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| 1928–30 |
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| First Antarctic flights by Hubert Wilkins; he mapped large portions of the continent. | 1 |
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| 1928–30 |
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| Richard E. Byrd led a large expedition equipped with airplanes and established the base Little America. | 2 |
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| 1935 |
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| Foundation of the CENTRAL ADMINISTRATION OF THE NORTH SEA ROUTE by the Soviet government, responsible for exploration and development of all Soviet territory north of 62°. | 3 |
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| 1937–38 |
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| A Soviet polar station for research was established on an ice floe near the North Pole. | 4 |
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| 1956–57 |
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| The American Amundsen–Scott Station was set up at the South Pole. | 5 |
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| 1957–58 |
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| The International Geophysical Year devoted major attention to study in the Antarctic, establishing a network of some 60 research stations in the region. | 6 |
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| 1958 |
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| NAUTILUS, an American nuclear-powered submarine, navigated under the North Pole. | 7 |
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| 1959 |
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| INTERNATIONAL ANTARCTIC TREATY, signed in Washington by 12 states, agreed to use the Antarctic continent for peaceful purposes only and to suspend territorial claims disputes for 30 years. | 8 |
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| 1959 |
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| Skate, an American nuclear-powered submarine, surfaced at the North Pole. | 9 |
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| 1977 |
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| ARKTIKA, a Soviet nuclear-powered icebreaker, was the first surface ship to reach the North Pole. | 10 |
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| 1989 |
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| Victoria Murden and Shirley Metz were the first women to reach the South Pole overland. | 11 |
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