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Article issued September 20, 2001
Roald Amundsen: Conqueror of the Ice
Roald Amundsen was one of the greatest Artic and Antarctic explorers in history. Braving bitter cold and repeated danger, this stoic Norwegian explored the magnificence of the icy landscape of the Arctic and Antarctic regions. In this unit, in addition to reading about Amundsen, students will take a look at this fascinating part of the world and will explore the many earth changes affecting these regions today.
Roald Amundsen was born in 1872 near Oslo, Norway. By the time of his tragic death in 1928 he was one of the most successful polar explorers ever born. Among his most notable accomplishments as an explorer, he was the first to:
- sail the Northwest Passage
- travel to the South Pole
- make a transarctic flight over the North Pole from Europe to America.
Amundsen's father died when he was fourteen years old, and his mother when he was fifteen. During this time young Roald came across a book by the explorer Sir John Franklin that was to inspire in him the desire to adventure. From then on he began to prepare himself. He trained hard on his skis, and slept with the windows open in the cold Norwegian winter to harden himself. At age fifteen Amundsen dropped out of the University and went to sea.
At the age of 21, after a short stint in the Norwegian Army, Amundsen became the first to cross over the plateau between Bergen and Oslo on skis. He and his brother became stranded in a blizzard and were feared lost. They later emerged from the snow-covered mountains so thin and haggard that the farmer who first saw them ran away thinking they were ghosts. This was not the last time that Amundsen would be feared dead only to find his way out, sometimes years later, to surprise the world.
His first experience in the Antarctic was with Adrien de Gerlache's 1899 Belgica Expedition. This expedition was stranded on the ice for over a year, but after a series of harrowing experiences managed to make it out to safety.
Three years later, after spending his inheritance on 69-foot sloop named the Gjøa, Amundsen led his own expedition, to conquer The Northwest Passage. This stormy, ice packed stretch of ocean along Canada's far north shore had foiled, crushed or killed many explorers before Amundsen. Most people thought that the relatively small craft that Amundsen had chosen would never make it. The expedition took three long years during which the world once again believed he had perished, but Amundsen made it through and became a hero.
Next this brave adventurer set his sites on being the first to reach the North Pole. He planned on sailing a ship into the ice on the Alaskan side of the Pole and letting it drift over with the ice flows. Then news came that Admiral Peary had already reached the North Pole by dog sled. Amundsen decided to make a little change of plans -- secretly. The easy way to get to Alaska from Norway at that time was to go around the tip of South America, passing rather near to Antarctica and the South Pole -- which had yet to be reached. Amundsen decided to make a "detour" and drop by the South Pole for a visit. He kept his plan a secret because the British Explorer Captain Robert Scott was already planning an expedition to the South Pole, and the Norwegian government and Amundsen's financial supporters would not have been happy with him if Amundsen antagonized the then most powerful government in the world-Britain.
The expedition was fraught with danger and meant spending an entire year living on the ice in the frozen Antarctic wastes. Amundsen showed just how great an adventurer he was. Though he chose one of the most difficult and dangerous routes possible, he still managed to arrive at the South Pole a month ahead of Scott. The British explorer had not prepared nearly as well and on the way back from the Pole ran short of rations. Scott perished with his four companions in a snowstorm a short eleven miles from their next supply depot.
Amundsen went on to build his own specially designed and equipped ship, the Maud, to try to reach the North Pole by drifting in the Arctic ice. This time he took the Northeast Passage around Siberia. The trip took five arduous years. Finally reaching Alaska, they attempted to enter the arctic ice, but failed. Amundsen left the ship to try to reach the North Pole by air, but his plane's skis collapsed on the runway. He was swindled out of all his savings while trying the get the plane repaired and had to start all over.
Luckily for Amundsen, he soon met Lincoln Ellsworth who offered him financial support in exchange for an opportunity to accompany the expedition. Their first flight ended when their two seaplanes made a forced landing in rough ice, disabling one of them. The intrepid party managed the super-human feat of carving a runway out of a jumbled uneven ice flow that was changing shape daily. It took them three weeks to do it, but they managed it -- just as they ran out of rations.
