Edwin Ian Robertson (21 January 1919 – 31 October 2022) was a New Zealand geophysicist and administrator.

Biography

Robertson was born in Petone, near

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, and is of Scottish parentage. His high-achieving academic record started early as he was made dux of Petone Central Primary School in 1930. After attending

Hutt Valley High School Hutt Valley High School is a State school, state coeducational secondary school located in central Lower Hutt, New Zealand. A total of students from Years 9 to 13 (ages 12 to 18) attend the school as of making the school one of the largest i ...

(also dux) he attended

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well know ...

supported by a National Scholarship. He graduated in 1939 with an MSc with first class honours.Obituary: Dr. E (Eddie) Robertson, https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/who-we-are/our-people/our-fellows/obituaries/fellows-obituaries/eddie-robertson/. The Second World War interrupted his academic career. His RSNZ obituary relates that he was offered a job by Sir Ernest Marsden over the phone at 4:30pm and traveled overnight by train to Auckland to start work the next morning. His wartime work focused on submarine detection. At the end of the war he returned to his studies now at London University and was awarded his PhD in geophysics in 1948 on the topic of the magnetic properties of rocks. After his studies he was recruited back the

DSIR Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, abbreviated DSIR was the name of several British Empire organisations founded after the 1923 Imperial Conference to foster intra-Empire trade and development. * Department of Scientific and Industri ...

as a geophysical scientist. He conducted research including a network of gravity observations resolved from over 400 gravity measurement stations around New Zealand. This work was extended to include surveying of some Pacific Islands including the Cook Islands which evolved into an analysis of the bathymetric slope around volcanic atolls. He was the first Director of the Geophysics Division of the

.Davey, F. 2022. Obituary: Dr. E (Eddie) Robertson, OBE, BCE, FRSNZ, Antarctica Magazine, vol. 40 (3&4), pg. 26. His appointment to this position in 1951 meant that he was instrumental in New Zealand's contribution to the 1957-58

International Geophysical Year The International Geophysical Year (IGY; french: Année géophysique internationale) was an international scientific project that lasted from 1 July 1957 to 31 December 1958. It marked the end of a long period during the Cold War when scientific ...

. Activity that resulted from this included the New Zealand IGY Antarctic Expedition led by Trevor Hatherton. New Zealand's Scott Base was opened under his leadership. After his time leading the Geophysics Division he went on to hold the role of Director General of the DSIR from 1971 until his retirement in 1980. He believed that a research institute needed a scientist as director – “to lead and not push”. He was also a critic of early-1990s reforms of the New Zealand government-funded science system that sought to drive the system through competition rather than collaboration. He remained active after retirement, remarkably publishing a paper at the age of 99. He also worked with the NZ Futures Trust which published reports on future opportunities and challenges for New Zealand.

Personal life

Robertson married Star Chalk and had two daughters. Chalk and Robertson met studying mathematics and she was described as having "a most effective backhand" in a review of the table tennis club at Victoria University. She was also an artist and director of plays.https://natlib.govt.nz/records/22705299?search%5Bpath%5D=items&search%5Btext%5D=Days%2520Bay%2520House

Honours

Mount Robertson in the

Victoria Land Victoria Land is a region in eastern Antarctica which fronts the western side of the Ross Sea and the Ross Ice Shelf, extending southward from about 70°30'S to 78°00'S, and westward from the Ross Sea to the edge of the Antarctic Plateau. It ...

Range is named in his honour. In addition, he was awarded the

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(1963), the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (1977),

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(1981) all for services to science. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand (now known as Royal Society Te Apārangi).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Robertson, Eddie 1919 births 2022 deaths People associated with Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (New Zealand) New Zealand geophysicists New Zealand centenarians Men centenarians 20th-century New Zealand physicists 21st-century New Zealand physicists