Apollo astronauts pose for a portrait at the 2019 Explorers Club Annual Dinner in New York City on the 16th of March 2019. From left to right: Charlie Duke (Apollo 16), Buzz Aldrin (Apollo 11), Walter Cunningham (Apollo 7), Al Worden (Apollo 15), Rusty Schweickart (Apollo 9), Harrison Schmitt (Apollo 17), Michael Collins (Apollo 11) and Fred Haise (Apollo 13).
Image credit: Felix Kunze
The society is committed to the advancement of scientific research and field study. First established in New York in 1904, The Explorers Club is to open its first new club house since 1965 in London.
Explorers Club, New York members seek a UK base for their international operations.
Right to left David Dolan, Head of Development of the Explorers Club (recipient of the Sweeney Medal) Trevor Wallace (New Explorers Award), Apollo astronaut Captain Jim Lovell (Explorers Medal), Jeff Bezos (Buzz Aldrin Award) Dr. Gino Caspari (New Explorers Award) Dr. Edie Widder (Citation of Merit).
“In order to attain
the impossible,
one must attempt the absurd”
Since the founding of The Explorers Club in 1904, its members have notched a number of notable firsts—to the North Pole, to the South Pole, to the top of Everest, to the bottom of Challenger Deep, and to the Moon—and we continue to do so.
When we take to the field, we should do so with integrity and with the utmost respect for the peoples and environments we encounter. It is also important to give credit where credit is due when it comes to prior field research in our area of inquiry.
Undertaking expeditions takes courage and confidence. However, we should strive to maintain a sense of humility as we take to the field—even as we break with tradition and that which was previously assumed.
“We are not now that strength which in old days moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are. One equal temper of heroic hearts, made weak by time and fate, but strong in will. To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.”
