Roald Amundsen | Biography, Facts, Expeditions, South Pole, Northwest Passage, & Death

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<div class="drawer d-flex flex-column open"> <div class="left-rail-section-content"> <div class="topic-left-rail-header text-truncate bg-gray-50 position-relative text-right d-flex align-items-center"> <div class="tlr-title px-20 py-15 text-left"> <em class="material-icons text-gray-400 d-lg-none" data-icon="toc"></em> <a class="font-serif font-weight-bold text-black link-blue" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Roald-Amundsen">Roald Amundsen</a> </div> <button aria-label="Close" class="js-sections-close-button btn-link btn-sm btn d-lg-none position-absolute top-0 p-10 right-0" > <em class="material-icons font-26" data-icon="close"></em> </button> </div> <div class="section-content pl-10 pr-20 pl-sm-50 pr-sm-60 pl-lg-5 pr-lg-10 pt-10 pt-lg-0 bg-gray-50 clear-catfish-ad"> <div class="toc mb-20"> <div class="font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-15 mb-15 mt-20"> Table of Contents </div> <span class="toc-extra-link selected link-gray-900 mt-15"> Introduction & Top Questions </span> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Roald-Amundsen/additional-info">References & Edit History</a> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="/facts/Roald-Amundsen">Quick Facts & Related Topics</a> </div> <div class="tlr-media-slider pb-10 mb-30"> <a class="section-header link-gray-900 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mb-10 mx-10" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Roald-Amundsen/images-videos">Images</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100 "> <div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex overflow-hidden text-nowrap ml-15"> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/78/13478-050-B4EB6933/Roald-Amundsen-1923.jpg" data-href="/media/1/21974/8092" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/78/13478-004-80EA7006/Roald-Amundsen-1923.jpg" alt="Roald Amundsen" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/52/96652-050-EF343160/Roald-Amundsen-crew-Gjoa.jpg" data-href="/media/1/21974/111695" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/52/96652-004-A451E3A0/Roald-Amundsen-crew-Gjoa.jpg" alt="Roald Amundsen" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/82/64882-050-6EF13351/explorers-Arctic-first-Robert-E-Peary-Matthew-1909.jpg" data-href="/media/1/21974/54608" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/82/64882-004-2861E6BC/explorers-Arctic-first-Robert-E-Peary-Matthew-1909.jpg" alt="Arctic explorations" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/07/122107-050-5B1748EA/Roald-Engelbrecht-Gravning-Amundsen-Norwegian-explorer-South-Pole-1911.jpg" data-href="/media/1/21974/251396" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/07/122107-004-0191AC5A/Roald-Engelbrecht-Gravning-Amundsen-Norwegian-explorer-South-Pole-1911.jpg" alt="Roald Amundsen" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/68/145268-050-9E7578FD/airship-Norge-Spitsbergen-Roald-Amundsen-North-Pole-1926.jpg" data-href="/media/1/21974/251397" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/68/145268-004-C1E07620/airship-Norge-Spitsbergen-Roald-Amundsen-North-Pole-1926.jpg" alt="Roald Amundsen" height="50" /> </a> </div> <button disabled class="prev-button js-prev-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-blue " aria-label="Previous"> <span class="material-icons md-24" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_left"></span> </button> <button disabled class="next-button js-next-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-blue " aria-label="Next"> <span class="material-icons md-24" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></span> </button> </div> </div> <div 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They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Roald-Amundsen/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button js-sections-inline-button module-spacing"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <button class="ai-ask-button btn border-2 ai-ask-button btn border-2 module-spacing btn-sm js-inline-ai-ask-button btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 p-10 ml-5"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> </div> <div class="js-qf-module qf-module px-40 px-sm-20 py-15 mx-auto module-spacing font-14 bg-gray-50 rounded"> <div class="qf-title font-weight-bold font-14 mb-10 text-center"> Quick Facts</div> <div class="facts-list mt-10"> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>In full: </dt> <dd>Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Born: </dt> <dd>July 16, 1872, Borge, near Oslo, <a href="/place/Norway">Norway</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Died: </dt> <dd>June 18, 1928?, <a href="/place/Arctic-Ocean">Arctic Ocean</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Also Known As: </dt> <dd>Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/Roald-Amundsen"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> </div><script type="application/ld+json"> { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type" : "Question", "name" : "<div>What is Roald Amundsen remembered for?<\/div><em><\/em>", "acceptedAnswer" : { "@type" : "Answer", "text" : "Roald Amundsen, a Norwegian explorer, was one of the greatest figures in the field of polar exploration. He was the first explorer to transit the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Northwest-Passage-trade-route\">Northwest Passage<\/a> (1903\u201305), the first to reach the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/South-Pole\">South Pole<\/a> (1911), and the first to fly over the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/North-Pole\">North Pole<\/a> in an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/technology\/airship\">airship<\/a> (1926)." } } , { "@type" : "Question", "name" : "<div>How did Roald Amundsen become famous?