(1889-1960) German Geophysicist
Beno Gutenberg gained fame for his work in the development of the Richter scale. In reality, this work was only a small part of his outstanding contributions to the science of seismology, and the interpretation of the deep structure of the Earth, both by natural and artificially generated seismic waves. He began this work while still in Germany and made many discoveries on the nature of the propagation of seismic waves there. The best-known volumes to which he contributed are entitled, Handbuch der Geophysik (Handbook of Geophysics).
Gutenberg’s research during the second half of his career in the United States has led to some of the world’s leading-edge scientific papers. He published a series of papers, entitled “On seismic waves,” with CHARLES F. RICHTER between 1931 and 1939. The information provided by these exceptional papers included travel times of several seismic phases, information that researchers used to create models of the Earth’s mantle and core. Also at this time, Gutenberg’s keen observational talent led him to believe that a low-velocity zone existed in the upper mantle, now recognized as the asthenosphere.
In 1941, Gutenberg and Richter began working together again and published a book entitled Seismicity of the Earth. The theory of plate tectonics was developed from information obtained from illustrations of geographical patterns published in this topic. Gutenberg and Richter also worked on establishing the famous “magnitude scales” using different types of seismic waves, so that magnitudes of earthquakes that had both shallow and deep foci and take place at different epicentral distances could be assigned by people observing their effects.
Beno Gutenberg was born in Darmstadt, Germany, on June 4, 1889. He attended the University of Gottingen, Germany, where he received a bachelor of science degree and later a Ph.D. in 1911, both in geophysics. His dissertation topic was on microseisms. He later used this topic during World War II in an attempt to track hurricanes and typhoons in the western Pacific. After receiving his Ph.D., Gutenberg joined the University of Strasbourg, Germany, in 1913, which at that time was the headquarters of the International Seismo-logical Association. After a brief time, he left to serve with the Meteorological Service of the German army during World War I. When the war ended in 1918, Gutenberg accepted a professorship at the University of Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany. He also took a job as a business executive due to financial difficulties. In 1929, the Carnegie Institution of Washington, D.C., invited Gutenberg to participate in a meeting to discuss the future plans for the Seismological Laboratory in Pasadena, California. As a result, he was offered a position at the laboratory in 1930. That same year, he joined the faculty at the California Institute of Technology as a professor of geophysics. In 1936, the Seismological Laboratory became integrated with Caltech and in 1947, Gutenberg became the director. Through Gutenberg’s hard work and leadership ability, the laboratory became the leading center for the study of earthquakes and the deep Earth. Gutenberg retired to professor emeritus in 1958, but continued to conduct research. He contracted a virulent form of influenza that developed into fatal pneumonia. Beno Gutenberg died on January 25, 1960.
Beno Gutenberg led an extremely productive career. He was an author of close to 300 research articles in both German and English in international journals and professional volumes throughout his career. Many of these papers are true classics of earthquake seismology. In 1959, Gutenberg published his final book entitled Physics of the Earth’s Interior, which summarized a lot of his views on the earthquakes and the physics of the Earth’s internal structure. In recognition of his contributions to geophysics, Beno Gutenberg was awarded many scientific honors and awards during his career. He was a member of the National Academy of Sciences. He was awarded an honorary doctoral degree from the University of Uppsala, Sweden, in 1955. He was also awarded the Bowie Medal from the American Geophysical Union in 1933, the Lagrange Prize from the Royal Belgian Academy in 1950, and the Wiechert Medal of the Deutsche Geo-physikalische Gesellschaft, among others. The American Geophysical Union named a medal in his honor.
Gutenberg also performed service to the profession. He served many committees and sections in the International Union for Geodesy and Geophysics, served on the board of directors and as president of the Seismological Society of America, and as a member of the Academia dei Lance and the Royal Society of New Zealand.
