This is a list of geophysicists, people who made notable contributions to geophysics, whether or not geophysics was their primary field. These include historical figures who laid the foundations for the field of geophysics. More recently, some of the top awards for geophysicists are the Vetlesen Prize (intended to be the equivalent of a Nobel Prize for geology or geophysics); the William Bowie Medal (the top award of the American Geophysical Union); and the Crafoord Prize for geosciences. Some geophysicists have also won more general prizes such as the Nobel Prize and the Kyoto Prize.
Leason Adams (American, 1887–1969) – high pressure mineral physics
Thomas J Ahrens (American, 1936–2010) – experimental methods for modeling hypervelocity impacts and materials in the Earth's core and mantle
Claude Allègre (French, 1937–) Crafoord Prize
Hannes Alfvén (Swedish, 1908–1995) – Alfvén waves, magnetohydrodynamics of magnetosphere; Nobel Prize in Physics
Keiiti Aki (Japanese-American, 1930–2005) – seismology; William Bowie Medal
Don L. Anderson (American, 1933–2014) – seismology and Earth's interior (including the Preliminary reference Earth model); Crafoord Prize
Tanya Atwater (American, 1942–) – plate tectonic history of North America
George Edward Backus (American, 1930–) – geophysical mathematician, development of geophysical inverse methods; contributions to dynamo theory
Anthony R. Barringer (Canadian/American, 1925–2009) – developed the INPUT airborne electromagnetic system for detecting ores
Julius Bartels (German, 1899–1964) – contributed to physics of the Sun and Moon; geomagnetism, meteorology and the physics of the ionosphere
Louis Bauer (American, 1865–1932) – mapped the Earth's magnetic field
Hugo Benioff (American, 1899–1968) – discovered link between deep earthquakes and subduction zones
Lloyd Berkner (American, 1905–1967) – studied the ionosphere
Henry Bryant Bigelow (American, 1879–1967) – awarded the William Bowie Medal
Francis Birch (American, 1903–1992) – developed theoretical and experimental models for the Earth's interior; Vetlesen Prize
Kristian Birkeland (Norwegian, 1867–1917) – first realized that energetic electrons cause the aurora; nominated 7 times for Nobel Prize
Abu Rayhan Biruni (Persian, 973–1048) – made accurate measure of circumference of Earth and other contributions to geodesy
Jacob Bjerknes (Norwegian-American, 1897–1975) – awarded the William Bowie Medal
Martin Bott (British, 1926–) – magnetic anomalies, gravity anomalies
Pierre Bouguer (French, 1698–1758) – geodesy; the Bouguer gravity anomaly
William Bowie (American, 1872–1940) – geodesy and isostasy
Wallace Smith Broecker (American, 1931–) – climate, ocean circulation; Crafoord Prize, Vetlesen Prize
Bernard Brunhes (French, 1867–1910) – paleomagnetism; discovered the first geomagnetic reversal
Walter Hermann Bucher (German-American, 1888–1965) – awarded the William Bowie Medal
Sir Edward Bullard (British, 1907–1980) – developed theory of geodynamo, pioneered use of seismology to study the sea floor, and used seafloor bathymetry to test continental drift
Keith Edward Bullen (New Zealand-born, 1906–1976) – seismological interpretation of the deep structure of the Earth's mantle and core
Henry Cavendish (British, 1731–1810) – made first estimate of the mass of the Earth
Anny Cazenave (French, ?) – geodesy and satellite altimetry; awarded William Bowie Medal
Sydney Chapman (British, 1888–1970) – predicted magnetosphere; developed theories for effect of solar wind on geomagnetic storms and aurorae
Jule Gregory Charney (American, 1917–1981) – dynamical meteorology; awarded William Bowie Medal
Jon Claerbout (American, 1937–) – exploration geophysics
Alexis Clairaut (French, 1713–1765) – proved Clairaut's theorem and calculated the ellipticity of the Earth
William Compston (Australian, 1931–) – developed the Sensitive High Resolution Ion Micro Probe for isotopic analyses of geological samples
Vincent Courtillot (French, 1948–) – paleomagnetist; promoted theory that mass extinctions are caused by massive volcanic episodes
Allan V. Cox (American, 1926–1987) – created a timeline for geomagnetic reversals and was a pioneer in plate tectonics; Vetlesen Prize
Albert P. Crary (America, 1911–1987) – Arctic and Antarctic exploration, seismology
Francis Anthony Dahlen (American, 1942–2007) – theoretical geophysics, global seismology
Reginald Aldworth Daly (Canadian, 1871–1957) – awarded the William Bowie Medal
