Alfred Wegener (Nov. 1, 1880 - Nov. 1930) studied in Berlin, Heidelberg, and Innsbruck. After obtaining his doctorate in 1904, this geophysicist, meteorologist, and climatologist followed his brother Kurt to the Aerological Observatory in Lindenberg. Alfred Wegener's first expedition from 1906 to 1908 was to set the course taken during the rest of his life, for Greenland became the place he carried out the bulk of his research work. He was described by a contemporary as"quiet man with a charming smile" From 1909 to 1919 as a lecturer at the University of Marburg, he began to search for paleontological, climatological and geological evidence in support of his theory of continental drift, which he first presented to the scientific world in 1912. Wegener also conducted research on thermodynamics and cloud physics. After expeditions to Greenland in 1906 and 1912, he returned in 1929 and 1930, as a professor at the University of Graz, aiming to measure the thickness of ice with the help of a new technique. In November 1930, he and his companion Rasmus Villumsen died while returning from camp in the middle of the Greenland ice to their base camp on the west coast, about 400 kilometers away.
This story was filmed over a period of two years (1930/31). See RG-60.3660, Film ID 2602 and RG-60.3647, Film ID 2587 for other parts of this film.
Alfred Wegener took part in four expeditions to Greenland. He was the only German to participate in a Danish expedition led by Ludvig Mylius-Erichsen - the so-called 'Denmark Expedition of 1906-08' - to explore and survey the as yet unknown regions of northeast Greenland. He applied the techniques for aerological research of the upper atmosphere and conducted the first ever meteorological studies to be performed in a polar climate, using kites and fixed balloons at heights of up to 3000 meters. He later used the results for his thesis. He also gathered the basic experience of living and traveling in Greenland, writing in his diary,"I believe that the decision to participate in this expedition will be decisive for my whole life" In 1912/13, Wegener and Danish glaciologist Johann Peter Koch returned to Greenland. After wintering in northeast Greenland, during which they performed glaciological and climatological measurements, they succeeded in traversing northern Greenland from east to west with two other team members. Half-starved, they finally reached their destination on July 15, 1913; their horses did not survive the ordeal, and it was only by chance that they were rescued by an Inuit. Later, Wegener said that this expedition was his most successful and happiest undertaking. Wegener planned and led his last two expeditions to Greenland, which were subsequently named the 'Alfred Wegener German Expedition to Greenland.' He carried out a preliminary expedition in 1929 with Johannes Georgi, Fritz Loewe, and Ernst Sorge to explore the glacier for ascent. His main expedition in 1930/31 with fourteen German participants was to create an all-year meteorological and glaciological profile of Greenland's inland ice sheet with three stations. In November 1930, Wegener and his Inuit companion, Rasmus Villumsen, died after trying to provide the central 'Eismitte' station with sufficient supplies for the winter. The expedition was completed by his brother, Kurt Wegener.
This is part two of a three part film of which the USHMM has all three parts. (Film IDs 2587, 2591, and 2602). Footage of Alfred Wegener and his crew during his expedition to Greenland. VS of crew, dogs, and sleds, travelling across and charting this seemingly endless frozen tundra. VS of crew carrying equipment up snowy, icy mountains in order to set up their work station, majestic views of the mountains and struggles to get sleds loaded with equipment to the work station. Horses are also used to help pull carry cargo. There are several good CUs in this story of the faces of the people of Greenland, and several good MCUs of the dogs jockeying for position as they are leading the sleds across the tundra.
German educational film: Alfred Wegener and The Greenland Expedition