Drake Passage: Why It’s Earth’s Deadliest Waters (Would You Survive?) | Smartest Year Ever (May 28, 2025)

The Drake Passage is one of the most notorious stretches of ocean on Earth — a 600-mile-wide maritime gauntlet between Cape Horn and the Antarctic Peninsula, where rogue waves, cyclonic winds, and the full force of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current converge.

Gordy explores why sailors, scientists, and adventurers have feared and respected this extreme environment for centuries. From its critical role in global ocean circulation to the legendary 1916 crossing by Ernest Shackleton, this episode dives into the history, science, and danger of the roughest sea route on the planet.

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to face hurricane-force winds and 60-foot waves in the middle of nowhere — or why the Drake Passage remains a rite of passage for Antarctic expeditions — this episode’s for you.

Would you survive the Drake Passage?

— Sources:

• National Geographic. (n.d.). Drake Passage: The World’s Most Dangerous Waterway. National Geographic Society.
  

• Smithsonian Magazine. (n.d.). How Francis Drake Became the Passage’s Namesake. Smithsonian Institution. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/francis-drake-drake-passage
  

• NOAA. (n.d.). Antarctic Circumpolar Current. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections/ocean-coasts/antarctic-circumpolar-current
  

• British Antarctic Survey. (n.d.). Wildlife in the Drake Passage. https://www.bas.ac.uk/data/our-data/publication/wildlife-drake-passage
  

• Royal Museums Greenwich. (n.d.). Shackleton’s Voyage in the James Caird. https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/shackleton-voyage
  

Music thanks to Zapsplat.

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