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Article: Sir John Murray: (1841-1914) the founder of modern oceanography, John Murray pioneered research on the ocean depths and oceanic sediments and was a leading light in marine biology.(Late Great Geographers #59)(Biography)
- Article from:
- Geographical
- Article date:
- September 1, 2005
- Author:
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What was his background?
John Murray was born on 3 March 1841 in Coburg, Ontario, Canada, to Scottish parents. He travelled to Scotland to study at Stirling High School before entering Edinburgh University to study medicine. However, he soon left to join a whaling expedition to Spitsbergen as ship's surgeon. He then returned to Edinburgh to complete his studies, this time in geology under Sir Archibald Geikle and natural philosophy under Sir Peter Guthrie Tait.
What did he achieve?
While still at Edinburgh, Murray joined the crew of naturalists aboard HMS Challenger, a steam assisted corvette, which sailed from Portsmouth in December 1872 for a ...