Dr. Charles David Keeling, the world’s leading authority on atmospheric greenhouse gas accumulation and climate science pioneer at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego (UCSD), was the first to confirm the rise of atmospheric carbon dioxide by very precise measurements that produced a data set now known widely as the “Keeling Curve.” Prior to his investigations, it was unknown whether the carbon dioxide released from the burning of fossil fuels and other industrial activities would accumulate in the atmosphere instead of being fully absorbed by the oceans and vegetated areas on land. He became the first to determine definitively the fraction of carbon dioxide from combustion that remains in the atmosphere. The Keeling record of the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide measured at Mauna Loa, Hawaii, and at other “pristine air” locations, represents what many believe to be the most important time-series data set for the study of global change.  Charles F. Kennel, Scripps director:

There are three occasions when dedication to scientific measurements has changed all of science. Tycho Brahe’s observations of planets laid the foundation for Sir Isaac Newton’s theory of gravitation. Albert Michelson’s measurements of the speed of light laid the foundation for Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. Charles David Keeling’s measurements of the global accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere set the stage for today’s profound concerns about climate change. They are the single most important environmental data set taken in the 20th century. Dave Keeling was living proof that a scientist could, by sticking close to his bench, change the world.

A trailblazer in the field of global climate change, Keeling showed that atmospheric carbon dioxide amounts have grown worldwide. During the early 1990s it was said that the only scientific data on display in the White House was one of his graphs.  As a scientist, he will forever be remembered by one of the most recognizable graphs in science, the sloping curve that symbolically represents the atmospheric carbon dioxide record he derived.

Keeling also led major efforts in global carbon cycle modeling. In 1996, Keeling, with his colleagues at Scripps, showed that the amplitude of the Northern Hemispheric seasonal cycles in atmospheric carbon dioxide has been increasing, providing independent support for the conclusion that the growing season is beginning earlier, perhaps in response to global warming.

Keeling’s major areas of interest included the geochemistry of carbon and other aspects of atmospheric chemistry, with an emphasis on the carbon cycle in nature. He was a world leader in these studies, and also conducted research on changes to the atmosphere through the combustion of fossil fuels and changes in land use, and the complex relationships between the carbon cycle and changes in climate. Keeling also studied the role of oceans in modulating the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide by carrying out extremely accurate measurements of carbon dissolved in seawater

Born in Scranton, Pa., on April 20, 1928, Keeling received a B.A. degree in chemistry from the University of Illinois in 1948 and a Ph.D. degree in chemistry from Northwestern University in 1954.

During the 1950s, the late Roger Revelle, one of the world’s preeminent oceanographers and director of Scripps from 1950-1964, first became concerned about the potential for a greenhouse effect resulting from increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide from the use of fossil fuels. He established an ongoing research program at Scripps Institution to monitor carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and, in 1956, recruited Keeling, who was then a postdoctoral fellow in geochemistry at the California Institute of Technology.

Keeling enjoyed a rich life outside of scientific pursuits. He was an avid outdoorsman, a champion of wilderness, and enjoyed hiking and camping in the mountains of California, Montana, Canada and Switzerland. He was a civic leader and a primary author of the city of Del Mar’s General Plan. He was an accomplished pianist, the founding director of the UCSD Madrigal Singers and enjoyed playing chamber music with his friends, colleagues and his own children. He very nearly chose a career in music over science.

Keeling died June 20, 2005, at the age of 77.

.: Obituary Notice — Climate Science Pioneer: Charles David Keeling, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego :.

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