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Awarding Achievement

January 20, 2019

Groundbreaking oceanographer Henry Stommel first came to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the 1944, less than 15 years after the Oceanographic’s founding. He remained affiliated with WHOI for much of his 45-year career. His former graduate student, physical oceanographer Carl Wunsch, called him “probably the most original and important physical oceanographer of all time.” After Stommel’s death in 1991, the WHOI trustees established the Henry Melson Stommel Medal in his honor. In 1980, Stommel himself was recognized by then President George H.W. Bush (left), who awarded him the National Medal of Science for his achievements.  (Courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Archives)