Susan Solomon

Biography

Early life

Solomon was born in Chicago, Illinois. Her interest in science began as a child watching The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau. In high school she placed third in a national science competition, with a project that measured the percentage of oxygen in a gas mixture.

Solomon received a B.S. degree in chemistry from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1977. She then received an M.S. in chemistry in 1979 followed by a Ph.D. in 1981 in atmospheric chemistry, both from the University of California, Berkeley.

Personal life

Solomon married Barry Sidwell in 1988. She is Jewish.

Work

Solomon was the head of the Chemistry and Climate Processes Group of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Chemical Sciences Division until 2011. In 2011, she joined the faculty of the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Books

• The Coldest March: Scott's Fatal Antarctic Expedition,{{cite book | author-link = Susan Solomon | url-access = registration
• Aeronomy of the Middle Atmosphere: Chemistry and Physics of the Stratosphere and Mesosphere, 3rd Edition, Springer, 2005 – Describes the atmospheric chemistry and physics of the middle atmosphere from 10 to altitude.

The Ozone Hole

Solomon, working with colleagues at the NOAA Earth System Research Laboratories, postulated the mechanism that the Antarctic ozone hole was created by a heterogeneous reaction of ozone and chlorofluorocarbons free radicals on the surface of ice particles in the high altitude clouds that form over Antarctica. In 1986 and 1987 Solomon led the National Ozone Expedition to McMurdo Sound, where the team gathered the evidence to confirm the accelerated reactions. Solomon was the solo leader of the expedition, and the only woman on the team. Her team measured levels of chlorine oxide 100 times higher than expected in the atmosphere, which had been released by the decomposition of chlorofluorocarbons by ultraviolet radiation.

Solomon later showed that volcanoes could accelerate the reactions caused by chlorofluorocarbons, and so increase the damage to the ozone layer. Her work formed the basis of the U.N. Montreal Protocol, an international agreement to protect the ozone layer by regulating damaging chemicals. Solomon has also presented some research which suggests that implementation of the Montreal Protocols is having a positive effect.

For her critical contribution to saving the ozone layer, Solomon was a winner of the 2021 Future of Life Award along with Joe Farman and Stephen O. Andersen. Jim Hansen, former Director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Director of Columbia University's Program on Climate Science, Awareness and Solutions said, "In Farman, Solomon and Andersen we see the tremendous impact individuals can have not only on the course of human history, but on the course of our planet's history. My hope is that others like them will emerge in today's battle against climate change." Professor Guus Velders, a climate scientist at Utrecht University said, "Susan Solomon is a deserving recipient of the Future of Life Award. Susan not only explained the processes behind the formation of the ozone hole, she also played an active role as an interface between the science and policy of the Montreal Protocol."

''The Coldest March''

Using research work conducted by English explorer and navy officer Robert Falcon Scott, Solomon also wrote and spoke about Scott's 1911 expedition in The Coldest March: Scott's Fatal Antarctic Expedition to counter a longstanding argument that blamed Scott for his and his crew's demise during that expedition. Scott attributed his death to unforeseen weather conditions – a claim that has been contested by British journalist and author Roland Huntford. Huntford claimed that Scott was a prideful and under-prepared leader. Solomon has defended Scott and said that "modern data side squarely with Scott", describing the weather conditions in 1911 as unusual.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

Solomon served on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. She was a contributing author for the Third Assessment Report. She was also co-chair of Working Group I for the Fourth Assessment Report.

Awards

• 1991 – Henry G. Houghton Award for research in physical meteorology, awarded by the American Meteorological Society
• 1994 – Solomon Saddle (), a snow saddle at about 1850 m elevation, named in her honor
• 1994 – Solomon Glacier (), an Antarctic glacier named in her honor
• 1999 – National Medal of Science, awarded by the President of the United States
• 2000 – Carl-Gustaf Rossby Research Medal, awarded by the American Meteorological Society
• 2004 – Blue Planet Prize, awarded by the Asahi Glass Foundation
• 2006 – V. M. Goldschmidt Award
• 2006 – Inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame
• 2007 – William Bowie Medal, awarded by the American Geophysical Union
• 2007 — Prix Georges Lemaître
• 2007 – As a member of IPCC, which received half of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007, she shared a stage receiving the prize with Al Gore (who received the other half).
• 2008 – Grande Médaille (Great Medal) of the French Academy of Sciences
• 2008 – Foreign Member of the Royal Society
• 2008 – Member of the American Philosophical Society
• 2009 – Volvo Environment Prize, awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
• 2009 – Inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame
• 2010 – Service to America Medal, awarded by the Partnership for Public Service
• 2010 – Knight of the Legion of Honor (Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur), awarded by the French government
• 2012 – Vetlesen Prize, for work on the ozone hole, shared with Jean Jouzel. She was the first woman to receive this prize.
• 2013 – BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Climate Change category
• 2015 – Honorary Doctorate (honoris causa) from Brown University.
• 2017 – Arthur L. Day Prize and Lectureship by the National Academy of Sciences for substantive work in atmospheric chemistry and climate change
• 2018 – Bakerian Lecture
• 2018 – Crafoord Prize in Geosciences
• 2019 – Made one of the members of the inaugural class of the Government Hall of Fame
• 2021 – On 31 July she was appointed as ordinary Member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences
• 2021 – 2021 Future of Life Award (Ozone Layer)
• 2021 – NAS Award for Chemistry in Service to Society
• 2023 – Honorary Doctorate from Duke University
• 2023 – Female Innovator Prize from the VinFuture Foundation

