Prof. Keeva Vozoff: 26 January, 1928 - 18 July, 2019

Keeva Vozoff

Official Obituary

Keeva VOZOFF
Born Minneapolis 26.01.28. Died 18.07.2019
Formerly of Mosman
Died peacefully surrounded by family after a long and productive life. Beloved husband to Liz, brother to Jerome and Massie (dec). Brother-in-law to Lorinne and Walter. Father to Jenny, Nancy, Steve and Max. Father-in-law to Tim, Agnes and Joanne. Grandfather to Julie, Max, Alex, Giovanna, Zach and Calvin. Keeva will be missed and remembered fondly by friends, colleagues and students from many parts of the world. Keeva’s family and friends are warmly invited to attend his Funeral Service to be held in the South Chapel at Northern Suburbs Crematorium, Delhi Road, North Ryde on Thursday July 25th, 2019 commencing at 1:00pm

Roger Henderson

Before coming to Australia in 1972 to take up the appointment of Professor of Geophysics at Macquarie University, Keeva Vozoff was already well known in the geophysical world. By 1958 he was known as the 'father of 3D EM modeling', and in 1969, the 'father of 2D magnetotelluric (MT) inversion'. These milestone achievements were continued at Macquarie when, in 1975 he became the 'father' of 'Joint Inversion of DC resistivity and MT' and in 1978, '3D MT modeling'.
Keeva was born on January 26, 1928 in Minneapolis, Minnesota where he obtained his first degree, in physics, in 1949. Then followed a MSc in Pennsylvania State in 1951 and a PhD at MIT in 1956. During the period from 1951 to 1991, Keeva applied his talents to many positions in private geophysical companies including Geophysical Service Inc. and academically, he was a visiting Assoc. Prof. at the University of Alberta, the University of California (Berkeley) and at the University of Cologne.
In 1981, at Macquarie, with his characteristic drive and enthusiasm, he established the Centre for Geophysical Exploration Research (CGER), such an institute being unique in Australia at that time. As well as EM, it dealt with seismic processing and numerical modeling and by hosting visiting post-graduates from many countries, produced outstanding research results. Keeva retained the chair at Macquarie until 1991 and continued to be active in research at the age of 80.
All this and more is summarized here.
Keeva joined the ASEG in 1972 and served on the Executive committee from 1975 as Treasurer and President in 1976. He also chaired conference committees and was awarded Honorary Membership (effective Life membership) in 1989, for his distinguished contribution to the profession of exploration geophysics through his research and teaching. Until his 90th year, Keeva was a regular attendee at monthly Branch meetings of the ASEG and invariably asked a searching question.
Keeva also continued to impress the membership of SEG and in 1985 he was awarded Honorary membership of the SEG (the first to an Australian resident) and in 2009 (at the age of 81) he received the SEG's Reginald Fessenden Award 'for a specific technical contribution in 3D EM modeling and Inversion'.
Keeva's research publications number over 70, many appearing in prestige journals such as the Journal of Geophysical Research, as well as Geophysics and SEG special publications. The particular field of research he is most known for is Magnetotellurics and for that he has written seminal papers such as Ch 8, 'The Magnetotelluric Method', in 'Electromagnetic Methods in Applied Geophysics', v.2 part B, ed. Misac Nabighian, Investigations in Geophysics series, 1991, SEG. Keeva’s international involvement included serving on adhoc committees of Soviet-Australia and Indo-Australia scientific and technical cooperation from 1974 to 1975 and being an honorary fellow of the Association of Exploration Geophysicists of India and an Alexander von Humboldt fellow in Germany. In a conversation with Keeva recently, he said the part of his research that was the most satisfying to him was the people he worked with. These included Peter Hatherly, Laurie Drake, Kurt Stack and others. Of his many publications he was most proud of the joint inversions of EM and Induced Polarization. Also, he said the best part of his teaching was the involvement with the students.
On a field trip to Lake Lefroy with students in 1985, Keeva appears to be showing them the location of the anomaly without the need for the seismic equipment. Although not an Australian by birth, Keeva has always been one of the locals thus endearing him to his colleagues and associates. He has been happily married since 1957 to charming and ever supportive Elizabeth and they have four children and six grandchildren. Examining the results of the Lake Lefroy field trip with Keeva are from left, Peter Williams (obscured), Dave Robson, Richard Gozdzik and John Coggon. Roger Henderson April 2019

From: Ted Tyne, President ASEG
Subject: Vale Keeva Vozoff

Dear ASEG Members, It is with the greatest sadness that I report the passing of a former ASEG President and a giant of international standing in geophysical research and teaching. Keeva passed away last Thursday and a copy of the notice of his death can be found here. Before coming to Australia in 1972 to take up the appointment of Professor of Geophysics at Macquarie University, Keeva Vozoff was already well known in the geophysical world. By 1958 he was known as the "father of 3D EM modeling", and in 1969, the "father of 2D magnetotelluric (MT) inversion". These milestone achievements were continued at Macquarie when, in 1975 he became the "father" of "Joint Inversion of DC resistivity and MT" and in 1978, "3D MT modeling". In 1981, at Macquarie University, with his characteristic drive and enthusiasm, he established the Centre for Geophysical Exploration Research (CGER), such an institute being unique in Australia at that time. As well as EM, it dealt with seismic processing and numerical modeling and by hosting visiting post-graduates from many countries, produced outstanding research results. Keeva retained the chair at Macquarie until 1991 and continued to be active in research at the age of 80. Keeva joined the ASEG in 1972 and served on the Executive committee from 1975 as Treasurer and President in 1976. He also chaired conference committees and was awarded Honorary Membership (effective Life membership) in 1989, for his distinguished contribution to the profession of exploration geophysics through his research and teaching. Until his 90th year, Keeva was a regular attendee at monthly Branch meetings of the ASEG and invariably asked a searching question. Many of us have worked closely and spent a lot time with Keeva and our professional and personal lives have been enriched greatly by his intellect and wisdom, his open sharing of knowledge and his impish sense of fun and friendship. Recollections of Keeva Vozoff's huge contribution to geophysical research, teaching and our Society can be found here. The funeral service for family and friends will be held in the South Chapel at the Northern Suburbs Crematorium, Delhi Road, North Ryde on Thursday, 25th July at 1.00pm. We offer our deepest sympathies and condolences to Keeva's family,

Ted Tyne
President
21 July, 2019.

