Sebastian F. L. Watt

The 2014 Arne Richter Award for Outstanding Young Scientists is awarded to Sebastian F. L. Watt for notable contributions to the reconstruction of regional eruption histories, understanding of volcanic landslides and biomonitoring of volcanic activity.

Sebastian F. L. Watt has established a formidable reputation for his important contributions to studies of the dispersal and deposition of tephra and reconstruction of regional eruption histories, to advancing the understanding of volcanic landslides, and to the new field of biomonitoring of volcanic activity. What makes Watt stand out is not only his impressive productivity (he has already published over 20 papers in peer-reviewed international journals), but also the breadth of geosciences that his contributions tackle, both in terms of the science questions that he has addressed, the techniques he has employed and the high level of scholarship that he demonstrates in his writing. Watt’s work is insightful, thorough and scholarly, hallmarks that will ensure that his contributions are long-lasting. He is, by any measure, one of the leading young volcanologists in the world.