Canadian mining has its “Greatest Generation” too, and lost one of its foremost members with the passing of geophysicist extraordinaire Harold O. Seigel on July 13 at North York General Hospital in Toronto.
Born in Toronto in 1924, Seigel graduated in mathematics and physics at the University of Toronto in 1946, and stayed on to earn both a Master of Arts (Theoretical Physics) in 1947 and a Ph.D. (Geophysics) in 1949, with his doctoral thesis focused on the emerging field of induced-polarization (IP) prospecting methods.
Following a stint with Newmont in the southwest U.S., he returned to Canada in 1952 to establish a consulting business in geophysics. In 1956, he founded Seigel Associates, a contracting and consulting group.
Seigel became a director of magnetometer manufacturer E.J. Sharpe Instruments of Canada in 1961, when it went public, and was appointed its president in 1964.
In 1967, Sharpe Instruments acquired Seigel Associates, and the two companies merged under the name Scintrex – an acronym for “Scientific Instruments, Research and Exploration.”
Growing quickly after the merger, Scintrex moved in 1969 to its current location in Concord, Ont., and the company soon became a global brand name as a geophysical instrument manufacturer.
Under Seigel’s leadership in the 1960s, Scintrex introduced a line of induced-polarization equipment, fluxgate magnetometers, airborne and ground electromagnetic systems for base metal exploration and gamma-ray spectrometers for uranium exploration – all developed through its own research and development.
During the 1970s, Scintrex expanded into field-portable mercury spectrometers and time-resolved, laser-induced fluorescence analyzers for uranium exploration, plus magnetic-induced polarization methods and the Metalog neutron-prompt gamma in-situ analysis system.
In the 1980s, Scintrex added atomic-absorption spectrometers and the revolutionary Luminex system to its line up, and bought Varian Associates’ Cesium High Sensitivity Magnetometer division and EDA Instruments’ Earth Science division.
Seigel retired as Scintrex president in 1993 but stayed on as a full-time research director and chairman.
During his induction to the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame in 1995, he was hailed for conceiving and pioneering the development of two new methods of mineral exploration – IP and timed resolved photoluminescence – and his close involvement with the development of at least six other geophysical exploration methods. He was granted 21 mineral-exploration technology patents in six countries. In 1997, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada.
Seigel’s other honours included the J. Tuzo Wilson medal of the Canadian Geophysical Union, the Distinguished Service Award of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, the A.O. Dufresne Award of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum and the Maurice Ewing Gold Medal from the Society of Exploration Geophysicists.
A memorial service was held July 15 at the Beth Tzedec Synagogue in Toronto. Donations can be made to the Dr. Harold Seigel Memorial Fund c/o The Benjamin Foundation, online at www.benjamins.ca. Seigel is survived by his wife Marilyn, and an extended family including three children and four grandchildren.
Dear Recipient,
Is it possible for you to trace a publication by Harry Seigel, John Gingrich and Eddie Kostlin entitled “Exploration versus Acquisition”. This was a paper delivered at the 2000 SEG conference by Dr Harry Seigel. I ashould be grateful if you could e-mail me a copy of this paper.
Many thanks
Eddie Kostlin