Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld

Baron (Nils) Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld, also known as A. E. Nordenskioeld (November 18, 1832, Helsinki, Finland (then the Grand Duchy of Finland) — August 12, 1901, (Dalby, Skåne, Sweden) was a geologist, mineralogist and arctic explorer of Finland-Swedish extraction. Born in Finland, he was later forced to live in political exile in Sweden. He is most remembered for the Vega expedition along the northern coast of Europe and Asia. He was also the uncle of Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim.

Settling in Stockholm

As Nordenskiöld spoke Swedish as his mother tongue, a natural place for him to settle was nearby Stockholm. He soon received an offer from Otto Torell, the geologist, to accompany him on an expedition to Spitsbergen. To the observations of Torell on glacial phenomena Nordenskiöld added the discovery at Bell Sound of remains of Tertiary plants, and on the return of the expedition he received the appointment of professor and curator of the mineralogical department of the National Museum of Natural History (Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet).

Related Topics:
Swedish - Mother tongue - Stockholm - Otto Torell - Spitsbergen - Glacial - Bell Sound - Tertiary - National Museum of Natural History

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Nordenskiöld's participation in three geological expeditions to Spitsbergen, followed by longer Arctic explorations in 1867, 1870, 1872 and 1875, led him to attempt the discovery of the long-sought Northeast Passage. This he accomplished in the voyage of the Vega, navigating for the first time the northern coasts of Europe and Asia. Starting from Karlskrona on June 22, 1878, the Vega doubled Cape Chelyuskin in the following August, and after being frozen in at the end of September near the Bering Strait, completed the voyage successfully in the following summer. He edited a monumental record of the expedition in five volumes, and himself wrote a more popular summary in two volumes.

Related Topics:
1867 - 1870 - 1872 - 1875 - Northeast Passage - Karlskrona - June 22 - 1878 - Cape Chelyuskin - Bering Strait

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On his return to Sweden he received an enthusiastic welcome, and in April 1880 was made a baron and a commander of the Order of the North Star. In 1883, he visited the east coast of Greenland for the second time, and succeeded in taking his ship through the great ice barrier, a feat attempted in vain during more than three centuries.

Related Topics:
Sweden - 1880 - Was made a baron - Order of the North Star - 1883 - Greenland

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In 1893, Baron Nordenskiöld was elected to the 12th chair of the Swedish Academy. The Nordenskiöld crater on Mars was named in his honor.

Related Topics:
1893 - Swedish Academy - Nordenskiöld - Crater - Mars

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