"It was truly an incredible experience and a magnificent sight.
Every time I was here, I had to struggle to return alive.
I learned how to overcome and cope with danger and hardship, exhaustion and fear, cold and hunger.
Now, I would like to begin sharing the long story of what I gained through climbing and exploration over the past 28 years."
Many explorers have returned after conquering polar regions, but few have left behind detailed records of their journeys. After exhausting days, it would be almost impossible to find the energy to document such a detailed account. However, Captain Hong Sung-taek meticulously recorded his experiences each day, ensuring that his journeys were preserved in full detail.
He captured scenes of glaciers drifting endlessly into the Pacific Ocean due to global warming, lakes forming atop melting glaciers in Greenland, and ancient ice thawing to reveal the dark, exposed sea. These are phenomena only an explorer would witness, and Captain Hong documented them for the future of humanity. Concerns about abnormal weather caused by global warming are not new, but reports that directly observe and detail these changes firsthand are unprecedented in human history.
Scholars and researchers cannot personally venture into such extreme environments, and thus, it becomes the explorer's duty to investigate these remote regions. Captain Hong rushed to these extreme lands and faced unimaginable difficulties and unforeseen obstacles during his explorations. The stories of how he overcame these challenges in pursuit of his goal convey his fiery determination, which is powerfully transferred to the reader. This book vividly recounts his intense experiences and records.
