Charles David Keeling

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Charles David Keeling (2001) receiving the National Medal of Science

Charles David Keeling (* 20th April 1928 in Scranton in the US state of Pennsylvania ; † 20th June 2005 in Hamilton in the State of Montana ) was an American climate scientist . He became known worldwide for his decades of data collection, which mapped the increasing carbon dioxide content in the earth's atmosphere in the so-called Keeling curve .

He was Professor of Chemistry at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla near San Diego , California .

Life

Charles David Keeling grew up in the suburbs of Chicago during a severe economic crisis, the Great Depression . His father, an investment banker, promoted Charles David's interest in science. He inherited his love for music from his mother.

At the age of 17, Keeling enrolled at the University of Illinois , where he eventually got into chemistry and graduated with a bachelor's degree. He then conducted research at Northwestern University with Malcolm Dole , an acquaintance of his family, in the field of polymer chemistry , where he received his doctorate in 1954. Keeling was drawn to nature, he met his wife on a canoe tour in Canada, and was specifically looking for a doctorate a site near the cascade chain and found it at the California Institute of Technology (CalTech), where he worked as a postdoctoral fellow with geochemist Harrison S. Brown on CO 2 measurements. The head of the meteorological research department of the US Weather Service , Harry Wexler , learned about Keeling's work and brought him to his facility to drive global CO 2 measurements. But Keeling did not last long in the dark premises of the weather bureau, and in August 1956 he willingly accepted an offer from Roger Revelle to go to the Scripps Institute in California. Wexler, however, continued to promote Keeling's plans for CO 2 measurements.

At the second physics institute at the University of Heidelberg from 1969 to 1970 and at the physics institute at the University of Bern from 1979 to 1980 , Keeling was employed as visiting professor .

In his place of residence, Del Mar , California, he was the main author of a city plan, which aimed to ensure a high standard of living for all citizens. Keeling was also an excellent pianist. In 2005, Keeling died of a heart attack at the age of 77 . He left behind his wife Louise, who was three years his junior, and five adult children. His son Ralph F. Keeling continued his work on Mauna Loa.

Scientific achievements

The Keeling curve with the measured values ​​of the atmospheric carbon dioxide content, measured on the Mauna Loa

At CalTech, Harrison S. Brown pursued the idea of ​​determining the carbonate concentration in groundwater using the CO 2 concentration in air that is in equilibrium with the water (→  Revelle factor ). Keeling took on the realization of this idea and succeeded in developing high-precision measuring methods for atmospheric CO 2 , which he used in Big Sur . In doing so, he discovered the daily cycle of CO 2 concentrations.

Funds that Keeling received on the occasion of the International Geophysical Year enabled him to advance the planning and construction of a CO 2 observation station. In 1957 he recorded the world's first carbon dioxide measurement on the Mauna Loa in Hawaii . Originally, the measurement was only planned for one year, which resulted in a permanent facility. The continuous operation of this station, which has continued to this day, has resulted in a series of measurements showing a steady increase in this greenhouse gas . After evaluating these data, it was clear to him that the burning of fossil fuels by mankind and the resulting CO 2 release contribute to global warming . In addition, the curve shows an annual cycle, the cause of which is the vegetation cycle of the northern hemisphere. This collection of data became known as the Keeling curve .

All his life, Keeling was committed to uninterrupted, high-precision CO 2 measurements. Funders repeatedly wanted to withdraw funds from his work because, in their opinion, it was not new research. Until 1995, Keelings Laboratory provided gas samples for instrument calibration to other laboratories around the world. This activity, too, was threatened by a shift in responsibility that US authorities were seeking. However, other laboratories failed to provide samples with the same precision. The gas analyzer, designed by Keeling and installed on Mauna Loa in 1957, did its job for 48 years, until 2006. Keeling's work on Mauna Loa is continued by his son, oceanographer Ralph F. Keeling.

In addition, he was also interested in biodiversity . After a devastating forest fire in 1988, he carefully observed and documented how the population gradually recovered and how a great diversity of species could be observed again.

Honors

Publications

Keeling has authored over 100 scientific publications, including:

  • A three-dimensional model of atmospheric CO 2 transport based on observed winds. Aspects of Climate Variability in the Pacific and the Western Americas , DH Peterson, Ed., Washington, DC, American Geophysical Union, 165-363, 1989
  • Interannual extremes in the rate of rise of atmospheric carbon dioxide since 1980 , Nature 375: 666–670, 1995
  • Increased activity of northern vegetation inferred from atmospheric CO 2 measurements , Nature 382: 146-149, 1996
  • Increased plant growth in the northern high latitudes from 1981 to 1991 , Nature 386: 698-702, 1997

literature

  • Dag Olav Hessen: The many lives of carbon . Dresser, 2019, ISBN 978-3-9525014-0-5 , The Keeling Curve.
  • Daniel C. Harris: Charles David Keeling and the Story of Atmospheric CO 2 Measurements . In: Analytical Chemistry . June 2010, doi : 10.1021 / ac1001492 (open access).
  • Charles David Keeling: Rewards and Penalties of Monitoring the Earth . In: Annual Review of Energy and the Environment . November 1998, doi : 10.1146 / annurev.energy.23.1.25 ( ucsd.edu [PDF; 613 kB ] autobiographical article by Keeling).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Daniel C. Harris: Charles David Keeling and the Story of Atmospheric CO 2 Measurements . In: Analytical Chemistry . June 2010, doi : 10.1021 / ac1001492 .
  2. ↑ Dag Olav Hessen: The many lives of carbon . Dresser, 2019, ISBN 978-3-9525014-0-5 , The Keeling Curve.
  3. ↑ Scripps CO 2 Program - Carbon Dioxide Measurements. Scripps Institute of Oceanography, accessed February 23, 2020 .
  4. ^ Member History: Charles D. Keeling. American Philosophical Society, accessed October 19, 2018 .
personal data
SURNAME Keeling, Charles David
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American climate researcher
DATE OF BIRTH April 20, 1928
PLACE OF BIRTH Scranton
DATE OF DEATH June 20, 2005
Place of death Hamilton