Antoine François Alfred Lacroix (4 February 186312 March 1948) was a French

mineralogist Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific studies within mineralogy include the proce ...

and

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althoug ...

. He was born in

Mâcon Mâcon (), historically anglicised as Mascon, is a city in east-central France. It is the prefecture of the department of Saône-et-Loire in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. Mâcon is home to near 34,000 residents, who are referred to in French as ...

, Saône-et-Loire.

Education

Lacroix completed a D. s Sc. in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

in 1889, as student of

Ferdinand André Fouqué Ferdinand André Fouqué (21 June 1828 – 7 March 1904) was a French geologist and petrologist. He was born at Mortain, in the Manche ''département''. At the age of twenty-one he entered the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, and from 1853 ...

. Fouqué only agreed to the graduation if Lacroix would marry his daughter.

Career

In 1893, he was appointed professor of mineralogy at the Jardin des Plantes, Paris, and in 1896 director of the mineralogical laboratory in the

École des Hautes Études École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

. He paid especial attention to

mineral In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. (2 ...

s connected with volcanic phenomena and

igneous rock Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma o ...

s, to the effects of

metamorphism Metamorphism is the transformation of existing rock (the protolith) to rock with a different mineral composition or texture. Metamorphism takes place at temperatures in excess of , and often also at elevated pressure or in the presence of ch ...

, and to mineral veins, in various parts of the world, notably in the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...

. In his numerous contributions to scientific journals he dealt with the mineralogy and petrology of

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

, and published an elaborate and exhaustive volume on the eruptions in

Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...

, ''La Montagne Pelée et ses éruptions'' (Paris 1904). He also issued an important work entitled ''Minéralogie de la France et de ses Colonies'' (1893–1898), and other works in conjunction with Auguste Michel-Lévy. He was president of the volcanology section (1922–1927) of the

International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics The International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG; french: Union géodésique et géophysique internationale, UGGI) is an international non-governmental organization dedicated to the scientific study of Earth and its space environment us ...

(IUGG). He was elected member of the

Académie des sciences The French Academy of Sciences (French: ''Académie des sciences'') is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French scientific research. It was at th ...

in 1904. He was awarded the

Penrose Medal The Penrose Medal was created in 1925 by R.A.F. Penrose, Jr., as the top prize awarded by the Geological Society of America. Originally created as the Geological Society of America Medal it was soon renamed the Penrose Medal by popular assent of t ...

in 1930.

Legacy

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of Asian snake, '' Oligodon lacroixi'', is named in his honor, as is the

Lacroix Glacier Lacroix Glacier () is a glacier between Suess Glacier and Matterhorn Glacier, which flows southeast into Taylor Valley in Victoria Land, Antarctica. It was mapped by the British Antarctic Expedition, 1910–13, under Robert Falcon Scott Ca ...

in the

Taylor Valley Taylor Valley is the southernmost of the three large McMurdo Dry Valleys in the Transantarctic Mountains, Victoria Land, Antarctica, located west of McMurdo Sound at approximately . The valley extends from Taylor Glacier in the west to McMurdo So ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lacroix, Antoine Francois Alfred 1863 births 1948 deaths People from Mâcon French geologists French mineralogists French volcanologists Petrologists Penrose Medal winners Members of the French Academy of Sciences Wollaston Medal winners Foreign Members of the Royal Society Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences