• Land Rover and The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) 2013 Bursary Winners return to UK following successful expedition to the Pole of Cold and back.
• Team travelled more than 35,000km in their Land Rover Defender 110
• Photographs and assets from trip will now form upcoming exhibition of findings

Land Rover and The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) supported 'Pole of Cold' expedition team today return to the UK following their successful expedition to Oymyakon, Russia ‑  the 'Pole of Cold.'

The team led by experienced British adventurer Felicity Aston have travelled through countries including Denmark, Norway, Finland, Russia (including Tuva, Altai and Yakutia) and Sweden, covering more than 35,000km in total.

They spent nearly a month in temperatures below ‑50C,  the lowest still air temperature they experienced was an incredible ‑59C in Tomtor, a small village 35km from the Pole of Cold in central Yakutia, Russia.

The team travelled in a modified Land Rover Defender 110, with enhancements to the vehicle including uprated suspension, underbody and driveline protection, auxiliary heaters for the engine and occupants, a long range fuel tank and extra equipment and luggage storage.

The expedition set out to chase winter across an entire continent, exploring the social, cultural and physical implications of inhabiting some of the coldest places on earth, and the team met an amazing variety of characters and communities along the way.

They discovered that winter is not dark but full of colour and that the effect of the extreme cold is as alien to most of us as life on another planet. They joined the Skolt Sami of Finnmark for their annual reindeer roundup, watched the aurora while listening to a Sami Shaman, walked across a frozen Siberian river in moonlight, celebrated Christmas Day three times and sang along with Tuvan throat singers on New Years Day at the 'Centre of Asia.'

Yet the resounding finding was, as Felicity explains, "That human beings are naturally resilient and will adapt in amazing ways to the most demanding of climates. Over the past 3 months we've travelled more than 35,000km chasing winter across Scandinavia and Siberia. Along the way we have crossed the Arctic Circle, reached the most northerly point of the European continent, and taken the Defender into temperatures as low as ‑59C. It has been an incredible opportunity to explore lives lived in the cold and the geography of winter. We still feel incredibly fortunate to be the recipients of the Land Rover RGS‑IBG Bursary which has made this extraordinary journey possible"

Now back home, the team will begin planning an exhibition of their findings, to be displayed across the UK. This will include their photography from the trip, cultural findings and stories collected at various points of the expedition. Their findings will also be used for education across the UK, inspiring and supporting learning of the new Key Stage 3 National Curriculum, which covers both Russia and Cold Environments. Educational resources for schools have been produced by the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) and will be available online to bring new geographical ideas from the field to the classroom.

ENDS

For further information log onto www.media.landrover.com or contact:

Lydia Haley

Senior Press Officer

02476

07730 923507

lhaley1@jaguarlandrover.com

Editors Note:

Since 1948 Land Rover has been manufacturing authentic 4x4s that represent true breadth of capability across the model range. Defender, Freelander, Discovery, Range Rover Sport, Range Rover and Range Rover Evoque each define the world's 4x4 sectors. Land Rover products are currently sold in approximately 180 global markets.

Anyone interested in applying for the 2014 Land Rover Bursary should visit www.rgs.org/LandRoverBursary

Further details on the expedition team and relevant experience:

Felicity Aston:

‑ Team manager, co‑ordinating people and logistics

‑ Vast cold‑weather expedition and endurance experience

‑ Trained physicist and meteorologist

‑ Worked at Antarctic research station for three years

‑ Author and freelance travel writer, regularly contributing articles to publications including Geographical

Manu Palomeque:

‑ Co‑ordinating the creative output of the expedition

‑ Thirty years' experience as photographer and film‑maker

‑ Will curate an exhibition displaying the sounds and images generated during the trip

Gisli Jonsson:

‑ Mechanical expert and winter‑driving advisor

‑ Designed and built off‑road vehicles for glacier travel in Iceland and the Polar regions

‑ Extensive cold‑weather experience

‑ Trained first aider