On May 31, 2020, Dr. Michael D. Max passed away. He was the MTS DC Section co-chair for nearly seven years, co-chair of the Diving Committee, and an MTS fellow–one of the highest accolades a MTS member can achieve.

Max had a broad background including geology, geophysics, chemistry, acoustics and informational technology. He had a B.S. from the University of Wisconsin, at Madison, an M.S. from the University of Wyoming, and a Ph.D. from Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland.

Max worked as a geologist and geophysicist for the Geological Survey of Ireland, the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C,. and the NATO Undersea Research Center, La Spezia, Italy. He was an adjunct professor at the School of Geological Sciences of University College, Dublin, Ireland. From 1999 to 2011, Max was CEO and head of research for Marine Desalination Systems LLC, which established a hydrate research laboratory and explored industrial applications of gas hydrate.

He was the author of many scientific publications, four textbooks and established over 40 patents. He assisted in the writing of the U.S. Gas Hydrate Research and Development Act of 2000. He was also a member of the Methane Hydrate Advisory Committee of the U.S. Department of Energy (2014 to 2019), the Explorers Club Washington Group, Geological Society of America, Geological Society of London, American Geophysical Union, American Chemical Society, Coast Guard Auxiliary, Acoustical Society of America, the Union of Concerned Scientists, and American Association for the Advancement of Science.

No memorial events are currently scheduled.

If you would like to honor his memory, you can have memorial trees planted in a U.S. national forest.