Laureates of the Japan Prize

Dr. Morgan began his revolutionary work by dividing Earth's outer shell into some 20 plates, analyzing their movements as rigid, rotating segments of the shell, and measuring absolute velocities of plate motion. Mid-oceanic ridges, subduction zones and transform faults all came to be interpreted as results of the movements of these plates. The great significance of Dr. Morgan's theory became widely recognized and his work subsequently triggered numerous studies in a variety of fields.

Dr. Mckenzi e has analyzed ear thquake systems in the circum-Pacific region and has demonstrated independently that the floor of the Pacific Ocean moves as a single plate, rotating against North America and East Asia. In collaboration with Dr. Morgan, Dr. Mckenzie has also carried out a geometrical analysis of triple junctions where three plates meet. This work has contributed greatly to understanding the relative motion of plates and the energetics of plate movements. He has also proposed the highly original model that large sedimentary basins, important in the formation of oil and natural gas deposits, are formed by thinning of the crust due to plate motion.

Dr. Le Pichon, inspired by the work of Dr. Morgan has independently determined plate movements over the entire surface of Earth, using ocean floor spreading velocities estimated from paleomagnetic patterns and the directions of transform faults. He has also published a book on plate tectonics which has had a great influence on Earth scientists throughout the world, and has played a major role in seafloor investigation at plate boundaries. Through these works, he has contributed greatly to the understanding of the geological nature of plate boundaries under the ocean.