Gunnar Horn
Encyclopedia
Gunnar Hansen Horn was a Norwegian
petroleum geologist and Arctic explorer. He is most renowned as the leader of the Bratvaag Expedition
that found the long-lost remains of S. A. Andrée's Arctic balloon expedition of 1897
at Kvitøya
in 1930.
, graduating in 1916. He then studied petroleum geology
at London's Royal School of Mines, and took a PhD in coal petrography at the Berlin Technical University. He was the leading Norwegian authority on coal and petroleum geology in the interwar years. He worked from 1920 to 1923 as a petroleum geologist in Trinidad
and Venezuela
. In the autumn of 1925, Horn travelled with Johan Braastad to the eastern shores of the Caspian Sea
to investigate local oil resources.
After returning from Trinidad, he worked on Norway's Svalbard and Arctic Ocean Surveys. That included investigating and analyses all the most important coal measures on Svalbard. He also studied karst topography
. In addition to his purely scientific work, Horn also had important practical and administrative duties in the Arctic islands.
During 1930, he headed an expedition with the sealer Bratvaag which found the camp
of Swedish Arctic scientist Salomon August Andrée on Kvitøya
. Other expeditions went to East Greenland and Franz Josef Land
.
Horn died in 1946 while in charge of building radio stations and beacons in Svalbard.
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...
petroleum geologist and Arctic explorer. He is most renowned as the leader of the Bratvaag Expedition
Bratvaag Expedition
The Bratvaag Expedition was a Norwegian expedition in 1930 led by Dr. Gunnar Horn, whose official tasks were hunting seals and to study glaciers and seas in the Svalbard Arctic region. The name of the expedition was taken from its ship, M/S Bratvaag of Ålesund, in which captain Peder Eliassen had...
that found the long-lost remains of S. A. Andrée's Arctic balloon expedition of 1897
S. A. Andrée's Arctic balloon expedition of 1897
S. A. Andrée's Arctic balloon expedition of 1897 was an ill-fated effort to reach the North Pole in which all three expedition members perished. S. A. Andrée , the first Swedish balloonist, proposed a voyage by hydrogen balloon from Svalbard to either Russia or Canada, which was to pass,...
at Kvitøya
Kvitøya
Kvitøya is an island in the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, with an area of . It is located at , making it the easternmost part of the Kingdom of Norway...
in 1930.
Career
Horn studied mining at the Norwegian Institute of TechnologyNorwegian Institute of Technology
The Norwegian Institute of Technology, known by its Norwegian abbrevation NTH was a science institute in Trondheim, Norway. It was established in 1910, and existed as an independent technical university for 85 years, after which it was merged into the University of Trondheim as an independent...
, graduating in 1916. He then studied petroleum geology
Petroleum geology
Petroleum geology refers to the specific set of geological disciplines that are applied to the search for hydrocarbons .-Sedimentary basin analysis:...
at London's Royal School of Mines, and took a PhD in coal petrography at the Berlin Technical University. He was the leading Norwegian authority on coal and petroleum geology in the interwar years. He worked from 1920 to 1923 as a petroleum geologist in Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
and Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
. In the autumn of 1925, Horn travelled with Johan Braastad to the eastern shores of the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
to investigate local oil resources.
After returning from Trinidad, he worked on Norway's Svalbard and Arctic Ocean Surveys. That included investigating and analyses all the most important coal measures on Svalbard. He also studied karst topography
Karst topography
Karst topography is a geologic formation shaped by the dissolution of a layer or layers of soluble bedrock, usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite, but has also been documented for weathering resistant rocks like quartzite given the right conditions.Due to subterranean drainage, there...
. In addition to his purely scientific work, Horn also had important practical and administrative duties in the Arctic islands.
During 1930, he headed an expedition with the sealer Bratvaag which found the camp
S. A. Andrée's Arctic balloon expedition of 1897
S. A. Andrée's Arctic balloon expedition of 1897 was an ill-fated effort to reach the North Pole in which all three expedition members perished. S. A. Andrée , the first Swedish balloonist, proposed a voyage by hydrogen balloon from Svalbard to either Russia or Canada, which was to pass,...
of Swedish Arctic scientist Salomon August Andrée on Kvitøya
Kvitøya
Kvitøya is an island in the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, with an area of . It is located at , making it the easternmost part of the Kingdom of Norway...
. Other expeditions went to East Greenland and Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land, Franz Joseph Land, or Francis Joseph's Land is an archipelago located in the far north of Russia. It is found in the Arctic Ocean north of Novaya Zemlya and east of Svalbard, and is administered by Arkhangelsk Oblast. Franz Josef Land consists of 191 ice-covered islands with a...
.
Horn died in 1946 while in charge of building radio stations and beacons in Svalbard.