Friday, October 12, 2012

Top AMS Honors for Two Scripps Researchers

Armi, Melville awarded Stommel, Sverdrup awards.

Scripps Institution of Oceanography / University of California, San Diego

The American Meteorological Society (AMS) bestowed two of its most prestigious awards on two pioneering Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego, researchers.

Physical oceanographer Ken Melville, who studies air-sea interactions and surface wave dynamics, received the 2013 Sverdrup Gold Medal Award "for pioneering contributions in advancing knowledge on the role of surface wave breaking and related processes in air-sea interaction."

Physical oceanographer and meteorologist Larry Armi received the Henry Stommel Research Award "for his deeply insightful studies of stratified flow, his pioneering work on boundary mixing and other turbulent mechanisms." The award also makes Armi a Fellow of the AMS.

The Stommel Award is named for Henry Stommel, who is considered among the leading physical oceanographers of all time. Stommel was primarily affiliated with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, where he worked until his death in 1992. Scripps physical oceanographer Rob Pinkel received the award in 2012.

A Southern California native, Armi grew up in Palos Verdes, Calif. He received his B.S. from Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, an M.S. from the University of Southern California in aerospace engineering, and a Ph.D. in fluid mechanics from U. C. Berkeley. Before joining Scripps in 1981, he spent five years at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution where he worked with Henry Stommel.
"This means so much to me since Hank Stommel was a dear friend," Armi said.

Melville was born in Sydney, Australia. He received B.Sc., B.E., and M.Eng.Sc. degrees from the University of Sydney, and a Ph.D. in aeronautics and astronautics from Southampton University in the United Kingdom. He moved from Australia to the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at Scripps in 1977, and then took a faculty position at MIT in 1980, participating in the MIT-Woods Hole Joint Program until 1991 when he returned to Scripps.

The Sverdrup Medal is named for famed Scripps Director Harald Sverdrup, who led the institution from 1936 to 1948. Sverdrup is best known for his assistance to the Allied war effort during World War II, for his pioneering research into ocean circulation and tidal processes and for co-authoring what is considered the first textbook of oceanography, The Oceans: Their Physics, Chemistry and General Biology. Previous recipients of the Sverdrup Award include Scripps scientists Walter Munk, Jerome Namias, Tim Barnett and most recently, Dean Roemmich in 2009.

"I was delighted to receive this news," said Melville. "It is an honor to join the previous recipients of this award and to be associated with Sverdrup's legacy in some small way. "

The presentations of the awards will take place at the 93rd Annual Meeting of the American Meteorological Society in Austin, Texas in January 2013.

# # #

Note to broadcast and cable producers: University of California, San Diego provides an on-campus satellite uplink facility for live or pre-recorded television interviews. Please phone or e-mail the media contact listed above to arrange an interview.

About Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Scripps Institution of Oceanography at University of California, San Diego, is one of the oldest, largest and most important centers for global science research and education in the world. Now in its second century of discovery, the scientific scope of the institution has grown to include biological, physical, chemical, geological, geophysical and atmospheric studies of the earth as a system. Hundreds of research programs covering a wide range of scientific areas are under way today in 65 countries. The institution has a staff of about 1,400, and annual expenditures of approximately $170 million from federal, state and private sources. Scripps operates robotic networks, and one of the largest U.S. academic fleets with four oceanographic research ships and one research platform for worldwide exploration. Birch Aquarium at Scripps serves as the interpretive center of the institution and showcases Scripps research and a diverse array of marine life through exhibits and programming for more than 415,000 visitors each year. Learn more at scripps.ucsd.edu.

• Robert Monroe or Mario Aguilera
• Phone: 858.534.3624
  scrippsnews@ucsd.edu

• American Meteorological Society
• Scripps Home
• ScrippsNews Home

© Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego 2013. All Rights Reserved