Sverdrup's Fram expedition (1898–1902) took place in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago (Second Fram Voyage or Second Fram Expedition; Norwegian: Den andre Framekspedisjonen) under Otto Sverdrup. The expedition ship Fram was modernized to increase cargo capacity and to accommodate a crew of 16. Originally, the expedition was planned for the northern coast of Greenland, but weather and ice conditions prevented the realization of this plan, so Sverdrup decided to explore the southern part of Ellesmere Island. The Norwegian team discovered Sverdrup islands and completed the mapping of the southern part of Ellesmere Island and the northern part of Devon Island. In total, approximately of islands were surveyed and mapped. Due to severe ice conditions, the fourth —unplanned— winter campaign took place in 1901–1902. Extreme weather conditions and uncertain plans led to the loss of two men in 1899.
Otto Sverdrup declared all the territories discovered during the expedition as Norwegian possessions, but the government in Stockholm at the time did not claim them. In 1930, on behalf of Norway, Sverdrup turned over all materials and maps to Canada, which extended its sovereignty over the islands (nowadays the territory of Nunavut).
Otto Sverdrup developed and systematized Norwegian methods and techniques of travel and survival in Arctic conditions during the 1898–1902 expedition. In many ways, Sverdrup's achievements served as the basis for Roald Amundsen's expedition to the South Pole in 1910–1911. The publication of the scientific report of the expedition, which took more than 20 years, was completed in 1930; a popular description of the expedition in two volumes of New Land, that was published by Sverdrup in 1903 and translated into English in 1904. Despite its success and great scientific achievements, Sverdrup's expedition was less well known than the first and third voyages of the Fram.
Preparation
Goals and plans The rise of national consciousness in Norway and the success of the first Fram expedition led to a desire to expand Norway's presence in the High Arctic — the country became a center of polar research. The polar ambitions of Fridtjof Nansen, the first man to cross Greenland (1888) and the successful drifter in the ice of the central Arctic (1893–1896), went even further. Having set himself the task of reaching both the North and South Poles, he repeatedly consulted with Otto Sverdrup about the possibilities of new expeditions. Sverdrup agreed to play the role of wingman, ensuring the expedition team's delivery to the site.
The preliminary plan for the new expedition was ready by September 1896, when Nansen and Sverdrup had just arrived in Christiania (Oslo). During the unloading of the Fram at Lysaker Nansen proposed Sverdrup as the leader of the new long voyage.Sverdrup O. New land; four years in the Arctic regions / Translated from the Norwegian by E. H. Hearn. L. : Longmans, Green and Co, 1904. Vol. I. p. 1. The idea was suggested by the Fram's privateers, Axel Heiberg, and the brewers Ellef and Amund Ringnes. They also undertook the financing of the new expedition, which they originally wanted Nansen to lead, but he had just been reunited with his family and was also too busy with his scientific work — processing the data collected on the Fram.
The destination of the new expedition was Greenland, which at the end of the 19th century was almost completely unknown from its northern and northeastern coasts. The Fram was to pass through Davis Strait and on through Smith Sound, Kane Basin, Kennedy Channel, Hall Basin and Robeson Channel, possibly as far north as ice conditions would allow. Drifting through the ice was not anticipated. From the northernmost point reached by the ship, the dogsled team was to sail northeast along the northern tip of Greenland to the more explored eastern coasts of the island. They would also explore Peary Land, which the American explorer had discovered with Astrup in 1893 and which he considered a separate polar archipelago. The goal was not to conquer the North Pole, which Sverdrup emphasized on the very first page of his expedition report.
Sverdrup realized that this ambitious plan was practically unrealizable, as it was based on the assumption that ice conditions would be ideal. No ship could reach the northern coast of Greenland at that time, so Sverdrup reserved the right to change the route of the expedition if the ice conditions were unfavorable. The drift of 1893–1896 presented a lot of conclusions for the organization and equipment of the new expedition, repairs and modernization were needed and the ship, so Sverdrup scheduled the campaign for the summer of 1898. For the 1897 season, Captain Sverdrup took command of the tourist liner Lofoten to take travelers to Svalbard for hunting and to admire the Arctic scenery; his name also served as an advertisement for the armorer's company. Sverdrup also hoped to see the start of André's Swedish balloon expedition; the Fram crew had seen its members the previous year, 1896.
Fundings and equipment
All expenses were borne by the Fram privateers: each contributed one third of the total. The total cost of the expedition was about 220,000 krones (12,000 pound sterling).Sverdrup O. New land; four years in the Arctic regions / Translated from the Norwegian by E. H. Hearn. L. : Longmans, Green and Co, 1904. Vol. II. p. 452.In the following, the conversion from Norwegian kroner to pounds sterling is made by Ethel Harriet Hearn, the translator of Sverdrup's report. Sverdrup wrote almost nothing about the equipment of the expedition, except to say that everything was done as well as possible. Most of the scientific equipment and provisions for the 3 years ahead came from abroad.Sverdrup O. New land; four years in the Arctic regions / Translated from the Norwegian by E. H. Hearn. L. : Longmans, Green and Co, 1904. Vol. I. p. 2.
As the Fram was state property, the Storting allocated 20,000 krones (about £1,100) in 1897 to renovate the ship.Sverdrup O. New land; four years in the Arctic regions / Translated from the Norwegian by E. H. Hearn. L. : Longmans, Green and Co, 1904. Vol. I. pp. 1-2. The 1893–1896 expedition had shown that the living quarters were too cramped and uncomfortable, and the new tasks made it necessary to increase the crew to 16 men. The Fram's seaworthiness also left much to be desired: the hull, designed for ice pressure, was wobbly, the ship was capricious in steering, turning too quickly to the wind under sail, and also had a low speed. In July 1897, the Fram was towed to Colin Archer's shipyard in Larvik. All changes in the ship's design were justified by the shipbuilder himself. Sverdrup and Archer decided to add a deck on the upper deck from the engine room to the bow. The height of the freeboard was increased by 7 ft. The superstructure was about 20 meters long and 10 meters wide to accommodate the crew. A large wardroom (which was used as a dining room for the entire crew) and 6 cabins for the command and scientific staff were now organized in the upper room, and 10 men of the rank and file were accommodated in the old living quarters aft.10 persons of the Fram's crew were accommodated in individual cabins of 2×2 meters; two aft cabins were equipped with 3 berths for sailors and stokers, but due to the daily rhythm of watches and long sledge trips, all these berths were occupied at the same time only in exceptional cases. There was a piano in the forward saloon for officers and scientists. According to J. Kinney, the living quarters of the Fram were considered extremely comfortable for a sailing ship of the time The cabins were insulated both in the usual Fram manner (with deer wool) and with an innovation — a one-foot air gap filled with crushed cork. The holds had ceilings insulated with cork and cardboard to reduce condensation.
The forward saloon received natural light — a porthole was installed in the ceiling. The living quarters were heated by stoves in the cabins and ventilated by a chimney. The electrical equipment was removed in 1896, so the Fram was heated and lit by kerosene. A high bulwark was added to improve the keel. The foremast was extended by to match the length of the Bisan mast. The propulsion system (a 220-horsepower triple-expansion steam engine) remained unchanged. The boiler consumed about 2.8 tons of coal per day at maximum load. Measurements after the reconstruction showed that the tonnage of the Fram was 510 gross register tons, compared to 402 tons in 1893.
Crew
Of the participants of the previous expedition to the Arctic, Captain Sverdrup took only the harpooner P. Henriksen with him. Of the 16 members of the expedition, 11 were professional seamen from the merchant or military navy. Two were not Norwegian: they were scientists — the Danish zoologist Bai and the Swedish botanist Simmons. According to I. P. Magidovich, Swedrup managed to create "a remarkably well-coordinated research team, the like of which was unknown in the history of the exploration of the Western Arctic".Gerard Kinney reported that Sverdrup tried to recruit experienced skier Herman Smith-Johannsen to the team, but was unable to persuade him to sign a contract. Johansen later settled in Canada and became famous as a ski jump builder and ski advocate. He died in 1987 at the age of 111.
Otto Neumann Sverdrup — ship commander, chief of the expedition; the oldest member of the expedition (he was 43 years old). Victor Baumann — First Assistant Commander, Lieutenant Commander of the Norwegian Navy (since 1895). He studied two years at the University of Berlin in the physics department; he had skills as a topographer and assistant in scientific observations. Olaf Rones (Norwegian: Olaf Raanes) — navigator of the Fram. A fisherman from the Lofoten Islands, he passed the navigator's examination and served with the Vesteraalen Steamship Company. Gunerius Ingvald Isachsen was a cartographer and first lieutenant in the cavalry. Herman Georg Simmons was a botanist of Swedish nationality. He graduated from the Lund University, in 1895 participated in a botanical expedition to the Faroe Islands. Edvard Bay was a zoologist of Danish nationality. He graduated from the University of Copenhagen and joined Eider's expedition to Greenland in 1891. He was not very fond of physical work, preferring to stay indoors, but was an accomplished skier and Sverdrup's constant companion on long-distance treks. Johan Svendsen was a medical doctor. After graduating in 1893, he worked at Bergen Hospital and briefly as a ship's doctor on the Hamburg-America liners. For several years he practiced on the Lofoten Islands. On 10 June 1899, he shot himself. He was the only member of the expedition who had not undergone a medical examination. Per Schei (Norwegian: Peder Elisæus Schei) was a geologist and mineralogist. He graduated from Christiania University in 1898. Peder Leonard Hendriksen — harpooner, experienced Arctic skipper. Participated in the Fram expedition in 1893–1896. Karl Olsen — chief engineer. Graduated from the engineering school with distinction in 1893. Jacob Nodtvedt (Norwegian: Jacob Nødtvedt) — second engineer, stoker and handyman. Later he participated in Amundsen's expeditions to the Arctic in 1903–1906 and to the Antarctic in 1910–1912. Ivar Fosheim — Hunter and sailor. A well-known sportsman in Norway at the time, he was the founder of a sanatorium in Valdres. Sverdrup added him to the crew as an experienced hunter and fisherman.