Richthofen, Ferdinand, Baron von

Richthofen, Ferdinand, Baron von (fĕr`dēnänt bärōn` fən rĭkht`hōfən), 1833–1905, German geographer, geologist, and traveler. He took part in a Prussian expedition in E Asia (1860–62), worked as a geologist in W United States (1862–68), then made several exploring journeys in China and Japan (1868–72). His geographical, geological, economic, and ethnological findings in China were embodied in three volumes and an atlas (1877–85); three posthumous volumes appeared in 1911 and 1912. He was professor at the universities of Bonn (1875–83), Leipzig (1883–86), and Berlin (from 1886) and was the founder and the first director (1902–5) of the Institut für Meereskunde, Berlin.