Umberto Nobile

Italian Arctic explorer, aviation (airship) engineer, and major general in the air force. Born in Avellino in southern Italy, he graduated from the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Naples. Noticing the excellent seaworthiness of semi-rigid airships, he designed and built them himself, and used them to successfully fly to the North Pole. In 1926, together with Amundsen and Ellsworth, he crossed the North Pole from Spitsbergen in the airship Norge (N-1) and reached Alaska. However, after this, he had a feud with Amundsen. In 1928, he personally led an expedition on the Italia (N-4) to fly to the North Pole, and reached the North Pole on May 24, but on the way back, it crashed on the ice north-northeast of Spitsbergen Island, and the survivors, including Nobile, were rescued by a Swedish plane and a Soviet icebreaker. Amundsen, who was in an emotional conflict with him, dispatched a rescue mission, which led to a tragic end. As a result of this incident, Nobile left the air force and his position as a professor at the University of Naples and left the country. After working as an aviation consultant for the Soviet Union, he returned to the rank of Rear Admiral in 1943 and resumed his position as a professor at the University of Naples. In his later years, he also entered politics. He came to Japan in 1927 (Showa 2) following the purchase of the N-3 by the Japanese Navy.

[Masao Hanzawa]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

イタリアの北極探検家、航空（飛行船）技師、空軍少将。南イタリアのアベリーノに生まれ、ナポリ大学工学部を卒業。半硬式飛行船の優れた耐航性に着目し、自ら設計・製作を行い、これを使って北極飛行に成功した。1926年アムンゼンやエルズワースとともに、飛行船ノルゲ号（N‐1）でスピッツベルゲンから北極を横断しアラスカに到達した。しかしこのあとアムンゼンと確執を生じた。28年イタリア号（N‐4）で自ら探検隊を指揮し北極飛行に赴き、5月24日北極点上空に到達したが、帰途スピッツベルゲン島北北東の氷上に墜落し、ノビレ以下の生存者はスウェーデン機やソ連の砕氷船に救出された。彼と感情的な対立状態にあったアムンゼンは救援に出動し、かえって悲劇的な最期を遂げた。この事件でノビレは空軍とナポリ大学教授の職を去り出国した。ソ連の航空コンサルタントなどを経て43年空軍少将に復帰、またナポリ大学教授に復職した。晩年は政界にも進出した。日本海軍のN‐3号購入に伴い1927年（昭和2）来日した。

［半澤正男］

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