Sir George Howard Darwin (British, 1845–1912) – analyzed tides and tidal friction; first to develop mathematical theory for evolution of the Sun–Earth–Moon system
Arthur Louis Day (American, 1869–1960) – mineral physics and volcanology
Everette Lee DeGolyer (American, 1886–1956) – exploration geophysics in the petroleum industry
Robert S. Dietz (American, 1914–1995) – proposed (and named) – theory of seafloor spreading; discovered several impact craters including Sudbury Basin
Richard Doell (American,1923–2008) – created a timeline for geomagnetic reversals and was a pioneer in plate tectonics; Vetlesen Prize
James Dooge (Irish, 1922–2010) – hydrology
Erich von Drygalski (German, 1865–1949) – polar explorer and geophysicist
Adam Dziewonski (Polish/American, 1936–2016) – large-scale structure of Earth's interior and nature of earthquakes; Crafoord Prize
Carl Eckart (American, 1902–1973) – underwater acoustics; awarded William Bowie Medal
Walter M. Elsasser (American, 1904–1991) – first mathematical dynamo theory for Earth's outer core
Loránd Eötvös (Hungarian, 1848–1919) – developed a highly accurate torsion balance for gravimetry
Eratosthenes (Greek, c. 276 BC–195 BC) – measured circumference of the Earth and the tilt of its axis
Maurice Ewing (American, 1906–1974) – broad contributions to seafloor seismology; predicted and discovered the SOFAR channel
Gerhard Fanselau (German, 1904–1982) – geomagnetic observations
Joseph Charles Farman (British, 1930–2013) – co-discoverer of the ozone hole
Osmond Fisher (British, 1817–1914) – continental drift
John Adam Fleming (American, 1877–1956) – magnetosphere and atmospheric electricity
James David Forbes (British, 1809–1868) – built the first seismometer
Scott Forbush (American, 1904–1984) – solar-terrestrial interactions and the Forbush decrease
Robert Were Fox the Younger (British, 1789–1877) – discovered the geothermal gradient; constructed a dip circle for use at sea
Benjamin Franklin (American, 1706–1790) – established that lightning is electrical
Carl Friedrich Gauss (German, 1777–1855) – first mathematical representation of Earth's magnetic field; geodetic surveys
Henry Gellibrand (English, 1597–1637) – discovered that magnetic declination varies with time
James Freeman Gilbert (American, 1931–2014) – development of geophysical inverse theory; network of seismometers to study Earth's free oscillation
William Gilbert (English, 1544–1603) – early magnetic experiments; first to argue that the Earth itself is magnetic
George Graham (English 1673 – November 1751) – discovery of the diurnal variation of the Earth's magnetic field; related Aurora borealis to magnetic field variations
Harsh Gupta (Indian, 1942–) – methodology for discriminating normal earthquakes from reservoir-induced ones, study on the genesis of stable continental region earthquakes; Padma Shri, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize and Waldo E. Smith Award
Beno Gutenberg (American, 1889–1960) – probability distribution of earthquake energies and relation of energy to magnitude
Edmond Halley (English, 1656–1742) – first chart of Earth's magnetic field
Christopher Hansteen (Norwegian, 1784–1873) – produced the first charts of the intensity of the Earth's magnetic field
Harry Hammond Hess (American, 1906–1969) – seafloor gravity anomalies and theory of seafloor spreading
Georg Hartmann (German, 1489–1564) – kept early records of magnetic declination
Bernhard Haurwitz (American, 1905– 1986) – meteorology
Veikko Aleksanteri Heiskanen (Finnish, 1895–1971) – studies of the global geoid
Raymond Hide (British, 1929–2016)
Arthur Holmes (British, 1890–1965) – performed first Uranium-lead dating
M. King Hubbert – correct statement of Darcy's law and mathematical demonstration that rock undergoes plastic deformation; Vetlesen Prize
Alexander von Humboldt (German, 1769–1859) – global network of geomagnetic observatories
Akitsune Imamura (Japanese, 1870–1948) – seismologist
Ted Irving (Canadian, 1927–2014) – early paleomagnetic evidence for continental drift
Ahmet Mete Işıkara (Turkish, 1941–2013) – earthquake scientist
Sir Harold Jeffreys (British, 1891–1989) – deduced that the Earth's outer core is molten; contributed to mathematical geophysics; Vetlesen Prize
Lucy Jones (?) – earthquake science and safety
Thomas H. Jordan (American, 1948–) – seismic contributions to plate tectonics
