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Nikolay Nikolayevich Urvantsev (Russian:Никола́й Николáевич Урвáнцев; 29 January [O.S. 17 January] 1893 – 20 February 1985) was aSovietgeologist and explorer. He was born in the town ofLukoyanov in theLukoyanovsky Uyezd of theNizhny Novgorod Governorate of theRussian Empire to the family of a merchant. He graduated from theTomsk Engineering Institute in 1918.
Urvantsev was among the discoverers of theNorilskcoal basin and Norilskcopper-nickel ore region in 1919-1922 and was among the founders of Norilsk town.
In 1922, while leading a geological expedition, Urvantsev found evidence of the mysteriously disappearedAmundsen's 1918 Arctic expedition crew membersPeter Tessem and Paul Knutsen. Urvantsev recovered the mail and scientific data that the two ill-fatedNorwegians had been carrying. The valuable documents were lying abandoned on theKara Sea shore near the mouth of theZeledeyeva River.[1]
In 1930-1932 Urvantsev, together withGeorgy Ushakov, explored theSevernaya Zemlya archipelago where they discovered a number of islands. He published a book about the expedition,At the Severnaya Zemlya. He also explored other remote areas of Russia,Taimyr andCentral Siberian Plateau.
In 1933-34 the newly formedGlavsevmorput’ (Chief Administration of the Northern Sea Route) sent the steamerPravda toNordvik on the historical firstoil exploration expedition to Northern Siberia. This venture was led by Nikolay Urvantsev who travelled on thePravda along with his wife, Dr. Yelizaveta Ivanovna. She was the officer in charge of the medical care of the expedition.
During theStalinism era Urvantsev was several times wrongfully accused ofwrecking. He was convicted and had to serve inKarlag (Karagandalabor camp system) andNorillag (Norilsklabor camp system).
Urvantsev wasfully exonerated in 1954. Until his death he worked as Chair of the Arctic Geology Department in theScientific Research Institute of Arctic Geology (НИИГА, nowAll-Russian Scientific Research Institute of World Ocean Geology and Mineral Resources,VNII Okeanologiya, ВНИИ Океанология).
He was the recipient of twoOrders of Lenin and several medals and thehonorary title ofHonored Worker of Science. TheUSSR Geographical Society elected him an Honorary Member and awarded him the Great Gold Medal.
The mineral Urvantsevite honors his name.
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