It started in 2001, it featured the late
astronomer Carolyn Shoemaker and it
offered a talk that was, no pun intended,
out of this world.
“It” is the AAPG Michel T. Halbouty
Lecture Program, a popular and
scientifically important part of the annual
convention, sponsored by the AAPG
Foundation. Each year at a special, noncompetitive
time slot, this lecture series
throws a spotlight on global experts
discussing wildcat exploration – especially
in areas where major discoveries have
been made – as well as astrogeological
developments and achievements that
increase our knowledge and ability to
develop resources on Earth.
Shoemaker, who died in early August
at the age of 92, was at the time of her
lecture the widow of famed astrogeologist
and AAPG member Eugene Shoemaker.
Her inaugural Halbouty lecture was titled
“Through a Crystal Ball,” and it included
details of how she, her husband and
astronomer David Levy discovered
Comet Shoemaker-Levy, which collided
with Jupiter in 1994 and provided the
world’s first actual observation of an
extraterrestrial collision.
This Year’s Halbouty Lecture
This year’s Halbouty lecture might
appear to be more down-to-earth, but
the AAPG Foundation leadership is
certain that it will be an event that not
only demonstrates its commitment to
presenting scientific excellence but also
will prove valuable on a practical level for
geoscientists around the world.
Charles A. Sternbach, a past AAPG
president who originated AAPG’s Super
Basin program, will be this year’s Halbouty
lecturer, presenting a talk titled “Super
Basin Thinking: Methods to Explore and
Revitalize the World’s Greatest Petroleum
Basins.”
The world is not running out of
hydrocarbons, Sternbach says, and the new
concepts, techniques and methodologies
developed in super basins can be applied
globally to develop and deliver the energy
the world needs.
In other words, his talk is intended to
provide experiences, tools and insights that
can help geoscientists find success.
“This is very important to me – being
able to share geologic knowledge about
important plays in the world but doing it
in a way that allows our members to see
practical ways that the information can
help them in their careers,” Sternbach said.
And for him, the responsibility to share
that knowledge is personal. Sternbach has
more than 40 years of experience as an
oil explorer, and famed wildcatter Michel
Halbouty was an important mentor for him.
“I remember sitting next to Mike in a
technical session and hearing him tell me
that the best, most important talks, the
ones that he loved, were talks that directly
helped him find oil,” Sternbach said. “I’m
so very honored to be doing this talk in his
name, and I want to make this that kind of
experience for others.”
Sternbach’s lecture, sponsored by the
AAPG Foundation and free of charge to
IMAGE 2021 participants, will be presented
at 5:25 p.m. Monday, Sept. 27, at the
Colorado Convention Center.