Satish Ramnath Shetye (born 1950) is an Indian

geophysicist Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and properties of Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. Geophysicists conduct investigations acros ...

oceanographer Oceanography (), also known as oceanology, sea science, ocean science, and marine science, is the scientific study of the ocean, including its physics, chemistry, biology, and geology. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of top ...

and a former vice chancellor of the

University of Goa Goa University is a public state university headquartered in the city of Panaji, in the Indian state of Goa. The traditions of Goa University date back to the 17th century,Prôa, Miguel Pires. "Escolas Superiores" Portuguesas Antes de 1950 (e ...

. He is a former director of the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) and is known for his researches on the monsoon-driven currents along the Indian coast. He is an elected fellow of all the three major Indian science academies viz.

Indian National Science Academy The Indian National Science Academy (INSA) is a national academy in New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three b ...

Indian Academy of Sciences The Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore was founded by Indian Physicist and List of Nobel laureates, Nobel Laureate Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, C. V. Raman, and was registered as a society on 27 April 1934. Inaugurated on 31 July 1934, it ...

National Academy of Sciences, India The National Academy of Sciences, India, also known as NASI, was established in 1930 and is the oldest science academy of India. It is located in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Prof. Meghnad Saha was the founder president. Fellows * Suddhasatwa Bas ...

as well as the

Indian Geophysical Union The Indian Geophysical Union is the Government of India's scientific body responsible for all activities related with Earth Science System such as seismology, magnetism, meteorology, geodesy, volcanology, oceanography, hydrology and tectonophysi ...

. The

Council of Scientific and Industrial Research The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR; IAST: ''vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada'') is a research and development (R&D) organisation in India to promote scientific, industrial and economic growth. Headquarter ...

, the apex agency of the Government of India for scientific research, awarded him the

Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology Shanti or Shanthi may refer to: In Sanskrit * Inner peace, a state of being mentally and spiritually at peace, with enough knowledge and understanding to keep oneself strong in the face of discord or stress * Kshanti, one of the paramitas of B ...

, one of the highest Indian science awards for his contributions to Earth, Atmosphere, Ocean and Planetary Sciences in 1992.

Biography

Satish Ramnath Shetye, born on 25 October 1950 in the Indian state of

Goa Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...

, did his master's degree in physics from the

Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT- Bombay or IIT-B) is a public research university and technical institute in Powai, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. IIT Bombay is mainly known for the highly competitive four-year Bachelor of Techno ...

in 1973 and moved to the US to secure a PhD in

Physical Oceanography Physical oceanography is the study of physical conditions and physical processes within the ocean, especially the motions and physical properties of ocean waters. Physical oceanography is one of several sub-domains into which oceanography is div ...

from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

in 1982. He continued in the US to complete his post-doctoral work at the same university during 1975–82 and returned to India to join the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) in 1982 as a research associate. He served the institute in various capacities; as Scientist-Grade C (1984–89), Scientist-Grade E-I (1989–92), Scientist-Grade E-II (1992–97) and Scientist-Grade F (1997–2004) before becoming the director in 2004. In 2012, he was appointed as the vice chancellor of the

with his tenure running till 2015, but was given an extension of one year. He retired from service in 2016, succeeded by Varun Sahni.

Legacy

Sheteye's researches cover the physical oceanography of the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...

Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. Geographically it is positioned between the Indian subcontinent and the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese peninsula, located below the Bengal region. Many South Asian and Southe ...

and the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...

and e is known to have undertaken several ocean expeditions in the Indian coastal waters for his studies. His work on the monsoon-driven currents along the Indian coast enhanced the understanding of the phenomena and assisted him in proposing mechanisms impacting their existence. He elucidated annual variations in the

sea surface temperature Sea surface temperature (or ocean surface temperature) is the ocean temperature, temperature of ocean water close to the surface. The exact meaning of ''surface'' varies in the literature and in practice. It is usually between and below the sea ...

in the Arabian Sea by developing a mixed-layer model, reportedly for the first time. His other studies included the coastal circulation of the entire North Indian Ocean, especially around India, the thermal fields in the North Indian Ocean and their relationship with the Indian summer monsoon, variability of sea levels along Indian coasts, dynamics of Indian

estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

and a first-time study of the

hydrology Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and drainage basin sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is called a hydro ...

of rivers feeding those estuaries. His studies have been detailed in several peer-reviewed articles;

ResearchGate ResearchGate is a European commercial social networking site for scientists and researchers to share papers, ask and answer questions, and find collaborators. According to a 2014 study by ''Nature'' and a 2016 article in ''Times Higher Education' ...

, an online repository of scientific articles, has listed 95 of them. Sheteye has been associated with the Earth Commission, a body constituted by the

Ministry of Earth Sciences The Ministry of Earth Sciences is an executive ministry of the Government of India, established on 29 January, 2006. It was formed through the reorganisation of the Department of Ocean Development and the assumption of administrative control ov ...

for policy formulations, and their implementation, where he sat during 2007–09. Earlier, he had been a member of the council of Indian Academy of Sciences (1998–2003), the council of the Indian National Science Academy (2005–07) and the Governing Body of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (2004–07). He is also a former member of the council of the

Indian Institute of Science The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is a Public university, public, Deemed university, deemed, research university for higher education and research in science, engineering, design, and management. It is located in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The ...

(2006) and a former editor of the Proceedings of the Indian Academy of Sciences (Earth & Planetary Sciences) and the

Journal of Earth System Science The ''Journal of Earth System Science'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal covering Earth system science. It was established in 1978 and is published by Springer Science+Business Media on behalf of the Indian Academy of Sciences. The editor-in-c ...

. He is an incumbent member of the Peer Team of

National Assessment and Accreditation Council The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) is a public autonomous body of the government of India that assesses and accredits higher education institutions (HEIs) in India. It is funded by the University Grants Commission and hea ...

, a national body of the

University Grants Commission of India University Grants Commission (UGC; ISO: ''Viś‍vavidyālaya Anudāna Āyōga'') is a statutory body under Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Government of India. It was set up in accordance to the UGC Act 1956 and is c ...

overseeing the accreditation and assessment of institutions of higher education in India. He has delivered several featured lectures and plenary addresses which include the IX Kumari L. A. Meera Memorial Lecture of 2000.

Awards and honors

The Indian Academy of Sciences chose Sheteye as a Young Associate in 1984; the academy would honor him again with an elected fellowship in 1992. The

awarded him the

Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize Shanti or Shanthi may refer to: In Sanskrit * Inner peace, a state of being mentally and spiritually at peace, with enough knowledge and understanding to keep oneself strong in the face of discord or stress * Kshanti, one of the paramitas of B ...

, one of the highest Indian science awards, the same year. The Indian National Science Academy and the Indian Geophysical Union elected him as their fellows in 1998 and the National Academy of Sciences, India followed suit in 2000, the same year as he received the New Millennium Science Medal of the

Indian Science Congress Association Indian Science Congress Association (ISCA) is a premier scientific organisation of India with headquarters at Kolkata, West Bengal. The association started in the year 1914 in Calcutta and it meets annually in the first week of January. It h ...

. He received the Distinguished Alumnus Award of the

in 2006 and the

awarded him the National award for Ocean Science and Technology in 2012.

Selected bibliography

* * * * *

Biography

Legacy

Awards and honors

Selected bibliography

See also

Notes

References

External links

Further reading