What was the original purpose of people going to Antarctica? What is their main purpose now?

The original purpose of people going to Antarctica was exploration, but now the purpose is mainly scientific investigation

Since the 18th century, explorers have gone south to search for the legendary southern continent. From 1772 to 1775, the British Captain Cook spent 3 years and 8 months sailing 97,000 kilometers, sailing around the Antarctic for a week, and entering the polar circle several times, but he ultimately did not discover land. In 1819, Tsarist Russia sent Belinshausen to lead two ships, the Vostok and the Mir, which lasted two years and 21 days at 69°53′ south latitude, 82°19′ west longitude and 68°43′ south latitude, 73° west longitude respectively. 10′ Two islands were discovered. In February 1823, the Englishman Weddell went south to 74°15′ south latitude, creating the highest latitude southward at that time. From September 1837 to November 1840, Dilville of France tried to surpass Wedel and set a high-latitude record but failed. However, he named the island he discovered on January 19, 1840, Adre Land, after his wife. Its coastal waters are the Dilwell Sea, and later generations also named a penguin, the Adele penguin, after his wife. Subsequently, the British Ross sailed into Ross Bay, which was later named after him, in 1841. However, he was blocked by ice barriers and could not reach the south magnetic pole he predicted - 75°30' south latitude and 154° east longitude. In 1908, the British Shackleton advanced to 88°23′ south latitude, only 180 kilometers away from the South Pole, but turned back due to exhaustion of food. In 1909, Mawson, Davis and McKay first reached the south magnetic pole, which was then 72°24′ south latitude and 155°18′ east longitude. On December 14, 1911 and January 17, 1912, expeditions led by Amundsen of Norway and Scott of the United Kingdom reached the South Pole. From 1772 when Cook sailed south to the end of the 19th century, many explorers successively sailed sailing ships to search for the southern continent. Historically, this period was called the Age of Sailing. From the beginning of the 20th century to the First World War, although the time was short, humans successively conquered the South Magnetic Pole and the South Pole, and many heroic exploration heroes emerged. History calls this period the Heroic Age. From after World War I to the mid-1950s, human exploration in Antarctica gradually replaced dog sleds with mechanical equipment. In 1928, the British pilot Wilkin flew over the Antarctic Peninsula. In 1929, the American Byrd flew over the Antarctic Peninsula. In the same year, another American, Ellsworth, flew from the top of the Antarctic Peninsula to the Ross Ice Shelf. In terms of Antarctic exploration, aircraft provided a reliable means for mankind to correctly understand the Antarctic continent at a macro level. History calls this period the age of mechanization. From the International Geophysical Year of 1957 to 1958 to the present, many scientists have flocked to Antarctica, where they established year-round research stations and conducted multidisciplinary scientific surveys. People call this period the era of scientific surveys.