Gibbstown, Greenwich Township, NJ
Sylvia Earle/Place of birth

Here we take a look at seven of the most renowned marine biologists, identifying the reasons for their well deserved places on this list.

• Charles Darwin (1809 – 1882)
• Rachel Carson (1907 – 1964)
• Jacques-Yves Cousteau (1910 – 1997)
• Sylvia Earle (1935 – present)
• Hans Hass (1919 – 2013)
• Eugenie Clark (1922 – 2015)

Sylvia Earle
Judy Woodruff: Marine biologist Sylvia Earle has spent more than four decades at the forefront of ocean exploration. And, at 83, she shows no signs of slowing down.

Sylvia Alice Earle (née Reade; born August 30, 1935) is an American marine biologist, oceanographer, explorer, author, and lecturer. She has been a National Geographic explorer-in-residence since 1998. Earle is part of the group Ocean Elders, which is dedicated to protecting the ocean and its wildlife.

Sylvia is an oceanographer, scuba diver, and research scientist. She founded Mission Blue, an organization dedicated to protecting the ocean from threats such as climate change, pollution, habitat destruction, invasive species, and the dramatic decrease in ocean fish stocks.

August 30, 1935 (age 86 years)
Sylvia Earle/Date of birth

Sylvia Earle was born on August 30, 1935 in Gibbstown, New Jersey and lived on a small farm near Camden with her parents and two brothers.

Duke University1966
Florida State UniversitySt. Petersburg/Gibbs Campus
Sylvia Earle/Education
She earned a scholarship to Florida State University, where she studied botany and graduated at 19. She also became certified as a SCUBA diver at this time, in order to study ocean plant life firsthand. By 20, Earle earned a master’s degree in botany from Duke University.

A pioneer in the use of modern self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA) gear and the development of deep-sea submersibles, Earle also held the world record for the deepest untethered dive.

During the early 1980s Earle founded Deep Ocean Engineering and Deep Ocean Technology with British engineer Graham Hawkes, her third husband. Together they designed the submersible Deep Rover, a vehicle capable of reaching depths of 914 metres (3,000 feet) beneath the surface of the ocean.

By 20, Earle earned a master’s degree in botany from Duke University. Earle then began her doctoral work at Duke, focusing on algae, which produce most of the oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere through photosynthesis. There, Earle met John Taylor, a graduate student in zoology.

Sylvia A. Earle is a former chief scientist of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and a leading American oceanographer. She was among the first underwater explorers to make use of modern self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA) gear, and identified many new species of marine life.

Graham Hawkesm. 1986–1992
Sylvia Earle/Spouse

Donald Putnam Abbott (1920–1986), American marine invertebrate zoologist. Isabella Aiona Abbott (1919–2010), American marine botanist. Ali Abdelghany (born 1944), Egyptian marine biologist. Jakob Johan Adolf Appellöf (1857–1921), Swedish marine zoologist. Leanne Armand (born 1968), Australian marine scientist.

Ruth Turner was the first female marine biologist to make use of Alvin, a deep ocean research submarine. Charles Thompson (1830-1882) He was a Scottish marine biologist, who was the chief scientist on the Challenger Expedition. Charles Thompson specialized in the field of deep sea biological conditions.

Thompson was also the author of the earliest deep-sea biology textbooks – “ The depths of the Sea “. George Brown Goode – (1851-1896) – USA. George Goode was a biologist and fisheries specialist. He worked as a US Fish Commissioner from 1887-1888, organizing research and performing various administrative duties.

Women Biologists. Throughout history, there have been many women biologists who have made significant contribution to the field. The list includes many familiar and great female biologists such as Rachel Carson, Lynn Margulis, Elizabeth Blackburn, Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard, Marguerite Vogt.The women biologists featured in this list are…