Arved Fuchs (born 26 April 1953) is a German polar explorer and writer.

Polar exploration

On 30 December 1989, Fuchs and

Reinhold Messner Reinhold Andreas Messner (; born 17 September 1944) is an Italian mountaineer, explorer, and author from South Tyrol. He made the first solo ascent of Mount Everest and, along with Peter Habeler, the first ascent of Everest without supplemental ...

were the first to reach the

South Pole The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole, Terrestrial South Pole or 90th Parallel South, is one of the two points where Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on Earth and lies antipod ...

with neither animal nor motorised help, using skis and a parasail. That made him the first person to reach both poles by foot within one year. Many of his expeditions have taken place on water, such as his failed attempt to sail around North Pole on a traditional sailing boat (1991–1994). This boat, ''Dagmar Aaen'', is still used by Fuchs on his current expeditions. In 2000, Fuchs led an expedition to recreate

Ernest Shackleton Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (15 February 1874 – 5 January 1922) was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic. He was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of ...

's desperate sea journey in the James Caird from Elephant Island to South Georgia, and the subsequent land crossing of that island.

Recognition

In October 2017, Fuchs was awarded the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

for his merits to the protection of the environment.

Publications

References

External links

* 1953 births Explorers of Antarctica German explorers Living people People from Bad Bramstedt Recipients of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany South Pole {{Germany-explorer-stub