On 16th July 1872,Mrs. Amundsen gave birth to Little Amundsen in Borge, Norway, was a Norwegian by nationality, a doctor by occupation and an explorer by major occupation. This famous explorer mysteriously disappeared on 18th

June, 1928 which is known to be of his death.

His Signature…

*Bio –Data in Italics and Bold.

Roald Amundsen was born on July 16, 1872 in Borge, Norway.His mother chose to keep him out of the maritime industry of the family and pressured him to become a doctor, a promise that Amundsen kept until his mother died when he was aged 21, whereupon he quit university for a life at sea.

Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. 

He was the first to take a ship voyage through the Northwest Passage. He was also one of the first to cross the Arctic by air.

He disappeared in June 1928 while taking part in a rescue mission. 

For the South Pole expedition from 1910 to 1912 he used his ship ‘Fram’ which means forward in English.1903, Amundsen led the first expedition to successfully traverse Canada's Northwest Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans something explorers had been attempting since the days of Christopher Columbus, John Cabot, Jacques Cartier, and Henry Hudson.

1897-99 - He was a member of the Belgian Antarctic Expedition as first mate. The Belgica, whether by mistake or designed, got locked in the sea ice near Alexander Island, west of the Antarctic Peninsula. The crew then endured a winter for which the expedition was poorly prepared. By Amundsen's own estimation, the doctor for the expedition, American Frederick Cook, probably saved the crew from scurvy by hunting for animals and feeding the crew fresh meat, an important lesson for Amundsen's future expeditions. On 16TH June, 1903, Amundsen led the first expedition to successfully traverse Canada's Northwest Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. They traveled via Baffin Bay, Lancaster and Peel Sounds, and James Ross, Simpson and Rae Straits and spent two winters near King William Island. During this time Amundsen learned from the local Netsilik people about Arctic survival skills that would later prove useful. For example, he learned to use sled dogs and to wear animal skins in lieu of heavy, woolen parkas.

1903-1906

Since he was a young boy, Amundsen had dreamed of being the first man to the North Pole.

Instead of seeking the North Pole, he resolved to reach the South Pole in Antarctica, where no man or woman had yet set foot and wanted to be the first one to while, the North Pole had already been claimed by Frederick Cook and then Robert Peary.

He had even been preparing a voyage when the news of Peary’s triumph reached him. Everything, the funds, energy and equipment were already invested in the expedition, but Amundsen abruptly changed his plans.

Dream & Exploration

In 1911, Amundsen directed his ship, the Fram, into the Ross Sea, just off the coast of Antarctica. For the first part of the year, Amundsen and his men unloaded supplies and built camps. Just 400 miles to the west, a group of English explorers led by Robert Falcon Scott also prepared to reach the Pole. The journey to the South Pole had become a race.

At Madeira, Amundsen alerted his men that they would be heading to Antarctica in addition to sending a telegram to Scott notifying him simply: "BEG TO INFORM YOU FRAM PROCEEDING ANTARCTIC--AMUNDSEN.“

On 14 January, 1911, the expedition arrived at the eastern edge of the Ross Ice Shelf (then known as "the Great Ice Barrier") at a large inlet called the Bay of Whales where Amundsen located his base camp and named it Framheim.

Amundsen used skis and dog sleds for transportation and even killed some of his dogs on the way and use them as a source for fresh meat.

FramRobert Scott

&1911-1912

On 8 September 1911

On 19 October, 1911

A premature attempt, which included Hjalmar Johansen, Kristian Prestrud and Jørgen Stubberud, set out, but had to be abandoned due to extreme temperatures. The painful retreat caused a tempering quarrel within the group, with the result that Johansen and others were sent to explore King Edward VII Land.

A second attempt with a team, consisting of Olav Bjaaland, Helmer Hanssen, Sverre Hassel, Oscar Wisting, and Amundsen himself, departed. They took four sledges and 52 dogs.

On 21 November, 2011On 14 December, 1911On 25 January, 1912On 7 March, 1912

The expedition arrived at the edge of the Polar Plateau after a four-day climb.

The team of six, with 16 dogs, arrived at the South Pole, 35 days before Scott’s group . They left a small tent and letter stating their accomplishment, in case they did not return safely to Framheim.  The team returned to Framheim

Amundsen’s success was publicly announced, when he arrived at Hobart, Australia.

Expedition at Framheim

Amundsen’s expedition benefited from careful preparation, good equipment, appropriate clothing, a simple primary task an understanding of dogs and their handling, and the effective use of skis. In contrast to the misfortunes of Scott’s team, Amundsen’s trek proved rather smooth and uneventful. In fact he even stated this :"I may say that this is the greatest factor -- the way in which the expedition is equipped -- the way in which every difficulty is foreseen, and precautions taken for meeting or avoiding it. Victory awaits him who has everything in order -- luck, people call it. Defeat is certain for him who has neglected to take the necessary precautions in time; this is called bad luck."

(Quite much of a taunt, isn’t it ? )

In 1926 he succeeded being the first to cross the Arctic Sea by airship. In his last years he was a controversial figure, who quarreled with most of his old companions and died very much alone.

He continued to explore with some notable successes

Yet it is important to remember that, once more defying his stereotype, he died in an effort to save others.

1928 In 1928, the airship Italia had gone down north of Svalbard on its way to the North Pole.

Amundsen intended to look for survivors by airplane, but the aircraft he used was not designed for Arctic conditions.

His plane went down somewhere in the Norwegian Sea, and Amundsen and his companions were never found.