Aquatic Organic Geochemistry

Rick has been named the first Richard H. Fleming Fellow in the School of Oceanography.    Richard Fleming was the director of the School when it established the world’s first undergraduate degree in Oceanography in 1951, and he valued strongly the importance of our undergraduate program. The Fleming Endowment honors Richard Fleming’s vision for quality undergraduate studies, and is intended to “ensure that outstanding faculty will continue to innovate and provide oceanography students with an exceptional learning experiences”.

Rick is honored to be named the first fellow of this endowment.  Continue to learn more about Richard H Fleming…

Richard H. Fleming (1909-1989) was an oceanographer who chaired our Department from 1951 to 1967. He was born in Victoria, British Columbia, and attended the University of British Columbia, where he received his B.A. and an M.A. in chemistry. Afterward he pursued studies at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography of the University of California, receiving his Ph.D. in oceanography in 1935. Fleming taught at the Scripps Institution for several years He acted as chief oceanographer for the U.S. Navy Hydrographic Office in Washington, D.C. from 1946 to 1951. Dr. Fleming joined the faculty of the University of Washington in 1951 as the chairman of the Oceanography Department. He directed the expansion of the department’s programs, including the development of undergraduate studies in oceanography.

Dr. Fleming also engaged in research during his time as chairman and participated in major projects at sea. The NORPAC (Northern Pacific Survey) project (1955-1956) was the first comprehensive synoptic survey of the Northern Pacific Ocean, charting currents, tides, winds, depths, and temperatures and observing plant and animal life over a two year period. Project Chariot (1959-1962), conducted for the Atomic Energy Commission as part of Operation Plowshare, investigated the possibility of creating a harbor in Alaska by exploding nuclear devices. Dr. Fleming’s career coincided with the beginning of the nuclear age, and his work included two studies on the disposal of atomic wastes in the ocean, the first for the National Bureau of Standards and the second for the National Research Council.

Fleming belonged to numerous scientific organizations and worked on many committees. These included an organizing committee of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics and several committees of the National Research Council. He engaged in and supervised research on grant projects sponsored by the Office of Naval Research, the Atomic Energy Commission, and the National Science Foundation.

Fleming served as chairman of the Department of Oceanography until 1967 and continued as a professor of oceanography until 1980, when he retired as professor emeritus. He was particularly interested in the development of education in oceanography and worked with committees to promote the training of secondary school teachers and the publication of textbooks in the field. He was the author, with Harold Sverdrup, of The Oceans, one of the standard works on oceanography.