Source: NIWA – National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research
Government scientists celebrated their 2021 award winners at the annual Science New Zealand awards ceremony virtually this year.
Hosted by Nanogirl Dr Michelle Dickinson and introduced by Chair of Science New Zealand John Morgan, you can see and hear about some of the best in New Zealand science for the year from the online awards event that was livestreamed on 15 December.
The awards celebrate 24 awardees across three categories for each Crown Research Institute and Calaghan Innovation: Early Career Researcher, Individual / Lifetime Achievement and Team. A Supreme Award winner was chosen from the 24 awardees. NIWA received three awards across the categories.
A Lifetime Achievement Award goes to Dr Malcolm Clark – recognised as both New Zealand’s leading expert in deepwater fisheries and a global authority on deepsea communities. Malcolm has lead more than 60 ocean surveys during his career, from New Caledonia down to the Ross Sea in Antarctica, and he represents New Zealand on the International Seabed Authority. He has played a key role in the investigation of biologically significant seamounts in the south Pacific and was instrumental in the closure of 19 seamounts to bottom trawling and dredging.
The Early Career Researcher Award goes to atmospheric scientist, Dr Alex Geddes. Alex is the task leader for satellite and ground-based remote sensing work at NIWA’s Lauder Atmospheric Research Station in Central Otago. He has helped the redesign and upgrade of instrumentation at Lauder and plays a key role in a new research programme to identify global methane emissions using satellite data.
NIWA’s Forecasting Team takes out our Team award for its high resolution, tailored forecasting services. These range from providing detailed daily back-country forecasts to the Department of Conservation, weather hazard warning systems for local councils and emergency services and bespoke environmental information for specific events, such as the America’s Cup.
