Albatross may have flown through places known to man.These places are located a little ahead of the Antarctic Circle, at Graham Land and Dimon Field, discovered by Bisco in 1832.De.Louis discovered in 1838 by Riweiler.West of Philip Land.These two places are the furthest the human footsteps have reached on this strange continent. The people on board did not suffer from the low temperatures, which were much higher than they had feared in their hearts.The storm seemed to be the warm Gulf Stream in the air, bringing some warmth. It is especially regrettable that the whole area is submerged in total darkness!However, even if the moonlight illuminates the sky, the possibility of observation is very small: at this time of year, the entire surface of Antarctica is covered with an endless curtain of snow, a layer of ice armor; No light of color can be seen: no reflection from the dark sky.Under such conditions, how to identify the shape of land, the area of ​​sea water and the location of islands?How to identify the waterway network here?The peaks or hills here are mixed with icebergs and ice floes. How to confirm their shape? Near midnight, dawn in the southern hemisphere drove away the darkness.Silver-white beams of light shone in space, forming a huge fan in the sky, illuminating half of the sky.The light that was emitted did not disappear until the constellation of the Southern Cross flickered on the zenith.This phenomenon is spectacular. Under the radiance of this ray of light, one can finally see the appearance of the originally blurred white world. Needless to say, since this region was only a stone's throw from the South Magnetic Pole, the needle of the compass could only spin wildly, making it impossible to give any definite indication of course.However, according to the angle of inclination of the pointer, Rober finally judged that they were flying over the South Pole at about 78 degrees south latitude. At about one o'clock in the morning, he calculated the angle between the needle and the vertical, and exclaimed: Antarctica is under our feet! A white hat-shaped object came into view, but no one could see what lay beneath the ice. After a while, the Antarctic dawn was over.This imaginary meeting point of all the earth's meridians will be known later. If Uncle Prudang and Phil.Evans could not have imagined a better time to bury the craft and its world-wanderers in the most mysterious and remote place.But they didn't do that, maybe they still lack the tools they need. The storm was still violent, and the wind was so high that if the Albatross had hit a mountain at this time, it would have been as sure as a ship hitting a shore. In fact, it is not only unable to control the horizontal flight, but also difficult to move up and down autonomously.Moreover, there are indeed several peaks on the Antarctic continent, and the aircraft may crash into the mountains and be destroyed at any time. Crossing the zero meridian, the wind turns westward, making disaster more likely.At this time, directly in front of the Albatross, about 100 kilometers away, two bright spots appeared. Those are two volcanoes in the majestic Ross Isle mountains: Erebus and Tyrol. Was the Albatross going to die in flames like a giant butterfly? This is a thrilling moment.The Albus Volcano charged at the Albatross, which could not escape the storm bed, clusters of flames rapidly grew larger, and a large fire net had been opened on the way forward of the aircraft.The blazing flames lit up the sky, and the faces on the aircraft that were illuminated by the flames all showed a terrifying look.All froze, without a cry, and waited motionless for the terrible moment of being engulfed in the flames of the great furnace. It was also the storm that dragged the Albatross around that saved it from being engulfed in flames.The storm lowered Alebus' flames, allowing the craft to gain a passage.Thanks to the centrifugal motion of the Albatross' propellers, it was able to pass through the erupting crater by displacing a hail of dense lava. An hour later, the two great torches that had illuminated the end of the world in the long polar night disappeared behind the horizon. At two o'clock in the morning, the aircraft crossed the Balleny Island on the edge of the Deguwelt coast, but no one recognized it, because the sea was frozen, and the island and the Antarctic continent had been connected together. The Albatross flew out of the Antarctic Circle at 175 degrees east longitude.Since then, storms have carried it over ice floes and over icebergs, and it has been nearly crashed many times.The helmsman can no longer control it, its fate is in the hands of God, God is an excellent pilot. The craft was heading north again along the Paris meridian, which was exactly 105 degrees from the meridian it had entered the Antarctic Circle. Finally, after passing the 60th parallel, the storm showed a tendency to subside, the wind weakened significantly, and the Albatross could dominate itself again.And, it's a real relief that it's going back to where there is light on Earth.At about eight o'clock in the morning, it was dawn. Robier and all his men had escaped a storm before they reached Cape Horn, and were now able to escape from the storm again.They flew over the entire Antarctic region and returned to the Pacific Ocean. It took them nineteen hours to fly a total of 7,000 kilometers, about one Farid per minute. Get twice the speed. However, Robier didn't know his own position at the moment, because he was too close to the magnetic pole, and the compass pointer was shaking irregularly.Only when the weather is good and the sun rises can observations be made.Unfortunately, the day was cloudy and the sun did not come out. On board the aircraft, everyone was disappointed, the two propulsion propellers were badly damaged in the storm. Robier was so displeased by this disaster that the craft traveled slowly all day, passing the Paris antipodes at only six leagues an hour.Moreover, extra care must be taken so as not to make the original damaged part even more unmanageable.Once the two propellers fail to operate, the aircraft will be in an extremely dangerous situation over the vast Pacific Ocean.Therefore, engineers are considering whether to repair it immediately on the spot to ensure that the flight can continue. The next day, July 27, at around 7:00 am, a piece of land was found to the north of the craft.It was quickly seen that it was an island.However, there are thousands of islands scattered in the Pacific Ocean, which one is this?Robier decided to stop here anyway, but without landing.He thought there was enough daylight to fix the damage and continue flying that night. The wind has stopped completely and the weather conditions are extremely favorable for repair work.At least the Albatross won't be blown to some unknown place when it stops for repairs. The craft dropped a 150-foot cable with an anchor at the end.When the aircraft flew close to the edge of the island, the anchor hung to the outermost reef, and then it was firmly stuck in the gap between the two reefs.The hoisting propeller turned and the cable was pulled tight.The Albatross, like a ship anchored on the shore, stood firmly in the air. It was connected to Earth for the first time since leaving Philadelphia.