Semyon Ivanovich Chelyuskin (; c. 1700 – 1764) was a Russian

polar Polar may refer to: Geography Polar may refer to: * Geographical pole, either of two fixed points on the surface of a rotating body or planet, at 90 degrees from the equator, based on the axis around which a body rotates *Polar climate, the cli ...

explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...

and

naval officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent contextu ...

. Chelyuskin graduated from the Navigation School in Moscow. He first became a

deputy Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spain, ...

navigator A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation.Grierson, MikeAviation History—Demise of the Flight Navigator FrancoFlyers.org website, October 14, 2008. Retrieved August 31, 2014. The navigator's prima ...

while serving in the

Baltic Fleet , image = Great emblem of the Baltic fleet.svg , image_size = 150 , caption = Baltic Fleet Great ensign , dates = 18 May 1703 – present , country = , allegiance = (1703–1721) (1721–1917) (1917–1922) (1922–1991)(1991–present) ...

(1726) and later promoted to navigator (1733). Chelyuskin was chosen for the Second (Great Northern) Kamchatka Expedition, in which he took part until 1743. He participated in expeditions, led by Vasily Pronchischev and

Khariton Laptev Khariton Prokofievich Laptev (russian: Харитон Прокофьевич Лаптев) (1700–1763) was a Russian naval officer and Arctic explorer. Khariton Laptev was born in a gentry family in the village of Pokarevo near Velikiye Luki (in ...

. In spring of 1741, Chelyuskin made a voyage from the

Khatanga River The Khatanga (russian: Хатанга) is a river in Krasnoyarsk Krai in Russia. The river is navigable. The river port of Khatanga is located on the river. Course It begins at the confluence of the rivers Kotuy and Kheta. The Khatanga is lo ...

to the

Pyasina River The Pyasina (russian: Пясина) is a river in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. The river is long, and its basin covers . The Pyasina River originates in Lake Pyasino and flows into the Pyasino Gulf of the Kara Sea. There are more than 60,000&nbs ...

by land. He described the western coastline from the

Taimyr Peninsula The Taymyr Peninsula (russian: Таймырский полуостров, Taymyrsky poluostrov) is a peninsula in the Far North of Russia, in the Siberian Federal District, that forms the northernmost part of the mainland of Eurasia. Administrati ...

to the

Middendorff Bay The Middendorff Bay, (russian: Залив Миддендорфа) is a deeply indented bay in the shores of the Taymyr Peninsula. It is located southwest of the Nordenskiöld Archipelago in the Kara Sea and it is open towards the west. Geography ...

and then from the mouth of Pyasina to the mouth of the

Yenisei River The Yenisey (russian: Енисе́й, ''Yeniséy''; mn, Горлог мөрөн, ''Gorlog mörön''; Buryat: Горлог мүрэн, ''Gorlog müren''; Tuvan: Улуг-Хем, ''Uluğ-Hem''; Khakas: Ким суғ, ''Kim suğ''; Ket: Ӄук, ...

. In winter of 1741–1742, he traveled from

Turukhansk Turukhansk (russian: Туруха́нск) is a rural locality (a '' selo'') and the administrative center of Turukhansky District of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located north of Krasnoyarsk, at the confluence of the Yenisey and Nizhnyaya Tu ...

to the mouth of the Khatanga River, describing the northern coastline of the Taimyr Peninsula from the

Faddey Bay The Faddey Bay (Залив Фаддея; ''Zaliv Faddeya'') is a gulf in the Laptev Sea on the eastern coast of the Taymyr Peninsula. It measures about 47 km from its innermost point in the southwest, the delta of the Pregradnaya River, to it ...

on the East to the mouth of the Taimyra River on the West. Chelyuskin found the northern extremity of

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

, which Aleksandr Fyodorovich Middendorf would later name after him in 1843 (

Cape Chelyuskin Cape Chelyuskin (russian: Мыс Челюскина, ''Mys Chelyuskina'') is the northernmost point of the Afro-Eurasian continent (and indeed of any continental mainland), and the northernmost point of mainland Russia. It is situated at the tip o ...

). He was discharged from the Baltic Fleet in the rank of a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in 1760.

Named in honor

(the northernmost cape of

Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelag ...

), Chelyuskin Peninsula (northern tip of Taymyr), Chelyuskin Island near Taymyr, famous Soviet

Chelyuskin steamship SS ''Chelyuskin'' ( rus, «Челю́скин», p=tɕɪˈlʲuskʲɪn) was a Soviet steamship, reinforced to navigate through polar ice, that became ice-bound in Arctic waters during navigation along the Northern Maritime Route from Murmansk t ...

and some streets and settlements have been named after Chelyuskin. In 1930s the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

operated a

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamship ...

, built in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

in 1933, which was named after Semion Chelyuskin (see the

). It sank in the

Chukchi Sea Chukchi Sea ( rus, Чуко́тское мо́ре, r=Chukotskoye more, p=tɕʊˈkotskəjə ˈmorʲɪ), sometimes referred to as the Chuuk Sea, Chukotsk Sea or the Sea of Chukotsk, is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is bounded on the west ...

near

Kolyuchin Island Kolyuchin Island or Koliuchin Island (russian: Остров Колючин, ) is a small island in the Chukchi Sea. It is not far from the coast, being only from the northern shore of the Chukotka Peninsula. Its latitude is 67° 28' N and its long ...

during an ill-fated attempt to cover the

Northern Sea Route The Northern Sea Route (NSR) (russian: Се́верный морско́й путь, ''Severnyy morskoy put'', shortened to Севморпуть, ''Sevmorput'') is a shipping route officially defined by Russian legislation as lying east of N ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Chelyuskin, Semion 1700s births 1764 deaths People from Peremyshlsky District Explorers of the Arctic Russian and Soviet polar explorers Explorers from the Russian Empire 18th-century people from the Russian Empire 18th-century explorers Imperial Russian Navy personnel Great Northern Expedition