UMaine Professor Mayewski to Receive Prestigious Seligman Crystal
Contact: Joe Carr at (207) 581-3571
ORONO — Prof. Paul Mayewski, director of the University of Maine Climate Change Institute, will travel to Norway this weekend to join an exclusive fraternity of esteemed climate scientists to receive the International Glaciological Society’s (IGS) Seligman Crystal.
Since the award was first presented in 1963 — to its namesake, the late British glaciologist Gerald Seligman — only 30 Seligman Crystals have been awarded, including just five in this century.
The crystal, according to the IGS Web site, “shall be awarded from time to time to one who has made an outstanding scientific contribution to glaciology so that the subject is now enriched.”
A UMaine faculty member since 2000, Mayewski is UMaine’s 2010 Distinguished Maine Professor, an annual honor accorded to a faculty member who has demonstrated excellence in all elements of the university’s teaching, research and public service mission. Widely recognized as one of the world’s foremost authorities in his field, Mayewski has earned numerous accolades during his distinguished career. A fellow of the American Academy for the Advancement of Science, Mayewski was the first person to receive the Scientific Committee for Antarctic Research’s Medal for Excellence in Antarctic Research. He also received the Lowell Thomas Medal and a citation of merit from the Explorers Club.
He is regularly asked to provide authoritative commentary on climate issues by local, national and international news organizations. He has been featured in numerous publications and broadcast reports, including two segments on the CBS news program “60 Minutes.”
Mayewski, who has led nearly 50 scientific expeditions to some of the world’s most remote locations, is believed to have traversed more of Antarctica than any other explorer in history. He is a prolific scholar and a pioneer in the use of ice cores to study climate change through the recovery, analysis and interpretation of ice cores recovered from locations in Antarctica, Asia and the Arctic.
“Paul’s extraordinary achievements bring honor and distinction to the University of Maine,” says UMaine President Robert Kennedy. “This award further solidifies his stature as an affirmed leader in this critical field of study. Paul’s students, his colleagues and our entire academic community all benefit from his exceptional contributions and share a sense of pride in this, his newest accomplishment.”