American geophysicist
Albert Paddock Crary
(July 25, 1911 ? October 29, 1987), was an American pioneer polar
geophysicist
and
glaciologist
.
[1]
He was the first person to have set foot on both the North and South Poles, having made it to the
North Pole
on May 3, 1952 (with
Joseph O. Fletcher
and
William P. Benedict
) and then to the
South Pole
on February 12, 1961, as the leader of a team of eight.
[2]
The South Pole expedition set out from
McMurdo Station
on December 10, 1960, using three
Snowcats
with trailers. Crary was the seventh expedition leader to arrive at the South Pole by surface transportation (the six others before him were—in sequence—
Amundsen
,
Scott
,
Hillary
,
Fuchs
, a Russian expedition in 1959/60 from
Vostok base
, and Antero Havola).
[3]
He was widely admired for his intellect, wit, skills and as a great administrator for polar research expeditions.
[4]
Biography
[
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]
Crary was born in 1911 into a farming family in northern New York State. He was the second oldest in a family of 7 children. He was a physics major and geology student at
St. Lawrence University
in
Canton, New York
. He graduated in 1931
Phi Beta Kappa
from
St. Lawrence University
and then enrolled at
Lehigh University
to obtain a master's degree in physics. After spending years completing and facilitating research at both poles, Crary eventually settled in
Bethesda, Maryland
, with his wife and son.
[1]
His awards included the
Cullum Geographical Medal
(1959), the
Patron's Medal
(1963), and the
Vega Medal
(1972).
[1]
He died on October 29, 1987, at the
George Washington University Hospital
in
Washington, D.C.
[1]
Legacy
[
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]
In 1991, the
National Science Foundation
(NSF), which manages the
U.S. Antarctic Program
(USAP), honoured his memory by dedicating a state-of-the-art laboratory complex in his name, the
Albert P. Crary Science and Engineering Center
(CSEC) located in
McMurdo Station
. He was also honored by having the
Crary Mountains
(76 degrees 48' S, 117 degrees 40' W) and the
Crary Ice Rise
in Antarctica named for him as well.
[5]
Further information on the land feature of Antarctica:
Crary Fan
Contributions
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Dr. Crary contributed in a variety of important ways to his field including:
- Chief Scientist for Arctic T3,
Fletcher's Ice Island
, 1952?1955
- Established the United States Geological Headquarters for the
International Geophysical Year
, 1955
- Deputy Leader of United States science during the International Geophysical Year, 1957
- Leader of the U.S. seismic traverse of Ross Ice Shelf, 1957?58
- Leader, geophysical traverse W from Little America V, up Skelton Glacier to the Victoria Land plateau and W along the 78 parallel to c. 13130E, 1958?59
- Leader, geophysical traverse from McMurdo Station via Skelton Glacier to the South Pole, 1960?61
- Chief Scientist, United States Antarctic Research Program, 1960?1968
- Deputy then Director, Division of Environmental Sciences, National Science Foundation, 1969?1978
- Member of ACAN, 1961?76 (Chairman, 1974?76)
He worked with many notable scientists and famous institutions:
See also
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External links
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References
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