 Olaf Holtedahls research group onboard "Blaafjeld" during an expedition to Novaya Zemlya in 1921 |
Norway has long traditions in Arctic and polar research, and scientists from the University of Oslo were among the pioneers in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Geographically, this research has mainly been confined to the Svalbard archipelago and Norwegian Arctic waters. The natural sciences have traditionally been and still are the main scientific disciplines within polar research. This type of research has a prominent place in most countries, including Norway.
The Natural History Museum (NHM) and its precursors have conducted comprehensive research within various disciplines in Svalbard and other Arctic regions, and its scientific collections comprise a large number of samples from the Arctic. Many of the samples originate from the well-known Norwegian polar expeditions, including the Fram-, Gjøa-, and Maud-expeditions, and later on from fieldwork conducted by the museum,s own scientists.
NHM has in recent years continued the university’s long traditions of research in the Arctic and participates presently in a whole range of natural science projects in Arctic regions.