Leif Erikson Awards

The Leif Erikson Awards, sometimes referred to as the Exploration Awards,[1] are awarded annually by the Exploration Museum in Húsavík, Iceland, for achievements in exploration and for work in the field of exploration history.[2] They are awarded in three categories; to an explorer for a lifetime achievement in exploration; to a young explorer under the age of 35 for achievements in exploration; and to a person or an organization that has worked to promote and preserve exploration history.

Leif Erikson Awards
The Exploration Awards
Awarded for	achievements in exploration and for work in the field of exploration history.
Location	Húsavík
Country	Iceland
Website	explorationmuseum.com

The awards ceremony takes place annually in Húsavík. The Leif Erikson Awards are the main and final event of the annual Húsavík Explorers Festival. They were first awarded in 2015.[3]

The awards are named for Icelandic explorer Leif Erikson, considered as the first European to land in North America[4] and who, according to the Sagas of Icelanders, established the first Norse settlement at Vinland, tentatively identified with the Norse L'Anse aux Meadows on the northern tip of Newfoundland in modern-day Canada.

The President of Iceland, Guðni Th. Jóhannesson, and his predecessor, President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, have both presented the awards.[5]

Scientific Committee

The winners of the Leif Erikson awards are voted by the members of the Exploration Museum's Scientific Committee.[6] The committee is appointed for one year by the board of the museum, except for the chairperson, who is the winner of the previous year's Exploration History Award.[7][8][9]

2015

The 2015 Leif Erikson Awards were announced by the President of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, on 9 July at the Reykjavík University Auditorium. [10][11]

Winner	Award
Harrison Schmitt Apollo 17 astronaut  United States	Leif Erikson Award Awarded for his scientific work on the surface of the Moon in 1972 and for his part in the geology training of the astronauts that walked on the Moon before him.[12]
Jessica Watson Sailor  Australia	Young Explorer Award Awarded for completing a non-stop and unassisted southern hemisphere solo circumnavigation of the world at the age of 16.[13][14]
Huw Lewis-Jones Author and historian  United Kingdom	Exploration History Award Awarded for his writings on visual culture, seafaring, polar exploration, mountaineering, and remote environments.[15]

2016

The 2016 Leif Erikson Awards were announced by the President of Iceland, Guðni Th. Jóhannesson, on 22 October at the Explorers Festival in Húsavík.

Winner	Award
Scott Parazynski Astronaut and Mountaineer  United States	Leif Erikson Award Awarded for his lifetime of exploration, as a veteran of five Space Shuttle flights and seven spacewalks, and as the only astronaut to have summited Mount Everest.[16]
Tashi and Nungshi Malik Mountaineers  India	Young Explorer Award Awarded as the youngest persons, at the date, to have completed the Last Degree Explorers Grand Slam, at the age of 23. First siblings and twins to climb the Seven Summits and reach both Poles.[17]
Draken Harald Hårfagre crew and builders  Norway	Exploration History Award Awarded for their expedition to retrace the first trans-Atlantic crossing and the Viking discovery of the New World.[18]
Chris Burkard photographer  United States	Social Media Award Awarded for his work as and Adventure Photographer. Award presented by Ísafold Travel.[19]

2017

The 2017 Leif Erikson Awards were presented by BBC World News Anchor Babita Sharma, on 23 September at the Explorers Festival in Húsavík.[20]

Winner	Award
Edurne Pasaban Mountaineer  Spain	Leif Erikson Award Awarded for becoming the first woman to climb all of the fourteen eight-thousander peaks in the World between 2001 and 2010.[21]
Alex Bellini Sailor  Italy	Young Explorer Award Awarded for crossing both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans on a rowing boat, solo, within the age of 30. It took him 227 days to cover 11.000 km through the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, and he spent 294 days traversing the 18.000 km through the Pacific.[22]
Haraldur Sigurðsson Volcanologist  Iceland	Exploration History Award Awarded for his scientific commitment and writings on volcanology. He has carried out research on the Santorini volcano since 1975. His volcanic research also includes work on the famous eruption of Vesuvius in Italy in 79 AD, which buried Pompeii and Herculaneum.[23]

2018

The 2018 Leif Erikson Awards were presented by Around the world pilot and News Anchor Amelia Rose Earhart, on 23 September at the Explorers Festival in Húsavík.[24]

Winner	Award
Clive Oppenheimer Volcanologist  United Kingdom	Leif Erikson Award Awarded for his 13 field seasons investigating Mount Erebus, the most active volcano in Antarctica.
Jade Hameister Photographer, biologist, and author  Australia	Young Explorer Award Awarded for being the youngest person in history to achieve the "polar hat-trick" skiing to the Poles and crossing the Greenland icecap.
Cristina Mittermeier Photographer, biologist, and author  Mexico	Exploration History Award Awarded for her significant literary and photography works on environmental issues and the relationship between human cultures and biodiversity.[25]

2019

The 2019 Leif Erikson Awards were presented by Exploration Museum founder Orly Orlyson, on 19 October at the Explorers Festival in Húsavík.[26][27]

Winner	Award
Carolyn Porco Planetary Scientist  United States	Leif Erikson Award Awarded for her 35 years of exploration of the outer Solar System, she was a member of the imaging team for the Voyager project and took part in the first exploration of the outer Solar System.
Barbara Zangerl Rock Climber  Austria	Young Explorer Award Awarded for her achievements in rock climbing.
Ben Feist Software Engineer and Historian  Canada	Exploration History Award Awarded for his commitment to digitizing and communicating the achievements of NASA's Apollo program to a new generation.
China National Space Administration National space agency of China  China	Lunar Prize Awarded for humanity's first soft landing on the far side of the Moon, on 3 January 2019. The award was accepted by the Chinese Ambassador to Iceland, Mr. Jin Zhijian.

