Claude Boutron - Short curriculum vitae#

Born on June 26, 1947 in Gap, Hautes Alpes, France

Professional address:

Laboratoire de Glaciologie et Géophysique de l'Environnement
(UMR 5183 Centre National dela Recherche Scientifique /University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble)
Domaine Universitaire, 54, rue Molière, B.P. 96
38402 St Martin d'Hères/Grenoble, France.

Education

• Maîtrise of Physics, University of Grenoble, France, 1968
• Diplôme d'Etudes Approfondies of Geophysics, University of Grenoble, France, 1969
• Doctorat de 3e Cycle of Physics (Geophysics), University of Grenoble, France, 1971. Title of the thesis: "Contribution to the chemistry of Antarctic snows : measurement of trace elements at the ppb level by atomic absorption spectrophotometry". Supervisor : Dr. Claude Lorius. Thesis prepared at the french Atomic Energy Commission (research center of Fontenay aux Roses)
• Doctorat d'Etat of Physics (Geophysics), University of Grenoble, France, 1978. Title of the thesis: "Influence of natural and anthropogenic aerosols on the geochemistry of polar snows". Supervisor: Dr. Claude Lorius
• Diplôme d'Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches, University of Grenoble, France, 1986

Professional positions

• 1969-1970: Research Assistant, french Atomic Energy Commission, Fontenay aux Roses, France
• 1970-1981: Assistant, University of Grenoble, France
• December 1980-March 1981: Scientific Leader, French Polar Expeditions, Paris, France
• July-December 1981: Visiting Research Associate, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA (Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, Prof. Clair C. Patterson)
• 1981-1984: Maître Assistant, University of Grenoble, France
• October 1984-September 1985 : Visiting Research Associate, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA (Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, Prof. Clair C. Patterson)
• 1985-1988: Maître de Conférences, University of Grenoble, France
• 1988-present: Professor , University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble, France. At present “Professeur classe exceptionnelle 2e échelon”
• 1992, 1994, 1995 and 1997: Contract Professor, University Ca’ Foscari of Venice, Italy
• Summer 1993 and Summer 1994 (4 months) : Visiting Professor, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia
• 1999, 2002, 2004 and 2005: Contract Professor, University of Ancona, Italy
• 2010 : Invited Professor, Chinese Meteorological Administration, Beijing, China
• 1995-2005 : Senior member of the Institut Universitaire de France, Paris

Main research interests

• Investigation of the past and present atmospheric cycles of heavy metals and other trace elements at hemispheric and regional scales. The elements which are considered include especially lead, mercury, cadmium, bismuth, zinc, copper, iridium, osmium, platinum, palladium, rhodium, uranium, plutonium , silver, gold, tin, arsenic, selenium, nickel, vanadium, iron, cobalt, molybdenum, chromium, antimony, strontium, barium, lithium and Rare Earth Elements.
• These investigations are made by analysing these elements (concentrations, isotopes and speciation) in dated snow and ice cores from Antarctica, Greenland, Svalbard, the Alps, the Andes and the Himalayas, and in other atmospheric archives. These cores were especially obtained as part of international programmes such as the European Greenland Ice Sheet Programme (GRIP) and the European Programme for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA).
• The periods of time which are considered mainly include the Roman, medieval and post-Industrial Revolution periods (man induced changes in the atmospheric cycles of heavy metals and other trace elements) and the successive glacial-interglacial cycles which occurred during the past 800000 years (natural changes in chemical proxies of important climatic parameters such as aridity of the continents, marine biological productivity, sea-ice extent and atmospheric transport strength).
• Special ultrasensitive and ultraclean analytical techniques were developped for the reliable determination of various metals and elements which are present in polar snow and ice at extremely low concentration levels (down to 10-15 g/g). It involved the design of special clean laboratories and the use of highly sensitive methods such as Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometry (TIMS), Laser Excited Atomic Fluorescence Spectrometry (LEAFS) and Inductively Coupled Plasma Sector Field Mass Spectrometry (ICP-SFMS).
• Amongst the most significant results which were obtained, we can mention : a) the evidence of an early pollution of the atmosphere of the Northern Hemisphere for lead and copper during Greek and Roman times ; b) the detailed reconstruction of the rise and fall of lead pollution from lead additives in gasoline in both hemispheres (including the direct determination of ethyl lead and methyl lead compounds and the evaluation of the contribution from the different continents through lead isotopes systematics) ; c) the evidence of the pollution of the Antarctic continent for heavy metals since the 19th century showing that heavy metals pollution is global ; d) the evidence of an hemispheric scale pollution for platinum, palladium and rhodium linked with the development of automobile catalytic converters ; e) the assessment of fallout of cosmic dust (meteoric smoke) to the Earth during the last two climatic cycles ; f) the changes in iron flux to the Southern ocean during the last eight climatic cycles ; g) the history of atmospheric pollution for various heavy metals and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Western Europe during the last 1500 years reconstructed from high altitude Alpine ice cores ; h) the history of atmospheric pollution for heavy metals in central Asia during the past 800 years reconstructed from high altitude Himalayan ice cores ; i) the fate of atmospheric mercury in the snow pack during Mercury Depletion Events in the Arctic ; j) the reconstruction of anthropogenic changes in atmospheric gaseous elemental mercury from the 1940s to present inferred from the interstitial air of firn in central Greenland ; k) the assessment of past natural changes in heavy metals, Rare Earth Elements and lead isotopes in Antarctic ice during the past 670 kyr ( last 8 glacial-interglacial cycles ) back to Marine Isotopic Stage 16 ; l) the assessment of variations of methyl mercury in Antarctic ice during the last two climatic cycles

