WUWT readers may remember this story I wrote about the clowns from Old Pulteney’s “Row to the Pole” who had headlines blaring in Britain exclaiming they had rowed to the “north pole”. Telegraph, BBC, and Independent geography FAIL: “Row to the Pole” never made it to the “North Pole” – they are 790 miles short
I pointed out that not only were they NOT at the north pole, they weren’t even at the north magnetic pole which had since moved due to the Earth’s normal processes.
As I explained before the trip even started, there’s no “pole” achievement here, not even close. They are 738 KM short of the actual magnetic pole. The 1996 magnetic pole doesn’t exist there anymore and thus can’t be a pole of any kind.
The Telegraph article says:
The successful trip to the Pole, described as the “greatest ocean rows of all time”, was only possible because of more seasonal ice-melt in the Arctic that has opened the waters up.
No mention of the fact that they aren’t even close. The actual North pole is 790 miles away:
Most any child in primary school taking an introduction to geography could spot this error, which makes the Telegraphs error doubly embarrassing.
Following my lead, WUWT reader Neil Turner issued a complaint to the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) in the UK over this glaring inaccuracy. They responded with a ruling and agreed the Telegraph erred. Here is part of the email exchange from the PCC and the Telegraph:
And here is the microscopically sized “correction” printed today on page 18, next to the nude wrestler story and the fashion news. It doesn’t even contain the word “correction”.
Neil writes in his email to me:
My observation is that it is typical that the misleading story received far greater prominence than the correction. I took this up with the PCC, and they explained that the size, font etc of correction is leaft at the Editor’s discretion.
From my perspective, the editor’s discretion, shown above in it’s placement and size, is pretty much the journalistic equivalent of “eff you!”.
What a bunch of gormless cobblers.
Meanwhile Jock Wishart and the crew enjoys the spoils of their sponsor, the Old Pulteney whisky company, caring not at all that people think he’s reached some sort of geographic pole. Such is the way of the world today, fluff and failure make headlines whiles facts get buried on page 18 next to the nude wrestlers.
M.A.Vukcevic says:
October 1, 2011 at 3:59 am
Does it matter the single magnetic pole, the Hudson Bay or Siberia? […]
But it matters for understanding of the stratospheric vortex
Which is right down here on Terra Firma 🙂
The auroral oval shows where the pole is in the upper atmosphere.
It would be helpful that you get your facts straight. I
It seems that it is not only the Telegraph that does not know where the pole is.
Matt says:
September 30, 2011 at 12:43 pm
gosh. It is a challenge. And what is to be achieved, BY DEFINITION, is to reach the magnetic pole at its position of 1996. If a news paper gets it wrong, that does not make everybody an idiot.
If I say I sail to the magnetic pole where it was 300 years ago, then that is what I do. It is amazing how much energy is wasted on such a non-existent issue. Read the Wiki on the various poles, it’s all in there.
Matt as usual you come up with a strawman argument.
The Telegraph Headline (helpfully highlighted at the top of this thread) says:
“British Explorers row 450 miles to North Pole in World First Voyage
A group of intrepid British explorers yesterday became the first people to row to the North Pole after the ice caps melted in a journey that encountered polar bears, collisions with icebergs and biting seals. ”
Note the ‘after the ice caps melted’ (plural!!) emphasis and no mention of ‘magnetic’ anywhere in the article.
The complaint was about the Telegraph reporting. I am sure that the rowers to a man would all have said “No No we are not going anywhere near the actual North Pole we are going to the closest place that the magnetic North Pole reached toward open sea”. However, it is interesting that none of them attempted to correct the geographically challenged main stream media who reported on their ‘feat’.
This is like someone going on a walking holiday to Nepal and having it reported that they climbed Everest – and then doing nothing to correct the story. Says a lot about the group and their sponsor don’t you think?
The graphic you linked is interesting. However, for those of us who use the earth’s magnetic field on a daily basis to get from place to place, it’s the direction of the field that’s important, not its intensity.
And in response to another post; yes, GPS is certainly nice. But but a map and compass will still work when some bonehead decides to start broadcasting an internet signal right next to the GPS band, with several orders of magnitude more power. (I guess I’ve telegraphed my opinion of Lightsquared.)
For your information, in case you might like to write them a letter, visit, or telephone any query
Old Pulteney is the flagship single malt Scotch whisky brand in the Inver House portfolio, and is produced at the most northerly distillery on the Scottish mainland, in Wick.
Head Office ….
Inver House Distillers Ltd
Moffat Distillery
Towers Road
Airdrie
ML6 8PL
tel: 01236 769377
———
From the M8 motorway take junction 6 sign posted Airdrie & Lanark, at the roundabout take the exit sign posted Airdrie & Chapelhall. Follow the road, straight through the roundabout to the traffic lights at Chapelhall. Take the first right immediately after the traffic lights, follow the road for approx. 3 miles up through Gartness. At the mini roundabout take a right and Inver House is situated half a mile up the road on the left hand side.
M. Dacey says:
September 30, 2011 at 4:53 pm
You need a GPS.
mwhite says:
October 1, 2011 at 4:36 am
It’s all part of a government plot to get people to buy icecreams to boost the retail sales figures.
Repeat after me.. What recession? la, la, la, la, la … I can’t hear you.
The photo reminds me of Monty Python’s skit about the English Channel Leap.
Jacob Stewart says:
October 1, 2011 at 8:00 am
For your information, in case you might like to write them a letter, visit, or telephone any query
Old Pulteney is the flagship single malt Scotch whisky brand in the Inver House portfolio, and is produced at the most northerly distillery on the Scottish mainland, in Wick.
