Emil Racovita
Encyclopedia
Emil Racoviţă was a Romania
n biologist
, zoologist
, speleologist
and explorer of Antarctica.
Together with Grigore Antipa
, he was one of the most noted promoters of natural sciences in Romania. Racoviţă was the first Romanian to have gone on a scientific research expedition to the Antarctic
, more than 100 years ago, as well as an influential professor, scholar and researcher.
to the Racoviţă family of Moldavia
n boyars, whose ancestors had ascended the throne of the country during the 18th century.
Racoviţă spent his childhood on the family estate, in Sorăneşti, Vaslui County
. He started his education in Iaşi, where he had Ion Creangă
as a teacher, and continued his secondary education at the "Institutele Unite" high school, taking his baccalauréat
in 1886. He then studied law at the University of Paris
, obtaining a law degree in 1889. But he did not pursue a law career, instead turning to the natural sciences. His mentor was zoologist and biologist Henri de Lacaze-Duthiers
, a professor at the Sorbonne
and at the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle
. Racoviţă earned a B.S. degree in 1891, and a Ph.D.
degree in 1896, for a thesis on Le lobe cephalique et l’encéphale des Annélides Polychète ("The cephalous lobe and the encephalon of polychaetous annelids
").
As a promising young scientist, Racoviţă was selected to be part of an international team that started out on a research expedition to Antarctica, aboard the ship Belgica
. The expedition was led by the Belgian officer Adrien de Gerlache
, who was also the ship's owner.
On 16 August 1897, under the aegis
of the Royal Society of Geography in Brussels
, Belgium
, the Belgica, a former Norwegian
wooden whaler
, left the port of Antwerp, setting sail for the South. It was the ship that gave its name to the whole expedition. The three-mast ship was equipped with a 160 horse-power engine.
The 19 members of the team were of various nationalities, a rare thing for that time. The first mate of the vessel was Roald Amundsen
(who was to conquer the South Pole
in 1911). Apart from Racoviţă, the team was made up of Belgian physicist
Émile Danco, Polish
geologist
and oceanographer Henryk Arctowski
with his assistant Antoni Bolesław Dobrowolski and American
physician
Frederick Cook
.
.
Belgica made the first daily meteorological
recordings and measurements in Antarctica, every hour, for a whole year. The scientists also collected information on oceanic currents and terrestrial magnetism, with as many as 10 volumes of scientific conclusions being published at the end of the expedition, which was considered a success.
Belgica returned to Europe
in 1899 without two team-members, who had died during the expedition: a young Belgian mariner and Émile Danco.
Racoviţă’s diary, published in 1899, makes mention of the difficulties that the team-members had to endure. Photos of the time show that he was hardly recognisable after returning from the expedition.
The results of his research were published in 1900, under the title La vie des animaux et des plantes dans l'Antarctique ("The life of animals and plants in Antarctica"). A year after his return, Racoviţă was appointed director of the Banyuls-sur-Mer
resort and editor of the review Archives de zoologie expérimentale et générale.
, Spain
, Algeria
, Italy
, and Slovenia
. He is considered to be, together with René Jeannel
, one of the founders of biospeleology. He was particularly interested in isopoda
, of which he discovered many.
In 1919, Racoviţă became head of the Biology Department at the Upper Dacia University (now the Babeş-Bolyai University
) in Cluj
. He founded the world's first Speleological Institute in 26 April 1920 there, first as a section which was, however, to function independently since 1956, with professor Constantin Motas. ISER (Institutul Speologic Emil Racoviţă —Romanian for The Emil Racoviţă Speleologic Institute), a branch of the Cluj institute was open in Bucharest
. In 1920, he became a member of the Romanian Academy
, and remained a major figure of scientific life in Romania until his death.
In 2006, the first Romanian Antarctic exploration station was named Law-Racoviţă
.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n biologist
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, zoologist
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
, speleologist
Speleology
Speleology is the scientific study of caves and other karst features, their make-up, structure, physical properties, history, life forms, and the processes by which they form and change over time...
and explorer of Antarctica.
Together with Grigore Antipa
Grigore Antipa
Grigore Antipa was a Romanian Darwinist biologist who studied the fauna of the Danube Delta and the Black Sea. Between 1892 and 1944 he was the director of the Bucharest Natural History Museum, which now bears his name....
, he was one of the most noted promoters of natural sciences in Romania. Racoviţă was the first Romanian to have gone on a scientific research expedition to the Antarctic
Antarctic
The Antarctic is the region around the Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica and the ice shelves, waters and island territories in the Southern Ocean situated south of the Antarctic Convergence...
, more than 100 years ago, as well as an influential professor, scholar and researcher.