James A. Jackson (English, 1954–) – seismologist; contributed to rebuttal of the 'jelly sandwich' model of the crust
Hiroo Kanamori (American, 1936–) – fundamental contributions to the physics of earthquakes; Kyoto Prize
William Thomson, Lord Kelvin (Irish, 1824–1907) – influential estimate of the age of the Earth, ultimately proved incorrect
Kurt Lambeck (Dutch, 1941–) – changed understanding of the ways post-glacial rebound affects ocean levels; awarded Wollaston Medal and Balzan Prize
Johann von Lamont (Scottish, 1805–1879) – surveys of the Earth's magnetic field
Louis J. Lanzerotti (American, 1938–) – magnetosphere and ionosphere; awarded William Bowie Medal
Inge Lehmann (Danish, 1888–1993) – seismologist who discovered the Lehmann discontinuity and argued for a solid inner core
Xavier Le Pichon (French, 1937–) – constructed history of plate motions
Cinna Lomnitz (Chilean–Mexican, 1925–2016) – creator of "Lomnitz Law", founder of Meixco's first seismic network and editor of Geofísica Internacional
Andrew Long (Australian, 1965–) – developed widely used instruments for marine exploration for oil and gas; Honorary Lecturer (Pacific South) for the Society of Exploration Geophysicists
Augustus Edward Hough Love (English, 1863–1940) – developed theory of Love waves
Gordon J. F. MacDonald (American, 1929–2002) – investigated rotation of the Earth and true polar wander
James B. Macelwane (American, 1883–1956) – seismologist; awarded William Bowie Medal
Jean-Jacques d'Ortous de Mairan (French, 1678 –1771) – shape of the Earth and aurora
Robert Mallet (Irish, 1810–1881) – developed controlled source seismology; coined terms seismology and epicenter
Syukuro Manabe (Japanese, 1931–) – climate models; awarded William Bowie Medal
Pierre de Maricourt (Petrus Peregrinus) – (French, fl. 1269) – first extant treatise on properties of magnets; detailed study of the compass
Edme Mariotte (French, 1620–1684) – one of the pioneers of modern hydrology; used floats to measure river flow
Drummond Matthews (British, 1931–1997) – used ocean magnetic anomalies to confirm theory of seafloor spreading
Motonori Matuyama (Japanese, 1884–1958) – first to show that a geomagnetic reversal had occurred in the past
Dan McKenzie – mathematical framework for plate tectonics; mantle convection; sedimentary basin formation; Crafoord Prize
Marcia McNutt (American, 1952–) – elastic strength of lithosphere; identified the South Pacific superswell
Felix Andries Vening Meinesz (Dutch, 1887–1966) – developed a precise gravimeter and discovered gravity anomalies above the ocean floor
Oscar Edward Meinzer (?) – groundwater hydrology; awarded William Bowie Medal
Henry William Menard (American, 1920–1986) – plate tectonics; awarded William Bowie Medal
Giuseppe Mercalli (Italian, 1850–1914) – developed Mercalli intensity scale for measuring earthquakes
John Milne (British, 1849–1913) – invented the horizontal pendulum seismograph
Andrija Mohorovičić (Croatian, 1857–1936) – identified Mohorovičić discontinuity;
W. Jason Morgan (American, 1935–) – geodynamics, plate tectonics
Jean Morlet (French, 1931–2007) – developed the wavelet transform for exploration geophysics
Lawrence Morley (Canadian, 1920 – 2013)) – used ocean magnetic anomalies to confirm theory of seafloor spreading
Ahsan Mubarak (Pakistani, ?) – seismic detection of nuclear tests
Walter Munk (American, 1917–) – rotation of the earth; acoustic tomography of the oceans; Crafoord Prize, Vetlesen Prize, Kyoto Prize
Louis Néel (French, 1904 – 2000) – developed theory to explain the stable magnetization in volcanic rocks; Nobel Prize in physics
Marcia Neugebauer (American, 1932–) – space physicist and president of the American Geophysical Union
Marcel Nicolet (Belgian, 1912–1996) – ionosphere; awarded William Bowie Medal
Robert Norman (English, circa 1550–1600) – re-discovery of magnetic dip
Abel Idowu Olayinka (Nigerian, 1958–) – applied geophysicist
Richard Dixon Oldham (British, 1858–1936) – seismologist, first clear evidence for separate arrivals of P-waves, S-waves and surface waves on seismograms; first clear evidence for Earth's core
Luigi Palmieri (Italian, 1807–1896) – seismic studies of Mount Vesuvius
Eugene Parker (American, 1927–) – solar wind and magnetospheres of the Earth and Sun; awarded Kyoto Prize, National Medal of Science, William Bowie Medal
Antares Parvulescu (American, 1923–1998), inventor of the first time-reversal experiment, and matched equivalent-space signal (MESS) processing.
