Herman Watzinger was a Norwegian

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

in the area of cooling technique from NTH (now NTNU) in

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

and a crewmember on the

Kon-Tiki The ''Kon-Tiki'' expedition was a 1947 journey by raft across the Pacific Ocean from South America to the Polynesian islands, led by Norwegian explorer and writer Thor Heyerdahl. The raft was named ''Kon-Tiki'' after the Inca god Viracocha, f ...

expedition. He was also a

Milorg Milorg (abbreviation of militær organisasjon – military organization) was the main Norwegian resistance movement during World War II. Resistance work included intelligence gathering, sabotage, supply-missions, raids, espionage, transport of ...

member during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

operation Polar Bear II, which was brought to

by Captain Leif Hauge.Polar Bear II was the codename for the plan and protection of harbors and port installations in Norway. A total of 123 officers were with the group. →

Biography

Herman Watzinger was born on 20 April 1916 in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. He then continued with doctoral studies at NTH (NTNU), which was cancelled because of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and applied for a job in the US and sought a visa to the US. He met

Thor Heyerdahl Thor Heyerdahl KStJ (; 6 October 1914 – 18 April 2002) was a Norwegian adventurer and Ethnography, ethnographer with a background in biology with specialization in zoology, botany and geography. Heyerdahl is notable for his Kon-Tiki expediti ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, where he was asked to participate in the construction of the

raft and become a member of the expedition. On board the raft, where he was second in command, he was responsible for

meteorological Meteorology is the scientific study of the Earth's atmosphere and short-term atmospheric phenomena (i.e. weather), with a focus on weather forecasting. It has applications in the military, aviation, energy production, transport, agriculture ...

and hydrographic measurements. He moved to

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, in 1950. On 25 September 1952 he was awarded the ''Orden al Mérito por Servicios Distinguidos'' by the

Ministry of Foreign Relations of Peru The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru (, MRE) is the government ministry in charge of foreign policy and international relations and cooperation of Peru. It works in coordination with the country's diplomatic network, accredited to different c ...

.No. de Orden: 63, Caballero. From 1970, where he worked at Lima as head of

fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life or, more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a., fishing grounds). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farm ...

, projects and advisor in freezing techniques for WR Grace & Co and Atlas. Watzinger was also the head of a Norwegian-owned fish meal factory in Pisagua, northern

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

, with exports of fish meal to the U.S. and Europe. After that he became director of the FAO fishery Industries Division and later, of the Fisheries Department in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

from 1970, and Deputy director general of the FAO (UN Food and Agriculture) in Rome,

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. He graduated from the NTH in

hydrology Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and drainage basin sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is called a hydro ...

and

thermodynamics Thermodynamics is a branch of physics that deals with heat, Work (thermodynamics), work, and temperature, and their relation to energy, entropy, and the physical properties of matter and radiation. The behavior of these quantities is governed b ...

as his major. He was the son of Adolf Watzinger, a long-time professor of

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

at th
NTNU
university in Trondheim, Norway. He died in

in 1986.

Notes

References

External links

Kon-Tiki Museum
on Thor Heyerdahl’s Research Foundation {{DEFAULTSORT:Watzinger, Herman 1916 births 1986 deaths Scientists from Wiesbaden German emigrants to Norway Norwegian resistance members Norwegian anti-fascists Norwegian Institute of Technology alumni 20th-century Norwegian engineers Norwegian officials of the United Nations Kon-Tiki expedition