Robert Ballard

Professor, Institute for Exploration and University of Rhode Island

At first glance there is such a wonderful incongruity to famed oceanographer Robert Ballard. Is he a scientist or a businessman? Is he an educator or an explorer? The answer is yes.

If you look at Ballard strictly from a numbers perspective, it's hard to believe it's just one person: more than 100 deep sea expeditions, 18 published books, 13 honorary degrees, 6 military awards, literally dozens of nationally and internationally recognized science awards...the list goes on.

"Growing up in San Diego, the ocean was my friend—my best friend," he says. "I wanted to be the first kid to put footprints on the sand after a tide. I loved the story of Robinson Crusoe, walking this deserted beach, finding treasures that had been washed up. Every 12 hours when the tidal pool changed, a different set of animals got trapped. Tidal pools became the microcosm that I was an explorer of. And I've never grown up. I mean I still have that childish desire to poke around."

Ballard has an extraordinary knack for coaxing secrets from the world's oceans. With an education in science, in technology and in the military—"because most explorers have some military connection"—he was a Commander in the United States Navy, and holds PhD’s in marine geology and geophysics. "I also developed a strong interest in submarines and diving technology," he says. "I view my background in the context of an epic journey—to go forth with a dream and assemble your team and overcome the elements, find the truth and try and share it."

True discovery, the kind that Ballard has spent his life pursuing, requires mastering an array of skills. Perhaps chief among them is the ability to collaborate—you simply can't get to the deepest places on earth by yourself.

His collaborations are both multi-faceted and multi-disciplinary. "I discovered the power of a plan," he says. "If you can plan it out, and it seems logical to you, then you can do it."

Ballard’s precise planning has allowed for many innovations. For instance, not satisfied with the possibilities of undersea research offered by slow-moving submersibles, Ballard developed ANGUS (Acoustically Navigated Geological Underwater Survey), a submersible camera which can remain on the ocean floor for 12 to 14 hours, and take up to 16,000 photographs in a single lowering. From there, he conceived a new automated system for undersea exploration: a maneuverable, remote-controlled photographic robot which broadcasts live images to a remote monitor, where a large team of scientists can survey the ocean floor continuously and maneuver the remote camera.

Although finding the Titanic is probably his best-known accomplishment, he is also determinedly committed to science education. Earlier this year, Ballard joined thousands of students to explore the mysteries of Mars via an Internet broadcast, which was transmitted from the headquarters of the National Geographic Society.

His entry into science education began in 1989 with his founding of the Jason Project—a unique, hands-on, real-world scientific discovery center for middle-school kids. Since then, Ballard has taken millions of students via the Internet to the sites of underwater volcanoes, shipwrecks, rainforests, and coral reefs. He says he started the project after observing how children reacted to his descriptions of the Titanic discovery expedition.

"I was surprised at how fascinated they were at our technology," Ballard says. "They all wanted to go on the expeditions. We saw we could take them with our 'telepresence' technology; we could actually beam them out to our ship. We started it 18 years ago, and here we are still doing it."

Today, Ballard directs the Institute for Exploration at the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut. He also teaches oceanography at the University of Rhode Island and is an explorer-in-residence at the National Geographic Society. At the age of 63, he says he’s now happy to let manmade robots do the underwater exploration, while he observes from a distance.

And while his Jason Project helps introduce people to the excitement of exploration, he also says it can play a far-reaching role in science education in the United States." All kids dream a marvelous image of what they want to do. But then society tells them they can't do it. If we’re to succeed as a nation, we must start nurturing our greatest resource—the brain power of these kids."