A pair of model ships built by two young brothers have launched on a mission to circumnavigate Antarctica, in what is thought to be a world first.
Ollie Ferguson, 13, and his younger brother Harry, 11, from Turriff in Aberdeenshire, took inspiration from the Ross scientific expedition of 1839-43 where HMS Erebus and HMS Terror discovered the Ross ice shelf.
They have built 1 metre-long replicas of the two vessels, which will follow the circumpolar current around the coastline of Antarctica, a journey of more than 12,500 miles that could take up to two years.
During the journey, the boats will transmit scientific data back to the boys – including location, air temperature, ocean temperature and the water’s pH, which can be markers of climate breakdownn.
The brothers have had support from their father, MacNeill Ferguson, an ecological specialist, and mother, Vicki, a school principal, but they say the boys are very self-motivated.
MacNeill (Mac) said: “Harry was insistent we have a camera on board, as he wants to see penguins or whales.
“Ollie has recently been very interested in climate change, so we wanted to do something that was productive in that sense, too.”
The process of building the vessels, having them transported to the Southern Ocean, and waiting for official approval for the project, has taken two years and the boys were “ecstatic” when the boats were finally launched last week.
Harry said: “It’s so exciting. We’ve been trying to do it for two years now and we’ve finally got them in and it feels amazing.
“We’re interested to collect data about climate change and also just trying to see what happens to the boats and the end result and to see if we will ever see them again.”
The boats have been crafted from a 200-year-old piece of elm wood, and use copper – just as the original vessels would have – to avoid fouling (damage from underwater plant and animal life).
The boats are fitted with bespoke tracking and monitoring devices developed by the tech company Icoteq, with a battery life of more than six years, and cameras that will be able to send about one image a month.
The boys originally included masts and rigging but took them off for the voyage as they would not have withstood the conditions.
Their father said: “On the boys’ previous model boat voyages, the batteries died, and we realised that this time we needed to build our own tracker – one that would last several years in case the vessels get caught in ice.
“We were also very mindful not to litter, and committed to using sustainable materials throughout.”
After the boats were completed, they were shipped to family friends in the Falkland Islands until the family received official approval from authorities that they could be launched into the Southern Ocean.
The Pharos SG, a South Georgia fisheries patrol vessel, then transported them out and launched them into the circumpolar current on Tuesday 11 July.
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The boats’ antennas were quickly attacked by a pair of wild petrels which seemed to think the boats were food, but fortunately the birds soon lost interest and flew away.
The Ferguson brothers, who previously set the world record for the longest distance travelled at sea by a toy boat, are trying to tick off a list of 500 adventures before they turn 18.
They have completed 456 so far, but say this was “by far the hardest”.
Previously, they sailed their Playmobil pirate ship Adventure more than 3,700 miles across the Atlantic to the Caribbean. They have also slept in caves, sent Lego up to Mars and down to the sea floor, sent toys around world and back, ticked off 20 forms of transport, caught lobsters for the Queen, slept for weeks at a time in hammocks, and written a book.
Later this summer, they plan to go fossil-hunting and seek out dinosaur footprints, something Harry is particularly excited about as he hopes to be a palaeontologist when he grows up.
Mac said: “The boys had a big hand in deciding on the activities, and most are designed to be done outdoors. They are willing to try new things, and getting more and more proficient at outdoors life. They both have a real spirit of adventure and put huge amounts of effort into all that they do.
“The sheer amount of learning and skills the boys had to learn to make these boats, and to build them, and to test them, and the understanding of how all these things work … It’s just a joy to see.”
He added: “Both boys are absolutely delighted that the boats are in the water and we check a couple of times a day to see how they are doing.”
Mac also noted that reaction to the “bucket list” has been extremely positive.
“When they hear about the boys’ adventures, people are always very positive and kind,” he said. “It’s all about making memories and traditions. It feels really important that children get out into the world and have fun doing hands-on activities, rather than spending their days staring at screens.”
