Leif Erikson Awards
The Leif Erikson Awards, sometimes referred to as the Exploration Awards, are awarded annually by the Exploration Museum in Húsavík, Iceland, for achievements in exploration and for work in the field of exploration history. 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.
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.
The awards are named for Icelandic explorer Leif Erikson, considered as the first European to land in North America 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.
Scientific Committee
The winners of the Leif Erikson awards are voted by the members of the Exploration Museum's Scientific Committee. 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.2015
The 2015 Leif Erikson Awards were announced by the President of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, on 9 July at the Reykjavík University Auditorium.| Winner | Award |
| Harrison Schmitt Apollo 17 astronaut | 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. |
| Jessica Watson Sailor | Young Explorer Award Awarded for completing a non-stop and unassisted southern hemisphere solo circumnavigation of the world at the age of 16. |
| Huw Lewis-Jones Author and historian | Exploration History Award Awarded for his writings on visual culture, seafaring, polar exploration, mountaineering, and remote environments. |
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 | 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 Mt. Everest. |
| Tashi and Nungshi Malik Mountaineers | 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. |
| Draken Harald Hårfagre crew and builders | Exploration History Award Awarded for their expedition to retrace the first trans-Atlantic crossing and the Viking discovery of the New World. |
2017
The 2017 Leif Erikson Awards were presented by BBC World News Anchor Babita Sharma, on 23 September at the Explorers Festival in Húsavík.| Winner | Award |
| Edurne Pasaban Mountaineer | 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. |
| Alex Bellini Sailor | 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. |
| Haraldur Sigurðsson Volcanologist | 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. |
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.| Winner | Award |
| Clive Oppenheimer Volcanologist | Leif Erikson Award Awarded for his 13 field seasons investigating Mount Erebus, the most active volcano in Antarctica. |
| Jade Hameister Photographer, biologist, and author | 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 | Exploration History Award Awarded for her significant literary and photography works on environmental issues and the relationship between human cultures and biodiversity. |
2019
The 2019 Leif Erikson Awards will be announced in October 2018.| Winner | Award |
| Carolyn Porco Planetary Scientist | 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 | Young Explorer Award Awarded for her achievements in rock climbing. |
| Ben Feist Software Engineer and Historian | Exploration History Award Awarded for his commitment to digitizing and communicating the achivements of NASA’s Apollo program to a new generation. |