A year later, Amundsen and Ellsworth made history when they flew the dirigible Norge from Spitsbergen, Norway to Teller, Alaska via the North Pole. This was the first trans-Arctic flight across the Pole, and the first non-stop flight from Europe to America.
Amundsen, fulfilled by his reputation, now attempted to retire. Unfortunately, in 1928, the Norge's sister ship crashed in the Arctic with a crew inexperienced in Arctic survival. Amundsen obtained a seaplane and crew and went to help in the search for the dirigible's crew. His plane crashed. Rescue workers decided to prolong the search for Amundsen because he was so well known for surviving against incredible odds. A few months later, debris from his plane was found floating in the sea and gave evidence that he had attempted make a raft. His body was never found.
Learn More!
Roald Amundsen
- The Life of Roald Amundsen
This page is part of the English Language section of the Norwegian site, Odin.
- Roald Amundsen
A biography of Amundsen from the Antarctic Philately Home Page that focuses mostly on his South Pole expedition.
Antarctica and the South Pole Resources
- The New South Polar Times is a newsletter written by the staff of the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, South Pole, Antarctica. The site includes information about this and other stations in Antarctica, plus lesson plans, and information about the current crew living at the station and email addresses to contact them.
- Historic Images of the Antarctic
Images from the NOAA Photo Gallery.
- The Antarctic
More images from the NOAA Photo Gallery.
- Take a Virtual Trip to Antarctica
This lesson planning article from Educationworld.com has lots of great activities about Antarctica.
- Live From Antarctica
This site is a part of the NASA Passport to Knowledge series.
- Wildlife of the Region
From the Irish Antarctic Adventure 1997 Web page, also including information on the climate and weather of the Antarctic.
Arctic/Northwest Passage Resources
- Northwest Passage: The Quest for an Arctic Route to the East
Resources from the Canadian National Library.
- Arctic Atlas
Use this outstanding resource to explore the arctic region. Just change the settings and click Update Changes--the map will reload.
- JASON XIII: Frozen Worlds
During the 2001-2002 school year, Jason XIII: Frozen Worlds will "take students and teachers on an adventure to the coldest and most remote regions of our planet and solar system, examining current research in geology, glaciology, biology, astrobiology, oceanography and climatology. We will focus on amazing plants and animals that survive in these frigid environments, from the largest marine mammals to the smallest microbes. Learn more about this year's project and join us on an adventure of discovery!"
- Arctic Circle
An extensive site from the University of Connecticut.
- Clickable Map of the Northwest Passage
LESSON 1:
The South Pole in Amundsen's Own Words
Concepts:
You will learn about Roald Amundsen's descriptions of his expedition to the South Pole.
Lesson:
Have your students read The First Account from Roald Amundsen's Book The South Pole written by the explorer himself - The South Pole: an account of the Norwegian Antarctic expedition in the "Fram," 1910-1912 and then have them rewrite a shorter version in their own words and illustrate it.
Additional Resources:
If your students enjoyed Amundsen's story, have them read the longer detailed version available from Project Gutenberg. The files are free and downloadable. The zipped versions are much faster to download but will require a zip utility to open.
Once you have a zip utility, and have downloaded the file, browse through and delete the first several pages related to Project Gutenberg.
LESSON 2:
The Ice is Melting at the Ends of the Earth
Concepts:
You will learn about global warming and its effects on the Arctic and Antarctic Regions.
Lesson:
When Roald Amundsen sailed through the Northwest Passage, the pack ice was so thick and vast that no one had ever found a way through it. Amundsen tried a new more southerly route and made it through, but he had to winter over locked in the ice three winters in a row. This was also true for other boats attempting the Northwest Passage after Amundsen. In the year 2000,however, a Canadian boat sailed through the Northwest Passage in a month--and barely encountered any ice at all!! Read the account, "Through Northwest Passage in a Month, Ice-Free", at ClimateArk.org.