Early life
Emil Racoviţă was born in IaşiIasi
Iași is the second most populous city and a municipality in Romania. Located in the historical Moldavia region, Iași has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Romanian social, cultural, academic and artistic life...
to the Racoviţă family of Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
n boyars, whose ancestors had ascended the throne of the country during the 18th century.
Racoviţă spent his childhood on the family estate, in Sorăneşti, Vaslui County
Vaslui County
Vaslui is a county of Romania, in the historical region Moldavia, with the seat at Vaslui.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 455,049 and the population density was 86/km².*Romanians - over 98%*Romas, other-Geography:...
. He started his education in Iaşi, where he had Ion Creangă
Ion Creanga
Ion Creangă was a Moldavian-born Romanian writer, raconteur and schoolteacher. A main figure in 19th century Romanian literature, he is best known for his Childhood Memories volume, his novellas and short stories, and his many anecdotes...
as a teacher, and continued his secondary education at the "Institutele Unite" high school, taking his baccalauréat
Baccalauréat
The baccalauréat , often known in France colloquially as le bac, is an academic qualification which French and international students take at the end of the lycée . It was introduced by Napoleon I in 1808. It is the main diploma required to pursue university studies...
in 1886. He then studied law at the University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
, obtaining a law degree in 1889. But he did not pursue a law career, instead turning to the natural sciences. His mentor was zoologist and biologist Henri de Lacaze-Duthiers
Henri de Lacaze-Duthiers
Félix Joseph Henri de Lacaze-Duthiers was a French biologist, anatomist and zoologist who was born in Montpezat in the department of Lot-et-Garonne. He studied medicine in Paris, and worked at Necker Hospital under Armand Trousseau . Later, with Jules Haime , he travelled to the Balearic Islands...
, a professor at the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
and at the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle
Muséum national d'histoire naturelle
The Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle is the National Museum of Natural History in Paris, France.- History :The museum was formally founded on 10 June 1793, during the French Revolution...
. Racoviţă earned a B.S. degree in 1891, and a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
degree in 1896, for a thesis on Le lobe cephalique et l’encéphale des Annélides Polychète ("The cephalous lobe and the encephalon of polychaetous annelids
Polychaete
The Polychaeta or polychaetes are a class of annelid worms, generally marine. Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that bear many bristles, called chaetae, which are made of chitin. Indeed, polychaetes are sometimes referred to as bristle worms. More than 10,000...
").
The Belgica expedition
Main article: Belgian Antarctic ExpeditionBelgian Antarctic Expedition
The Belgian Antarctic Expedition of 1897 to 1899, named after its expedition vessel Belgica, was the first expedition to winter in the Antarctic region.- Preparation and Surveying :...
RV Belgica
Belgica was and is the name of two Belgian research vessels, with a name derived ultimately from the Latin Gallia Belgica.See also...
. The expedition was led by the Belgian officer Adrien de Gerlache
Adrien de Gerlache
Baron Adrien Victor Joseph de Gerlache de Gomery was an officer in the Belgian Royal Navy who led the Belgian Antarctic Expedition of 1897 to 1899.-His early years:...
, who was also the ship's owner.
Ship and crew
Aegis
An aegis is a large collar or cape worn in ancient times to display the protection provided by a high religious authority or the holder of a protective shield signifying the same, such as a bag-like garment that contained a shield. Sometimes the garment and the shield are merged, with a small...
of the Royal Society of Geography in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, the Belgica, a former Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
wooden whaler
Whaler
A whaler is a specialized ship, designed for whaling, the catching and/or processing of whales. The former included the whale catcher, a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bows. The latter included such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early...
, left the port of Antwerp, setting sail for the South. It was the ship that gave its name to the whole expedition. The three-mast ship was equipped with a 160 horse-power engine.
The 19 members of the team were of various nationalities, a rare thing for that time. The first mate of the vessel was Roald Amundsen
Roald Amundsen
Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He led the first Antarctic expedition to reach the South Pole between 1910 and 1912 and he was the first person to reach both the North and South Poles. He is also known as the first to traverse the Northwest Passage....
(who was to conquer the South Pole
South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole...
in 1911). Apart from Racoviţă, the team was made up of Belgian physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
Émile Danco, Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
geologist
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
and oceanographer Henryk Arctowski
Henryk Arctowski
Henryk Arctowski was a Polish scientist, oceanographer and Antarctica's explorer.Henryck Arctowski, PhD, was born in Warsaw on 15 July 1871, and educated in Paris, Liege, Zurich and Lemberg. He was in charge of physical observations on the Belgian Antarctic Expedition of 1897–1899...
with his assistant Antoni Bolesław Dobrowolski and American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
Frederick Cook
Frederick Cook
Frederick Albert Cook was an American explorer and physician, noted for his claim of having reached the North Pole on April 21, 1908. This would have been a year before April 6, 1909, the date claimed by Robert Peary....
