Hans Pettersson

Hans Petterson, born 26 August 1888 in Forshälla, Gothenburg and Bohus County, died 25 January 1966 in Gothenburg was a Swedish physicist and oceanographer. He was the son of chemist Otto Pettersson (1848-1941).

Hans Pettersson studied atomic physics at the Institute for Radium Research, Vienna.

Petterson's first publication from 1910 was on the issue of radium. He later brought this knowledge to the field of oceanography, and with the help of radium he could determine the age of sediment samples from the bottom of the sea. Pettersson became the first full professor of oceanography in Sweden and in 1938 founded the Institute of Oceanography in Gothenburg, thanks to funding from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation. Pettersson was its head until 1956. He also was the head of the Bornö Hydrographic Field Station on Stora Bornö.

Petterson also wrote many popular scientific texts which helped disseminate progress in oceanography to the general audience. In July 1947, the Albatross expedition started its around the world voyage with Pettersson as leader of the expedition. This expedition was planned by him, and was financed by private sponsors.

• 1948 elected as a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
• 1949 Awarded the Patron's Gold Medal of the Royal Geographical Society.
• 1956 elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society of London (ForMemRS) in 1956.

• Kungl. Vetenskapsakademiens årsbok 1961, ISSN 0373-8272, p. 6.
• "List of Past Gold Medal Winners" (PDF). Royal Geographical Society. Retrieved 24 August 2015.