Explorers · Head-to-head
Roald Amundsen vs Thor Heyerdahl
Yes — based on their recorded years, Roald Amundsen (1872–1928) and Thor Heyerdahl (1914–2002) were alive at the same time for at least part of their lives.
Roald Amundsen
Roald Amundsen was a Norwegian polar explorer who led the first expedition to reach the South Pole in 1911, and later disappeared while participating in a rescue mission in the Arctic in 1928.
Key achievements
- Led the first expedition to successfully reach the South Pole in 1911.
- Was among the first explorers to navigate the Northwest Passage by sea.
- Led early expeditions toward the North Pole by air in the 1920s.
- Disappeared in 1928 while participating in a rescue mission for a fellow explorer in the Arctic.
Fast fact
Amundsen's expedition reached the South Pole in December 1911, about a month before the ill-fated British expedition led by Robert Falcon Scott, whose entire party died on the return journey.
Full profile of Roald Amundsen →Thor Heyerdahl
Thor Heyerdahl was a Norwegian adventurer and ethnographer best known for the 1947 Kon-Tiki expedition, in which he sailed a primitive hand-built raft across the Pacific Ocean to test a theory about ancient migration.
Key achievements
- Led the 1947 Kon-Tiki expedition across the Pacific Ocean on a hand-built raft.
- Aimed to demonstrate ancient transoceanic migration was possible using primitive vessels.
- Conducted further expeditions studying ancient seafaring migration theories.
- Wrote extensively about his expeditions, bringing his theories to a global popular audience.
Fast fact
Heyerdahl's 1947 Kon-Tiki expedition sailed roughly 8,000 kilometers across the Pacific Ocean on a hand-built balsa wood raft, aiming to demonstrate that ancient South American peoples could have settled Polynesia using similar vessels.
Full profile of Thor Heyerdahl →Who lived first, Roald Amundsen or Thor Heyerdahl?
Roald Amundsen (1872–1928) lived first, before Thor Heyerdahl (1914–2002), based on their recorded years.
Were Roald Amundsen and Thor Heyerdahl contemporaries?
Yes — based on their recorded years, Roald Amundsen (1872–1928) and Thor Heyerdahl (1914–2002) were alive at the same time for at least part of their lives.
What do Roald Amundsen and Thor Heyerdahl have in common?
Both Roald Amundsen and Thor Heyerdahl are grouped among our Explorers figures and lived during the Modern Era.