Norman Levi Bowen FRS (June 21, 1887 – September 11, 1956) was a Canadian geologist. Bowen "revolutionized experimental

petrology Petrology () is the branch of geology that studies rocks and the conditions under which they form. Petrology has three subdivisions: igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary petrology. Igneous and metamorphic petrology are commonly taught together ...

and our understanding of

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. ( ...

crystallization Crystallization is the process by which solid forms, where the atoms or molecules are highly organized into a structure known as a crystal. Some ways by which crystals form are precipitating from a solution, freezing, or more rarely deposi ...

". Beginning

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 Ear ...

students are familiar with Bowen's reaction series depicting how different minerals crystallize under varying pressures and temperatures."

Career

Bowen conducted experimental research at the Geophysical Laboratory,

Carnegie Institution for Science The Carnegie Institution of Washington (the organization's legal name), known also for public purposes as the Carnegie Institution for Science (CIS), is an organization in the United States established to fund and perform scientific research. Th ...

of Washington from 1912 to 1937. He published ''The Evolution of the Igneous Rocks'' in 1928. This book set the stage for a

geochemical Geochemistry is the science that uses the tools and principles of chemistry to explain the mechanisms behind major geological systems such as the Earth's crust and its oceans. The realm of geochemistry extends beyond the Earth, encompassing the e ...

and

geophysical Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' som ...

foundation for the study of rocks and minerals.

Personal life

Born in Kingston,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada, Bowen married Mary Lamont in 1911, and they had a daughter, Catherine.

Awards and honours

Bowen 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 ...

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. Hitchco ...

in 1941 and served as their president in 1945.Eckel, Edwin, 1982, GSA Memoir 155, The Geological Society of America — Life History of a Learned Society: Boulder, Colorado, Geological Society of America Memoir 155, 168 p., . He was elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society (ForMemRS) in 1949. The Norman L. Bowen Award, awarded annually by the

American Geophysical Union The American Geophysical Union (AGU) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization of Earth, atmospheric, ocean, hydrologic, space, and planetary scientists and enthusiasts that according to their website includes 130,000 people (not members). AGU's act ...

, is named in his honour. The astronauts of

Apollo 17 Apollo 17 (December 7–19, 1972) was the final mission of NASA's Apollo program, the most recent time humans have set foot on the Moon or traveled beyond low Earth orbit. Commander Gene Cernan and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt walked on ...

named a small lunar crater after him.

References

* ''Norman L. Bowen'', science.ca Profile. Available from: http://www.science.ca/scientists/scientistprofile.php?pID=271 * Yoder, H. S., Jr. ''Norman L. Bowen: The Experimental Approach to Petrology.'' GSA Today 5 (1998): 10–11. Available: https://web.archive.org/web/20130501133735/http://www.gsahist.org/gsat/gt98may10_11.pdf * Yoder, H. S., Jr. ''Norman L. Bowen (1887–1956), MIT Class of 1912, First Predoctoral Fellow of the Geophysical Laboratory.'' Earth Sciences History 1 (1992): 45–55. Available: https://web.archive.org/web/20050306092622/http://vgp.agu.org/bowen_paper/bowen_paper.html * ''Norman Levi Bowen Papers, 1907–1980 (Bulk 1907–1955)'', Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington, D.C., Finding aid written by: Jennifer Snyder, March 2004, PDF available: https://web.archive.org/web/20050222182019/http://hq.ciw.edu/legacy/findingaids/bowen.pdf * Strickler, Mike, ''Ask GeoMan...'', ''What is Bowen's Reaction Series?'', http://homework.uoregon.edu/mstrick/AskGeoMan/geoQuerry32.html * https://web.archive.org/web/20050325182852/http://carnegieinstitution.org/legacy/findingaids/bowen.html Bowen bibliography site * https://web.archive.org/web/20051003223226/http://www.agu.org/inside/awardees.html#BowenList of Bowen Award winners {{DEFAULTSORT:Bowen, Norman L. Canadian geochemists Petrologists Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada Penrose Medal winners 1887 births 1956 deaths People from Kingston, Ontario Wollaston Medal winners Foreign Members of the Royal Society Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences Presidents of the Geological Society of America Canadian Fellows of the Royal Society

Career

Personal life

Awards and honours

References

Further reading