**Shortlisted for the 2025 Royal Society Trivedi Science Book Prize** The bestselling author of Your Inner Fish takes readers on an epic adventure to the North and South Poles to reveal the secrets locked in the ice about life, the cosmos, and our planet’s future. “Urgent [and] prescient…The book captures Shubin’s reverence for both the beauty and the mysteries hidden in the cold, barren tundra.”— The New Yorker Renowned scientist Neil Shubin has made extraordinary discoveries by leading scientific expeditions to the sweeping ice landscapes of the Arctic and Antarctic. He’s survived polar storms, traveled in temperatures that can freeze flesh in seconds, and worked hundreds of miles from the nearest humans, all to deepen our understanding of our world. Written with infectious enthusiasm and irresistible curiosity, Ends of the Earth blends travel writing, science, and history in a book brimming with surprising and wonderful discoveries. Shubin retraces his steps on a “dinosaur dance floor,” showing us where these beasts had populated the once tropical lands at the poles. He takes readers meteor hunting, as meteorites preserved in the ice can be older than our planet and can tell us about our galaxy’s formation. Readers also encounter insects and fish that develop their own anti-freeze, and aquatic life in ancient lakes hidden miles under the ice that haven’t seen the surface in centuries. It turns out that explorers and scientists have found these extreme environments as prime ground for making scientific breakthroughs across a vast range of knowledge. Shubin shares unforgettable moments from centuries of expeditions to reveal just how far scientists will go to understand polar regions. In the end, what happens at the poles does not stay in the poles—the ends of the earth offer profound stories that will forever change our view of life and the entire planet. **One of the Economist 's Best Books of 2025** "In this comprehensive yet concise history of modern polar exploration, Shubin, a professor of evolutionary biology, mixes urgent scientific findings about glaciers and sea-level rise with prescient geopolitical histories of Arctic territorial disputes. Throughout, Shubin relates stories from his own field expeditions: a pilot lands a propeller plane in an icy valley; a crew member stumbles on kaleidoscopic hues of blue while spelunking in Antarctic crevasses; Shubin’s team discovers a field of dinosaur footprints that had been miraculously preserved under layers of ice. Such descriptions enliven the book, and capture Shubin’s reverence for both the beauty and the mysteries hidden in the cold, barren tundra." — The New Yorker “A truly remarkable and readable chronicle that skillfully interweaves travel writing and history in an account brimming with surprising and wonderful scientific discoveries. Written with infectious enthusiasm and irresistible curiosity, this book is a surprisingly fast read that most people will not be able put down until they’ve finished it… Highly recommended.” — Forbes "Paleontologist Neil Shubin's Ends of the Earth offers readers a comprehensive overview of the geology, oceanography, glaciology, geopolitics, and climatology of the planet's polar regions: Antarctica and the Arctic. Shubin writes clearly and understandably about various complex topics, incorporating stories about his own fieldwork experiences in these places and arguing that polar science offers a "lens to see the natural world and the extraordinary ways we have come to know it."" — Science “[Shubin] shows us why fieldwork is essential to understanding our world—and to planning for our collective future as a species… Ends of the Earth is a love letter to ice—to the terrible beauty of its vast, austere expanses; to the blue cathedrals of its deep crevasses; to the resilient plants and animals that have created otherworldly oases in its lee; to the ways it tests human ingenuity and endurance.” — Los Angeles Review of Books "Written with infectious enthusiasm and irresistible curiosity, Ends of the Earth blends travel writing, science, and history in a book brimming with surprising and wonderful discoveries." — Daily Kos "Lively accounts of polar science from the earliest days until now. Locked within the polar ice are revelations about the deep past of the Earth and its climate, offering predictions about its future… Shubin writes well about how such discoveries have been made: a lay reader can enjoy the thrill of discovery without enduring the harsh conditions." — The New Statesman “A book with admirable breadth, and one that will leave you in no doubt of the importance of the polar regions—and of the urgency of action if we wish to preserve the treasures they hold.” — Times Literary Supplement "Shubin brings the polar world to life through a combination of travel and immersive science writing.... As Shubin demonstrates in Ends of the Earth , the stark polar regions present extreme