Comments/reminiscences from Keeva's colleagues and friends

Alan Jones, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Of course, as a young wet-behind-the-ears just starting in MT student in 1974 Keeva's 1972 paper was the bible. I made the mistake of highlighting parts that were interesting each time I read it. At the end, the whole paper was in yellow highlighter.
I met Keeva for the first time at the 1978 Murnau workshop - and what a delight he was. (You can see him on the far left in the workshop photo here.) Generous, interested, full of ideas - like many luminaries who led our field at that time.
I then met Keeva again prior to the IUGG that was held in Canberra in 1979. He had a 2-D forward code written by Ted Madden - EMCDC - that I used whilst I was there (but I wasn't allowed to take it away with me).
We since became good friends, and had enjoyable - but sadly seldom - meetings and quite a few emails between us. Keeva especially was almost always the first to write to me after MTNet emails went out.
I last met him in 2014 when I had dinner with him and Brian Spies, and our wives, in Sydney. Sparkling as ever - what a man!

George Jiracek, San Diego, CA, USA

My Memories of Keeva Vozoff, July 24, 2019
The passing of Keeva Vozoff marks the departure of a true renaissance man who profoundly affected electromagnetic (EM) geophysics on all levels: commercial and academic, applied and theoretical, intellectual and personal, for many decades. I first met Keeva at Berkeley in the late 1960s when Stan Ward and Frank Morrison attracted top people in applied geophysics to impress and inspire us students. Later I spent more personal time with Keeva and his wife Liz during two sabbatical leaves: back at Berkeley and at Macquarie University in Australia. At Berkeley in 1977-78 several of my students and I marveled at lectures from Keeva, Misac Nabighian, and Don Pridmore on the latest developments in EM geophysics. Following this, Keeva and I continued a friendly relationship. This, of course, led to magnetotellurics (MT). Followed by plans to apply the Rayleigh-FFT scattering approach to topographic distortions expected in MT measurements in the Himalayas. Next, to seeking support from the Australia-American Fulbright Commission to fund my visiting with Keeva during my next sabbatical leave. Keeva wrote a supporting letter that convinced the commission that MT in the Himalayas was really important, and they funded our study. It was in Australia where I experienced the wonderful hospitality that Keeva and Liz offered. They picked me up at the airport and insisted that I stay in their home until I found a place to live. And, knowing that I lacked the necessary driving skills in Australia, they drove me around Sydney until I found suitable housing. I then spent months churning out Himalayan MT model results, some of which we presented at the 1987 ASEG (Australian Society of Exploration Geophysicists) meeting in Observation City near Perth. To maximize the geophysical experience for those traveling three nights across Australia by train, Keeva and others arranged special rail cars for ASEG participants. These allowed exciting, daily geophysics, viewgraph presentations, on the Indian Pacific Railroad. The lively discussions were accompanied by the beverages that make Australia famous. Eventually some of the Himalayan MT results were discussed in Keeva’s iconic, 70-page paper "The Magnetotelluric Method" published in the 1991 SEG special publication on "Methods in Applied Geophysics" edited by Misac Nabighian. From then on, I insisted that every student that had the slightest interest in MT must read this paper. Keeva masterfully explained every related topic, e. g., MT sources; basic 1-D, 2-D and 3-D theory and practice; field procedures; data processing and modeling. He made an extraordinary effort to cite contributions from colleagues across the globe. Thus, emphasizing the cooperative spirit of the international MT community. I last saw Keeva at the 2009 Houston Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) meeting where he received a special SEG award for 3-D EM modeling. We shared old stories at his bedside in a hospital where he ended up after an incident with a revolving door at his hotel. He was totally unfazed by the mishap. I am fortunate to have known such a extraordinary, kind, humble man.

Martyn Unsworth, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta Canada

Keeva Vozoff was an Associate Professor at the University of Alberta from 1958-1964 and it was here that he made some of the first MT measurements that validated the theoretical papers published in the 1950s. Keeva was always quite modest about his role in the development of MT. However he played a crucial role in many aspects of the development of MT, including instrumentation, modelling codes and inversion algorithms. I first met Keeva in Australia in the 1990s but got to know him much better after I moved to the University of Alberta in 2000. For several years I would get an email or letter from Keeva in February asking about the weather in Edmonton. At this time of year it is often colder than -30C in Alberta, and Keeva would remind me that it was a pleasant +30 C on Manly beach in Sydney. Once he sent a photo of the beach, just to make the point. I visited Keeva in Sydney in January 2019 and spent an afternoon with him at his house. He had just celebrated his 91st birthday and was still his usual sharp self. I am glad to have had this visit as a precious final memory of a truly outstanding scientist and colleague.

Andreas Hördt

I closely worked with Keeva during the early 90's, when he was in Cologne to help us with a project on gas storage monitoring with LOTEM. In addition to his broad knowledge, he impressed me by is determination. Once he had an idea (he had many), he would go for it, and do everything to make it happen. He also had a great sense of humour, and would never hesitate to enjoy a good Cologne beer.

Sad to hear he passed away.

Andreas Hördt