Fridtjof Nansen and the Geology of the Arctic

Abstract

Fridtjof Nansen, polar explorer, scientist, and humanitarian, worked on the geology of the Arctic for a period of almost forty years.On his first major expedition-the first crossing of Greenland in 1888 - questions regarding the nature and causes of ice ages were the central scientific concerns. On Nansen's second major expedition-the Fram-expedition 1893-96 - he studied the formation of the continental margins of the Arctic Ocean, and collected fossil faunas and floras from Franz Josef Land and Siberia. During the drift in the ice, Lt. Scott-Hansen on the Fram made pioneer measurements of gravity at sea.In his geological works Nansen always addressed the fundamental issues. His main geological interests were in geomorphology (valley and fjord formation, formation of coastal platforms and continental margins), the theory of isostasy and the structure of the earth's crust, ice ages, and climatic changes.Special attention is given to the intellectual context of Nansen's geological work. It is shown that Scandinavian geologists were the main scientific supporters of Nansen's expeditions, and that contemporary problems of geology featured large in the scientific rationale of his expeditions. Nansen's collaboration with the Scandinavian geologists H. Bäckström, W. Chr. Brøgger, O. Bøggild, A. M. Hansen, A. Helland, J. Kiær, A. G. Nathorst, A. E. Nordenskiöld, H. Rink, A. E. Törnebohm as well as the German J. F. Pompeckj is described in detail.