10th October, 1861 Fridtjof Nansen was born

On the 10th of October, 1861 was born Fridtjof Nansen who was scientist, public and political figure, a polar explorer. He received the Nobel Prize in 1922. He was honored with awards in many countries, including Russia. In honor of the Nansen on the map were named not only various geographic objects, but also astronomical objects, such as a crater on the Moon.

When young Nansen was fond of skating and skiing. When he was 27 years old, he was able to ski across the snow on Greenland, which was appreciated by a wider audience, as an outstanding achievement. No one was able to cross the largest island of the world, known for its harsh natural conditions.

He took part in the expedition on the ship "Fram", whose aim was to win over the North Pole. Although travelers have failed to reach the Pole, they were able to reach 86 ° 13 '36 " latitude. If you open geographic maps, it is possible to trace the route of the expedition and to fully appreciate the contribution of sailors in the development of science. Later Nansen has never in his life participated in the pioneering events. Methods of transportation and equipment used in permafrost and eternal ice brought Nansen world fame. His own methods were used by polar explorers.

Nansen has planned the ship that later became known as the "Fram" and set off to conquer the Central Arctic. As was planned, the ship should be small but spacious, as it was necessary to live and work on board. After the ship is hold in ice the ship begins to float there where no one managed - in the central part of the Arctic basin. If you have an idea of the Polar Arctic map, you can imagine how impressive this trip was. To implement their plan Nansen proposed a project of the ship, the body of which is to be egg-shaped to withstand ice.

On top of everything else, Fridtjof Nansen studied zoology and did research in the field, later switched to oceanography, and even participated in oceanographic expeditions in the North Atlantic.

Norwegian by birth, Nansen was a patriot of his country and played for the dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway. Between 1905 and 1908 Nansen was Norway's ambassador in London, which contributed to the approval of Norway as a country with a high international status.

The last years of his life Nansen devoted to League of Nations, he was appointed a high commissioner and was in charge of refugees, he has made a major contribution to the development of relations between Russia and Norway, helped the starving Volga region. Fridtjof Nansen received the Nobel Prize for his work on naturalization and repatriation of displaced persons in the First World War and the settlement of the issues. His main contribution was so called Nansen passport, which people could get without citizenship in a foreign country in order to receive a shelter. After the death of Fridtjof Nansen his mission was continued by the organization for refugees.