8
BAMOS
Jun 2019
Obituary
Vale Matthias Tomczak—Tribute to a
Giant
Prepared by Associate Professor Jochen Kämpf, Flinders University
Larger than life, Professor Matthias (Matt) Tomczak (29 Oct 1941–
31 May 2019) had many talents and interests including playing
the viola. In his early career he was interested in geophysics,
but he changed his focus after learning about electromagnetic
measurements of oceanic currents.
Rising to Professor of Oceanography at Flinders University, he
published more than one hundred scientific papers and made
groundbreaking scientific contributions, particularly in the
identification of individual water masses in the deep ocean.
Matt’s research was versatile and ranged from the mapping
of the Bass Strait water cascade, investigations of the global
distribution of barrier layers, to rainfall measurements with
navigational radar. His colleagues and former PhD students
celebrated Professor Tomczak’s scientific achievements
in a special edition of the prestigious journal Progress in
Oceanography, as a gift for his 65th birthday in 2006. In 2004,
he was awarded the AMOS Morton Medal by the Australian
Meteorological and Oceanographic Society for his scientific
leadership.
An excellent educator, Professor Tomczak inspired many
generations of students and people around him. His first-
authored textbook Regional Oceanography: An Introduction with
accompanying web-based exercises are used as oceanographic
educational tools at many universities worldwide.
During his career at Flinders University, he developed the
teaching curriculum for several marine science topics that are
still taught today. Towards the end of his academic career, he
developed the teaching material for a non-marine subject
about the links between science, society and civilisation. This
course material, which is testament to Professor Tomczak’s
philosophical interests, is available online. Many students who
had the opportunity to attend his lectures, remember this topic
as “one of the best undergrad topics” taught at Flinders.
Professor Matthias Tomczak during the maiden CAPSTAN voyage in November 2017.