Scott Babcock

Scott is currently professor and chair of the Geology Department at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington. He is also an affiliate faculty member of Huxley College of Environmental Studies and Seattle Pacific University. Scott received his undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College where he developed a life-long interest in mountaineering and outdoor sports among the White Mountains of Hanover, New Hampshire.

At the University of Washington, Scott received both his master’s degree and doctorate in the field of geochemistry, focusing on igneous petrology and soil geochemistry. He chose geochemistry because the wide breadth of the field allows it to be applied to research problems almost anywhere in the world — from the Arctic to the Antarctic and many wild places in between. And indeed, Scott's professional life has included contributions to the literature of an incredibly wide array of subjects. His published research ranges from the geochemistry and tectonic history of Antarctica, nitrogen isotopes in ground water systems and the regional geology of the Pacific Northwest.

He has been a contributing author to several books, including the Geology of the Grand Canyon, The Geology of North Victoria Land, Antarctica, Hiking Washington’s Geology, and most recently the "Mountain Geology" chapter in the 7th edition of the classic Mountaineering, Freedom of the Hills.