Robert Ballard's Key Accomplishments Include . . .
Robert D. Ballard, Ph.D. is an oceanographer most noted for his work in underwater archaeology. Dr. Ballard is most famous for the discoveries of the wrecks of the RMS Titanic in 1985, the battleship Bismarck in 1989, and the wreck of the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown in 1998. He discovered the wreck of John F. Kennedy's PT-109 in 2002 and visited the Solomon Islander natives who saved its crew.
Robert Ballard has published numerous books, including Lost Liners, Graveyards of the Pacific and Titanic: The Last Great Images, as well as numerous scientific papers, and over a dozen articles in National Geographic magazine.
In addition to being a National Geographic Society “explorer in residence” and a commissioner on the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy, Dr. Robert Ballard is the founder and head of an exploration institute specializing in deep-ocean archaeology, whose mission is to establish this new field of research utilizing evolving technology such as advanced mapping and imaging systems, underwater robotics and manned submersibles.
Dr. Ballard has also been responsible for developing telecommunications technology to create "telepresence" for his JASON Project, which allows hundreds of thousands of schoolchildren to accompany him from afar on undersea explorations around the globe. More than 1.7 million students have participated in JASON programs, learning about natural phenomena -- from volcanoes to storm systems -- and viewing live transmissions from JASON robots as they explore the undersea world.
Dr. Ballard has received numerous awards and honors for his discoveries, including the Lindbergh Award, the Explorers Medal and the Hubbard Medal of the National Geographic Society. In 2003, President George W. Bush presented him with the National Endowment for the Humanities Medal in a ceremony at the White House.
Having delivered thousands of speeches in his career, Robert Ballard’s engaging style and infectious energy is a sought-after mix of information, entertainment, and inspiration. Traveling across the globe, Dr. Ballard has successfully spoken to numerous organizations.
More About Dr. Robert Ballard . . .
Robert Ballard grew up in Pacific Beach, California. He has attributed his early interest in underwater exploration to reading Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, living by the ocean in San Diego and his fascination with the groundbreaking expeditions of the bathyscaphe Trieste.
While Robert Ballard had been interested in the sea since an early age, his work at Woods Hole and his scuba diving experiences off Massachusetts spurred his interest in shipwrecks and their exploration. Ballard's first dive in a submersible was in the Ben Franklin (PX-15) in 1969 off the coast of Florida during a Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution expedition. In the summer of 1970, Dr. Ballard began a field mapping project of the Gulf of Maine for his doctoral dissertation.
Robert Ballard’s later work in the Navy involved assisting the development of small, unmanned submersibles which could be tethered to, and controlled from a surface ship, while being outfitted with lighting, cameras and manipulator arms. As early as 1973, Dr. Ballard saw this as way of searching for the wreck of Titanic. In 1977, he led his first expedition, which was unsuccessful.
In the summer of 1985, Robert Ballard was aboard the French research ship Le Suroît which was using the revolutionary new side scan sonar to search for Titanic's wreck. When the French ship was recalled, Dr. Ballard transferred onto a ship from Woods Hole, the Knorr. Unbeknownst to some, this trip was being financed by the U.S. Navy for secret reconnaissance of the wreckage of USS Scorpion, a nuclear submarine that had sunk nearby. The agreement was that after the Navy search was concluded, Ballard would be free to hunt for Titanic.
In the early morning hours of September 1, 1985, observers noted anomalies on the otherwise smooth ocean floor. At first, it was pockmarks, like small craters from impacts. Eventually debris was sighted as the rest of the team was awakened. Finally, a boiler was sighted, and soon after the Titanic hull itself was found.
Robert Ballard originally planned to keep the exact location a secret to prevent anyone from claiming prizes from the wreck, as he considered the site a cemetery, and refused to desecrate it by removing artifacts from the wreck. However, in an address to the US Congress shortly after he returned to the US, Dr. Ballard implored future explorers to spending time to retrieving artifacts to create a museum.
Robert Ballard graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara, earning undergraduate degrees in Chemistry and Geology. His first graduate degree was in Geophysics from the University of Hawaii's Institute of Geophysics where he trained porpoises and whales to make a living. Dr. Ballard received a Ph.D. in Marine Geology and Geophysics at the University of Rhode Island. |