<\/div><em><\/em>", "acceptedAnswer" : { "@type" : "Answer", "text" : "In 1903 Roald Amundsen and his crew aboard the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/technology\/sloop\">sloop<\/a> <em>Gj\u00F8a<\/em> began a mission to sail through the Northwest Passage and around the northern Canadian coast. They reached Cape Colborne (in present-day <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Nunavut\">Nunavut<\/a>) in August 1905, overwintered at Herschel Island in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Yukon-territory\">Yukon<\/a>, and arrived in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Nome-Alaska\">Nome<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Alaska\">Alaska<\/a>, in August 1906 to a heroes\u2019 welcome." } } , { "@type" : "Question", "name" : "<div>How did Roald Amundsen die?<\/div><em><\/em>", "acceptedAnswer" : { "@type" : "Answer", "text" : "In 1928 Roald Amundsen lost his life flying to rescue Italian aeronautical engineer <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Umberto-Nobile\">Umberto Nobile<\/a>, whom he had accompanied in a dirigible flight over the North Pole in 1926, from a dirigible crash at sea near <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Spitsbergen\">Spitsbergen<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Norway\">Norway<\/a>. The airplane carrying Amundsen, searching for survivors of Nobile\u2019s crash, also crashed, and Amundsen\u2019s remains were never found. " } } ] } </script> <div class="top-questions qa-accordion d-flex flex-column module-spacing"><div class="font-weight-bold font-14 mb-5"> Top Questions </div><div id="intent-accordion" class="md-intent-accordion"><div class="top-question bg-gray-50 rounded" data-value="1"><h3 class="accordion--question font-14 font-weight-normal cursor-pointer rounded"><div class="pe-none d-flex justify-content-between align-items-center"><div>What is Roald Amundsen remembered for?</div><em class="material-icons" data-icon="expand_more"></em></div></h3><div class="accordion--answer hidden p-15 pt-5 font-16 mb-5"><div class="accordion--answer-copy"><p>Roald Amundsen, a Norwegian explorer, was one of the greatest figures in the field of polar exploration. He was the first explorer to transit the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Northwest-Passage-trade-route" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Northwest Passage</a> (1903–05), the first to reach the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/South-Pole" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">South Pole</a> (1911), and the first to fly over the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/North-Pole" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">North Pole</a> in an <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/airship" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">airship</a> (1926).</p></div></div></div><div class="top-question bg-gray-50 rounded" data-value="2"><h3 class="accordion--question font-14 font-weight-normal cursor-pointer rounded"><div class="pe-none d-flex justify-content-between align-items-center"><div>How did Roald Amundsen become famous?</div><em class="material-icons" data-icon="expand_more"></em></div></h3><div class="accordion--answer hidden p-15 pt-5 font-16 mb-5"><div class="accordion--answer-copy"><p>In 1903 Roald Amundsen and his crew aboard the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/sloop" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">sloop</a> <em>Gjøa</em> began a mission to sail through the Northwest Passage and around the northern Canadian coast. They reached Cape Colborne (in present-day <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Nunavut" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Nunavut</a>) in August 1905, overwintered at Herschel Island in the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Yukon-territory" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Yukon</a>, and arrived in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Nome-Alaska" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Nome</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Alaska" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Alaska</a>, in August 1906 to a heroes’ welcome.</p></div></div></div><div class="top-question bg-gray-50 rounded" data-value="3"><h3 class="accordion--question font-14 font-weight-normal cursor-pointer rounded"><div class="pe-none d-flex justify-content-between align-items-center"><div>How did Roald Amundsen die?</div><em class="material-icons" data-icon="expand_more"></em></div></h3><div class="accordion--answer hidden p-15 pt-5 font-16 mb-5"><div class="accordion--answer-copy"><p>In 1928 Roald Amundsen lost his life flying to rescue Italian aeronautical engineer <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Umberto-Nobile" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Umberto Nobile</a>, whom he had accompanied in a dirigible flight over the North Pole in 1926, from a dirigible crash at sea near <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Spitsbergen" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Spitsbergen</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Norway" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Norway</a>. The airplane carrying Amundsen, searching for survivors of Nobile’s crash, also crashed, and Amundsen’s remains were never found. </p></div><div class="connections border-top mt-15"><a href="/story/what-were-the-circumstances-that-surrounded-roald-amundsens-death" class="d-flex mt-15">What were the circumstances that surrounded Roald Amundsen’s death?</a>Learn more about Amundsen’s final flight.</div></div></div></div></div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref271077"></span>Roald Amundsen</strong> (born July 16, 1872, Borge, near Oslo, Norway—died June 18, 1928?, Arctic Ocean) was a Norwegian explorer who was the first to reach the <span id="ref271078"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/South-Pole" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">South Pole</a>, the first to make a ship <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="voyage" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/voyage" data-type="EB">voyage</a> through the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Northwest-Passage-trade-route" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Northwest Passage</a>, and one of the first to cross the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Arctic" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Arctic</a> by air. He was one of the greatest figures in the field of polar exploration.</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="111695" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/52/96652-050-EF343160/Roald-Amundsen-crew-Gjoa.