Donald Canfield is a geologist born in 1958, most famous for his work on ancient ocean chemistry. The Canfield ocean

Canfield ocean

The Canfield Ocean refers to the Ocean composition theorized by geologist Donald Canfield. In a seminal paper in Nature in 1998, Canfield argued that the Ocean had become partially oxic and sulfidic, causing mass extinction....

, a sulfidic partially oxic ocean existing between the Archean

Archean

The Archean , also spelled Archeozoic or Archæozoic) is a geologic eon before the Paleoproterozoic Era of the Proterozoic Eon, before 2.5 Ga ago. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, this date is defined chronometrically...

 and Ediacaran

Ediacaran

The Ediacaran Period , named after the Ediacara Hills of South Australia, is the last geological period of the Neoproterozoic Era and of the Proterozoic Eon, immediately preceding the Cambrian Period, the first period of the Paleozoic Era and of the Phanerozoic Eon...

 periods, takes its name from his seminal paper.

He has been the director of the Nordic Center for Earth Evolution (NordCEE) since August 2006, and works at the University of Southern Denmark

University of Southern Denmark

The University of Southern Denmark, with campuses located in the southwestern part of Denmark - i.e. Funen, Southern Jutland and Sealand - is a research and educational institution with deep regional roots and an international outlook. Reaching even further south, the university offers a number of...

. He was awarded the European Geosciences Union

European Geosciences Union

The European Geosciences Union is an interdisciplinary non-profit learned society open to individuals who are professionally engaged in or associated with geosciences, planetary and space sciences, and related studies.The mission statement of the EGU is "Dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in...

's Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky Medal in 2010.

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