It is also possible that Amundsen's first expedition on the Belgica would not have gotten trapped in the Antarctic Ice had they gone in 2000. The Southern ice pack is also growing smaller.
What does this mean? Why is the ice disappearing? How will it affect plants and animals that live in the Arctic? Could sea levels rise? Find the answers to these questions and more with HLN's Global Warming Web Quest. Then check your answers here
Additional Resources
Here is a list of the sites you'll need to complete the Web Quest:
Arctic Questions
Antarctic Questions
Global Warming Questions
Other Resources
LESSON 3:
Ozone Depletion Over Antarctica: A Hole at the Bottom of the World
Concepts:
You will learn graphing skills and a basic understanding of ozone chemistry and the ozone that forms over the Antarctic Region every year.
Lesson:
In this lesson, created by the Exploratorium and NASA, students explore the chemistry of ozone and investigate a hole that been forming in the ozone layer every year over the Antarctic region. Students then graph the differences in the thickness of the ozone layer for a specific location.
Just go to the Graphing Stratospheric Ozone site and follow directions. Students will need graph paper to complete this project.
Additional Resources:
LESSON 4:
Inuit: People of the Ice
Concepts:
You will learn about the culture and people of the Canadian polar regions.
Lesson:
During their journey through the Northwest Passage, Amundsen and the crew of the Gjøa spent two winters on the south side of King William Island sheltered in a tiny cove. They named their camp Gjøa Haven. During their long stay, the crew of the Gjøa made friends with a local Iniut village and learned many of their ways. Some said that Amundsen and his crew had "gone native" because they adopted the dress, ice igloo houses, and dog sledding methods of the Inuit people. Amundsen used Inuit methods in many of his future expeditions, and this contributed greatly to his renowned success as a Polar explorer. Read more about this chapter in Amundsen's adventures at the Northwest Passage page at Framheim.com.
Roald Amundsen learned valuable skills and gained a deep understanding of the Arctic from his Inuit friends. In this lesson, students will get a chance to explore the Inuit culture that Amundsen admired.
Have students complete the activities on the Inuit activity worksheet.
Inuit & Polar Peoples Resources
General Resources
- The World Around Me
A large Inuit Art Database. This is an excellent database of Inuit Art, Legends, and Cultural Materials. Included are an excellent set of lesson plans and activities for kids in grades K-9.
- Arctic Studies Center
- Nunavut
Arts
Language & Literature
LESSON 5:
Exercise, Inuit style!
Concepts:
You will learn about Inuit games and athletic competitions.
Lesson:
How about some fun and games to keep your children in shape? Here is a set of Inuit Games to try out. Amundsen worked hard to keep in top shape. He and his crew probably played these games too! They are excellent training for both strength and dexterity.
- Inuit (Eskimo) Games
This page contains descriptions and illustrations of Inuit games. Some are not traditional and some require special equipment.
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LESSON 6:
Magnetic North Versus True North
Concepts:
You will learn about the Earth's magnetic poles and simple magnetism.
Lesson:
When Amundsen and his crew wintered over at Gjøa Haven, they had a purpose-to map the magnetic north pole. They spent 19 months working on magnetic observations of the magnetic north pole and eventually dogsledded to its exact location. Because the magnetic north pole had been located once before in a different spot, they were able to prove that magnetic north shifted location and was not stable.
Have students complete the activities here.
Additional Resources
Show your students the different historical locations of the Magnetic north pole at:
LESSON 7:
Iceblox & Polar Pairs
Concepts:
You will practice eye-hand coordination.
Lesson:
Ok! It's time for a little recreation!
Check out this Iceblox Game and save the penguins at this ThinkQuest Antarctica site.
You can also try out the Polar Pairs Game from the Arctic Studies Center. In this Java-based game kids learn fun facts about polar animals.
Go on and explore the sites Arctic Wildlife Portfolio to learn still more about Arctic animals.
Article by Laurie Furumoto, HLN Curriculum Development
Article © Homeschool Learning Network, All Rights Reserved.
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