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/21974/111695"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/52/96652-050-EF343160/Roald-Amundsen-crew-Gjoa.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/52/96652-050-EF343160/Roald-Amundsen-crew-Gjoa.jpg?w=300" alt="Roald Amundsen" data-width="1522" data-height="1133" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/52/96652-050-EF343160/Roald-Amundsen-crew-Gjoa.jpg" data-href="/media/1/21974/111695">Roald Amundsen</a><span>Roald Amundsen and his crew aboard the <em>Gjøa</em>.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Amundsen studied <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/medicine" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">medicine</a> for a while and then took to sea. In 1897 he sailed as first mate on the <em>Belgica</em> in a Belgian expedition that was the first to <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/winter" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">winter</a> in the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Antarctica" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Antarctic</a>. In 1903, with a crew of six on his 47-ton sloop <em>Gjøa</em>, Amundsen began his mission to sail through the Northwest Passage and around the northern Canadian coast. He reached Cape Colborne (in present-day <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Nunavut" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Nunavut</a>) in August 1905, completing his <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="transit" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/transit" data-type="EB">transit</a> of the passage proper, before ice halted his westerly progress for the winter at Herschel Island in the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Yukon-territory" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Yukon</a> the following month. Amundsen and his crew resumed the journey in August 1906 and were greeted with a heroes’ welcome when the expedition concluded in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Nome-Alaska" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Nome</a>, Alaska, later that month. This achievement whetted his appetite for the spectacular in polar exploration.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="54608" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/82/64882-050-6EF13351/explorers-Arctic-first-Robert-E-Peary-Matthew-1909.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/21974/54608"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/82/64882-050-6EF13351/explorers-Arctic-first-Robert-E-Peary-Matthew-1909.jpg"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/82/64882-050-6EF13351/explorers-Arctic-first-Robert-E-Peary-Matthew-1909.jpg?w=300" alt="Arctic explorations" data-width="1600" data-height="1370" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/82/64882-050-6EF13351/explorers-Arctic-first-Robert-E-Peary-Matthew-1909.jpg" data-href="/media/1/21974/54608">Arctic explorations</a><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Amundsen’s next plan, to drift across the <span id="ref271079"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/North-Pole" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">North Pole</a> in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Fridtjof-Nansen" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Fridtjof Nansen</a>’s old <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/ship" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">ship</a>, the <em><span id="ref271080"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Fram-Norwegian-ship" class="md-crosslink ">Fram</a>,</em> was affected by the news that the American explorer <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Robert-Edwin-Peary" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Robert E. Peary</a> had reached the North Pole in April 1909, but he continued his preparations. When Amundsen left Norway in June 1910 no one but his brother knew that he was heading for the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/South-Pole" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">South Pole</a> instead of the North. He sailed the <em>Fram</em> directly from the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Madeira-Islands" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Madeira Islands</a> to the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Bay-of-Whales" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Bay of Whales</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Antarctica" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Antarctica</a>, along the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Ross-Sea" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Ross Sea</a>. The base he set up there was 60 miles (100 km) closer to the pole than the Antarctic base of the English explorer <span id="ref271081"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Robert-Falcon-Scott" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Robert Falcon Scott</a>, who was heading a <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="rival" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/rival" data-type="EB">rival</a> expedition with the same goal. An experienced polar traveler, Amundsen prepared carefully for the coming journey, making a preliminary trip to deposit <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/food" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">food</a> supplies along the first part of his route to the pole and back. To transport his supplies, he used sled <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/dog" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">dogs</a>, while Scott depended on Siberian <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/pony" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">ponies</a>.</p><a class="link-module shadow-sm d-block qa-quiz-module" href="/quiz/exploration-and-discovery" data-link-module-iframe-link=""> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/24/71324-131-CA22C4BA/Edwin-Aldrin-Moon-July-20-1969.jpg" alt="Buzz Aldrin. Apollo 11. Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin Aldrin, photographed July 20, 1969, during the first manned mission to the Moon's surface. Reflected in Aldrin's faceplate is the Lunar Module and astronaut Neil Armstrong, who took the picture." class="rounded-sm mr-15" width="70" /> <div class="line-clamp clamp-5"> <div class="module-title bg-green">Britannica Quiz</div> <div class="font-weight-semi-bold mt-5">Exploration and Discovery</div> </div> </a><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="251396" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/07/122107-050-5B1748EA/Roald-Engelbrecht-Gravning-Amundsen-Norwegian-explorer-South-Pole-1911.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/21974/251396"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/07/122107-050-5B1748EA/Roald-Engelbrecht-Gravning-Amundsen-Norwegian-explorer-South-Pole-1911.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/07/122107-050-5B1748EA/Roald-Engelbrecht-Gravning-Amundsen-Norwegian-explorer-South-Pole-1911.jpg?w=300" alt="Roald Amundsen" data-width="1600" data-height="1029" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/07/122107-050-5B1748EA/Roald-Engelbrecht-Gravning-Amundsen-Norwegian-explorer-South-Pole-1911.jpg" data-href="/media/1/21974/251396">Roald Amundsen</a><span>Roald Amundsen at the South Pole, December 1911.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Amundsen set out with 4 companions, 52 dogs, and 4 sledges on October 19, 1911, and, after encountering good <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/weather" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">weather</a>, arrived at the South Pole on December 14. The explorers recorded scientific data at the pole before beginning the return journey on December 17, and they safely reached their base at the Bay of Whales on January 25, 1912. Scott, in the meantime, had reached the South Pole on January 17, but on a difficult return journey he and all his men <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="perished" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/perished" data-type="EB">perished</a>.</p><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD5 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="251397" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/68/145268-050-9E7578FD/airship-Norge-Spitsbergen-Roald-Amundsen-North-Pole-1926.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/21974/251397"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/68/145268-050-9E7578FD/airship-Norge-Spitsbergen-Roald-Amundsen-North-Pole-1926.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/68/145268-050-9E7578FD/airship-Norge-Spitsbergen-Roald-Amundsen-North-Pole-1926.jpg?w=300" alt="Roald Amundsen" data-width="1600" data-height="1009" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/68/145268-050-9E7578FD/airship-Norge-Spitsbergen-Roald-Amundsen-North-Pole-1926.jpg" data-href="/media/1/21974/251397">Roald Amundsen</a><span>The airship Norge floating above Spitsbergen in 1926 before Roald Amundsen's expedition to the North Pole. Amundsen, Umberto Nobile (the pilot and designer of the airship), and Lincoln Ellsworth flew from Spitsbergen to Alaska, becoming the first people to definitely reach the North Pole.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">With funds resulting from his Antarctic adventure, Amundsen established a successful <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/shipping-water-transportation" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">shipping</a> business. He acquired a new ship, the <em>Maud</em>, and tried in 1918 to complete his old plan of drifting across the North Pole, but he was forced to abandon this scheme in favour of trying to reach the North Pole by <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/airplane" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">airplane</a>. In a flight (1925) with the American explorer <span id="ref271082"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Lincoln-Ellsworth" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Lincoln Ellsworth</a> he arrived to within 150 miles (250 km) of the pole. In 1926, with Ellsworth and the Italian aeronautical engineer <span id="ref271083"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Umberto-Nobile" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Umberto Nobile</a>, he passed over the North Pole in a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/airship" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">dirigible</a>, crossing from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Spitsbergen" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Spitsbergen</a> (now <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Svalbard" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Svalbard</a>), north of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Norway" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Norway</a>, to <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Alaska" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Alaska</a>. <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="Disputes" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/Disputes" data-type="EB">Disputes</a> over the credit for the flight embittered his final years. In 1928 Amundsen lost his life in flying to rescue Nobile from a dirigible crash near Spitsbergen. Amundsen’s books included <em>The South Pole</em> (1912) and, with Ellsworth, <em>First Crossing of the Polar Sea</em> (1927).</p><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="md-signature"><a href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</a></span><span class="md-signature">This article was most recently revised and updated by <a href="/contributor/encyclopaedia-britannica/12989892">Encyclopaedia Britannica</a>.</span><span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article></div> </div></div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":1,"pageId":21974,"pageLength":584,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.130.14"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.130.14' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"C","adLeg":"C","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"BIO_MEDIUM","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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Roald Amundsen | Biography, Facts, Expeditions, South Pole, Northwest Passage, & Death | Britannica