Jerry P. Eaton (December 11, 1926 – April 2, 2004) was an American seismologist and volcanologist who served as director of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory from 1956–58, and as scientist-in-charge from 1960–61.[1] He was born in 1926, on a farm in California's Central Valley near Fresno.[2] He died of cancer in 2004, aged 77, at his home in Los Altos, California.[3]
Jerry P. Eaton
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|---|---|
| Born | (1926-12-11)December 11, 1926 |
| Died | April 2, 2004(2004-04-02) (aged 77) |
| Known for | Seismology, Volcanology |
| Academic background | |
| Education | University of California, Berkeley (BA, PhD) |
Eaton has received two degrees from University of California, Berkeley; a 1949 B.A. in physics, and a 1953 Ph.D. in geophysics.[4]
Eaton began at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory in 1953, after completing his Ph.D. During his time there, he was responsible for installing equipment to measure tremors from Kīlauea.[5] The equipment he designed and installed were 5 to 10 times more sensitive than the seismographs already in use, and thus picked up more earthquakes for study.[6] He is also credited with writing the first computer program to pinpoint locations of earthquakes.[5]
After his term as scientist-in-charge, he left the Observatory for the Geological Survey Crustal Studies Branch and went on to develop an earthquake monitoring system for the Rocky Mountain-Great Plains region. He served as president of the Seismological Society of America from 1966–67.[7]
In 1960, he published a paper in the journal Science titled "How Volcanoes Grow",[8] which was later described in SFGATE as "a classic and the most authoritative paper on the subject".[9]