Regular readers will be shocked to hear that David Walton died suddenly on 12th February 2019. David was the force behind the journal, Antarctic Science. He founded this journal in the late 1980s, he acted as its Chief Editor for 30 years, consistently providing the energy, drive, enthusiasm and emphasis on quality that made this publication the wonderful journal that it has become. It continues to publish top-quality Antarctic Science across the disciplinary spectrum and from across the international community. Many readers may be unaware that thanks to David's vision, any surplus from this journal is directed into the Antarctic Science International Bursaries: significant small grants for early career Antarctic researchers to undertake exciting research work. David's enthusiasm for the journal and the way that top quality publications could also support the next generation of Antarctic scientists was infectious and he is the reason many of us devote time to the journal. We are of course making arrangements to continue the journal and the bursaries and would encourage Antarctic scientists to continue submitting papers in the normal way.
We will miss David enormously, both professionally and as a friend. We will find ways to mark his contribution to the Antarctic scientific community, but we thought that at this point we could provide no better obituary than that written by Professor Steven Chown, the President of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research, an organisation to which David made varied and long-lasting contributions. Our thanks to Steven for his permission to publish it here.
The Board of Trustees, Antarctic Science Ltd
