Robert T. Dodd Jr. *62

Bob died of pancreatic cancer in Copake, N.Y., Nov. 3, 2024. He was 88.

Born in the Bronx, July 11, 1936, he majored in geosciences at Cornell and earned a Ph.D. in geology from Princeton in 1962. For his dissertation, Bob mapped the geological structures of Bear Mountain in Harriman State Park, N.Y.

After earning his Ph.D., Bob served in the Air Force until 1965. He worked on a project for the Apollo 11 mission: determining the geologic texture of the surface of the moon. Next, he entered academia as a founding member of the Earth and Space Sciences department at SUNY Stony Brook, where he was a professor for more than 35 years.

Bob taught courses that ranged from basic science requirements to graduate-level studies in geoscience. He infused his courses with humor and erudition. That humor carried over into his writing. He published several books on meteorites, his academic specialty, as well as fiction, his passion. He also published several short stories in national magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post.

Bob is survived by his wife of 66 years, Marya; children Robert, Melissa, and Amy; nine grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Graduate alumni memorials are prepared by the APGA.