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

. 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

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: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''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)

References

1870 births 1928 deaths Danish explorers Scandinavian explorers of North America Greenlandic polar explorers Explorers of the Arctic {{explorer-stub

Career

Honours

Publications

See also

References