Luna Bergere Leopold (October 8, 1915 – February 23, 2006) was a leading U.S.

geomorphologist Geomorphology (from Ancient Greek: , ', "earth"; , ', "form"; and , ', "study") is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topography, topographic and bathymetry, bathymetric features created by physical, chemical or biological pro ...

and

hydrologist Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and environmental watershed sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is calle ...

, and son of

Aldo Leopold Aldo Leopold (January 11, 1887 – April 21, 1948) was an American writer, philosopher, naturalist, scientist, ecologist, forester, conservationist, and environmentalist. He was a professor at the University of Wisconsin and is best known for his ...

. He received a B.S. in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...

from the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...

in 1936; an M.S. in

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which rel ...

meteorology Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences (which include atmospheric chemistry and physics) with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did no ...

from the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...

in 1944; and a Ph.D. in

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ea ...

from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

in 1950. Leopold is widely known in his primary field for his work in

fluvial In geography and geology, fluvial processes are associated with rivers and streams and the deposits and landforms created by them. When the stream or rivers are associated with glaciers, ice sheets, or ice caps, the term glaciofluvial or fluv ...

geomorphology and for the classic book, ''Fluvial Processes in Geomorphology'', that he wrote with Gordon Wolman and John Miller. Leopold suggested that a new philosophy of

water management Water resources are natural resources of water that are potentially useful for humans, for example as a source of drinking water supply or irrigation water. 97% of the water on the Earth is salt water and only three percent is fresh water; sligh ...

is needed, one based on geologic, geographic, and climatic factors as well as traditional economic, social, and political factors. He argued that the management of water resources cannot be successful as long as it is naïvely perceived from an economic and political standpoint, as it is in the status quo.

Career

From 1937 to 1940, Leopold worked as an engineer for the U.S.

Soil Conservation Service Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that provides technical assistance to farmers and other private landowners and ...

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex , Offi ...

. In 1940, he enlisted and was a part of the U.S. Army Weather Service and the

Army Air Force The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

. He was in the Army until 1946 and he rose from the rank of Private to Captain. From 1946 to 1950, Leopold served as the Chief

Meteorologist A meteorologist is a scientist who studies and works in the field of meteorology aiming to understand or predict Earth's atmospheric phenomena including the weather. Those who study meteorological phenomena are meteorologists in research, while th ...

of the Pineapple Research Institute,

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only ...

. In 1950, he joined the U.S. Geological Survey. He worked for the

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

until 1972 serving as Hydraulic Engineer (1950–56), Chief Hydrologist (1956–66), and Senior Research Hydrologist (1966–72). In 1972, Leopold joined the faculty of the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

as a professor in the Department of Geology and Geophysics and Department of Landscape Architecture. He retired in 1986 and continued as a Professor Emeritus until his death in 2006.

Awards and honors

*1958 - Recipient of the first Kirk Bryan Award of the

Geological Society of America The Geological Society of America (GSA) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of the geosciences. History The society was founded in Ithaca, New York, in 1888 by Alexander Winchell, John J. Stevenson, Charles H. Hitch ...

(with Thomas J. Maddock, Jr.) *1967 - Elected to the United States

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nat ...

*1968 - Recipient of the Cullum Geographical Medal of the

American Geographical Society The American Geographical Society (AGS) is an organization of professional geographers, founded in 1851 in New York City. Most fellows of the society are Americans, but among them have always been a significant number of fellows from around the ...

*1971 - Elected to the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, ...

*1972 - President of The Geological Society of America *1972 - Elected to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communi ...

*1973 - Recipient of the

G. K. Warren Prize The G. K. Warren Prize is awarded by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences "for noteworthy and distinguished accomplishment in fluviatile geology and closely related aspects of the geological sciences." Named in honor of Gouverneur Kemble Warren, ...

from the

. *1980 - Honorary Doctorate from the

*1981 - Honorary Doctorate from the University of St. Andrews,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

*1991 - Awarded the

National Medal of Science The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social scienc ...

. *1992 - Awarded the

Robert E. Horton Medal The Robert E. Horton Medal is given out by the American Geophysical Union to recognize "outstanding contributions to the geophysical aspects of hydrology". The award was created in 1974 and named after Robert E. Horton to honor his contributions t ...

*1994 - 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 The Geological Society of America (GSA) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of the geosciences. ...

*1994 - Awarded the Joan Hodges Queneau Palladium Medal *2006 - Awarded The Benjamin Franklin Medal in Earth Science

Books by Luna Leopold

*Leopold, Luna B. (1966). ''Water'' (Series: LIFE Science Library), Time Incorp, ISBN B000GQO9SM. *Leopold, Aldo and Leopold, Luna B. (editor) (1972, reprint). ''Round River''. Oxford University Press, USA. . *Leopold, Luna B. (1974). ''Water: A Primer''. W H Freeman & Co. . * Dunne, Thomas and Luna B. Leopold (1978). ''Water in Environmental Planning''. W. H. Freeman & Co. . *Leopold, Luna B. (1966, reprinted 1981). ''Water'', Life Science Library, Time Life Education. . *Leopold, Luna B.; Wolman, M. Gordon; and Miller, John P. (1995). ''Fluvial Processes in Geomorphology''. Dover Publications. . *Leopold, Luna B. (1997). ''Water, Rivers and Creeks''. University Science Books. . *Leopold, Luna B. (2006, reprint). ''A View of the River''. Harvard University Press; New Ed edition. .

References

Other sources

The San Francisco Chronicle, 3/3/2006The Virtual Luna Leopold ProjectAssociation of Engineering Societies website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leopold, Luna Bergere 1915 births 2006 deaths 20th-century American geologists American hydrologists American people of German descent American geomorphologists Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences National Medal of Science laureates Penrose Medal winners People from Albuquerque, New Mexico Process geomorphologists Recipients of the Cullum Geographical Medal Sedimentologists United States Geological Survey personnel University of California, Berkeley faculty University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Engineering alumni Harvard University alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni Presidents of the Geological Society of America Members of the American Philosophical Society