Dr Angus McEwan interviewed by Dr Trevor McDougall
TitleDr Angus McEwan interviewed by Dr Trevor McDougall
Reference240000073
Date2011
Scope and ContentVideo interview and transcript of interview.
Angus McEwan was born in Alloa, Scotland in 1937. In 1947, after the early death of his father, Angus McEwan immigrated with his mother and three brothers to Melbourne, Australia. McEwan attended Upwey High School and then Melbourne High School finishing with a leaving certificate. Too young for university, McEwan completed a diploma in engineering at Caulfield Technical School. After his National Service, McEwan got a job at the Aeronautical Research Laboratories in Melbourne. A cadetship enabled him to extend his studies at the University of Melbourne where he graduated with a BEMech (Hons) (1960). McEwan was then awarded a Vacuum Oil Scholarship to complete his masters, MEngSc (1962). McEwan again went to work for the Aeronautical Research Laboratories on heat transfer problems.
A desire to change direction in his research found McEwan on his way to Cambridge with a CSIRO Fellowship and, later, a Public Service Board Scholarship. He graduated with a PhD in 1966 for his work on the distortion changes in turbulence as flow goes over a step. He also worked with the legendary Sir Geoffery ('GI') Taylor on liquid surfaces in electric fields. McEwan then returned to Australia and the Aeronautical Research Laboratories to work on hypersonic re-entry problems (1966-69). He then joined the CSIRO Division of Meteorological Physics (later Atmospheric Research) supported by a Queen Elizabeth II Fellowship (1969-71). In 1971 McEwan was appointed as a senior research scientist with the task of creating a geophysical fluid dynamics laboratory within this Division (1971-81). During this period, in 1975, McEwan was invited as a Rossby Fellow to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, USA where he worked on internal waves. In 1981 McEwan was appointed to chief of the new CSIRO Division of Oceanography (1981-95) to be established in Hobart. Following his term as chief, McEwan served as senior science advisor to the Commonwealth Bureau of Meteorology (1995-2005).
In addition to his research, and several roles in the advancement of Australian marine science, McEwan was active in the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC). He served in a number of capacities including; Australian delegate to the (IOC) (1982-2004), member (1982-90) and then chairman (1987-90) of the IOC Committee on Climatic Changes and the Ocean, representative of the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) steering committee (1995-2003), chairman of the Intergovernmental GOOS committee (1998-2001) and chair of the Oceanographic Data Exchange Policy group (2001-02).
Angus McEwan was born in Alloa, Scotland in 1937. In 1947, after the early death of his father, Angus McEwan immigrated with his mother and three brothers to Melbourne, Australia. McEwan attended Upwey High School and then Melbourne High School finishing with a leaving certificate. Too young for university, McEwan completed a diploma in engineering at Caulfield Technical School. After his National Service, McEwan got a job at the Aeronautical Research Laboratories in Melbourne. A cadetship enabled him to extend his studies at the University of Melbourne where he graduated with a BEMech (Hons) (1960). McEwan was then awarded a Vacuum Oil Scholarship to complete his masters, MEngSc (1962). McEwan again went to work for the Aeronautical Research Laboratories on heat transfer problems.
A desire to change direction in his research found McEwan on his way to Cambridge with a CSIRO Fellowship and, later, a Public Service Board Scholarship. He graduated with a PhD in 1966 for his work on the distortion changes in turbulence as flow goes over a step. He also worked with the legendary Sir Geoffery ('GI') Taylor on liquid surfaces in electric fields. McEwan then returned to Australia and the Aeronautical Research Laboratories to work on hypersonic re-entry problems (1966-69). He then joined the CSIRO Division of Meteorological Physics (later Atmospheric Research) supported by a Queen Elizabeth II Fellowship (1969-71). In 1971 McEwan was appointed as a senior research scientist with the task of creating a geophysical fluid dynamics laboratory within this Division (1971-81). During this period, in 1975, McEwan was invited as a Rossby Fellow to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, USA where he worked on internal waves. In 1981 McEwan was appointed to chief of the new CSIRO Division of Oceanography (1981-95) to be established in Hobart. Following his term as chief, McEwan served as senior science advisor to the Commonwealth Bureau of Meteorology (1995-2005).
In addition to his research, and several roles in the advancement of Australian marine science, McEwan was active in the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC). He served in a number of capacities including; Australian delegate to the (IOC) (1982-2004), member (1982-90) and then chairman (1987-90) of the IOC Committee on Climatic Changes and the Ocean, representative of the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) steering committee (1995-2003), chairman of the Intergovernmental GOOS committee (1998-2001) and chair of the Oceanographic Data Exchange Policy group (2001-02).
LanguageEnglish
External document
Persons keyword Angus McEwan, Trevor McDougall
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