Augusto Gansser

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Augusto Gansser (1936)

Augusto Gansser (born October 28, 1910 in Milan , Italy ; † January 9, 2012 in Massagno , Switzerland ) was a Swiss geologist .

family

Augusto Gansser was the oldest of five siblings and was born to Swiss abroad in Milan. In 1914, shortly before the outbreak of World War I, he returned to Switzerland and attended the primary school in Lugano and the secondary school in Trogen .

In 1937 he married Linda Biaggi, known as "Toti", in Lugano. The marriage resulted in two sons and four daughters ( Ursula * 1941, Mario * 1943, Luca * 1945, Manuela * 1949, Francesca 1956, Rosanna 1959).

Life

Training and first expeditions

In 1929 Gansser began studying geology at the University of Zurich , where he received his doctorate in 1936.

In 1934 he undertook his first expedition together with the Danish researcher Lauge Koch on the sailing steamer Gustav Holm to the east coast of Greenland .

In 1936 he took part in the first Swiss Himalayan expedition under the leadership of Arnold Heim . Gansser traveled on to Tibet alone at his own risk, was the first geologist to circumnavigate the holy mountain Kailash , and there, at the southern foot of the Kailash, discovered the tectonic plate boundary of the Indian subcontinent. Since entering Tibet was forbidden for foreigners at that time, Gansser went around the Kailash from Indian soil disguised as a Buddhist pilgrim.

Professional and research and teaching activity

The family lived in Colombia from 1938 to 1946 and, after a short stay in Switzerland, from 1947 to 1949 on the island of Trinidad . Gansser was on the road in both countries on behalf of the Shell oil company .

1950–1957, Gansser looked for oil as chief geologist for the National Iranian Oil Company .

In 1958 he was appointed professor of geology at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) and the University of Zurich. Gansser was director of the geological institute of the university and the ETH.

1963-1977 he carried out five expeditions to Bhutan . Gansser explored the northern high mountains on the border with Tibet and was the first geologist to map the isolated kingdom .

In 1968 Gansser went on a trip to the Canadian Arctic ( Axel-Heiberg-Land ).

In addition, he continued his research in Ladakh , Nepal , Afghanistan , Patagonia and the Antarctic .

After retirement

After Gansser finished teaching in 1977, he continued to travel the world and published extensively.

1978 visit of the polar Urals at the invitation of the Russian Academy of Geology

In 1980 and 1985, the Chinese ruler Deng Xiaoping invited him to visit Tibet.

1983 Publication of the first geological map of Bhutan

His retirement home was in Lugano, where he lived alone after the death of his wife Linda, who was suffering from Alzheimer's disease, in 2000.

In 2008 his eldest daughter, the photographer Ursula Markus, published a biography (with texts by Ursula Eichenberger) in which black and white photos and sketches from his research trips are shown.

Memberships and honors

Publications

  • Il Tambo visto da un geologo , In: Cinquant'anni Sez. Ticino CAS., Bellinzona: Ed. Salvoni & Co 1936.
  • A carbon deposit at the base of the Tambodeleg (Graubünden) : in Eclogae Geologicae Helvetiae., Vol. 29, Basel: Birkhäuser & Cie, 1936.
  • The northern edge of the Tambo ceiling. Geological and petrographic surveys between San Bernardino and Splügenpasse. (Thesis), Switzerland: Min. Petr. Wed 17, 1937.
  • A detour to unknown Nepal. In: the Alps. 1937.
  • Throne of the Gods: Experiences of the first Swiss Himalayan expedition. (with Arnold Heim) Morgarten-Verlag, Zurich 1938.
  • The Nevado del Cocuy: Columbian Mountain Experience. In: the Alps. No. 8, 1939.
  • The mountains of Columbia in Mountains of the World. , No. 3, Switzerland, Stiftg. Alp. Forschg., 1948.
  • The Guyana Shield (S. America). Geological Observations. In: Eclogae Geologicae Helvetiae , Vol. 47, Birkhäuser AG, Basel 1954.
  • Geology of the Himalayas. Wiley Interscience, London / New York / Sydney 1964.
  • Hidden treasures in Bhutan. (with Ursula Markus and Blanche Olschak) Hallwag, Bern 1969.
  • The Large Earthquake of Iran and their Geological Frame. Eclogae Geologicae Helvetiae, Vol. 62 Bd 2, Birkhäuser SA, Basel 1969.
  • The Taftan Volcano. In: Eclogae Geologicae Helvetiae. , Vol. 64 Vol. 2, Basel: Birkhäuser SA, 1971.
  • Geology of Bhutan Himalaya. Birkhäuser, Basel / Boston / Stuttgart 1983. ISBN 3-7643-1371-4 .
  • Bhutan: Kingdom in the Himalayas. (with Ursula Markus and Blanche Olschak), Atlantis, Freiburg im Breisgau 1983. ISBN 3-7611-0652-1 .
  • Cup stones: prehistoric cult objects. Publishing house Dr. Christian Müller-Straten, Munich 1999. ISBN 978-3-932704-66-6 .

literature

  • Ursula Eichenberger (text), Ursula Markus (ed.): Augusto Gansser. From the life of a world explorer. AS Verlag, Zurich 2008. ISBN 978-3-909111-98-5 .

Web links

Commons : Augusto Gansser  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Markus, Ursula., Eichenberger, Ursula., Gansser, Augusto, 1910–2012 .: Augusto Gansser: from the life of a world explorer . AS, Zurich 2012, ISBN 978-3-909111-98-5 , p. 158 .
  2. ↑ Andreas Fischer / Ralph Eichler: Obituary Prof. Dr. Augusto Gansser . NZZ, Zurich January 12, 2012, p. 12 .
  3. ↑ ETH: “Pilgrims of Science”: The first Swiss Himalayan expedition from 1936
  4. ^ Willi Wottreng: Until then, where the gods are enthroned . Ed .: NZZ am Sonntag. January 22, 2012, p. 18 .
personal data
SURNAME Gansser, Augusto
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss geologist
DATE OF BIRTH October 28, 1910
PLACE OF BIRTH Milan
DATE OF DEATH January 9, 2012
Place of death Massagno