Mikhail Mikhailovich Somov (Russian:Михаил Михайлович Сомов; 7 April [O.S. 25 March] 1908, inMoscow – 30 December 1973, inLeningrad) was aSovietoceanologist,polar explorer,Doctor of Geographical Sciences (1954).
Somov graduated from theMoscow Hydrometeorological Institute in 1937. In 1939, he was appointed senior researcher at the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute. In 1950–1951, Mikhail Somov headed a drift-ice stationNorth Pole-2.[1] In 1955–1957, he became the commander of thefirstSoviet Antarctic Expedition. Mikhail Somov was also the first Soviet delegate to theScientific Committee on Antarctic Research.[2]
TheSomov Sea north ofVictoria Land and aglacier inQueen Maud Land (bothEast Antarctica) bear Mikhail Somov's name, as well as a scientificicebreaker. Aminor planet3334 Somov discovered by Czech astronomerAntonín Mrkos in 1981 is named after him.[3] Somov was awarded the titleHero of the Soviet Union in 1952.[2]
