IN AUGUST 2007, a Russian explorer named Artur Chilingarov led an expedition to the bottom of the North Pole. The two-and-a-half-mile descent marked man’s first visit to the polar floor, and, before ascending, the submarine jammed a titanium Russian flag into the seabed. It was a bold, reckless mission, as the thick Arctic ice made resurfacing a gamble. Chilingarov was awarded the title Hero of the Russian Federation for the feat, but the Russians were after more than bragging rights: they wanted to claim territory.
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