He spent most of his life travelling the globe, leading expeditions in the quest for scientific knowledge.

In the spring of 1958 he accomplished what was described as "the last great journey in the world" - the 2,150 miles across the Antarctic.

Sir Vivian, the son of a German who had settled in the UK, had got the idea after the war on a government survey of the region.

Ten years later, the expedition of 16 men set out, funded by Commonwealth governments, public subscription, and organisations including the BBC.

Sir Vivian ignored warnings to turn back and on 2 March 1958 he arrived at Scott Base, after 99 days of freezing temperatures.

He was accompanied by Everest conqueror Sir Edmund Hillary, leader of the New Zealand support party, for the last 700 miles of the journey.

Student travels

The explorer was knighted immediately, and when he got home there were more honours, among them a Gold Medal from the Royal Geographical Society.

The expedition was not just noted for its exploration; it also carried out vital scientific tests which provided crucial information about the land.

Born in February 1908, he studied at Cambridge University where he was bitten by the travelling bug. He travelled to east Greenland and the east African lakes on college expeditions.

And during the 1930s he made several return visits to east Africa.

Sir Vivian also served during World War II in west Africa in the Cambridgeshire Regiment. He passed through the Staff College at Camberley, and won a mention in dispatches in north west Europe.

For more than 20 years he was the director of the British Antarctic Survey, and in his 70s he was still paying enthusiastic visits to what remains one of the world's most inhospitable regions.

Professor Chris Rapley, current Director of BAS said: "The 1957-58 Trans Antarctic Expedition was arguably one of the last great feats of the "heroic" era and brought worldwide recognition and respect.

"He was admired and revered by all within the Survey and his passing is a huge loss."

Huskies' defence

He often revisited the Antarctic, saying it was like "a homecoming", and wrote a book, Of Ice and Men, about the work of the British Antarctic Survey, published in 1982.

In the early 1990s he defended the role of huskies in Antarctica, before the last ones in the area, which were British, were removed under an environmental treaty which banned alien species.

Sir Vivian, who lived in Cambridge, was known to many of his friends as "Bunny". He enjoyed gardening and driving - especially Jaguars, owning several E-types over the years.