2020

The 2020 Leif Erikson Awards were presented by Exploration Museum founder Orly Orlyson, on 15 August via a live-stream from the Explorers Festival in Húsavík.[28]

Winner	Award
George Kourounis Explorer  Canada  Greece	Leif Erikson Award Awarded for exploring and documenting extreme natural events and for documenting many forms of severe weather, including tornadoes, hurricanes, blizzards, floods, hail, and lightning.
Dr. Ulyana Horodyskyj Glaciologist and geologist  United States	Young Explorer Award Awarded for field work in the arctic and for her work as a science communicator.
Jeff Blumenfeld Author  United States	Exploration History Award Awarded for his 26-year work in documenting exploration history as the editor of Expedition News.
Skyrora Spaceflight company  Scotland	Lunar Prize Awarded for their work in developing high-grade rocket fuel made from waste plastics, designed to minimize the environmental impact of rocket launches.[29]

Explorers Festival

The Leif Erikson Awards are the main event of the annual Húsavík Explorers Festival. The festival was first held in 2015 with events in Húsavík and Reykjavík. The format of the festival took shape in 2016 and has stayed the same since, with the festival consisting of short expeditions and outdoor activities around Húsavík, young explorers workshops, talks by explorers, concerts, film screenings and art exhibitions.[30][31]

See also

• The Exploration Museum
• The Astronaut Monument
• List of geography awards

References

1. Giuditta Gubbi & Francesco Perini (11 November 2015). "The Exploration Awards". The Exploration Museum. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
2. Gabriele Schneider (24 November 2015). "Leifur-Eirikson-Entdeckerpreise verliehen" (in German). Iceland Review. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
3. Francesco Benigni (16 November 2015). "Esplorazione spaziale, due jesini nella commissione dei "Leif Erikson Awards"" (in Italian). Ancona Today. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
4. Sverrir Jakobsson (14 July 2001). "Vísindavefurinn: Var Leifur Eiríksson ekki Grænlendingur sem átti rætur að rekja til Íslands og Noregs?" (in Icelandic). Visindavefur.hi.is. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
5. "10 Interesting Facts You Should Know About Leif Erikson". The Dockyards. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
6. "The Exploration Museum's Scientific Committee". The Exploration Museum. 11 November 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
7. Sigurður Bogi Sævarsson (11 November 2015). "Hlutu Könnunarverðlaun Leifs Eiríkssonar" (in Icelandic). Morgunblaðið. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
8. "2015 Leif Erikson Awards – Press conference". The Exploration Museum. 12 November 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
9. Charles Gittins (23 November 2015). "The Leif Erikson Exploration Awards". Iceland Monitor. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
10. Vala Hafstad (22 November 2015). "Leif Erikson Exploration Awards Presented". Iceland Review. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
11. Pétursson, Heimir Már (9 July 2015). "The moon smells like Gunpowder (Icelandic)". 365 Media. Channel 2. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
12. "Astronaut Harrison Schmitt awarded the Leif Erikson Exploration Award". The Exploration Museum. 11 November 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
13. "Jessica Watson awarded the Leif Erikson Young Explorer Award". The Exploration Museum. 11 November 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
14. AP (21 August 2010). "14-Year-Old Sets Sail to Circle the Globe". New York Times. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
15. "Dr. Huw Lewis-Jones awarded the Leif Erikson Exploration History Award". The Exploration Museum. 11 November 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
16. Smala, Signe (21 November 2016). "Exploring Exploration: The Explorers Festival Comes To Húsavík". Reykjavík Grapevine. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
17. Sharma, Nihi (29 October 2016). "Everest twins bag Leif Erikson Explorer Award in Iceland". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
18. "American astronaut, modern Norwegian vikings and Indian twin climbers win exploration awards". Húsavík Observer. 22 October 2016. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
19. "Our events". Explorers Festival. 22 October 2016. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
20. "Babita Sharma to present Leif Erikson Awards in Húsavík". Húsavík Observer. 22 September 2017. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
21. "Mountaineer Edurne Pasaban awarded Leif Erikson Exploration Award". Húsavík Observer. 23 September 2017. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
22. "Leif Erikson Exploration Awards". Retrieved 12 December 2017.
23. Hreiðarsson, Hafþór (23 September 2017). "Climbed all highest mountains in 9 years". Morgunblaðið.
24. "Babita Sharma to present Leif Erikson Awards in Húsavík". Húsavík Observer. 22 September 2017. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
25. "Mittermeier boycotts award ceremony in Húsavík to protest hunting of endangered whales". Husavik Observer. 23 October 2018. Retrieved 11 September 2019.
26. "Húsavík Explorers Festival". Retrieved 12 December 2017.
27. "Húsavík Explorers Festival". Retrieved 25 May 2020.
28. "World Explorers Awarded at Húsavík Explorers Festival". Húsavík Observer. 18 August 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
29. "The Exploration Museum".
30. "Explorers Festival to be held in Iceland". Iceland Monitor. 6 September 2016. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
31. Ward, Charley (2 November 2017). "Húsavík Explorers Festival 2017: Through Fire And Ice". Reykjavík Grapevine. Retrieved 18 December 2017.