Walter Hermann Bucher

Dr. Walter Hermann Bucher (March 12, 1889–February 17, 1965) was a German-American geologist and paleontologist.

He was born in Akron, Ohio of Swiss-German parents. The family then returned to Germany where he was raised. In 1911 he was awarded a Ph.D. by the University of Heidelberg with a focus on geology and paleontology. The same year he returned to the U.S. and joined the University of Cincinnati as a lecturer. By 1924 he was a professor of geology at the institution.

His early works were on paleontology, and he performed studies of stromatolettia, oolites, and ripple-shaped markings.

In 1935 he became president of the Ohio Academy of Sciences. In 1940 he joined the Columbia University, specializing in structural geology. In the same year he joined the National Research Council, serving as chairman of the Division of Geology and Geography. In 1946 he was elected president of the New York Academy of Sciences, and from 1950 until 1953 he served as president of the American Geophysical Union.

From 1920 onward Dr. Bucher was noted for his studies in cryptovolcanic structures, significant deformations of the crust of the Earth, and structural geology.

He died in Houston, Texas.

Bibliography

* "The Deformation of the Earth's Crust", 1933.
* Bucher, W. H., Caster, K. E. and Jones, S. M., "Elementary guide to the fossils and strata in the vicinity of Cincinnati", 1945, Cincinnati Museum of Natural History.
* W. H. Bucher., "Role of gravity in orogenesis", "Geological Society of America Bulletin", 1956.
* W. H. Bucher, "The pattern of the Earth's mobile belts", "Journal of Geology", 1924.
* W. H. Bucher, "The deformation of the Earth's crust", Princeton University Press, Princeton, 1933.

Awards and honors

* Bownocker Medal of the Geological Sciences Department of the Ohio State University, 1938.
* William Bowie Medal of the American Geophysical Union, 1955.
* Leopold von Busch Medal of the Deutsche Geologische Gesellschaft, 1955.
* Penrose Medal of the Geological Society of America, 1960.
* The Walter H. Bucher Medal of the American Geophysical Union is named after him.
* The lunar wrinkle-ridge system called "Dorsum Bucher" was named after him.

ee also

* Impact crater

External links

* [http://www.agu.org/inside/awards/bucher2.html Walter Hermann Bucher (1888-1965)]