Which explorer’s expedition first reached the South Pole?

Roald Amundsen led the first expedition to reach the South Pole.

Amundsen and four companions reached the South Pole on December 14, 1911, during the Norwegian Antarctic Expedition. They traveled with dog teams and established supply depots that supported their return journey.

The achievement formed part of a famous race with a British expedition led by Robert Falcon Scott. Scott’s team reached the Pole on January 17, 1912, about five weeks after Amundsen, but all five members of Scott’s polar party died during the return trip.

Amundsen’s success reflected careful preparation, knowledge borrowed from Arctic Indigenous peoples, and extensive use of skis and sled dogs. He had originally planned an Arctic expedition, but changed his objective after news that the North Pole had already been claimed. Ernest Shackleton, another major Antarctic explorer, never reached the South Pole.