Marie Tharp
Encyclopedia
Marie Tharp was a geologist
and oceanographic
cartographer
who, along with her colleague Bruce Heezen
, mapped the ocean floor including the Mid-Oceanic Ridges, a line of undersea mountain
s.
. Her father, William, made soil classification
maps for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Her mother, Bertha, was an instructor in German
and Latin.
Tharp graduated from Ohio University
in 1943 with bachelor's degrees in English
and music
and four minors. She later received a master's degree in geology
from the University of Michigan
before earning a degree in mathematics
from the University of Tulsa
while working as a geologist for the Stanolind Oil
company.
Moving to New York in 1948, Tharp was employed by Maurice Ewing
at the Lamont Geological Laboratory (now the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
) at Columbia University
, initially as a general drafter
. There, Tharp met Heezen and their early work together used photographic data to locate downed aircraft
from World War II
. Later, they began working together to map the topography
of the ocean floor. For the first 18 years of their collaboration, Heezen collected data aboard the Observatory's ship, the Vema, and Tharp drew the maps from that data (since traditionally, women were not allowed on board ships at that time, Tharp did not accompany Heezen on a data-collecting expedition until 1965). Tharp also used data collected from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
's research ship, the Atlantis
, and seismographic data from undersea earthquake
s. Their work represented the first systematic, comprehensive attempt to map the entire ocean floor.
Heezen and Tharp published their first physiographic map of the North Atlantic in 1957. Collaborating with the Austrian landscape
painter Heinrich Berann
, their map of the entire ocean floor was published in 1977 (coincidentally, also the year of Heezen's death). Although at the time they favoured the expanding Earth hypothesis, Heezen and Tharp's mapping of the Mid-Oceanic Ridge helped pave the way for general acceptance of the alternative theories of plate tectonics
and continental drift
.
Tharp continued to serve on the faculty of Columbia University until 1983, after which she operated a map-distribution business in South Nyack, New York
during her retirement.
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
and oceanographic
Oceanography
Oceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...
cartographer
Cartography
Cartography is the study and practice of making maps. Combining science, aesthetics, and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality can be modeled in ways that communicate spatial information effectively.The fundamental problems of traditional cartography are to:*Set the map's...
who, along with her colleague Bruce Heezen
Bruce C. Heezen
Bruce Charles Heezen was an American geologist. He is most famous as being the leader of a team from Columbia University which mapped the Mid-Atlantic Ridge during the 1950s....
, mapped the ocean floor including the Mid-Oceanic Ridges, a line of undersea mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
s.
Biography
Tharp was born in Ypsilanti, MichiganYpsilanti, Michigan
Ypsilanti is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 22,362. The city is bounded to the north by the Charter Township of Superior and on the west, south, and east by the Charter Township of Ypsilanti...
. Her father, William, made soil classification
Soil classification
Soil classification deals with the systematic categorization of soils based on distinguishing characteristics as well as criteria that dictate choices in use.- Overview :...
maps for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Her mother, Bertha, was an instructor in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and Latin.
Tharp graduated from Ohio University
Ohio University
Ohio University is a public university located in the Midwestern United States in Athens, Ohio, situated on an campus...
in 1943 with bachelor's degrees in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
and four minors. She later received a master's degree in geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
before earning a degree in mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
from the University of Tulsa
University of Tulsa
The University of Tulsa is a private university awarding bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. It is currently ranked 75th among doctoral degree granting universities in the nation by US News and World Report and is listed as one of the "Best 366 Colleges" by...
while working as a geologist for the Stanolind Oil
Amoco
Amoco Corporation, originally Standard Oil Company , was a global chemical and oil company, founded in 1889 around a refinery located in Whiting, Indiana, United States....
company.
Moving to New York in 1948, Tharp was employed by Maurice Ewing
Maurice Ewing
William Maurice "Doc" Ewing was an American geophysicist and oceanographer.Ewing has been described as a pioneering geophysicist who worked on the research of seismic reflection and refraction in ocean basins, ocean bottom photography, submarine sound transmission , deep sea coring of the ocean...
at the Lamont Geological Laboratory (now the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
The Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory is a research unit of Columbia University located on a campus in Palisades, N.Y., north of Manhattan on the Hudson River.- History :...
) at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, initially as a general drafter
Technical drawing
Technical drawing, also known as drafting or draughting, is the act and discipline of composing plans that visually communicate how something functions or has to be constructed.Drafting is the language of industry....
. There, Tharp met Heezen and their early work together used photographic data to locate downed aircraft
Military aircraft
A military aircraft is any fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft that is operated by a legal or insurrectionary armed service of any type. Military aircraft can be either combat or non-combat:...
from World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Later, they began working together to map the topography
Topography
Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...
of the ocean floor. For the first 18 years of their collaboration, Heezen collected data aboard the Observatory's ship, the Vema, and Tharp drew the maps from that data (since traditionally, women were not allowed on board ships at that time, Tharp did not accompany Heezen on a data-collecting expedition until 1965). Tharp also used data collected from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is a private, nonprofit research and higher education facility dedicated to the study of all aspects of marine science and engineering and to the education of marine researchers. Established in 1930, it is the largest independent oceanographic research...
's research ship, the Atlantis
R/V Atlantis (AGOR-25)
R/V Atlantis is an oceanographic research vessel operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution as part of the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System fleet. It is the host vessel of DSV Alvin...
, and seismographic data from undersea earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
s. Their work represented the first systematic, comprehensive attempt to map the entire ocean floor.
Heezen and Tharp published their first physiographic map of the North Atlantic in 1957. Collaborating with the Austrian landscape
Landscape art
Landscape art is a term that covers the depiction of natural scenery such as mountains, valleys, trees, rivers, and forests, and especially art where the main subject is a wide view, with its elements arranged into a coherent composition. In other works landscape backgrounds for figures can still...
painter Heinrich Berann
Heinrich C. Berann
Heinrich C. Berann, the father of the modern panorama map, was born into a family of painters and sculptors in Innsbruck, Austria. He taught himself by trial and error...
, their map of the entire ocean floor was published in 1977 (coincidentally, also the year of Heezen's death). Although at the time they favoured the expanding Earth hypothesis, Heezen and Tharp's mapping of the Mid-Oceanic Ridge helped pave the way for general acceptance of the alternative theories of plate tectonics
Plate tectonics
Plate tectonics is a scientific theory that describes the large scale motions of Earth's lithosphere...
and continental drift
Continental drift
Continental drift is the movement of the Earth's continents relative to each other. The hypothesis that continents 'drift' was first put forward by Abraham Ortelius in 1596 and was fully developed by Alfred Wegener in 1912...
.
Tharp continued to serve on the faculty of Columbia University until 1983, after which she operated a map-distribution business in South Nyack, New York
South Nyack, New York
South Nyack is a village in the town of Orangetown in Rockland County, New York, located north of Grand View-on-Hudson; northeast of Orangeburg; east of Blauvelt State Park; south of the village of Nyack and west of the Hudson River...
during her retirement.
External links
- Marie Tharp Maps
- Marie Tharp at Columbia UniversityColumbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...