The geochemistry community is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Wallace S. Broecker on 18 February 2019 at the age of 87.
Known affectionately as the "Grandfather of Climate Science", Wally was an amazing force for scientific innovation. He was among the pioneers of radiocarbon and isotope dating, and was also the first to identify what he called the Ocean Conveyor Belt and its critical role in climate fluctuations.
As early as the 1970s, Wally Broecker recognized the far-reaching and rapid impacts anthropogenic CO2 emissions would have on the climate system. Highly recommended reading is his 1975 paper "Climatic Change: Are We on the Brink of a Pronounced Global Warming?".
In recognition of his outstanding contributions, Wally Broecker received numerous awards, including the National Medal of Science from President Bill Clinton, and the Urey and the V.M. Goldschmidt Awards of the Geochemical Society. In 2015, he was conferred an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Waterloo. (That same year he also received Honorary Doctorates from Harvard University and the University of Oxford.)
Wally spent most of his career at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, N.Y.. He authored and co-authored over 500 journal articles and 11 books.
To learn more about this extraordinary scientist:
https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2019/02/19/wallace-broecker-early-prophet-of-climate-change/