Hess Medal Research Articles

Richard J. Walker Receives 2019 Harry H. Hess Medal

Richard J. Walker was awarded the 2019 Harry H. Hess Medal at AGU’s Fall Meeting 2019 Honors Ceremony, held on 11 December 2019 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of the Earth and other planets.”

Timothy L. Grove Receives 2018 Harry H. Hess Medal

Timothy L. Grove was awarded the 2018 Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony held on 12 December 2018 in Washington, D. C. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of the Earth and other planets.”

Roberta Rudnick Receives 2017 Harry H. Hess Medal

Roberta Rudnick was awarded the 2017 Harry H. Hess Medal at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 13 December 2017 in New Orleans, La. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of the Earth and other planets.”

Alex Halliday Receives 2016 Harry H. Hess Medal

Alex Halliday was awarded the 2016 Harry H. Hess Medal at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 14 December 2016 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for "outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of the Earth and other planets."

Claude Jaupart Receives 2015 Harry H. Hess Medal

Claude Jaupart was awarded the 2015 Harry H. Hess Medal at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 16 December 2015 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for "outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of the Earth and other planets."

Donald J. DePaolo Receives 2014 Harry H. Hess Medal

Donald J. DePaolo was awarded the 2014 Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 17 December 2014 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.”

Bernard J. Wood Receives 2013 Harry H. Hess Medal: Citation

As Harry Hess recognized over 50 years ago, mantle melting is the fundamental motor for planetary evolution and differentiation. Melting generates the major divisions of crust mantle and core. The distribution of chemical elements between solids, melts, and gaseous phases is fundamental to understanding these differentiation processes. Bernie Wood, together with Jon Blundy, has combined experimental petrology and physicochemical theory to revolutionize the understanding of the distribution of trace elements between melts and solids in the Earth. Knowledge of these distribution laws allows the reconstruction of the source compositions of the melts (deep in Earth's interior) from their abundances in volcanic rocks. Bernie's theoretical treatment relates the elastic strain of the lattice caused by the substitution of a trace element in a crystal to the ionic radius and charge of this element. This theory, and its experimental calibrations, brought order to a literature of badly scattered, rather chaotic experimental data that allowed no satisfactory quantitative modeling of melting processes in the mantle.

Bernard J. Wood Receives 2013 Harry H. Hess Medal: Response

President Finn, friends, and colleagues, I am truly delighted to accept the Hess Medal for 2013. It is difficult to express one's feelings adequately on receipt of such a prestigious award, but a mixture of pride, humility, and thankfulness for a long and lucky career all occur. It did not start propitiously as my high school grades would only ensure undergraduate entry into the Northern Polytechnic, a second‐tier institution in London. Nevertheless, I was enthused by several great teachers, including John Charalambous (inorganic chemistry) and Stephen Morel, a field geologist who had worked for many years in Malawi. They pushed me into trying for graduate school, and I was fortunate to find the eclectic Roger Strens my supervisor at Newcastle.

Maria T. Zuber Receives 2012 Harry H. Hess Medal: Citation

Maria T. Zuber was awarded the 2012 Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 5 December 2012 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.”

Maria T. Zuber Receives 2012 Harry H. Hess Medal: Response

Thank you, Sean, and other colleagues who took the time to nominate me for this extraordinary honor. It is deeply meaningful to be recognized by the AGU, the primary scientific society in which I've participated throughout my career. The ever‐expanding reach of AGU provides an outlet for our research much beyond our immediate field, important because, as I tell my students: “It doesn't matter how good your work is if no one knows about it.” Viewing the list of distinguished past Hess recipients, many of whom have influenced me greatly, it is impossible to overstate how humbled I am.

Dick receives 2011 Harry H. Hess Medal: Citation

Henry J. B. Dick was awarded the 2011 Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 7 December 2011 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.”

Dick receives 2011 Harry H. Hess Medal: Response

Henry J. B. Dick was awarded the 2011 Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 7 December 2011 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.”

David Walker Receives 2010 Harry H. Hess Medal

David Walker was awarded the 2010 Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 15 December 2010 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research of the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.”

Frank M. Richter Receives 2009 Harry H. Hess Medal

Frank M. Richter was awarded the 2009 Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 16 December 2009 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research in the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.”

Melosh Receives 2008 Harry H. Hess Medal

H. Jay Melosh was awarded the 2008 Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held 17 December 2008 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for ”outstanding achievements in research in the constitution and evolution of Earth and sister planets.“

O'Hara Receives 2007 Harry H. Hess Medal

The Harry H. Hess Medal recognizes “outstanding achievements in research in the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.” It is thus most appropriate that Mike O'Hara receive the 2007 Hess Medal of the American Geophysical Union.Mike started as a field geologist studying the Scourie Gneisses in Scotland. As a pioneer, Mike used experimental petrology to study the petrogenesis of mantle rocks and rocks derived from the mantle that build the ocean crust. Mike's talent is also marked by his insights into the petrogenesis of lunar basalts. It is fair to say that modern igneous petrology and geochemistry would not be the same without Mike's many discoveries, creative efforts, and deep insights.

Navrotsky awarded 2006 Harry H. Hess medal

Alexandra Navrotsky was awarded the Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting honors ceremony, which was held on 13 December 2006 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal recognizes outstanding achievements in research in the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.It is a great privilege and honor to introduce Alexandra Navrotsky as the recipient of the 2006 Harry H. Hess Medal. She is an outstanding scientist who has made important contributions to our understanding of minerals and other materials through a wide range of theoretical and experimental applications of thermodynamics. She was trained as a physical chemist and originally approached oxide chemistry through a materials perspective. However, her interests broadened and she became known as a leading authority in a wide range of subjects from chemistry through materials science to the geosciences. She held faculty positions at Arizona State University (Tempe) and Princeton University (N.J.) and is now at the University of California, Davis.

George West Wetherill

George West Wetherill

Solomon receives 2005 Harry H. Hess medal

Sean C. Solomon received the Harry H. Hess Medal at the 2005 Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, which was held on 7 December in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is given for outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of the Earth and other planets.

Nicolas receives 2004 Harry H. Hess medal

Adolphe Nicolas received the Hess Medal at the 2004 Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony on 15 December, in San Francisco, California. The medal is given for outstanding achievements in research in the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.