You should really not bother going to Wick – you should go to the Glenfarclas Distillery, a better whisky and family owned. In the heart of Speyside just off the A95 a few miles South of Aberlour.
Leif Svalgaard says:
October 1, 2011 at 5:26 am
……
Stratosphere does the job very clearly.
http://eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/images/imagerecords/36000/36972/npole_gmao_200901-02.mov
Ed Fix says:
October 1, 2011 at 7:29 am
…….
Hi Ed
If you live in US it will not make much difference to your compass, it will still point to the north, but if you live in northern Scandinavia or if you are fisherman in the Nordic Seas you will have to do some serious recalibration possibly on annual basis.
Re. graph: nature has no secrets, we only have to try harder to interpret its language.
John Conner says:
September 30, 2011 at 1:27 pm
“Someone correct me if I’m eggregiously off, here. I’m not ready to start believing that Polaris is (was) our South Star.”
Don’t worry, you’re still thinking straight. A compass used to have a NORTH-SEEKING pointer. Vuk must’ve wagged school that day. Or did the poles reverse while I was asleep?
Slacko says:
October 1, 2011 at 9:44 am
Vuk must’ve wagged school that day
No he didn’t, and his teacher knew the facts.
– Compass end that points to the north, by convention is called ‘north pole’ of the magnet that is the said needle made of.
– Opposite magnetic poles attract and likes repel.
– Since the needle’s ‘north pole’ is attracted by the Earth’s magnetic pole located in the Northern Hemisphere, it has to be opposite i.e. the Earth’s South Magnetic Pole, the Earth’s North Magnetic Pole is just of the Antarctica.
Confused?
So you should be, since your teacher didn’t know his facts.
Slacko here is link:
http://cdn.physorg.com/newman/gfx/news/2009/EarthsMagneticField.jpg
Nobody reads the ‘after’ news. They did the job, fooled the sheep.
The failure of newspapers to correct errors seems to be built into their DNA. To say nothing of pushing one viewpoint where an honest paper would take a neutral stance. The Globe and Mail consistently gives great prominence to anythng that pushes the AGW agenda, and then does nothing to correct misinformation. One example was their coverage of the resignation of Wolfgang Wagner from “Remote Sensing”. The article, titled “Journal editor resigns over ‘flawed’ paper” (http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/sep/02/journal-editor-resigns-climate-sceptic-paper), is attributed to The Guardian and appears to be identical to what comes up with a google search. Despite the huge amount of contrary information from WUWT and other sources, the G&M has not carried a single word to distance itself from the disgraceful Guardian article.
It is quite disgusting how the MSM, like the G&M, CBC, BBC, ABC, and so on feel that it is their task in life to promote the AGW story instead of looking objectively at the facts.
IanM
co … – guardian.co.uk
As is quoted from the “Old Pulteney” Website …
“we spent our final night in the luxurious derelict confines of Isaachsen once again, the final stop of our expedition and from where we would be ‘extracted’ in the morning. The place is an ex American radar base set up as part of the DEW Line back in the late 1940’s and which shut down in the late 70’s.”
— WRONG ! BONG ! — IT WAS NEVER PART OF THE “DEW Line”
Anyway, Isachsen (note spelling) was a remote Arctic research-weather station named after the Norwegian explorer of the Arctic, Gunnar Isachsen. it is located on the western shore of Ellef Ringnes Island in the Sverdrup Islands, in the territory of Nunavut in Canada. Isachsen Station was established to participate in a joint Canadian-American weather observation program. Isachsen Station operated from April 3, 1948 through September 19, 1978.
The eight-man staff at Isachsen usually consisted of four Americans and four Canadians. The Americans were usually two weather observers, a cook, and a mechanic. The Canadians were usually two weather observors and two radio operators. There were NO MILITARY PERSONNEL
Isn’t the real story here that a group of english explorers couldn’t even find the North Pole when equipped with a map and the latest in navigational equipment? They they had to be flown out by plane (presumably piloted by a Norwegian) so that they wouldn’t end up in Oslo!
I think they are excellent role models for our kids and their achievement puts the ‘great’ back in Great Britain. On behalf of the British people (who didn’t see fit to elect me) let me say well done.
I remember at the time, writing an irate email to the whisky brand sponsor!
I told them that they had associated with a deliberately fake expedition and thus I was going to assume that their brand was equally fake and I would therefore be sticking with a genuine whisky called Laphraoig.
I never received a reply….
If you want to drink a real whisky – this is the one. And their coordinates are accurate, too!
Laphroaig Whisky
Region: Islay
Founded 1815
Water source The Kilbride Dam
Coordinates: 55°37′55″N 06°08′58″W
M.A.Vukcevic says:
October 1, 2011 at 9:35 am
Stratosphere does the job very clearly.
Stratosphere does not know where the pole is, the aurora does. You should spare us the pseudo science, it is giving WUWT a bad name.
@DonS and @Oldseadog
I wasn’t going to respond, but knowing full well that during their little escapade, the ‘Row to the Pole’ comment section was heavily censored in regards to any comments regarding this issue.
Essentially, if you weren’t supportive, you didn’t get printed.
Old Pulteney, Jock Wishart, and the ‘row to the pole’ crew remain mum and don’t even have the ḥaṣāfah to correct the issue.
You think any of them have bothered to correct their friends when they are given a shot or a ‘attaboy’ when asked, “How’s it feel to be the first to row the pole?”
Please.
/rant
/sarc
CFA;
When the site first went up (on Aug. 3 or so), I managed to get this in:
hey buddy the magnetic north pole is in the antarctic.
M.A.Vukcevic says:
October 1, 2011 at 9:35 am
Stratosphere does the job very clearly.
Indeed it does:
http://www.vukcevic.talktalk.net/Ozone.htm