The University of Melbourne holds the papers of Fritz Loewe, a meteorologist who participated in expeditions to both Antarctica and the Arctic.

Loewe was a member of the final Greenland expeditions of Professor Alfred Wegener, the pioneer of continental drift theory. When Wegener perished, Loewe became acting leader of the 1930-1931 expedition. After his dismissal (because he was Jewish) from his public service post in Germany 1934, Loewe briefly worked as a meteorologist at the Scott Polar Research Institute in England. With the support of Raymond Priestley, he moved to Melbourne in 1937 and founded the University's Meteorology Department in 1939. Following the end of World War Two, Loewe was involved in several Antarctic expeditions, including the failed voyage of the HMAS Wyatt Earp in 1947. He also wintered at Terre Adelie in 1950-1951. He was awarded the Polar Medal in 1955. Loewe also revisited Greenland in 1962, 1964 and 1967.

The Loewe collection at the University of Melbourne Archives papers relating to the Wegener and Antarctic expeditions, correspondence with Mawson, interviews and reminiscences and photographs. For further detail, see the list attached to the catalogue record by clicking the link below.

• Fritz Loewe