Johan Peter Koch (15 January 1870 – 13 January 1928) was a
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
captain and explorer of the
Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...
dependencies of Denmark, born at
Vestenskov. He was the uncle of the geologist
Lauge Koch
Lauge Koch (5 July 1892 – 5 June 1964) was a Danish geologist and Arctic explorer.
Biography
Lauge Koch was born in 1892 to Karl and Elisabeth Koch. His development as a scientist was greatly influenced by his father's second cousin Johan P ...
Career
J.P. Koch participated in
Amdrup's expedition to east
Greenland
Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...
in 1900 and was one of the general staff of the surveying expeditions to
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
in 1903–1904.
In 1906–1908 he was a member of the ill-fated
Denmark expedition led by
Ludvig Mylius-Erichsen, which mapped the last pieces of the northeastern coast of
Greenland
Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...
. On the death of Mylius-Erichsen and two others on a long sled voyage from
Danmarkshavn to
Peary Land
Peary Land is a peninsula in northern Greenland, extending into the Arctic Ocean. It reaches from Victoria Fjord in the west to Independence Fjord in the south and southeast, and to the Arctic Ocean in the north, with Cape Morris Jesup, the nort ...
, Koch along with the
Greenlander Tobias Gabrielsen searched for the lost party, and found only the Greenlander
Jørgen Brønlund on whose body were recovered the charts hand drawn by
Niels Peter Høeg Hagen
Niels Peter Høeg Hagen (15 October 1877 – 15 November 1907) was a Danish military officer, polar explorer and cartographer. He participated and perished in the ill-fated Denmark expedition to NE Greenland in 1906.
The Denmark expedition
...
which completed the map of Greenland.
In 1907 Koch, together with
Aage Bertelsen
Aage Bertelsen (28 September 1873 – 9 September 1945) was a Danish painter. He was a member of the Denmark Expedition to North-East Greenland. He has also worked for Kähler Keramik in Næstved.
Biography Early life and career
Aage Bertels ...
, was reported to have first seen
Fata Morgana Land
Fata Morgana Land ( da, Fata Morgana Landet) is a phantom island first sighted in the Arctic, off the north-eastern coast of Greenland in 1907 by J.P. Koch and Aage Bertelsen. It has been reported between Greenland and Svalbard, at the northern ...
( da, Fata Morgana Landet), a
phantom island supposedly lying between NE Greenland and Svalbard. This elusive land was allegedly seen as well by
Lauge Koch
Lauge Koch (5 July 1892 – 5 June 1964) was a Danish geologist and Arctic explorer.
Biography
Lauge Koch was born in 1892 to Karl and Elisabeth Koch. His development as a scientist was greatly influenced by his father's second cousin Johan P ...
from the air in 1933.
Koch later led a sled expedition across the inland ice of Greenland in 1912–13, with
Alfred Wegener
Alfred Lothar Wegener (; ; 1 November 1880 – November 1930) was a German climatologist, geologist, geophysicist, meteorologist, and polar researcher.
During his lifetime he was primarily known for his achievements in meteorology and ...
, Vigfús Sigurðsson, and Lars Larsen.
Honours
Koch received, among other honors, the Vega medal of the
Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography
The Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography (SSAG; sv, Svenska Sällskapet för Antropologi och Geografi) is a scientific learned society founded in December 1877. It was established after a rearrangement of various sections of the Anthropo ...
. He also became a member of the
International Polar Commission
International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations".
International may also refer to:
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* ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011
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* ''International'' (The T ...
.
J.P. Koch Land in north-west Greenland was named after him. This ice-free peninsula is bounded by the
Greenland Ice Sheet on the west side. There, next to the glacier, is mountain, which is the highest mountain in this land and also the northernmost basalt mountain in Greenland. On the north side, J.P. Koch land is bounded by
Upernavik Icefjord, in the west and south by
Eqaluarssuit Fjord (
sv). The land is about 1010 square-km in area.
The
J.P. Koch Glacier was named in his honour.
Publications
* ''Meddelelser om Grønland'', xxvi, xlvii (50 volumes, Copenhagen, 1876–1912)
See also
*
Cartographic expeditions to Greenland
This is a list of recognised pioneering expeditions to Greenland that contributed to the cartography of the territory.
See also
* Geography of Greenland
* Arctic exploration
* List of Arctic expeditions
This list of Arctic expeditions is a t ...
References
1870 births
1928 deaths
Danish explorers
Scandinavian explorers of North America
Greenlandic polar explorers
Explorers of the Arctic
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