Crossword Genius

Explorer paddled back in US gondola at sea (7,6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

douglas mawson

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'explorer paddled back in us gondola' is the definition.
I don't know anything about this answer so I cannot judge whether this works.

'at sea' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'at' could be 'on' (location) and 'on' is present in the answer.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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