.
Scientific work
The team left the deck of the ship 22 times, in order to collect scientific data, to conduct investigations and experiments. Racoviţă was the first researcher to collect botanical and zoological samples from areas beyond the Antarctic CircleAntarctic Circle
The Antarctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs south of the Equator.-Description:...
.
Belgica made the first daily meteorological
Meteorology
Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries...
recordings and measurements in Antarctica, every hour, for a whole year. The scientists also collected information on oceanic currents and terrestrial magnetism, with as many as 10 volumes of scientific conclusions being published at the end of the expedition, which was considered a success.
The 1898 obstacles
The expedition encountered several hardships. Between 10 March 1898 and 14 March 1899, Belgica was caught between ice blocks, making it impossible to sail any further. It was a difficult year for the whole team. For instance, the crew had to carve a 75 meter-long canal through a 6 meter-thick layer of ice, in order to generate a waterway by which to sail to a navigable body of water.Belgica returned to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in 1899 without two team-members, who had died during the expedition: a young Belgian mariner and Émile Danco.
Racoviţă’s diary, published in 1899, makes mention of the difficulties that the team-members had to endure. Photos of the time show that he was hardly recognisable after returning from the expedition.
The results of his research were published in 1900, under the title La vie des animaux et des plantes dans l'Antarctique ("The life of animals and plants in Antarctica"). A year after his return, Racoviţă was appointed director of the Banyuls-sur-Mer
Banyuls-sur-Mer
Banyuls-sur-Mer is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-Geography:Banyuls-sur-Mer is neighbored by Cerbère, Port-Vendres, Argelès-sur-Mer and Collioure. The region is known for its wines, such as the sweet wine Banyuls. An aquatic museum with aquarium is located in...
resort and editor of the review Archives de zoologie expérimentale et générale.
Later life
Emil Racoviţă continued his research, contributing to speleology and exploring over 1,400 caves in FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, and Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
. He is considered to be, together with René Jeannel
René Jeannel
René Jeannel was a French entomologist. He was director of the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle from 1945-1951. Jeanell's most important work was on the insect fauna of caves in the Pyrenees, France and in the Carpathians, Romania. He also worked in Africa...
, one of the founders of biospeleology. He was particularly interested in isopoda
Isopoda
Isopods are an order of peracarid crustaceans, including familiar animals such as woodlice and pill bugs. The name Isopoda derives from the Greek roots and...
, of which he discovered many.
In 1919, Racoviţă became head of the Biology Department at the Upper Dacia University (now the Babeş-Bolyai University
Babes-Bolyai University
The Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca is an university in Romania. With almost 50,000 students, the university offers 105 specialisations, of which there are 105 in Romanian, 67 in Hungarian, 17 in German, and 5 in English...
) in Cluj
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
. He founded the world's first Speleological Institute in 26 April 1920 there, first as a section which was, however, to function independently since 1956, with professor Constantin Motas. ISER (Institutul Speologic Emil Racoviţă —Romanian for The Emil Racoviţă Speleologic Institute), a branch of the Cluj institute was open in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
. In 1920, he became a member of the Romanian Academy
Romanian Academy
The Romanian Academy is a cultural forum founded in Bucharest, Romania, in 1866. It covers the scientific, artistic and literary domains. The academy has 181 acting members who are elected for life....
, and remained a major figure of scientific life in Romania until his death.
In 2006, the first Romanian Antarctic exploration station was named Law-Racoviţă
Law-Racovita Station
Law-Racoviță Station is the first permanent Romanian station for research and exploration in Antarctica, named after the Romanian explorer Emil Racoviță and inaugurated on January 13, 2006 at the location of a station constructed in 1986 by Australia and donated to Romania...
.
Major works
- Essai sur les problèmes biospéologiques ("Essay on biospeleological problems"; 1907)
- Cétacés. Voyage du S. Y. Belgica en 1897-1899. Résultats scientifiques. Zoologie. J. E. Buschmann, Anvers, 1903.
- Énumération des grottes visitées, series 1-7. Archives de Zoologie expérimentale et générale, Paris, 1907-1929 (in colaboration cu R. Jeannel) ("Enumeration of visited caves")
- Speologia: O știință nouă a străvechilor taine subpământești. Astra, Secția Științelor naturale, Biblioteca populară, Cluj, 1927. ("Speleology: A new science of the old underworld misteries"; 1927)
- Evoluţia şi problemele ei ("Evolution and its problems"; 1929)