Zuchuan Chen
 | |
| Membership | Life Member |
|---|---|
Zuchuan Chen (1931–2001)
Memorial
Wang, Z., Xu, W., Cheng, J., Tinker, S., May, J., and Ford, G. (2001). ”Memorials.” The Leading Edge, 20(6), 661–662.
I (ZW) last saw Zuchuan Chen last December in Shenzhen, China, while attending the SEG/SPG International Symposium on Reservoir Geophysics. We chatted on many issues on the SEG, SPG (Chinese Society of Petroleum Geophysicists), 4-D, rock physics, etc. He requested a copy of my recent book that I had been meaning to send him, but it is too late now. SEG Life Member Zuchuan Chen passed away on 12 March 2001, while on a business trip to Libya. He was 70.
Zuchuan was born in 1931 in the port city of Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. After graduating from the Advanced Geophysical Exploration class of Jiaotong University in Shanghai in 1951, he went all the way from the east coast to work in Xinjiang, China’s far-west frontier. Because the civil war had ended only two years before and many areas in western China were still unsafe, he and his group were escorted by a platoon of soldiers and traveled over a month from Xi’an, the capital of Shaanxi Province, to Xinjiang where he worked as a practicing geophysicist. A year later he was transferred to Qinghai Province, another western frontier region. He started with the Qinghai Petroleum Bureau as a gravity and magnetics technician and worked successively as engineer, director engineer, team leader, and party chief. Because of his dedication to work and his outstanding contributions to the exploration effort in western China, he was named a National Model Worker in 1956, an honor bestowed on only a selected few nationwide.
In 1961, Zuchuan participated in the exploration and development of the Song-Liao Basin in northeastern China (the site of the largest oil field, Daqing). He was in charge of structural mapping using seismic data. He was then trans- ferred to the Bureau of Geophysical Prospecting, Ministry of Petroleum, in 1963 as deputy chief geophysicist in charge of geophysical research and development. After 1963, he participated in many strategic projects such as the massive seismic exploration effort in northern China, development and manufacturing of digital seismic recording systems, exploration and development of the Changqing Oil Field, importing geophysical digital technologies, and negotiating with foreign oil companies on the joint exploration and development of China’s offshore fields.
Throughout his distinguished career, Zuchuan did pioneering work in potential fields, migration, statics, velocity analysis, signal-to-noise ratio improvement, and multiple suppression. He published many papers and monographs on hydrocarbon indicator analysis, optimum weighted stack, 3-D, DMO, and residual NMO analysis for multiple sup- pression, and other areas. He was recognized as one of China’s top applied geophysicists, exploration strategists, and mentors to young geophysicists. His many technical awards included the National Grand Class and Third Class Prizes of the Advancement of Science and Technology for his work on oil and gas exploration in the Bohai Bay Basin and on vertical seismic profiling. His Relative Refraction Statics (RRS) method won China National Petroleum Corporation’s (CNPC) Third Class Award.
Zuchuan was active in local professional and SEG activ- ities. He was one of the key people in establishing the SEG Beijing Section, which he served as president. He was also vice president of the Society of Petroleum Geophysicists of China. He was instrumental in organizing the four SEG Geophysical Conferences and Exhibitions held in Beijing in 1985, 1989, 1993, and 1998. He served as Technical Program Co-Chairman for the 1998 SEG/CPS/EAGE Geophysical Conference and Exhibition held in Beijing, June 1998. Zuchuan received SEG’s Life Membership Award in 1998 for his outstanding technical contributions to the geophysics profession and his excellent services to our Society.
Zuchuan was not only a top geophysicist and scientist but also a great mentor. He was humorous and easy to talk with. At the bureau, he was always surrounded by young geophysicists. He taught them not only how to become geophysicists and scientists, but also how to better serve the Society and to be better human beings. We have always admired Zuchuan for his persistency in learning. A good example is his interest in the English lan- guage, at which he had only minimal training at high school. From the 1950s until the late 1970s, English, along with most other foreign languages, was abandoned in China. Zuchuan started learning English in his mid-40s, by listening to the radio and reading books before and after work. At that time he was already senior geophysicist, a lifetime job and a position with high honor and pride. He never intended to stop there though. He got up every morning at 5AM and practiced English. After work, he spent hours learning English and computer programming. Several years later, he became a fluent English speaker and writer and, of course, a great computer programmer.
