The Australian Antarctic Division’s former Chief Scientist, Professor Patrick (Pat) Quilty AM, was awarded the prestigious Phillip Law Medal during midwinter celebrations in Hobart in June.
The award, administered by the Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions (ANARE) Club, recognises an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to Antarctic affairs and the Antarctic community.
Professor Quilty led the Antarctic Division’s science program for 19 years from 1980–1999. He first visited Antarctica in 1965 as a field palaeontologist for the University of Wisconsin, and spent many summer seasons working on the continent and on marine science voyages. He has published over 200 scientific papers, including co-editorship of the 2014 Geological Evolution of Tasmania. He has five fossil species named after him – a fish, a bivalve and three planktonic species – and two geographic locations – the Quilty Nunataks on the southern Antarctic Peninsula and Quilty Bay in the Larsemann Hills.
In 1997 he was awarded Membership of the Order of Australia (AM) and was made Inaugural Distinguished Alumnus from the University of Tasmania. He has received the Royal Society of Tasmania Medal (1996) and the US Antarctic Services Medal (1974).
For four years Professor Quilty was vice-president of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research. He is currently an Honorary Research Professor at the University of Tasmania, School of Earth Sciences and Institute of Antarctic and Marine Sciences.
Dr Phillip Law was the founding Director of the Australian Antarctic Division, a position in which he served from 1949 until 1966. He had a major influence in Antarctic affairs as a leader, explorer and administrator.
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