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Kerry
Kelts |
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Prof. Kerry Kelts passed away on February 8, 2001 at the age of 54, after a long and courageous battle with Hodgkins Disease. Kerry was a professor in the Department of Geology and Geophysics at the University of Minnesota, and was the director of the University's Limnological Research Center from 1990 to 2000. He received his B.S. in Geophysics from the University of California‑Riverside in 1967 and his Diplom (1970) and Ph.D. (1978) from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich (ETH). Kerry became interested in the geological aspects of lakes as a graduate student, and undertook a comprehensive investigation of the large, alpine glacial lakes, Zurich and Zug. This work resulted in classic papers on topics ranging from sedimentary structures and physical processes of sedimentation to the carbonate mineralogy and geochemistry of lake basins. Kerry also participated in three legs of the Deep Sea Drilling Project as a graduate student, where he gained extensive experience in the marine realm. This undoubtedly helped to shape his vision for lake research on a global scale. Kerry was a post‑doctoral scholar with the Deep‑Sea Drilling Project at Scripps Institution of Oceanography from 1978 to 1980, a lecturer at ETH‑Zurich from 1980 to 1985, and the director of the Geology Group at the Swiss Federal Institute of Water Resources (EAWAG) from 1985 to 1988. He became the director of the Swiss Institute of Climate and Global Change in 1988, a post he held until coming to Minnesota in 1990.
During the 1980's Kerry
initiated what was to be one of his scientific passions: the global study of
modern and ancient lake basins. He defined and coordinated two highly
successful International Geological Correlation Programs: first, Project 219 (Comparative Lacustrine Sedimentology in
Space and Time) and then GLOPALS (IGCP 324 ‑ Global Paleoenvironmental Archives in Lacustrine Systems). Kerry
believed strongly that one of the major goals of these programs should be to
stimulate lake‑related research in some of the remoter parts of the
world. To this end he was tireless in his efforts to raise the funds that
allowed third‑world participants to attend IGCP project workshops,
sometimes contributing to their travel expenses from his own pocket. This
global vision led Kerry to conceive the term, "limnogeology " and he
can be considered the father of this new and thriving field in the geosciences. He was a founder and first president of the
International Association of Limnogeology, and the prime mover behind the first
International Limnogeology Congress, held in Copenhagen in August 1995. Four
years later, at the second ILC congress in Brest, France, Kerry was awarded the
first IAL medal in recognition of his pioneering role in defining and promoting
the science of limnogeology.
Kerry authored more than 80
publications and co‑edited "Lacustrine
Petroleum Source Rocks" in 1988, "The Phanerozoic Record of Lacustrine Basins and their Environmental
Signals" in 1989, and "Lake
Basins Through Space and Time" in 2000. He has had major impact on the strategy employed by industry to
explore ancient lacustrine basins for new oil reserves. He was the co‑founder of the International
Decade for the East African Lakes (IDEAL) and most recently provided the
driving force for the construction and successful testing of GLAD 800, a
portable drilling system that is revolutionizing the field of paleolimnology.
Kerry lived his life with
passion. His enthusiasm for science was
infectious, and inspired his students and colleagues to think globally in
pursuit of their professions. His
passion spilled over into all other aspects of his life as well, and has left
many of us with incredible memories: riding on the back of his motorcycle
through the streets of Zurich; sailing in his boat on Zurichsee; visiting with
him and Hanni at their grand old house on Seymour Avenue in Minneapolis,
surrounded by Hanni's superb food and drink, classical music, and colleagues
from all over Europe, Asia and North America.
He loved to tinker with mechanical things ‑ his motorcycles, his
coring equipment, and his boats. His
shops and labs were always meticulously kept, despite the constant forces of
entropy, students and other colleagues.
Kerry always promoted collaboration between continents, between
institutions, and between faculty and students. His students were his colleagues, not his underlings.
We have learned much from Kerry, and we will miss him. He is survived by his wife Johanna who resides in Kilchberg, Switzerland, two brothers, Donald I. Kelts of Bellevue, Washington and David W. Kelts of Misawa, Japan, and his mother, Beverly O. Kelts of Beaumont, California.
In lieu of flowers, the family prefers donations to the Kerry Kelts Fund, Limnological Research Center, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455.
A memorial service is planned for Saturday, February 17, at 12:00 noon, at the McNamara Alumni Center, University of Minnesota Gateway on Oak Street, SE Minneapolis.