New Delhi, Oct 10 (IANS): Google on Tuesday marked legendary Norwegian adventurer Fridtjof Nansen's birth anniversary with a Doodle.

Born in Oslo, Norway in 1861, Nansen who explored the world's unknown terrain and broke new ground as an international humanitarian, would have turned 156 on Tuesday.

Nansen was gripped by a sense of adventure from a young age and in 1888, he became the first person to lead an expedition across the snow-capped interior of Greenland. 

One icy adventure was not enough though. Just a few years later, Nansen attempted to become the first person to reach the North Pole. 

"Although the expedition was unsuccessful, he did go farther north in latitude than any other explorer at that time," Google said.

As World War I took hold in 1914, Nansen started focusing on research at home. 

By 1920, his interests shifted from understanding the landscape of the world to influencing the international political climate. 

Nansen worked to free hundreds of thousands of prisoners of war and repatriate refugees.

He created the "Nansen Passport", a travel document that allowed stateless refugees to emigrate and resettle. 

Nansen was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1922 for helping those without a voice find a home.

Nansen died on May 13, 1930.