Blaise Pascal (French, 1623–1662) – demonstrated that atmospheric pressure decreases with altitude
Chaim Leib Pekeris (American, 1908–1993) – mathematical methods to study free vibrations of Earth, tides, and origin of Earth's magnetic field; Vetlesen Prize
William Richard Peltier (Canadian, 1943–) – geophysical fluid dynamics, glacial rebound, climate change, Vetlesen Prize
Pierre Perrault (1608–1680) – developed the concept of the hydrological cycle
Alexis Perrey (French, 1807–1882) – seismologist
Walter C. Pitman, III (American, 1931–) – seafloor spreading and tectonics
George W. Platzman (American, 1920–2008) – geophysical fluid dynamics, numerical weather prediction
John Henry Pratt (British, 1809–1871) – laid foundation for principle of isostasy
Frank Press (American, 1924–) – design of a long-period seismograph, and the first detection of the Earth's normal modes of oscillation
Harry Fielding Reid (American, 1859–1944) – elastic-rebound theory and other contributions to seismology
Roger Revelle (American, 1909–1991) – global warming and plate tectonics; awarded William Bowie Medal
Charles Francis Richter (American, 1900–1985) – creation of Richter magnitude scale
Ted Ringwood (Australian, 1930–1993) – mineral physics; awarded William Bowie Medal and Wollaston Medal
Ignacio Rodriguez-Iturbe (Venezuelan, 1942–) – global warming; awarded William Bowie Medal
Keith Runcorn (British, 1922–1995) – paleomagnetic work supporting continental drift; apparent polar wander
Sir Edward Sabine (Irish, 1788–1883) – measured oblateness of the Earth; established system of magnetic observatories
Benjamin D. Santer (American, 1955–) – climatologist
Conrad Schlumberger (French, 1878–1936) – and Marcel Schlumberger (French, 1884–1953) – invented electric well logging
Michael Schoenberg (1939–2008) – contributions to seismic anisotropy
Alessandro Serpieri (1823–1885) – seismologist
Nicholas Shackleton (British, 1937–2006) – paleoceanography, climate, Crafoord Prize, Vetlesen Prize
Irwin I. Shapiro (American, 1929–) – awarded William Bowie Medal
Shen Kuo (Chinese, 1031–1095) – discovered magnetic declination
Eugene Merle Shoemaker (American, 1928–1997) – planetary science; awarded William Bowie Medal
Paul G. Silver (American, 1948–2009) – seismic anisotropy and splitting of shear waves
Fred Singer (Austrian-American, 1924–) – atmospheric physicist, global warming skeptic
Susan Solomon (American, 1956–) – proposed chlorofluorocarbons as the cause of the Antarctic ozone hole; awarded Nobel peace prize and William Bowie Medal
David J. Stevenson (New Zealander/American, 1948–) – theories of internal structure and evolution of planets
Balfour Stewart (Scottish, 1828–1887) – observations of solar flares and geomagnetic storms
Henry Stommel (American, 1920–1992) – ocean circulation; awarded William Bowie Medal
Carl Størmer (Norwegian, 1874–1957) – motion of charged particles in the magnetosphere and origin of the aurora
Harald Sverdrup (Norwegian, 1888–1957) – ocean circulation; awarded William Bowie Medal
Merle Tuve (American, 1901–1982) – used radio waves to measure the ionosphere; United States Medal for Merit
Donald L. Turcotte (American, born 1922) – developed theory of convection in the Earth's mantle, applications of fractals and chaos to Earth processes; William Bowie Medal of the American Geophysical Union
James Van Allen (American, 1914–2006) – Van Allen radiation belts; awarded Crafoord Prize, Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society (for geophysics), National Medal of Science, William Bowie Medal
Petr Vaníček (Czech Canadian, 1935–) – breakthroughs in theory of spectral analysis and geoid computation, awarded J. Tuzo Wilson Medal, founded Canadian Geophysical Union
T. Wayland Vaughan (American, 1870–1952) – study of corals and coral reefs, larger foraminifera, and oceanography
Fred Vine (British, 1939–) – work on marine magnetic anomalies confirmed the theory of seafloor spreading
Kiyoo Wadati (Japanese, 1902–1995) – researched subduction zone earthquakes; lent name to Wadati–Benioff zone
Alfred Wegener (German, 1880–1930) – developed theory of continental drift
Emil Johann Wiechert (German, 1861–1928) – first verifiable model of layered structure of the Earth; pioneering work on propagation of seismic waves
J. Tuzo Wilson (Canadian, 1908–1993) – contributions to plate tectonics: theories of hotspots, transform faults and Wilson cycles; Vetlesen Prize; President of AGU;
J. Lamar Worzel (American, 1919–2008) – contributions to underwater acoustics, underwater photography, and gravity measurements at sea
Carl Wunsch (American, 1941– ) – ocean circulation, climatology; awarded the William Bowie Medal
Zhang Heng (Chinese, 78–139) – invented the first seismoscope
List of geophysicists Wikipedia (Text) CC BY-SA