Career
He took the candidate.real. degree in 1970 at the University of Bergen. He was appointed as a lecturer at the University of Tromsø in 1973, took the dr.philos. degree here in 1978 and was promoted to a professor in 1979. He served as both dean and prorector there, and chairman of the University Centre in Svalbard.
He was a fellow of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters from 1993.