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Professor to share marine geology expertise with Norway

September 9, 2014

Tanya Clayton

Meghan Murphy
907-474-7541
9/9/14

University of Alaska Fairbanks marine geophysicist Bernard Coakley will be the 2014-2015 U.S. Fulbright arctic chair in Norway, the U.S.-Norway Fulbright Foundation announced.

Coakley, a professor at the ������ College of Natural Science and Mathematics and the ������ Geophysical Institute, received a grant to collaborate and share his expertise on reconstructing the Arctic Ocean’s geologic history with four of Norway’s top research and education institutions.

“This is a great opportunity to facilitate interaction at the two ends of the Arctic Ocean,” he said. “It’s better when there are more minds on a problem. We come at problems with our different experience and training.”

Coakley will spend three months in Norway this fall. He will work with scientists at the University of Oslo’s Centre for Earth Evolution and Dynamics to develop an international program for detailed mapping of the Alpha-Mendeleev Ridge, a major feature of the Arctic Ocean. He will also lecture and collaborate with colleagues at the Norwegian University Center at Svalbard and the University of Bergen.

Rena Levin, the program officer for the U.S.-Norway Fulbright Foundation, said Coakley’s mix of arctic research experience and communication skills helped him rise to the top of the candidates’ list.

“On the whole, Professor Coakley impressed us as someone who is deeply committed to both his teaching and research activities, and can speak eloquently about both,” she said. “We’re also looking for people who can reach out to a general audience and contribute to public understanding of science and technology."

While collecting seismic data from the Arctic Ocean aboard a research vessel in 2011, Coakley described his research in real-time posts to the New York Times blog “Scientist at Work.”

Norway’s Fulbright Arctic Chair grant began in 2010 to foster collaborations between the U.S. and Norway on high-quality research in the Arctic and High North regions. The grant is part of the Fulbright Program, an international educational exchange program that aims to increase mutual understanding between people of the U.S. and other countries in a broad range of disciplines. It is active in more than 155 countries.

Coakley has been a professor in ������’s Department of Geosciences since 2002. This summer marks his sixth visit to the North Pole. He is currently aboard the Polarstern, a research icebreaker with the Alfred Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven, Germany. After traveling to Norway during the fall, Coakley will return to ������ to teach for the spring semester.

Paul Layer, CNSM dean, said the Fulbright grant is a wonderful opportunity for both Coakley and ������.

"We are very excited that Dr. Coakley has been awarded the Fulbright Arctic Chair because it will strengthen ������'s ongoing collaborations in arctic geoscience research and teaching,” he said.

ADDITIONAL CONACTS: Bernie Coakley. Email until Oct. 9:  bcoakley.p@awi-polarstern.de. Email after October 9: bernard.coakley@gi.alaska.edu.

To see Coakley's New York Times blog, go to:

To see weekly updates on his current trip aboard the Polarstern, go to:

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