Publications

• Editor of 11 books
• 173 publications (plus 5 submitted) in international scientific journals with peer review, including 2 in “Science" and 12 in "Nature"
• 32 other publications
• 34 publications in the proceedings of international scientific conferences
• 120 communications in international scientific conferences
• invited lecturer in thirty five international scientific conferences

(The paper published in Environmental Science and Technology 35 , 835-839,2001 was selected by the Discover Magazine as one of the 100 best science stories of the year 2001; the paper published in Nature 432,1011-1013 got the cover page of the corresponding issue of Nature.)

Teaching experience

• Since 1970, various courses at both graduate and undergraduate level at the University of Grenoble, at the University of Paris, at the Ecole Normale Supérieure of Lyon and at the Universities of Venice and Ancona (about 200 hours of teaching duties per year),
• Graduate level : various courses in atmospheric geochemistry, environmental pollution (sulfur compounds, heavy metals, carbon dioxide, stratospheric ozone,...), paleoclimatology, polar geochemistry, glaciology, trace elements analytical chemistry...
• Undergraduate level : various courses, tutorials and practicals in Physics
• Director of the French Doctoral Programme Climate and Physico-Chemistry of the Atmosphere (University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble/University Blaise Pascal of Clermont-Ferrand) from 1995 to 2003.
• Director of the European Research Course on Atmospheres (ERCA). Since 1993, eighteen sessions have been organized with more than 950 participants from about 45 different countries. Each session lasts one month and includes about 130 hours of lectures (given by an international group of lecturers), seminars, panels, visits of research institutes and a stay at the experimental facilities of Observatoire de Haute Provence. Nine books have been published . The main topics taught during the Course include the Physics and Chemistry of the atmosphere of the Earth, the climate system and climate change, the human dimensions of environmental changes, and the other planets and satellites and objects of the solar system. The 19th session will take place from 10 January to 11 February 2011.

