Finn Malmgren

Adventurer and scientist

After writing an acclaimed doctoral thesis on the properties of sea ice, he joined the famous Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen on a long Arctic Ocean expedition from 1922 to 1925. He was also part of the crew of Roald Amundsen and Italian engineer and airline captain Umberto Nobile's voyage with the airship Norway, which made the first flight over the North Pole on May 12, 1926. For his efforts, Finn Malmgren was twice awarded the Norwegian medal of merit, the Order of St. Olav. During an expedition to the North Pole in 1928 with Umberto Nobile, the airship crashed. Finn Malmgren and two other expedition members set off to get help but his body was never found. Finn Malmgren was posthumously awarded the Italian Order of the Crown for his efforts. In an attempt to rescue those in distress, Amundsen also died.