Victor Vacquier
Encyclopedia
Victor Vacquier, Sr. was a professor of geophysics at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography
at the University of California, San Diego
.
Vacquier was born in St. Petersburg, Russia
. In 1920, Vacquier escaped the Russian Civil War
with his family, taking a horse-drawn sleigh across the ice of the Gulf of Finland to Helsinki
, then moving to France
and (in 1923) to the United States. He received a B.S. in electrical engineering
in 1927 from the University of Wisconsin, and a master's degree in physics in 1929, but never earned a Ph.D. He worked for Gulf Research Laboratories, the research arm of Gulf Oil
, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
, and then during World War II
he moved to the Airborne Instruments Laboratory at Columbia University
, where he applied the fluxgate magnetometer, an instrument he had invented at Gulf, to submarine detection
. Following the war, he worked at Sperry Gyroscope Inc.
developing gyrocompass
es; then in 1953 he moved to the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
, where he worked on groundwater
detection. At Scripps, where he moved in 1957, he directed a program that used his war-surplus flux magnetometers to measure the patterns formed by the Earth's magnetic field on the sea floor
; his discovery of large shifts in the patterns in the Mendocino Fracture Zone
was a major impetus behind the theory of plate tectonics
, which his later measurements of heat flow on the sea floor also strongly supported.
For his researches, Vacquier was awarded the John Price Wetherill Medal of the Franklin Institute
in 1960, the Albatross Award of the American Miscellaneous Society
in 1963, the John Adam Fleming Medal of the American Geophysical Union
in 1973, the Reginald Fessenden Award of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists
in 1976, and the Alexander Agassiz Medal
of the United States National Academy of Sciences
in 1995 “for his discovery of the flux-gate magnetometer, and for the marine magnetic anomaly surveys that led to the acceptance of the theory of sea-floor spreading
.” He died in La Jolla, California on January 11, 2009.
Vacquier's son, Victor D. Vacquier, is also a professor at Scripps, where he studies marine reproductive biology
.
Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, California, is one of the oldest and largest centers for ocean and earth science research, graduate training, and public service in the world...
at the University of California, San Diego
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...
.
Vacquier was born in St. Petersburg, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. In 1920, Vacquier escaped the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
with his family, taking a horse-drawn sleigh across the ice of the Gulf of Finland to Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, then moving to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and (in 1923) to the United States. He received a B.S. in electrical engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
in 1927 from the University of Wisconsin, and a master's degree in physics in 1929, but never earned a Ph.D. He worked for Gulf Research Laboratories, the research arm of Gulf Oil
Gulf Oil
Gulf Oil was a major global oil company from the 1900s to the 1980s. The eighth-largest American manufacturing company in 1941 and the ninth-largest in 1979, Gulf Oil was one of the so-called Seven Sisters oil companies...
, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, and then during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he moved to the Airborne Instruments Laboratory at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, where he applied the fluxgate magnetometer, an instrument he had invented at Gulf, to submarine detection
Magnetic anomaly detector
A magnetic anomaly detector is an instrument used to detect minute variations in the Earth's magnetic field. The term refers specifically to magnetometers used by military forces to detect submarines ; the military MAD gear is a descendent of geomagnetic survey instruments used to search for...
. Following the war, he worked at Sperry Gyroscope Inc.
Sperry Corporation
Sperry Corporation was a major American equipment and electronics company whose existence spanned more than seven decades of the twentieth century...
developing gyrocompass
Gyrocompass
A gyrocompass is a type of non-magnetic compass which bases on a fast-spinning disc and rotation of our planet to automatically find geographical direction...
es; then in 1953 he moved to the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology is a university located in Socorro, New Mexico....
, where he worked on groundwater
Groundwater
Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated deposit is called an aquifer when it can yield a usable quantity of water. The depth at which soil pore spaces or fractures and voids in rock...
detection. At Scripps, where he moved in 1957, he directed a program that used his war-surplus flux magnetometers to measure the patterns formed by the Earth's magnetic field on the sea floor
Geomagnetic reversal
A geomagnetic reversal is a change in the Earth's magnetic field such that the positions of magnetic north and magnetic south are interchanged. The Earth's field has alternated between periods of normal polarity, in which the direction of the field was the same as the present direction, and reverse...
; his discovery of large shifts in the patterns in the Mendocino Fracture Zone
Mendocino Fracture Zone
The Mendocino Fracture Zone is a fracture zone and transform boundary off the coast of Cape Mendocino in far northern California. It runs westward from a triple junction with the San Andreas Fault and the Cascadia subduction zone to the southern end of the Gorda Ridge...
was a major impetus behind the theory of plate tectonics
Plate tectonics
Plate tectonics is a scientific theory that describes the large scale motions of Earth's lithosphere...
, which his later measurements of heat flow on the sea floor also strongly supported.
For his researches, Vacquier was awarded the John Price Wetherill Medal of the Franklin Institute
Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute is a museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the oldest centers of science education and development in the United States, dating to 1824. The Institute also houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.-History:On February 5, 1824, Samuel Vaughn Merrick and...
in 1960, the Albatross Award of the American Miscellaneous Society
American Miscellaneous Society
The American Miscellaneous Society was formed by Gordon Lill, of the Office of Naval Research, as an organization designed to collect various Earth science research ideas that were submitted by scientists to the U.S. Navy and didn't fit into any particular category. Membership in AMSOC was open...
in 1963, the John Adam Fleming Medal of the American Geophysical Union
American Geophysical Union
The American Geophysical Union is a nonprofit organization of geophysicists, consisting of over 50,000 members from over 135 countries. AGU's activities are focused on the organization and dissemination of scientific information in the interdisciplinary and international field of geophysics...
in 1973, the Reginald Fessenden Award of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists
Society of Exploration Geophysicists
The Society of Exploration Geophysicists is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting the science of geophysics and the education of exploration geophysicists. The Society fosters the expert and ethical practice of geophysics in the exploration and development of natural resources, in...
in 1976, and the Alexander Agassiz Medal
Alexander Agassiz Medal
The Alexander Agassiz Medal is awarded by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences for an original contribution in the science of oceanography. It was established by Sir John Murray in honor of his friend Alexander Agassiz.-Recipients:-References:NotesA...
of the United States National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
in 1995 “for his discovery of the flux-gate magnetometer, and for the marine magnetic anomaly surveys that led to the acceptance of the theory of sea-floor spreading
Seafloor spreading
Seafloor spreading is a process that occurs at mid-ocean ridges, where new oceanic crust is formed through volcanic activity and then gradually moves away from the ridge. Seafloor spreading helps explain continental drift in the theory of plate tectonics....
.” He died in La Jolla, California on January 11, 2009.
Vacquier's son, Victor D. Vacquier, is also a professor at Scripps, where he studies marine reproductive biology
Reproductive biology
Reproductive biology is a study mainly involving the reproductive system and sex organs. It is closely related to reproductive endocrinology and infertility. also is miotosis and miosis...
.