INHIGEO Anniversaries: New ‘Culture’ of Polar Research: 150 Years Ago

INHIGEO Anniversaries

A Laboratory in the Ice: Carl Weyprecht’s Vision of Polarforschung

In September 1875, the German-Austrian naval officer Carl Weyprecht (1838–81) delivered a

programmatic speech at the 48th Assembly of German Naturalists and Physicians in Graz, laying the intellectual foundation for a cooperative study of the polar regions. He campaigned for a novel, ‘scientific’ vision of Polarforschung (polar research), distinct from geographical explorations and called for the establishment of land-based, stationary observatories staffed by scientifically trained personnel conducting standardized measurements in coordination with international partners.

Read the post by Johannes Mattes (Austria) here.

Carl Weyprecht, 1871. Author: Adele Perlmutter. Source: Wien Museum, Inv.-Nr. 133023/1 (Public Domain).

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