• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Science / When Was Alfred Wegener’s Final Expedition To Greenland To Monitor and Study Arctic Weather?

When Was Alfred Wegener’s Final Expedition To Greenland To Monitor and Study Arctic Weather?

July 6, 2020 by Karen Hill

Alfred Wegener conducted four expeditions to Greenland to study its atmosphere and ice cap.

On the second expedition, he completed the longest crossing of an ice cap ever made on foot (750 miles).

The fourth expedition, in 1930, was to establish three weather stations on the island. One station on the west coast was set up without a problem, but bad weather was holding up progress on the inland station, 250 miles away.

Winter was approaching and the crew desperately needed more supplies.

Wegener led a relief party including 13 Greenlanders to deliver the supplies. The weather was so bad that all but one of the Greenlanders returned to home base.

Temperatures reached as low as -60°F. It took 40 days to cover the 250 miles, but Wegener was able to deliver the supplies.

He set out a couple of days later for the return trip to home base, but he did not make it.

Wegener died halfway back, probably from a heart attack.

Six months later on May 12, 1931, Wegener’s body was found in Greenland, and a pair of skis marked the grave site.

Related Facts

  • Which Explorers First Explored the Continents of the World?
  • History of Ice Cream
  • What was the European Age of Exploration?
  • Who Discovered Continental Drift theory and Why do the Earth’s continents drift and move over time?
  • Where Is Greenland Located and How Close Is Greenland To Canada and the North Pole?
  • How Warm Does Greenland Get In the Summer and What Is the Warmest Place In Greenland?

Filed Under: Science

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « What Is the Difference Between Paleontology, Archaeology and Anthropology and Why?
Next Post: What Was Louis Leakey’s Greatest Archaeological Find and What Does Homo Habilis Mean In Latin? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2020 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy