SOME NOTEWORTHY OCEANOGRAPHERS AND PEOPLE IN RELATED PROFESSIONS

Agassiz, Alexander: (1835-1910) Worked with John Murray (see also) on Challenger reports contributed much money to oceanographic research. First to use steel cables for deep sea dredging. Funded much research and did a great deal to legitimize oceanography as a science. Often on the wrong side of arguments (e.g. Darwin and coral reef development). Beebe, William: (29 July 1877 - 4 June 1962) Naturalist and founder of "ecology" and a major figure in conservationism. In 1930 descended with Otis Barton (see also) in a bathysphere to s depth of 923 meters (3027 feet) off Bermuda. For the first time, scientists could observe deep sea animals in their native habitat

Barton, Otis: (5 June 1899 - 15 April 1992) Designer In of the bathysphere. He and William Beebe descended to a depth of 923 meters (3027 feet) off Bermuda allowing scientists For the first time, to observe deep sea animals in their native habitat Challenger The ship which left England in Dec, 1872 to carry out oceanogrpahic research. Among the activities conducted were major investigations of the ocean which resluted in the collection of 4717 new species, 492 deep sea soundings, 133 bottom dredges, 151 open water trawls, and 263 serial water temperature observations. Also measured the depth of Mariana Tench (26,847 feet or 8185 meters) (See also Thompson and Dittmar)

Cook, James: (7 Nov. 1728 - 14 Feb 1779): Explorer who charted the Great Barrier Reef and New Zealand. He sailed on the Endeavor and provided the first accurate map of the Pacific Ocean.

Cousteau, Jacques-Yves (11 June 1910 - 25 June 1997): Inventor of the Self Contained Underwater Breathing App:aratus (SCUBA)

Darwin, Charles: (12 Feb. 1809 - 19 Apr 1882) Naturalist who developed a theory of evolution. Also formulated early ideas on evolution of barrier reefs and atolls.

Dittmar, William: Analyzed water samples from Challenger expedition and contributed t the understanding of salinity in the water.

Drebbel, Cornelius : (1572 - 7 Nov. 1633) In 1630 tested the first submarine. Deascend to a deoth of 5 meters (16.3 feet) in the Thames river.

Ekman, V Walfrid (1874-1954) developed a mathematic explanation for the relationship of wind to the current it drives.

Fulton, Robert: (14 Nov, 1765 - 24 Feb 1815) builds submarine Nautilus which was powered by a hand driven screw propeller when under water.

Harrison, John: (3 April 1693 - 24 March 1776) Inventor of the chronometer which made it possible for navigators at sea to find their longitudinal positions.

Hensen, Victor : (1835-1910). Had his ship the Fram frozen in the sea ice near the New Siberian Islands. It was carried by the ice to a place near Spitzbergen, thereby proving that the ice cap was sea ice and not glacial. There was no continent under it They measures the ocean to a depth of 9840 feet (3000 meters). They also discovered a rather warm body of water (1.5C 35F) between a depth of 150 and 900 m (500 to 3,000 feet). His observations of the direction of the ice drift relative to wind direction was a help to V. Walfrid Ekman (see also)

Heyerdahl, Thor (6 Oct, 1914 - 18 April 2002 Explorer who attemptedd to show that Polyneisia was populated by people from the East (South America) rather than the West (Asia). He attempted to recreate the trip using a raft called Kon-Tiki (also the name of the book he wrote on the trip). Later he did work on Rapa Nui/Easter Island, and published his results in a book called Aku Aku.

Maury, Matthew Fontaine (1806-1873) Father of oceaongraphy. Organized first International Meteorological Confence to establish uniform methods of makiing nautcal and meteorological observations at sea.

Murray, Sir John(1841-1914) Prominent in preparing the Challenger reports.

Piccard, Jaques (28 July 1922 - 1 Nov. 2008) descended, along wth Donald Walsh (see also) , to a depth of 10,915 meters (35,801 feet) (the figure is constantly revised) in the Challenger Deep of the Mariana Trench - the deepest know point in the ocean. The descent was made in the Bathyscaphe Trieste (see also) in 1960.

Ross, John (1777-1856) and nephew James Clark Ross (1800-1862) Found same species of animals gotten from the ocean floor at Baffin Island Canada and in the Antarctic which led to the postulation that deep ocean water must be uniormily of low temperature since organisms are temperature sensitive

Thompson, C. Wyville (1830-1882) Scientist and director aboard the vessel H.M.S. Challenger (see Challenger)

Trieste Bathyscaphe designed and built by Auguste Piccard in which his son, Jacques (see also), and Lt. Donald Walsh (see also) rode to the greatest ocean deoth - The Gallenger Deep in the Mariana Trench in 1960. Part of the plexiglass window craacked during the descent but remarkably it held and the 2 survuved the trip.

Walsh, Lt. Donald 2 Nov. 1931- ) In 1960 travelled to deepest known part of the ocean (Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench) with Jacques Piccard (see also) in the bathyscaphe Trieste

Wegener, Alfred: (1 Nov. 1880 - Nov 1930) One of the first scientists to originate the idea of plate techtonics.