While we celebrate the life and great achievements of Zuchuan Chen, we, along with all his colleagues, friends, and students, will deeply miss him. We miss his friendship, his humor, his smiles, his dedication to geophysics, and his dedication to the Society. His death is a great loss not only to the Chinese geophysical community, but also to the SEG. We were fortunate to have people like Zuchuan who devoted all his life to the geophysics, the petroleum industry, the well beings of others, and the Society.
Biography Citation for SEG Life Membership
Contributed by Zhijing (Zee) Wang
Zuchuan Chen is receiving Life Membership for his outstanding technical contributions to the geophysics profession and his excellent services to our Society. It is my great honor and privilege to introduce Zuchuan to you not only because he is one of China's top geophysicists but also because he has been my dear friend, mentor, and professional idol.
Zuchuan's career as a geophysicist traces back almost half a century. He was born in 1931 in the port city of Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, on China's east coast. After graduating from Jiaotong University in Shanghai, he went all the way from the east coast to work in Xinjiang, China's far-west frontier in 1951. Because the civil war had ended only two years before and many areas in western China were still unsafe, he and his group were escorted by a platoon of soldiers and traveled more than a month from Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi Province, to Xinjiang where he worked as a practicing geophysicist. A year later, he was transferred to Qinghai Province, another western frontier region in China. He started with the Qinghai Petroleum Bureau as a gravity and magnetics technician and worked all the way up to engineer, director engineer, team leader, and party chief. Because of his dedication to work and his outstanding contributions to the exploration effort in western China, he was named a National Model Worker, a prestigious honor awarded to only a selected few, in 1956.
In 1961, Zuchuan participated in the exploration and development of the Daqing oil field, in charge of structural mapping using seismic data. Daqing turned out to be the largest oil field in China. He was then transferred to the Bureau of Geophysical Prospecting in 1963 as deputy chief geophysicist in charge of geophysical research and development. Since 1963, he has participated in many strategic projects such as the massive seismic exploration effort in northern China, development and manufacturing of digital seismic recording systems, exploration and development of the Changqing oil field, importing geophysical digital technologies, and negotiating with foreign oil companies on the joint exploration and development of China's offshore fields.
Throughout his distinguished career, Zuchuan has done pioneering work in potential fields, migration, statics, velocity analysis, signal-to-noise ratio improvement, and multiple suppression. He has published many papers and monographs on such subjects as hydrocarbon indicator analysis, optimum weighted stack, 3-D TV DMO method, and residual NMO analysis for multiple suppression, etc. He has been recognized as one of China's top applied geophysicists and as an exploration strategist and mentor to young geophysicists. His many technical awards include the National Grand Class and Third Class Prizes of the Advancement of Science and Technology for his work on oil and gas exploration in the Bohai Bay Basin and on vertical seismic profiling. His relative refraction statics (RRS) method won China National Petroleum Corporation's (CNPC) Third Class Award.
Zuchuan has also been active in local professional and SEG activities. He was one of the principals in establishing the SEG Beijing Section that he currently serves as president. He is also vice-president of the Society of Petroleum Geophysicists of China. He was instrumental in organizing the four SEG Geophysical Conferences and Exhibitions held in Beijing (1985, 1989, 1993, and 1998), and served as technical program co-chairman for the one held last June.
Zuchuan is not only a top geophysicist and scientist but also a great mentor. He is humorous and easy to talk with. At the Bureau, he is always surrounded by young geophysicists. He teaches them not only how to become a great geophysicist and scientist but also how to better serve society and be a great human being.
I have always admired Zuchuan for his persistency in learning and self-improvement. He had only minimal training in English while at high school. From the 1950s until the late 1970s, English, along with most other foreign languages, was abandoned in China. Zuchuan started learning English by listening to the radio and reading books before and after work when he was in his mid-40s. He had already been promoted to senior geophysicist, a lifetime job and a position with high honor and prestige. He never intended to stop there though. He got up every morning at 5 a.m. and practiced English. After work, he spent hours in learning English and computer programming. Several years later, he became a fluent English speaker and writer and, of course, a great computer programmer.
I am sure that Life Membership in SEG is not going to be the final step of his outstanding career. SEG is fortunate to have members like Zuchuan who devote all their life to the advancement of geophysical technologies, collaboration with international colleagues, and service to our Society.
Links
Wang, Z., Xu, W., Cheng, J., Tinker, S., May, J., and Ford, G. (2001). ”Memorials.” The Leading Edge, 20(6), 661–662. doi: 10.1190/tle20060661.1[1]