Robert P. Sharp
Robert Phillip Sharp(24 June 1911 – 25 May 2004) was an Americangeomorphologistand expert on thegeological surfacesof theEarthand the planetMars.[1][2][3]Sharp served as the chairman of the Division of Geological Sciences atCalifornia Institute of Technology(Caltech) from 1952 to 1968.[4]He built the modern department and especially recruited new faculty ingeochemistry,tectonic geomorphology,planetary science,and field geology.
Biography[edit]
Sharp specialized ingeomorphologyand published heavily in glacial terrain (theSierra Nevada,Blue Glacierin theOlympic Peninsula,andAlaska),Mojave Desertterrain, and theRuby-EastHumboldt Rangein north-centralNevada.Sharp retired in 1979 but continued leading geological field trips afterwards (with emphasis on theGrand Canyongeology usingrubber rafts).
Biography and education[edit]
Sharp was a native son ofOxnard, California.He attended Caltech as an undergraduate, beginning in 1930, earning a bachelor's degree (1934) in geology, and master's degree (1935) in geology. While at Caltech, he was quarterback on the football team.
He received a doctorate atHarvard University(1938) in geology under ProfessorKirk Bryan.[5]
Career[edit]
Sharp served in theUnited States Armyduring World War II as an analyst in the Arctic, Desert and Tropical Information Center and achieved the rank of captain. During World War II, Sharp performed extensive field work in theAleutian Islandsof the Alaskan Peninsula, simultaneously testing newarctic clothingforsoldiers,and quietly performinggeological mappingof several islands, which he published in theBulletin of the Geological Society of America.
Sharp was briefly an instructor in geology at theUniversity of Illinois at Urbana–Champaignbefore World War II, and briefly an Assistant Professor of Geology at theUniversity of Minnesotaimmediately after the war. As soon as possible, Caltech's Division Chairman Ian Campbell arranged for Sharp to return home to Caltech as a full professor in 1947. Sharp remained at Caltech for the next half-century, and was quickly promoted to the Chairman of the Division of Geological Sciences, later renamed to the Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences. At Caltech, Sharp mentored dozens of doctoral students in fieldgeomorphology;these are now working at the United States Geological Survey facility inMenlo Park, Californiaand in leading geology departments throughoutNorth America.
Research[edit]
Sharp became a published expert on the glacial geomorphology of the Sierra Nevada range, the Trinity Alps of northwestern California, theOlympic Peninsulaof Washington, andMount Saint Eliasin theFairweather Rangeof Alaska. In the winter season, he focused his geological field work in the Mojave Desert of California, with emphasis on the geomorphology ofCima Dome,and the sliding stones on theRacetrack Playain northernDeath Valley.
He was an expert on the physics of blown sand and the formation ofsand dunesin the Mojave Desert and theCoachella Valley.He was awarded the Kirk Bryan Award by theGeological Society of Americafor his work on the geomorphology of sand dunes in desert terrain.
Sharp loved weekend field trips, and so he authored a number of field books in geology ofsouthern California,published by Mountain Press. While in his sixties, Sharp continued to teach field geology to Caltech geology students during summer classes atHenry MountaininUtah,whereGrove Karl Gilbertdiscoveredlaccoliths.
After retiring from Caltech, Sharp and his wife Jean moved their home fromAltadenatoSanta Barbara.They had two children.
Awards and honors[edit]
- Robert Sharp was a member of the United StatesNational Academy of Sciencesand received theNational Medal of Sciencein 1989.
- He won thePenrose Medalfrom theGeological Society of America,its highest honor.
- Sharp was honored by Caltech as the first named professorship in geology: the Robert Phillip Sharp Chair in Geology.
- The Hungaria asteroid5426 Sharp,discovered byCarolyn ShoemakeratPalomar Observatoryin 1985, was named in his honor.[3]Naming citation was published on 17 March 1995 (M.P.C.24917).[6]
- On March 28, 2012,NASAnamed a mountain"Mount Sharp"on the planetMars,in his honor. The mountain is located at the center ofGale crater,where in August of the same year the Mars roverCuriositysuccessfully landed.[7]However, on May 16, 2012, Mount Sharp had officially been renamed "Aeolis Mons"by theInternational Astronomical Union,whilea neighboring craterwas instead named after the scientist.[8]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^Nagourney, Eric (14 June 2004)."Robert Sharp Dies at 92; Linked Study of Planets".The New York Times.Retrieved29 May2012.
- ^Staff (28 May 2004)."Robert P. Sharp, 92; Expert on Surfaces of Earth and Mars".Los Angeles Times.Retrieved31 March2012.
- ^abSchmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(5426) Sharp".Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (5426) Sharp.Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 464.doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_5208.ISBN978-3-540-00238-3.
- ^Allen, Clarence R.;Stevenson, David J.(May 2005)."Obituary: Robert Phillip Sharp"(PDF).Physics Today.58(5): 84–86.Bibcode:2005PhT....58e..84A.doi:10.1063/1.1995761.
- ^Staff (2009)."Guide to the Papers of Robert P. Sharp, 1933-1996".California Institute of Technology.Retrieved31 March2012.
- ^"MPC/MPO/MPS Archive".Minor Planet Center.Retrieved30 March2017.
- ^NASA Staff (6 Aug 2012)."NASA Lands Car-Size Rover Beside Martian Mountain".NASA.Retrieved7 August2012.
- ^USGS (16 May 2012)."Three New Names Approved for Features on Mars".United States Geological Survey.Retrieved28 May2012.
External links[edit]
- Robert P. Sharp - Biography/California Institute of Technology
- Clarence R. Allen, "Robert Phillip Sharp", Biographical Memoirs of the National Academy of Sciences (2010)
- Robert P. Sharp - Oral History/Caltech
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
- 1911 births
- 2004 deaths
- 20th-century American geologists
- American planetary scientists
- California Institute of Technology people
- People from Oxnard, California
- Scientists from Pasadena, California
- National Medal of Science laureates
- Harvard University alumni
- Penrose Medal winners
- Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences