Charles Lum Drake, who served as a professor and chair of the Earth sciences department and taught popular geology and oceanography courses, died of heart failure at the age of 72 on Tuesday.
Drake first came to the College as a geology professor in 1969. He continued to teach and lead an annual student trip to Lake Powell in Utah, even after his retirement in 1994.
"He ... taught a very popular course -- Earth Sciences 3: Oceanography, nicknamed 'Oceans' by students," Chair of the Earth Sciences Department Richard Birnie said.
Engineering Professor Charles Officer, a friend and co-worker said Drake was a great scientist and well-respected by his colleagues.
"He was a very considerate and concerned individual," Officer said. "To both students and colleagues alike, this was one of his strong points."
Although he was acclaimed for his early work using seismology to analyze the Atlantic Coastal Plain, he was also in the spotlight recently for his theories about extinction, according to a College press release.
"He and I were both involved with trying to understand the last major geologic extinction crisis, which included the dinosaurs," Officer said. "We both felt that this extinction perhaps was due to natural causes rather than bringing in a 'deus ex machina' of an asteroid impact from outer space."
Drake attended Princeton University as an undergraduate and received his doctorate in geology from Columbia University, a release states. At Dartmouth, he served as chair of the geology department from 1976 to 1978 and chair of the Earth sciences department of 1991 to 1992.
Drake was a former president of both the Geological Society of American and the American Geophysical Union, according to the release. From 1990 to 1992, he was a member of President George Bush's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
He also served on and chaired committees of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Research Council, the release states.
In addition to publishing over 100 research papers, Drake co-wrote a book about Lake Powell and an oceanography textbook. He also edited and contributed to books about continental margins and other topics, according to the release.
Birnie said Drake was known for the variety of work he did. "He was also known internationally for his involvement in professional organizations," he said, but "he always kept an eye on his home institution as well."
Drake is survived by his wife, Martha Ann Drake of Norwich, Vt., his daughters Mary Layton, Pace Mehling and Susannah Culhane and three grandchildren.