Other functions

• Member, French National Council of Universities (Section 37, Meteorology, Oceanography and Physics of the Environment)(several mandates)
• President, French National Council of Universities (Section 37, Meteorology, Oceanography and Physics of the Environment) (two mandates)
• President, French National Council of Universities, group 8 of sections (Sections 34, 35, 36 and 37 (Astronomy, Astrophysics, Geophysics, Geochemistry, Geology, Meteorology, Oceanography)) (two mandates)
• Member, French National Council for Higher Education and Research (CNESER) (one mandate)
• Member, French National Council for Education (CSE) (one mandate)
• Member, Group of Experts of the Scientific Department "Earth, Universe and Space Sciences" of the French Ministry of Education, Scientific Research and Technology (two mandates)
• Member, Scientific Council of the National Institute for Universe Sciences (INSU) (two mandates)
• Member, board of the Institut Universitaire de France (one mandate)
• Member, international board of examiners of Institut Universitaire de France (three mandates)
• Member, Meteorology and Oceanography Committee, Ecole Normale Supérieure Ulm, Paris (one mandate)
• Member, Board of Directors of University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble (one mandate)
• Vice-President, Disciplinary Committee of University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble (one mandate)
• Member, Council of the Department of Mechanics, University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble (three mandates)
• Member, Council of the Department of Physics, University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble (two mandates)
• Member, Council of the Observatory for Universe Sciences (OSUG), University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble (two mandates)
• Member, Universe and Earth Sciences Committee, University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble (several mandates)
• President, Universe and Earth Sciences Committee, University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble(one mandate)
• President, Physics, Geography, Universe and Earth Sciences Joint Committee, University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble (several mandates)
• Director, french Doctoral Programme "Climate and Physico-Chemistry of the Atmosphere"(University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble /University Blaise Pascal of Clermont-Ferrand) (from 1995 to 2003)
• Member, Scientific Council of the Graduate School “Fundamental Sciences” of University Blaise Pascal of Clermont-Ferrand (several mandates)
• Member, Scientific Council and board of the Graduate School “Earth, Universe, Environment” of University Joseph Fourier of Grenoble (several mandates)
• Director, European Research Course on Atmospheres (since 1993)
• Chairman, 12th International Conference on Heavy Metals in the Environment, Grenoble, France, May 26-30, 2003
• Reviewer, US National Science Foundation, U.K. Natural Environment Research Council, Italian National Antarctic Research Programme, Australian Research Council, various scientific journals

Field experience

• Scientific leader in Antarctica of two traverses of the International Antarctic Glaciological Programme ( total : 6 months).

Main present and past collaborations

• California Institute of Technology, Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, Pasadena, USA (Prof. Clair C. Patterson) ( total : 18 months in Pasadena as Visiting Research Associate),
• Institute of Spectroscopy, Soviet / Russia Academy of Sciences, Troitzk, USSR / Russia (Profs.Vsevolod Koloshnikov and Michael Bolshov) (total : 2 months in Troitzk),
• University of Connecticut, Department of Marine Sciences, Groton, Connecticut, USA (Prof. William Fitzgerald),
• University of Antwerpen, Department of Chemistry, Micro and Trace Analysis Center (Prof. Freddy Adams),
• Curtin University of Technology, Department of Applied Physics, Perth, Australia (Prof. Kevin Rosman) (total : 4 months in Perth as Visiting Professor),
• University Ca’ Foscari of Venice, Department of Environmental Sciences, Italy (Profs. Carlo Barbante and Paolo Cescon)
• Korea Polar Research Institute and Inha University , Incheon, South Korea (Prof. Sungmin Hong)
• Ohio State University, Byrd Polar Research Center, Colombus, USA (Prof. Lonnie Thompson and Dr. Paolo Gabrielli)
• University of Leeds, School of Chemistry, Leeds, United Kingdom (Prof. John Plane)
• Helmholtz Zentrum Geestacht, Departement for Environmental Chemistry, Geesthacht/Hamburg, Germany (Profs. Ralf Ebinghaus and Markus Quante )
• Paul Scherrer Institute, Laboratory of Radio Chemistry and Environmental Chemistry, Villigen, Switzerland (Profs. Heinz Gäggeler and Margit Schwikowski)

Awards and Honours

• 1995-2005 : Senior Member of the Institut Universitaire de France.
• Since 2005 : Honorary Member of Institut Universitaire de France
• 2002: Theurlot, Durand-Claye, Alexandre Darracq and Coron-Thevenet Prize of the french Academy of Sciences
• 2003: Gold Medal of the University Joseph Fourier
• 2006: International Prize “Felice Ippolito” of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Rome
• 2007: Alfred Wegener Medal of the European Geosciences Union (Union Medal)
• Since 2007: Honorary Member of the European Geosciences Union
• 2007 : Co-laureate of the Descartes Prize of the European Union (European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica)
• 2010: Honoris Causa Doctorate of the University of Luneburg , Germany
• 2010: Member of the Academia Europaea