The sixth Norwegian Antarctic Expedition (''Den norske antarktisekspedisjonen'') was a scientific expedition to

Queen Maud Land Queen Maud Land ( no, Dronning Maud Land) is a roughly region of Antarctica claimed by Norway as a dependent territory. It borders the claimed British Antarctic Territory 20° west and the Australian Antarctic Territory 45° east. In addit ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...

. The expedition was based at Norway Station () which was located on the

Fimbul Ice Shelf The Fimbul Ice Shelf is an Antarctic ice shelf about long and wide, nourished by Jutulstraumen Glacier, bordering the coast of Queen Maud Land from 3°W to 3°E. It was photographed from the air by the Third German Antarctic Expedition (1938 ...

bordering the coast of Queen Maud Land. The expedition carried out survey work and scientific studies over a period of three-four years (1956–1960). The expedition was intended as part of Norway's participation in the

International Geophysical Year The International Geophysical Year (IGY; french: Année géophysique internationale) was an international scientific project that lasted from 1 July 1957 to 31 December 1958. It marked the end of a long period during the Cold War when scientific ...

, 1957-58. The crew set sail from

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

on board two whaling ships, the ''Polarsirkel'' and ''Polarbjørn'', on 10 November 1956. The expedition was led by

Sigurd Gunnarson Helle Sigurd Gunnarson Helle (6 September 1920 – 21 April 2013) was a Norwegian topographer and explorer. He was born in Hylestad. He graduated from the University of Oslo with the cand.mag. degree in 1948. He was a research assistant for Carl Størme ...

, a

geodesist Geodesy ( ) is the Earth science of accurately measuring and understanding Earth's figure (geometric shape and size), orientation in space, and gravity. The field also incorporates studies of how these properties change over time and equival ...

Norsk Polarinstitutt The Norwegian Polar Institute (NPI; no, Norsk Polarinstitutt) is Norway's central governmental institution for scientific research, mapping and environmental monitoring in the Arctic and the Antarctic. The NPI is a directorate under Norway's Mi ...

. It included a total crew of fourteen researchers which was reduced to nine during the third year. Among their activities were topological mapping of the region. In 1960, King

Olav V of Norway Olav V (; born Prince Alexander of Denmark; 2 July 1903 – 17 January 1991) was the King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Olav was the only child of King Haakon VII of Norway and Maud of Wales. He became heir apparent to the Nor ...

instituted the

Antarctic Medal The Antarctic Medal is a civil decoration of Norway. Established by King Olav V on 3 February 1960, it was awarded to the individuals associated with the Sixth Norwegian Antarctic Expedition The sixth Norwegian Antarctic Expedition (''Den norske ...

(''Antarktismedaljen'') commemorating the expedition which was awarded to 37 people who were attached to the expedition in various ways.

References

Norwegian Antarctic Expedition Expeditions from Norway Norway and the Antarctic 1956 in Antarctica 1957 in Antarctica 1958 in Antarctica 1959 in Antarctica 1960 in Antarctica {{Antarctica-stub