References

References

1. (July 26, 2004). "InterViews". [[National Academy of Sciences]].
2. "People". Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
3. (January 5, 2007). "Susan Solomon: Pioneering Atmospheric Scientist". [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]].
4. (13 November 2002). "The 50 Most Important Women in Science". Discover.
5. "[https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/completelist/0,29569,1733748,00.html The 2008 TIME 100]", ''Time''.
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9. Oakes, Elizabeth H.. (2007). "Encyclopedia of world scientists". Facts on File.
10. (September 12, 2021). "MIT's Jewish environmental warrior: 'Earth has a budget'".
11. Krajick, Kevin. (January 14, 2013). "Two Climate Scientists Win 2012 Vetlesen Prize for Work on Ozone Hole, Ice Cores".
12. MacFarlane, Robert. (October 7, 2001). "In from the cold...". [[The Observer]].
13. Wheeler, Sara. (September 2, 2001). "Great Scott?". [[The New York Times]].
14. (2005). "Aeronomy of the middle atmosphere: chemistry and physics of the stratosphere and mesosphere". Springer.
15. (18 July 2024). "Solving Problems With Susan Solomon". The New York Times.
16. Indivero, Victoria M.. (Fall 2010). "Changing views on climate". Chemical Heritage Magazine.
17. Nickel, Mark. (April 28, 2015). "Brown confers six honorary degrees".
18. Daley, Megan. (June 30, 2016). "Decades after the Montreal Protocol, there are signs the hole in the ozone layer has begun to heal". Los Angeles Times.
19. (July 1, 2016). "Ozone layer on the mend thirty years after CFCs banned". [[Irish Times]].
20. (July 15, 2016). "Emergence of healing in the Antarctic ozone layer". Science.
21. "Future Of Life Award".
22. Monastersky, Richard. (September 7, 2001). "History's Cold Shoulder". [[The Chronicle of Higher Education]].
23. Houghton, J.T.. (2001). "Climate Change 2001: The Scientific Basis". Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
24. Herbert, Betsy. (2007). "Climate Change 2007 The Physical Science Basis". Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
25. "The Henry G. Houghton Award".
26. "1999 National Medals of Science and Technology". National Science and Technology Medals Foundation.
27. "AMS Awards and Nomination Information". American Meteorological Society.
28. "Blue Planet Prize: The Laureates". Asahi Glass Foundation.
29. "V. M. Goldschmidt Award". Geochemical Society.
30. "Honorees By Year of Induction". Colorado Women's Hall of Fame.
31. (July 16, 2007). "Susan Solomon Honored as AGU's 2007 William Bowie Medalist". [[Earth System Research Laboratories]].
32. (November 25, 2008). "Remise de la Grande Médaille par Jules Hoffmann, Président de l'Académie,à Susan Solomon".
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37. (2010). "2010 Career Achievement Medal Recipient". Partnership for Public Service.
38. Kiest, Kristina. (2010-11-11). "NOAA Scientist Receives French Legion of Honor Award".
39. (2020-05-13). "Susan Solomon earns Killian Award, MIT's highest faculty honor".
40. "Susan Solomon wins Vetlesen Prize – MIT Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences".
41. EAPS. (January 14, 2013). "Susan Solomon wins international climate award". MIT.
42. Nickel, Mark. (April 28, 2015). "Brown awards six honorary doctorates". Brown University.
43. "About the Arthur L. Day Prize and Lectureship". National Academy of Sciences.
44. (July 18, 2017). "Susan Solomon awarded the Royal Society's Bakerian Medal".
45. (July 18, 2017). "Outstanding researchers honoured by the Royal Society".
46. (January 17, 2018). "Crafoord Prize 2018".
47. Tom Shoop. (August 15, 2019). "Inaugural Inductees Into Government Hall of Fame Unveiled – Government Executive". Govexec.com.
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50. Nhu, Quynh. (21 December 2023). "Battery researchers win $3M Vietnamese awards.".