North Pole Since 2002, the Russians have also annually established a base, Barneo, close to the Pole. This operates for a few weeks during early spring. Studies in the 2000s predicted that the North Pole may become seasonally ice-free because of Arctic ice shrinkage, with timescales varying from 2016 to the late 21st century or later. The sea depth at the North Pole has been measured at by the Russian Mir submersible in 2007 and at 4,087 m (13,410 ft) by USS "Nautilus" in 1958. The nearest land is usually said to be Kaffeklubben Island, off the northern coast of Greenland about
To Sail Beyond the Sunset To Sail Beyond the Sunset To Sail Beyond the Sunset is a science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein, published in 1987. It was the last novel published before his death in 1988. The title is taken from the poem "Ulysses", by Alfred Lord Tennyson. The stanza of which it is a part, quoted by a character in the novel, is as follows: <poem> ... my purpose holds To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths Of all the western stars, until I die. </poem> It is the final part of the "Lazarus Long" cycle of stories, involving